I needed to make room on the Voices page for a surplus of election-related pieces, so I didn’t write a column this week. But I do have a few thoughts, especially for those Arkansans who have yet to vote. And some pictures of Charlie, of course.

On the four ballot issues, they’re all a big NO for me, as they’re largely bait-and-switch proposals that have no place in the state Constitution. The first three are what my friend and “crazy cousin” Earl Babbie would call soluprobs; basically solutions looking for problems, and these would cause too much trouble, partly by making the state motto, Regnat Populus (the people rule), absolutely meaningless.

Issue 1: With the Legislature we have, why would we want legislators to be able to call themselves into special session anytime they want, further wasting tax dollars and trying the patience of thinking people? This is yet another power grab to further upset the balance of power and take power from the governor, whose power is already weaker than it should be (overriding a veto requires only a simple majority, which is why several laws made it into the books before being stopped by the courts).

Issue 2: There’s already a rigorous process for citizen-initiated ballot issues that makes it very difficult to get one on the ballot (it’s much easier for the Ledge to get its three issues on the ballot). Now the Legislature wants to make it more difficult to pass issues by requiring them to pass with at least 60 percent of the vote on the general election ballot. The reasoning is that we should make it more difficult to amend the Constitution, but that ship’s already sailed. Shame on voters for passing things like a higher minimum wage and medical marijuana and forcing the Ledge to perpetuate this insanity!

Issue 3: There’s no need to pass this bit that purports to expand religious freedom, basically by removing the requirement for infringement to religious liberty to be “substantial.” This really just opens the door wider to abuse and bigotry, most likely against the LGBTQ+ community.

Issue 4: I keep hearing people say we can’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. True in many cases, but in this case, there really isn’t much good about Issue 4, and citing the danger of Issue 2 passing as a reason to pass Issue 4 now is just nuts because this one is too flawed. Legalize recreational marijuana if you must, but later with a better-written proposal that doesn’t essentially give current medical cannabis licensees a monopoly and the ability to limit their own competition, and that decriminalizes possession of minor amounts, etc. We did something similar with the previously passed casino amendment, with voters putting locations (one county is still fighting this because it doesn’t want a casino) and the owners in the Constitution. Details like that should be left to regulators to decide, not voters.

Governor: I cast my vote for Chris Jones because he is clearly the most qualified candidate in the race, party notwithstanding. Frankly, I’m tired of the trend in Arkansas of voting for party above all else. Doing that has landed us with entirely too many underqualified constitutional officers in the past decade or so (in the secretary of state race alone, I can’t count how many stellar candidates since 2010 have lost just because they had a D behind their names). For the state to climb out of the pit it’s in, we have to change the way we vote, and that means voting for people who have qualifications other than an R behind their name and/or national connections (uh, the Arkansas governor runs Arkansas, not the nation, and needs to be truly here for our people, not looking for the next step.

I don’t live in Little Rock, so I have no say in the mayor’s race, but if I did, my vote would probably be for Greg Henderson, who has shown he really cares about the city and has some good ideas. He’s also kept his cool in numerous instances where others just concentrated on divisiveness.

Divisiveness is a huge problem, and we have to stop letting it get in the way of good government.

That’s enough politics for now. This calls for pics of the fur-nephew, who I have the pleasure of sitting this week.