As I See It
La Crosse County recognizes advisory referendums are unnecessary
There are plenty of ways to express how we feel about issues. Who we choose to vote for, attending rallies, even editorials or letters to the editor. So we don’t need to cast ballots in advisory referendums to demonstrate our preferences. That is why it is good the La Crosse County Board of Supervisors chose not to hold three advisory referendums as part of the November election. Supervisors had considered asking voters how they feel about three contentious issues; legalizing abortion, legalizing marijuana and whether we should fund the police. But how we would have answered would not have mattered. These would not be binding referendum, just gathering opinion. The laws regarding abortion or marijuana wouldn’t change. Supervisors hoped the outcome of the votes would get the attention of lawmakers in Madison. But La Crosse County voters went to the polls in an advisory referendum a few years ago on the question of legalizing marijuana. It passed overwhelmingly, as it did in many other Wisconsin counties, but no laws were changed in Madison as a result. There is simply no point in these advisory referendums. It is good our elected officials have recognized that it is a wasted effort to try to change what you cannot change.
Chip DeNure
August 22, 2022 at 6:59 am
I see that no mention of the close vote on this is not reported here leaving the impression that the Board overwhelmingly agrees with Scott on the question.
Nick berry
August 22, 2022 at 7:56 am
Biden’s mantra after taking office was follow the science when it came to Covid.
We want to to stamp out smoking tobacco but legalize marijuana.
Read the CDC reports on marijuana and ask why it should be legalized.
Karen Bell
August 22, 2022 at 8:43 am
What ever happened to reporting ALL of the facts? The media wonders why we don’t take any stock in what they say; well this would be one reason. Removing another method of voters’ being able to express their opinion is not the answer.
Cathie
August 22, 2022 at 11:33 am
What happened to elected officials doing the work for the people. If it turns out that the majority of the population are for something in these referendums, why aren’t the laws changing to support that? There’s Dental insurance issues with reimbursement rates for Medicaid that the federal government and Dentists have not come to a conclusion on that has been happening over more than a 20 yr span which the means anyone who has this insurance won’t get seen by a provider any where near hear. So they suffer why the fed govt and dentists argue over this. It’s us people paying the price when government decides not to work for us like they’re supposed to. And I even tried working with Dan Kapanle and Tammy Baldwin and we see how far we got with them…..ugh