November 3, 2005

StreetTalk

by Carol Rosen

Which of the eight propositions in the upcoming Special Election do you feel strongly about and why?
(Asked at Almaden Center)


“All eight of these are Schwarzenegger’s waste of money. Just out of principal I wish I didn’t have to vote. These are not hotbed issues. We don’t need special elections. We didn’t need to have this election and waste all this money.”

Rex Wonnel, 55
Almaden / County road construction inspector


“Amazingly, I haven’t done my homework yet. My parents moved out of the country over the weekend and I’ve been tied up with that. I’m more conservative, but I do need to do the research.”

Emilia Gottheil, 40
Almaden / Homemaker


“I strongly agree with Number 73 [parental notification of abortion] because the minor can’t decide. She’s so young and she hasn’t dealt with life—they are making the decision from their hearts not so much from their minds.”

Sara Shams, 38
Almaden / Homemaker


“I feel strongly about 73. I definitely feel it should be approved. When you are raising a child, the parents have the right to make all decisions until the child is 18. And especially with something as important as an abortion, parents should not be left out.”

Dee Vega, 56
Almaden / Office manager


“Yes, Number 73 touches my hot buttons because I’m against parent notification because it’s something a lot of kids can’t go to their parents about.”

Evie Turk
Almaden / Homemaker


“I don’t know about 73. Sometimes, children don’t tell their parents because they are afraid of how their parents will react and they don’t want to ruin their credibility with their parents. Maybe the parents should be told, but make sure they don’t confront the child. Get a volunteer at the clinic that would mother these girls for their emotional and physical care.”

Mary Hamid, 50
Almaden / Loan officer


“The teaching proposition hits my hot button. I’m a new teacher and we don’t have the privileges of the more experienced teachers. I still think teachers need to be protected because they are vulnerable in their jobs. I think at the high school level it’s hard enough to get good teachers, but this will discourage teachers from getting into—and staying in—the profession.”

Joe Dingman, 59
Almaden / High school teacher


“I’m against 74 because I’m a teacher and I don’t think it’s a good idea. If this passes, we’re going to be losing teachers. If a teacher is bad, they can still find other positions within the schools or get them more training. Teachers still go to school. In order to keep our credentials we have to go to school.

Maria Miller, 40
Santa Teresa / Teacher


“I plan to vote no on all of them. I disagree with Gov. Schwarzenegger. I object to this election and I don’t agree with him on anything. These are not really reforms. “

Chuck Shinn, 75
Almaden / Retired