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# Before you vote on the recall, think about this
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/before-you-vote-on-the-recall-think-about-this-2/
- Published: 2003-10-07T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-25T01:05:20.000Z
- Author: David Pisarra
- Tags: Opinion, Santa Monica, #archive-import

Today we go to the polls to exercise our Constitutional right to choose a government. These are important choices. We have the opportunity, no matter how we vote, to give voice to our desires. Some will choose to vote to recall a governor who was by all accounts legally elected, but has fallen out of favor, partly due to circumstance, partly due to his leadership style. Others will choose to vote against the recall, based on the fact that the last election was held with proper procedures and that the governor does not deserve to lose his position.

It doesn’t really matter which way a person votes. It matters that a person votes.

Some will vote to terminate Gov. Gray Davis and jump on the juggernaut that is Arnold Schwarzenegger in his new found career. Others will hold true to party politics and are voting to retain Davis simply because he is a Democrat. Still, others like Larry Flynt because of his business acumen, others want Peter Camejo, since his is the environmentally friendly platform. Someone will vote for Angelyne. Not me. All voters are voting their personal agenda. And that is really the point.

I like Arnold because he is a man who has built himself up from nothing. That is the American way. We love the underdog, and a “good coming from nothing” story is always a winner in America. Whether or not that qualifies him to run our state is another question. But as for his accomplishments, he should be respected.

I like Davis. I find him to be a particularly boring speaker, which is bad for a politician. But what matters is whether or not he has done the job he was sent to Sacramento to do. Frankly, I don’t like some of his decisions. But I love some of the others. I have that problem with all politicians. I do think he has made some tough calls when necessary, and more importantly, I think he has made them to his personal detriment.

There were 135 candidates on the ballot and when I read through the candidates statements, (yes I really did read the entire thing) two things struck me. One, the number of candidates who were themselves against the recall. I found it curious that someone would go to the time and trouble of collecting signatures, registering, and then say they were against the recall. Second, the lack of women who were running. Out of the 135, there were maybe 18 female candidates, which is 13.33 percent. That is shocking to me. In a society where women are at least 50 percent of the population, why aren’t there more women in government? I realize that even though traditional roles are changing, women are still the primary caretakers of young children. That certainly would explain why there are fewer women of child bearing years in politics, but I would expect there to be an increase in the more mature women available to serve society. I believe that a mother could turn her skills at management and conflict resolution to the political arena and prove to be quite successful.

It is curious to me that a country with as many riches as we have, and with the range of resources at our disposal, that we have such a lack of female leadership. It seems to me that if a relatively small country like England could have a qualified prime minister who was female, and a country that was the world equivalent of an also-ran like India could have leadership by a woman, certainly California could.

But I digress. The point is that today we have before us four questions. One, should the governor be recalled? Two, if so, who should replace him? Three, should a portion of our budget be dedicated to infrastructure? And four, should the government be reconfigured to no longer collect ethnic data?

One and two are likely already decided before the polls open. Three and four, probably few actual voters have thought about beyond the sound bite blurbs that are printed in the sample ballots. The fact is that Proposition 53 is a very important proposition. If passed, it will affect our internal finances for decades. At first blush it looks like a simple proposition. Take the budgeted income, and dedicate 1–3 percent of it to roads, bridges and other infrastructure projects. It sounds like a great idea based on the number of potholes on my street. But I’m not so sure.

In theory, we send people to Sacramento as our legislators to write the legislation, read about the problem, do the research and to make decisions for the greater good on where to spend our collective money. It is their job to decide which projects are to be funded and which projects are to be scrapped. Most of us don’t spend enough time to properly research the economics of a budget. I would guess that most of the readers don’t really care about things like collateralized debt obligations, bond repayment schedules, public goods and the ever popular accelerated depreciation schedules — all of which have a direct impact on our budget, both from a societal perspective and personally.

I’m a business lawyer with a simple belief that I don’t need to have all the answers. I believe in hiring good people, giving them the tools they need, and that I should not be making decisions like whether or not 1-3 percent of the state budget should be dedicated to infrastructure. I don’t have enough information.

I also don’t know if collecting ethnic data is a good thing or a bad thing. It strikes me that a great deal of good can come from knowing ethnic information. I can also see how it could be distorted and used for an ill purpose. But that type of thinking brings me back to knowing that I don’t know what the right choice is.

Which is why our legislators are so important. They free us up to do the work we do, so that they can do the work that needs to be done for society on a grander scale. (David Pisarra is a partner in the Santa Monica law firm of Pisarra & Grist, he welcomes questions and (310) 664-9969 or e-mailed at).

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on October 7, 2003.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/100703.pdf?ref=smdp.com)