Author: mystiqueinthemist

Arkansans for Limited Government, the group sponsoring the abortion referendum for this Autumn’s ballot, has responded to Secretary of State Thurston’s rejection of signatures.  The group says his rejection is improper and that he is illegally keeping the referendum off the ballot.  The entire response is included below.

Although enough signatures were gathered to allow an abortion referendum to be left up to Arkansas voters, Arkansas’ Secretary of State has denied the voters the right to decide the matter.  The Secretary of State claims a significant number of signatures do not qualify to be counted because they were obtained by paid canvassers.  The Secretary of State says the paid canvassers did not submit the proper paperwork about themselves.

https://apnews.com/article/abortion-arkansas-ballot-measure-9375891a74f6eecb13110ac07eb8c529

It’s almost time again for the Greene County Democrats to clean their “adopted” portion of highway.  In preparation for the next cleaning, here are some photos from last October’s cleaning!

This election cycle’s Primary Election Day is Tuesday, March 5. Early voting in this Primary Election begins February 20.

In Arkansas, both the Democratic and Republican parties conduct their Primary Elections on these days. A voter may only vote in one party’s Primary Election. Each party chooses the candidates it wants to appear under the party name for the November General Election ballot. Everyone votes on the same ballot during the General Election.

Nonpartisan judge positions are also being voted on during the Primary Election. The choices for these nonpartisan positions are the same on both the Democratic and Republican ballots. If one chooses to vote only the nonpartisan ballot, one will only be able to vote on these nonpartisan judge positions. Candidates from all parties will not appear on this ballot. Again, a voter may only vote in one party’s Primary Election.

Link of interest for more information:

https://www.kait8.com/2024/01/31/voting-guide-arkansas-2024-primary-nonpartisan-general-elections-march-5/

Our first meeting of the new year will be tonight at 6 p.m. in the Greene County Library’s Legacy Room.

Arkansas Governor Sanders today signed the law, also passed by the Arkansas House today, that would omit records concerning Sanders’ government travel and security from being available to the public.

https://apnews.com/article/huckabee-sanders-travel-security-arkansas-records-320300ea14af98adf88e2a2d39647a94

Sanders has successfully reduced transparency in government.

The Arkansas Legislature is currently conducting a special session. One issue they are considering is cutting back on transparency in state government. Governor Sanders has requested that the legislature cut out portions of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) so that citizens no longer have the right to view some government records. The records she objects to citizens viewing are those pertaining to her government travel and other aspects of her governance, such as some communications between her office and cabinet secretaries. Her travel and salary are paid for by the citizens for whom she works. Sanders says she is working toward greater transparency in government. This is quite obviously the opposite of that.

Research Source (and further reading): https://apnews.com/article/huckabee-sanders-open-records-travel-security-arkansas-92c49bca75f41451145cb00d01a3e62a

For more information on the special session, please visit the Legislative Issues and Information section of this website.

The following is an especially apt quote from page 80 of the January 1867 issue of Godey’s Lady’s Book. Yes, 1867.

“No man can safely govern that would not cheerfully become a subject; no man can safely command that has not truly learned to obey; and no man can safely rejoice but him that has the testimony of a good conscience.”

Godey’s was a popular American magazine in the 19th century.

The following is a quote from Aryn Baker’s article, “The Boiling Point,” in the August 14, 2023, issue of Time magazine:

“Protecting outdoor workers from extreme heat is easy, and in most cases, inexpensive. Public Citizen estimates that requiring employers to provide workers with cool water and periodic shaded rest breaks could prevent at least 50,000 injuries and illnesses a year. In 2021, President Joe Biden asked OSHA to draft a federal protocol that would do just that. But OSHA rulemaking is slow, and, meanwhile, opposition is ramping up, led by industry groups that hold that heat protections are too onerous for business.”

Meanwhile, the Republican-led legislature in Texas recently eliminated protections for those working in the heat. https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2023/07/21/1189179220/amid-a-record-heat-wave-texas-construction-workers-lose-their-right-to-rest-brea

In most states, there are few protections for those working in extreme heat. https://www.axios.com/2023/07/21/worker-heat-protection-osha-regulation