Trying To Fool The Voters In The Drug Initiatives

Pre-election mailings are unreliable. All Californians know that.

But there are some sure guides as to just who is trying to have who.

It's safe to say that whenever you read that the California Chamber of Commerce, the California Manufacturers Assn., and the California Farm Bureau Federation are on one side of a ballot initiative, it is sure you ought to be on the other.

These business organizations have NEVER been on the side of the public interest. They are always trying to steer California to the hard right, to the most unscrupulous big business positions. Whatever they are opposed to, is probably pretty good and whatever they are for is almost certainly very bad.

So in the present drug initiatives, these organizations are trying to smear Proposition 79, advocated by consumer advocates as a partial answer to outrageous drug prices foisted on the public by the drug industry.

I'm not convinced Proposition 79 is the answer, for the simple reason that the drug companies might litigate it to death if it is passed.

But when I read who's on which side of this one, I'm strongly tempted to vote for it.

When things on the ballot are complicated, just seeing who is on which side can be instructive. And one thing is certain in this case: The durg lobby and its supporters are not friends of the people of this state.

So, it should go without saying that voting for the lobby's prescription, Proposition 78, is not a good idea, and voting for 79 may well be. More on this later.