I own a small piece of property in rural mid-Missouri. The closest town is 11 miles away. It has a single big-box store that funnels money to a family in Arkansas, a single grocery store and a cluster of fast food restaurants on the main drag. Hunting is the preferred sport and the county is littered with small Baptist churches. Their hospital boasts 25 beds and two doctors– which may not be enough to care for the sparsely distributed population, but a lot of my neighbors there are retired military, with generous pensions and government provided healthcare. It is just a short drive to a VA clinic in the next county.
It is very quiet there except for buzzing insects, mooing cows, crunching of gravel on county roads, random gunshots and the occasional deep booming of artillery practice at Ft. Leonard Wood.
Living the dream.
The reason I am describing the nature around my farm is because this is the lens through which voters in that county view statewide and national politics. These are the folks who vote reliably for Republican candidates and socially conservative causes; and will be voting again in November. They really don’t understand or care about what happens in population centers of the state. Unfortunately for all of us, the thin population distribution of voters like this across Missouri’s rural counties gives them more political weight in state-wide issues than their number dictate.
As we speak, there is a broad initiative by the Missouri Democratic Party to reach these areas, to communicate with these populations better and field great candidates for office across the state. Until that effort gets traction, (and until we can eliminate the corrupting influence of out-state money) we need to drive adoption of proposals that can appeal to all Missourians. There are a few on the ballot in November that should be common sense for any citizen of our state.
Missouri Constitutional Amendment 1
Eliminates gerrymandered districts, lowers cap on campaign donations, bans revolving door lobbying, prohibits political fundraising on State property, limits gifts to state employees and requires ALL legislative records and proceedings be open to the public. These seem like good first steps to restoring the integrity of our democracy in Missouri.
Gradually increases the minimum wage in the State of Missouri to $12/hour by 2023. Considering that some retailers and food service companies are already increasing their minimum wages beyond that, this will set a new baseline for all wage-earners in the state. In 2006, even the voters in my farm’s county overwhelming supported a minimum wage increase.
Missouri Constitutional Amendment 2
Allow the use of marijuana for medical purposes, impose a 4% tax and use the proceeds to fund health and care services for Veterans. Considering that many in rural counties self medicate even with the risk of criminal charges now, this Amendment (or one of the two other parallel issues on the ballot) should be well supported. Moreover, this is a good first step to reducing the pressure on our criminal justice system and addressing the Opioid crisis in Missouri.
Much like the reversal of the Right to Work legislation in the last election, all three of these ballot initiatives exist because of well executed petition drives by the people of the state of Missouri. When our elected legislators fail to act in the best interests of our citizens, this is the way the work of governance gets done. These are not just progressive ideas, but a demonstration that by working together we can affect change in our state reasonably and cost-effectively.
I encourage you to visit the League of Women voters so you can read in more depth about the ballot initiatives in your area. Let’s lock arms with our rural brethren, and show our strength in unity.
— Mark Toenjes, WCD member