If adult life is high school writ large, we can recognize Molly Munger. She's the ambitious senior who was left off the debate team or the homecoming court. But instead of accepting her defeat with good grace, she's making sure her nearest rival is rejected as well.
The Southern California heiress, the chief backer of the unpopular Proposition 38, an across-the-board tax increase aimed at funding schools, this week turned her guns against Proposition 30, Jerry Brown's attempt to mend the state budget through a sales tax increase and a hit on the wealthy. The result? Both tax measures are likely to be rejected.
In ads released this week, the Yes-on-38 campaign slammed the governor's measure, saying it was misleading and would allow "Sacramento politicians" to take money out of schools. (Memo to the uninitiated: Distrust any campaign ad that blames "politicians." Usually, it is advancing a much worse cause).
There are more than a few ironies to this development. For one thing, Munger's stance puts her on the side of her conservative brother, Charles, who has contributed more than $20 million to defeating the governor's initiative. Their sibling rivalry has echoes in the governor's family: Brown's sister, Kathleen, was defeated for governor in 1994.
After misgivings -- I still wonder about that bullet train -- I've decided to vote for the governor's initiative. You can make a good argument that schools don't spend their money
well. The recent story about ex-county schools Superintendent Charlie Weis leaving the public holding the bag for his