Press release via yahoo groups lists:
Organizers of San Francisco’s YouthVote, a mock election in which SF high school students get to weigh in on the candidates and measures to be voted on by the general voting age public in the upcoming November election, released the results of the student vote today, and Starchild, a sex worker and libertarian activist, was the runaway top vote-getter among the 11 candidates for school board, selected by 41.8% of those casting ballots. The runner-up, Tom Chan, was chosen by 32.2%, with the remaining candidates earning percentages from 31.1% down to 7.0%. Like regular voters, students were able to select up to three candidates to fill the three open seats on the Board of Education.
Starchild, who is the Libertarian Party of San Francisco’s outreach director, also polled first in the YouthVote when he previously ran for San Francisco Board of Supervisors. “I’m delighted and honored that San Francisco high school students once again made a pro-freedom, Libertarian candidate and erotic service provider their first choice, to represent them on the body that controls the city’s government-run schools,” he said.
“The evidence seems to be piling up that teenagers are smarter than adults in San Francisco,” he joked. “But seriously, I wish we could end the age discrimination that prevents high school students from casting votes in regular elections. If the rationale for denying them the vote is because they are dependents of their parents or guardians, then to be fair, adults who are dependents of government should also be disqualified from voting.”
According to YouthVote Coordinator Peter Lauterborn, about 7500 students cast ballots in the mock election. A YouthVote forum with Board of Education candidates was also held at Mission High School on September 27, with 10 of the 11 candidates, including Starchild, participating. As the highest school board vote-getter in the mock election, Starchild will receive a plaque of recognition.
Addressing the question of why he thinks students chose him over other candidates, Starchild said it’s probably a combination of several factors.
“I think young people are more willing to think outside the box,” he said. “They are more likely than their parents to vote for alternative party candidates, and to question the status quo on a fundamental level. Older people are more likely to be socially conservative and to believe there is something wrong with prostitution, or to think that a candidate who goes by a single name and looks kind of alternative can’t be taken seriously.”
Libertarian and other alternative party candidates did somewhat better in the YouthVote results than they tend to do among San Francisco voters in regular elections, with Libertarian candidate for Lieutenant Governor Pamela Brown polling 8.2% and Green and Peace and Freedom candidates outpolling Republican candidates in many of the contests for statewide office.
Starchild believes the content of the statement he submitted to be published in the YouthVote handbook for student voters also has something to do with his popularity.
“I was straightforward and to the point, making clear, easily understandable proposals, whereas most candidates who are more establishment-oriented tend to be used to speaking in what I call ‘politicalese’ — vague feel-good language, appeals to conventional wisdom, and stressing biographical accomplishments or high-profile endorsements, rather than articulating a solid agenda. I could be wrong, but my guess is that high school students have less patience with that kind of window dressing than adults do.”
“Of course I hope they like the libertarian ideas I stand for,” he added. “Coming from a pro-freedom point of view, my statement was heavy on student empowerment.” Starchild’s 100-word YouthVote handbook statement read:
As a former student, I have many years of experience working in government schools.
Changes I will seek include:
• Cut six-figure administrator salaries, get more resources into the classroom.
• Make teachers the highest-paid district employees, in charge of school budgets, curricula, and non-teaching staff.
• Let students attend their first-choice schools. Fund schools based on enrollment, so popular schools expand to meet demand and unpopular schools shrink until they improve.
• Give students and parents more say over which teachers are hired and retained. Students know who the good teachers are!
• Expand vocational training opportunities
• Let non-citizens vote!
• More field trips!
For more information, please contact Starchild at (415) 625-FREE, or YouthVote Coordinator Peter Lauterborn at (415) 554-3513
We probably won’t see these numbers again for a while, so I just wanted to preserve a record of this:
Currently the numbers are
Visits This Week 56,222
Page Views This Week 110,206
That’s quite a bit better than usual because of the election…
Better than usual this past week. The total numbers are since May 20, 2008, “today” is since the day rolled over at midnight east coast time, “this week” is past 7 days…
VISITS
Total 1,441,429
Average Per Day 7,163
Average Visit Length 1:16
Last Hour 95
Today 217
This Week 50,143
PAGE VIEWS
Total 3,962,112
Average Per Day 15,055
Average Per Visit 2.1
Last Hour 332
Today 722
This Week 105,383
http://www.anorak.co.uk/264168/politicians/libertarian-prostitute-starchild-wins-california-school-vote.html
LOL, what do you mean?
It is obvious you are oblivious to what is really out there. There has been factual cases of cows that have been mutilated by very clean cuts and parts missing from them. Whether by government or other means. I am sure you have your small section of space that you live in and that is as far as you go.
sc16, as a Rothbardian in recovery, I still recall how to be hyper-technical. The Canadian who walks over to Vancouver, WA, buys gum, and pays a sales tax IS “living and paying” in the US. That only requires respiration in the boundaries and paying 1 penny tax. That meets the standard — technically.
Again putting on my Rothbardian hat, voting is almost always “gangster enabling.” Virtually every vote goes either to the red or blue gang to plunder us. As a matter of defense of rights, there should be standards on who can and cannot vote. More voters means more gang members.
I don’t take this Rothbardian stand myself, just wanted to exercise those dormant circuits. I do believe I am forming a proto-position, which is: Voting is serious business, as it involves electing people who will mould public policy for generations. There need to be standards for who can participate in this this process. Citizenship seems a reasonable standard.
Thanks Jill! I had to repost
I hadn’t seen part 2 of the Starchild’s alien interview until now. What a classic! I’ve posted them both on my Facebook page for all the world to see!
How many hits does this site get, anyway?
http://www.sitemeter.com/stats.asp?site=s48indpolrep
How many hits does this site get, anyway? Also, is there a way to search not just the articles, but the comments, for key words?
I can do it, but I don’t know if there is a way for you to do it unless you sign up to write here.
Thanks, Michael!
Paulie, you’re probably right about that piece getting hits from people looking for escorts. Thanks for letting me know.
How many hits does this site get, anyway? Also, is there a way to search not just the articles, but the comments, for key words?
Great piece Starchild.
BTW this one is recently popping up in our top read articles
https://independentpoliticalreport.com/2010/05/san-francisco-libertarian-starchild-wins-sf-weeklys-best-political-activistbisexual-escort-2010/
Since it’s an old article that hasn’t been in the top read articles in a while, I’m guessing it made it into search engines for escorts, so hopefully it gets you some business.
I was wearing a mesh mini-skirt with a thong underneath — you know, just the type thing I normally wear to LP conventions, lol! 😉
Nothing inappropriate about it, imho.
I agree.
I don’t know how to post video on this site,
Unfortunately, you can’t, unless you sign up to post articles here.
BTW, have you seen the powerful anti-U.S.government-military-intervention video Em did, “Mosh”? I don’t know how to post video on this site, but maybe you can put the clip on here Paulie.
Yes, it’s very good. As a bonus I’ll also post We As Americans
Paulie @6 – I was wearing a mesh mini-skirt with a thong underneath — you know, just the type thing I normally wear to LP conventions, lol! 😉
Nothing inappropriate about it, imho. As far as I’m concerned, people should be free to dress however they want in public, or wear nothing at all. This one volunteer for the Hollywood Expo convention happening concurrently with Libertopia, Christopher Mulrooney, got all uptight about it. Said he had gotten complaints from people. Not sure to what extent that may have been true.
There was one older guy there in a veteran’s hat who seemed upset. Somebody told me it was the actor who’d played Boomer on the old Battlestar Galactica. Sad, if true — Boomer’s character was a good-times, fun-loving guy. I’m sure he would have hated to see himself age into an ornery old “Keep off the grass!” type spoilsport.
Drew of Reason TV is to thank for the video and choice of music, I had nothing to do with it. But I am an Eminem fan. Not to mention of the group “Key of Awesome” whose parodies you’ve been posting!
BTW, have you seen the powerful anti-U.S.government-military-intervention video Em did, “Mosh”? I don’t know how to post video on this site, but maybe you can put the clip on here Paulie. Note there are two different versions with different endings, one of which urges electoral action, and the other which shows a more direct form of people power!
* * *
Robert @8 – I said anyone living *and* paying taxes in the United States should be able to vote in the U.S., not anyone living *or* paying taxes there.
hey what are you doing putting my sweet heart’s boom boom on this thread? *sarcasm*
ROFL.
The truth may or may not be out there, but you sure are. .Way, way out there.
The term is illegal alien.
Wrong.
1) No human being is illegal
2) Laws which are not based on violations of rights are not really laws. No victim, no crime.
Only rightful property owners can claim trespass. The regime is not the rightful owner or co-owner of all property in the country.
Therefore, a law against trespass on its non-property is not rightfully a law at all.
Not illegal. Not aliens.
Undocumented, correction. The term is illegal alien.
And who knows, maybe there are truly real aliens out there. They have come for your body parts, from what I hear, all the cows that are mutilated and stories from people who claim abductions. You could be one of them. Will you think that is funny then?
Not funny with that illegal alien Starchild – I’ve seen the autopsy video – looks to me like they’re only coming for the taxpayer funded health care.
🙂
yes, a voting tax could be a way of putting it. Or a fee to vote, perhaps.
only tax to be a poll tax, under the theory that it would be tantamount to a user fee,
I think you mean that in the sense of voting tax, yes? Poll tax more generally refers to head tax – that is, taxing everyone the same set amount of money, regardless of income, spending, property ownership, etc.
sc, I was kidding about Malaysian hanging chads. You might use the term “resident non-citizens” to make the point clearer.
Can’t say I have a position on resident non-citizens voting. I’m inclined to not support that idea, as it seems prone to voter fraud. I don’t think someone can walk over from Canada, buy some gum in Vancouver, WA, pay a sales tax, and then vote in US elections. A rule-of-law procedure seems appropriate to me.
Back in the day, when I was pursuing a MA in econ at GMU, I wrote a paper for a public choice econ class making the case for the only tax to be a poll tax, under the theory that it would be tantamount to a user fee, the least coercive tax I could imagine. Not that it matters, but I seem to recall having gotten an A!
I don’t have a strong feeling about these sorts of process matters one way or the other. As a L, I find them to be a distraction, important only to deeply partisan Rs and Ds.
O/T since you were playing “Not Afraid” in this clip here is a parody I thought was pretty damn funny…
@3, 4 part II
What was “inappropriate” about your dress? And why did the guy complaining not want to be taped?
http://blip.tv/file/4269811
Non-citizens currently vote in many elections (legal resident aliens) and have done so since the 18th century.
Hey, that’s awesome!
Thanks, Jill and Robert! Jill, here’s a link to my interview with an undocumented alien:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5QRE9CQrVQ&feature=youtube_gdata
Robert, the reason I mentioned non-citizens voting is because there’s a measure on the San Francisco ballot (Proposition D) to let non-citizens vote in School Board elections.
The conventional logic on that being that if they have children in the schools, which they do, the district wants them involved as parents, and therefore they should be able to vote on school officials.
My feeling of course is that everyone who is living and paying taxes in the United States should be able to vote in the United States. No taxation without representation! Remember that slogan?
As for hanging chads being shipped in from Malaysia, or the like, are you sure that’s not happening now?
You go, Starchild! Thanks for the good press for the Libertarian party.
Seriously, there’s wonderful footage from Libertopia of Starchild’s impromptu interview of an alien (a REAL alien, you know, with buggy eyes and a big head and a different home planet). He discusses illegal immigration, and somehow the alien played right along! Truly a classic. I’ll see if I can find it.
Gots to love Starchild. Chutzpah squared.
But letting non-citizens vote? Whew-boy, that’s a can of worms. One imagines hanging chads being shipped in from Malaysia! 😉