Maybe they’re not so dumb

Since the 1960s I’ve been convinced that the people of Mississippi were the biggest idiots in the world. Phil Ochs’ song “Here’s to the State of Mississippi” and the movie “Mississippi Burning” will give you a pretty good idea why I say that.

But yesterday, Mississippi surprised just about everyone by rejecting the “Personhood Law” on the ballot that would have declared a fetus a “person” under the law from the moment an egg was fertilized.

The law had been proposed by an extreme anti-abortion group and would quite possibly have caused all sorts of legal chaos given that some birth control methods limit the ability of a fertilized egg to nest in the uterus.

Over 55% of Mississippi voters declared the proposed law as going too far and, quite possibly for the first time in my life, I find myself agreeing with the Mississippi majority.

Elsewhere, the voters of Ohio told the Republicans to take their union busting laws and stick them where the sun doesn’t shine. They also told Obama to stop trying to control their lives by approving a measure that said no federal, state or local law could force an employer or individual to participate in a health care system.

Just in case anyone wasn’t aware of it, the good people of Ohio just put all the politicians on notice not to tell them what to do anyhow under any circumstance as they’re quite capable of making their own decisions thank you very much.

In Arizona the architect of Arizona’s controversial immigration law got booted by a moderate Republican (are there still such things?) in a recall election.

And so the pendulum swings yet again.

This is all evidence that most Americans are still moderates with a strong streak of independence. At least for the moment, the Republic seems in good hands once again.