Proposed Activist Referenda Petition to Overturn McDonalds Happy Meal Ban

Activists List
1

Dear All;

The Board of Supervisors has now over-ruled the mayor's veto of the McDonald's
Happy Meals ban. However, it is still not a done deal.

A Referendum Petition having signatures of at least 10% of the vote cast for the
last mayoral election which would be 14,946 will require the Board of
Supervisors to repeal. If the Board of Supervisors does not repeal then it goes
on the next immediately available ballot for voters to decide.

This is the pdf for the guidelines. Due to the fact the legislation does not go
into until Dec. 2011 of next year there is a whole year in which to collect
signatures of registered voters. Then the Petition must be filed within 30 days
of the date the legislation goes into effect.

http://www.sfgov2.org/ftp/uploadedfiles/elections/candidates/ReferendumGuide.pdf

These are the latest SF Examiner articles about the Happy Meals ban.

http://www.sfexaminer.com/columnists/2010/11/there-way-weigh-toy-ban

http://www.sfexaminer.com/blogs/under-dome/2010/11/happy-meal-toy-ban-official

http://www.sfexaminer.com/local/2010/11/another-wacky-ban-added-city-s-list

Now the situation is there are people who are residents of San Francisco who
have written to the supervisors about their dumb new law. The first article
mentions them.

If we would agree to this - yes there are vegans among us and Mickie D does have
salads - literally standing outside various McDonald's around the City and
collecting signatures from customers would be reasonably easy (?) PLUS it could
include OPH - Operation Politically Homeless material and voter registration
cards for signing up new voters - hopefully Libertarian.

McDonald's has 19 fast food places in the City.

It would mean we would have to have an approved Referendum Petition with a full
copy of the legislation attached to each signature petition. This to avoid the
the petition fiasco which occurred with the Bay View/Hunters Point petition to
over rule the Redevelopment project.

This also could include getting corporate help from McDonald's and the local
McDonald's franchise owners. It could mean getting other political groups
involved like the Republican Party and even some Democrats who think the ban is
stupid.

It would mean setting up a Facebook site for the referendum petition and even a
web site. If fund raising happens then we would have to abide by campaign
finance laws so this would be avoided unless we could get some deep pockets to
hire a treasurer to file the forms needed.

Ron Getty

2

So, what other restaurants are affected? Are there any small-time
restaurants that do something similar with toys accompanying a child's meal?
I recall growing up in Tennessee there were several restaurants that would
give kids a little coloring book and a few crayons. I believe that would be
banned under this law as well.

I just can't bring myself to donate my time free of charge to a corporation
as large as McDonald's. They and their buildings full of lawyers have taken
advantage of big government more times than I can count (beef subsidies,
anyone?), and I simply do not consider that company to be a friend of
liberty. If anything, the attacks on McDonald's combined with the benefits
McDonald's receives from big government are a wash, and I'd bet they're even
still coming out slightly ahead. Associating the LP with that corporation
would fairly well cement our undeserved reputation as nothing more than the
party of big business.

Can we re-focus this story as a Board of Supervisor's vote on some smaller
restaurant in the City that gives coloring books out with their
kids-size fettuccine (high-fat) plate? Then, I'd be happy to participate in
a push for repeal.

Rob

3

Dear Rob;

and here i was thinking we could scam a few free big macs and large orders of
fries while slaving away collecting signatures outside of 19 different Mickie
D's and rotating through them day by day one free meal a day...LOL

NO the Board of Stupidvisors did not include child crayoning it's specific
legislation specifically targeting specifically Happy Meals...

BTW: where did this party of Big Business thing come from? In all my chats with
Facebook friends who are not libertarian on discussions of political nature that
accusation never came up about Libertarians(???)

Now Republicans ARE the party of Big Business just as Democrats are the party of
Big Labor and Big Government.

In the meantime the referendum process applies to all but some specific
legislation the Board of Supervisors passes and enacts after two reading and/or
veto over ride.

So then maybe a different piece of legislation???

Ron Getty

4

Cato is often attacked as defending big business. An example:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=8646928651

5

Dear Rob;

Big difference between crony-capitalists aka private enterprise and true free
market entrepreneurs. Crony-capitalists and companies engaged in private
enterprise are the BIG BUSINESSES who get government grants, loans, subsidies,
contracts and protective tariffs.

True free enterprise and free market capitalists disdain any government
contracts help aid and assistance.

The people I have spoken with who are not Libertarians do understand the concept
between private enterprise/crony-capitalists and free market enterprise and
entrepreneurs who wing it on their own hook.

Ron Getty