Vouchers Lose

Vouchers went down in flames in yesterday's statewide referendum. Overstock.com CEO Patrick Byrne, a staunch voucher supporter, said on TV last night that he thought this referendum was a "statewide IQ test". I hate to admit it, but I think he's got a point. Everyone I talked to I encouraged to research the issue, and all who did their own research changed their mind to support vouchers. People who were willing to be led believed the misleading arguments of the teacher's union. A large part of that, I think, was due to an overconfidence voucher supporters (including myself) had in the intelligence of Utahns. They forgot that it's a rare person who doesn't try very hard not to think for himself, and most people are generally willing to be led by the nose through TV and radio commercials. The anti-voucher side got in early and stayed on message, while the pro-voucher side only brought out their best arguments less than a month before the election.