Seattle Voters Just Say NO

10/20/2003

"You can do anything you want to do. What is rare is this actual wanting to do a certain thing: wanting it so much that you are practically blind to all other things, that nothing else will satisfy you. . . . I know I have said a lot when I say 'You can do anything you want to do.' But I mean it. . . . Blunder ahead with your personal view. . . . The real work of art is the result of a magnificent struggle." - Robert Henri, painter, in the Art Spirit

SEATTLE VOTERS JUST SAY NO

By a 2 to 1 margin, Seattle, Washington voters rejected a proposal to tax espresso ten cents a cup. Proceeds from the tax were targeted to fund child care for poor children. The proposal, called Initiative 77, was opposed by Seattle-based companies, Starbucks and Tully's Coffee, as well as by numerous small coffee shops, that felt singling out one type of coffee was unfair and would hurt sales. Stephanie Bowman, coordinater of a group called Joined to Oppose the Latte Tax (JOLT), had argued that everyone, not just coffee drinkers, should be asked to pay the tax.

Not all efforts to raise money for children are so unsuccessful. Check out the advocacy efforts of the members of the Exchange Strategic Partnership at http://www.childcareexchange.com/ECEorgs/index.php

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