Direct democracy

Steve opines: Democracy itself is a pathetic form of government, but direct democracy is suicide. The people of South Dakota voted their representatives into office. That meant they were giving their consent to be governed by those representatives. Voter confirmation of legislative issues effectively negates the power of elected representatives to perform the very duties they were elected to carry out.

This is what representatives do when they don't want to tackle an issue they consider tough and/or controversial: They put it up for a referendum. Elected officials just need to stick to their principles and vote their conscience.