" 

  legislation: 
 Passed into law: 

  
 Pending in 2007 session: 

  

  
 Failed in 2007 session: 

  

  
 Not introduced' in 2007 session: 

  
 State shapes have been adjusted in the second map so that their sizes represent electoral strength.'']] 
 ::Thanks for the good comments, Swingline. 

 ::Yes, there are many people who are ""geographically challenged.""  However this cartogram does a remarkably fine job of keeping the states recognizable to anyone with a basic level of geographic literacy, and it definitely provides valuable insight into the true progress of the project.  So how about having both? (see box at right) 

 ::As for colors, this version really has only four:  (1) Passed = blue, (2) Pending = green, (3) Failed = red, (4) No legislation = black.  A quick glance shows that the legislation is dead in the red states, alive in the green, and law in the blue. 

 ::The reason for separating the reds and greens into different levels of brightness is that it enables the map to highlight those states where the most activity has occurred in the current legislative session (Hawaii, Illinois, etc).  By looking at the current map, in contrast, you wouldn't know that anything had happened in Hawaii this year, even though NPV was a major issue there. 

 ::This map isn't trying to show a cumulation or farthest advance in each state.  It's just highlighting where NPV has been active and making news in the current year.  A truly informative depiction of NPV in 2007 would show where the major activity has taken place in the current session, even if the measure ultimately failed there.  No? 

 :: "