Progressive Democrat Issue 84: Thoughts

Been isanely busy. But I will try to put something out at least in blog form.

Mostly I am busy with some local primary races which are not appropriate for this newsletter. Although I am all for hard fought primaries, that is not the purpose of this newsletter which is rather designed to unify and inspire Democrats about Democrats. So, I urge all to focus on their local primaries. But we won't discuss them here.

This issue has a more global focus since that is my current focus other than on local races.

I should add that those who have followed my non-political efforts to save a synagogue in Eastern Latvia might be interested in this update. I include some perspective into why I am doing it.

Progressive Democrat Issue 84: THE MIDDLE EAST

I have been absolutely horrifed by how the world is decending into chaos, even as our great leader is giving unwanted massages to the German Chancellor, and how so few people can find the compassion and balance to sympathize with Israelis, Palestinians and Lebanese alike. Our world leaders, from Hamas to Kadima to Hezbollah to Bush, are failing. The result is death and chaos. The solution...just may be you and me and a thousand other regular people who care.

Sometime back I began a project that I called an Integrated, Grassroots Development project for East Africa. People responded well to it and one of the beneficiaries was Kiva.org whose efforts to generate microloans to small businesses originally in East Africa, now globally, were greatly aided by the blogsphere. Inspired by this I tried generating interest in a more global effort, which didn't get as much attention. I now want to apply my ideas regarding Integrated, Grassroots Development to the horrible situation in the Middle Easte. If not now, then when? If not us, then who? It is up to us.

Crossposted on Daily Kos

My integrated approach to helping East Africa was a new vision for international development that can be applied anywhere the blogsphere wants to focus on. My proposal was this: a coordinated effort by the progressive blogsphere that will focus on several interconnected issues with a view towards REGIONAL and COMMUNITY based development. I originally proposed the target area of Uganda/Kenya/Tanzania (roughly the Rift Valley/Lakes region of East Africa) as a trial run for this idea because of the critical environmental issues, the presence of excellent groups like Kiva, and the fact that these nations are just stable enough have a chance for becoming actually prosperous if the immediate crises can be survived. Interest was at first high, but has petered out since then. Had I more time and more connections, maybe I could rekindle that effort. But an area where there is even more of a critical need is the Levant: Israel, Palestine, the Lebanon and the Jordan Watershed. Without economic and environmental stability, no peace is ever possible. Without a stronger moderating voice from all sides, no peace is ever possible. There are many small groups out there whose goal is to foster better economic and environmental conditions in this area and to foster a better dialogue among moderates.

Israel, Palestine, Lebanon...all are nations that deserve full recognition and viability. Forget sides. Forget who started what. Forget borders. I am not aiming for a solution. I am aiming for the conditions that will allow a solution to be possible and lasting. I don't care, for the purposes of this effort, who committed what terrorist act or which government is the worse. I care about people, whatever their religion or culture, and I care that people will continue to die if something isn't done. Political solutions from the top have failed since 1948, devolving repeatedly into war. Time for bottom up efforts.

I want to begin by introducing you to a mere handful of groups whose efforts to bring peace, prosperity and dialogue in the Middle East deserve our help at all times, particularly now. Please help me to help these groups.

When I was in Israel, between the assassination of Rabin but before chaos broke out again, everyone I talked to, Muslim or Jewish, wanted peace. Why? "Because it is good for business." Therein lies the solution that goes beyond the politics. People want peace when they have a stake in peace. Otherwise the urge to fight takes control. The more people peace benefits on all sides of the conflict, the more reason people will have to work for peace and to oppose war. In addition to the desire, however, people need the mechanism for dialogue, something that is difficult in an atmosphere where extremists dominate the dialogue. The efforts I want to highlight aim to further economic stability and cooperation as well as dialogue among moderates on all sides. Please help, not just with efforts that help one side, but efforts that help ALL sides.

Since I am known to be pro-Israel, I will start with a group that helps Palestinians. The Shurush Initiative is a nonprofit organization, founded by an American and an Israeli, dedicated to improving the grave economic situation in the West Bank and Gaza through transparent microfinance and proactive employment. Shurush provides financial and technical support to Palestinian microfinance organizations that offer services including microcredit loans and business training. Further, Shurush works to ensure the transparency of its partner microfinance institutions. Battling poverty and corruption at the same time, this organization is recognized internationally as a light in the darkness of the region.

May 23, 2003, Rachel Pomerance of JTA, global news service of the Jewish people, described Shurush as "hope that business can trump politics [uniting] inter-ethnic trio." The Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs describes it as "Students' Proposal: Jobs Not Terrorism." For more on the international honors and recognition they have received, please go here. Please support The Shurush Initiative

Peaceworks Foods takes this idea one step further: foster economic cooperation among Israelis and Muslims, making peace necessary for good business. PeaceWorks currently does business with Israelis, Palestinians, Egyptians, South Africans, Turks, Indonesians and Sri Lankans. Their products include delicious Tapanades as well as fruit and nut bars. In addition to directly bringing together businesses from all sides, a percentage of the profits from PeaceWorks Foods is donated to One Voice (see below for this initiative to further dialogue among moderates). I have tried some of their products and find them all very high quality and delicious, though they are "gourmet" hence not cheap. If you own a retail outlet and want to carry Peaceworks foods, you can buy in bulk at a discount. For small consumers like myself, you can purchase smaller quantities here.

PeaceWorks Foundation’s One Voice initiative is a global platform designed to empower people to achieve consensus for conflict resolution at the grassroots level. It launched in the Middle East, where extremists have seized the agenda and taken the political process—and the minds of the people—hostage.

The One Voice Movement aims to amplify the voice of the overwhelming but heretofore silent majority of moderates who wish for peace and prosperity, empowering them to demand accountability from elected representatives and ensure that the agenda is not hijacked by forces of militant absolutism. OneVoice is a grassroots movement working with ordinary Israelis and Palestinians, deploying cutting edge technology, electronic democracy, a network of member organizations, and a broad cadre of experts, dignitaries, celebrities and spiritual leaders, to enable citizens to craft a public consensus around issues at the heart of the conflict. This Public Negotiations Process also educates people about the issues themselves as well as about non-violent means for conflict resolution. This is the kind of grassroots dialogue that will, given time, out last the rage of the extremists. Please help the One Voice Movement.

The Center for Jewish-Arab Economic Development (CJAED) is an Israeli non-governmental organization (NGO) that promotes regional economic development through cooperative projects among people in the Middle East. CJAED also aims to close the gaps between the Jewish and Arab sectors in Israel, thus building the foundation for sustainable economic development and peace. CJAED aims to provide Israeli Arabs with the necessary skills and advantages to capitalize on opportunities for development. In addition, the full integration of the Palestinian citizens of Israel into the national and regional economy is crucial to the health of Israeli society. In addition, economic cooperation - on the basis of mutual benefit and respect - among Israelis and Middle Eastern business people serves vital interests for the future of the region. Therefore, CJAED fosters contact, information and the analysis of competitive advantages among Israelis, Palestinians, Jordanians and Egyptian enterprises and entrepreneurs.

Givat Haviva won the UNESCO PRIZE for Peace Education 2001 for its Jewish-Arab Center for Peace at Givat Haviva. The mission of Givat Haviva today is to cope with the major issues that are on the agenda of Israeli society, and to foster educational initiatives, research and community work in the fields of peace, democracy, coexistence, tolerance and social solidarity. Over 50,000 children, youth and adults from Israel and abroad participate annually in the seminars, workshops, courses, conferences and other projects offered by Givat Haviva in a range of educational, academic and professional fields.

Recognizing the importance of promoting cooperation between Palestinians and Israelis in protecting their shared environment, The Economic Cooperation Foundation (ECF), The Palestinian Council of Health (PCH) and The Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI) and various environmental NGOs developed the concept of a Palestinian-Israeli Environmental Secretariat. PIES is open to all environmental NGOs that support Palestinian-Israeli cooperation. Their goals are:

·  To forge a Palestinian-Israeli commitment to environmental protection and to promote joint activism by bringing together different sectors of the civil societies, especially youth, teachers, journalists and adults.

  ·  To promote "people to people" activities, using environmental projects as a means to develop shared discourse, reorientate attitudes, and to teach acceptance of the "other".

  ·  To promote sustainable development, based on mutual Palestinian-Israeli interests.

  ·  To create a mechanism to develop joint environmental projects aimed at upgrading the environmental infrastructure (e.g. liquid and solid waste collection and treatment, and nature and landscape protection).

  ·  To support Palestinian and Israeli environmental NGOs in initiating and carrying out joint projects by providing technical assistance to member NGOs.

  ·  To train teachers and guides for joint environmental and other "people to people" activities.

  ·  To create a joint environmental database that will serve decision makers, assist in lobbying planners and politicians, and encourage responsible development and joint assessment.

  ·  To provide technical support to Palestinian NGOs. SPNI and Israeli NGOs will make their facilities available in order to strengthen the Palestinian environmental community.

Please visit their website to find out more and to contact them to offer help. Personally I think they need help with their website which is pretty unprofessional, so maybe someone can at least offer them help with that.

The Abraham Fund is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting coexistence between the Jewish and Arab citizens of Israel. Through advocacy and awareness campaigns, and by sponsoring coexistence projects, The Abraham Fund fosters increased dialogue, tolerance and understanding between Arabs and Jews. A pioneer in this work, The Abraham Fund serves as a central resource for coexistence professionals worldwide.

Their goals include:

· Promoting tolerance, mutual understanding, and trust between groups;

· Strengthening individual group identity by building respect for the rich diversity of Israel’s ethnically mixed society;

· Achieving an environment of social and political equality for all citizens of Israel;

· Implementing advocacy campaigns that raise awareness on issues of tolerance, democracy, and equality within the State of Israel

· Institutionalizing efforts for the development of coexistence policies and programs for acceptance in all segments of Israeli society.

These groups are the hope we must look to amid the horror and despair. Rather than being divided over Israel vs. Palestine we should be united over helping the PEOPLE of Israel and Palestine. I hope this diary gives you some tools over which to unite.

Progressive Democrat Issue 84: THE MIDDLE EAST II

Related to my grassroots efforts for Middle East Peace, this is from a few weeks ago, written by Michael Bouldin on Daily Gotham:

I wonder sometimes what this whole blogging thing really amounts to. You write your little posts, people agree or do not, and at the end of the day, maybe you make an impact, maybe not. Sometimes, however, blogs matter in ways that nobody seems to have thought of before, as in this case.

Some good news to come out of the current war in the Mideast is that there is an ongoing conversation between Lebanese and Israeli bloggers. This is probably the first time in human history that civilians on opposing sides in a cinflict can freely communicate, and nobody has any idea what effect this will have.

From the link above, perhaps the most astonishing blog I've ever come across:

The internet has also been offering some surreal experiences, like the ability to have a Beirut-Tel Aviv online IM chat in real time while the missiles are falling. That's what happened to me and this blogger a few nights ago. We chatted while he was sitting on the roof of his apartment building in Beirut, watching missiles from Israeli planes fall on his city and describing it to me. He was carrying on an online conversation with another Israeli at the same time. And he was able to describe his feelings and the atmosphere in a human, personal way that no newspaper article or television news segment could achieve.

Now, given that a critical part of any war is the dehumanization of the enemy, how is that going to work when all you have to do to look at the people on the other side is log on the internets?

Much to ponder, it seems.

Progressive Democrat Issue 84: VOTING MACHINES: New York Americans For Democratic Action Statement

This is actually from April, but was only recently given to me to release. This was the statement made by Evelyn Jones Rich of NY Americans for Democratic Action (NYADA) to the NY City Council Government Operations Committee. I think it is well worth making more public because it hits on many key points from the point of view of someone who has been agitating for voting rights for a long, long time. Even though it was made to the NY City Council, the issues it mentions apply nationwide.

Good afternoon, Chairman Felder, and members of the Government Operations Committee. I am Evelyn Jones Rich, Chair, City Issues Committee, New York City Americans for Democratic Action (ADA). I am pleased to associate NYC ADA with the views of our colleagues from New Yorkers for Verified Voting in urging the Committee Members to sponsor, report out of Committee and adopt Resolution 131 and Resolution 228. Thanks to Councilman Peter Valone Jr. from my old stomping ground in Astoria who is an early sponsor of this legislation.

First, about NYC and National ADA. New York City ADA is the local affiliate of Americans for Democratic Action, an independent, liberal, political organization, founded in 1947 and dedicated to promoting individual liberty and economic justice through education and political action. Our past members include Eleanor Roosevelt and Hubert Humphrey. Our current members include Congressmembers Carolyn Maloney and Jerrold Nadler, Borough President Scott Stringer, and City Council Persons, Gale Brewer and G. Oliver Koppel.

Congress passed the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) after the 2000 Presidential election disaster and authorized $3.8 billion to help states upgrade voter equipment and establish state-wide voter registration data bases.

HAVA formed the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) to help states spend the federal dollars on voting systems and create a process to certify voting equipment.

Delays up and down the line mean that New York State is last in voting reform. Voting machine manufacturers are promoting Direct Recording Electronic (DRE) machines – particularly “touch screen” models – and have launched a multi-million marketing campaign to convince state election officials to certify them.

Touch screen voting machines rely on computers to count votes but there is no back-up copy in case of a crash and no way to detect tampering. There is no opportunity to observe the counting of the votes. Believe it or not, in the U.S. today, a majority of the electorate casts ballots on computers that run software that is hidden from vierw and lacks any independent way of verification.

NYC ADA passed a resolution in February 2006 supporting Precinct Based Optical Scanning (PBOS) which insures that the voter’s intent is accurately recorded on the legal ballot of record.

Specifically, we support the use of paper ballots hand-marked by voters. We favor the use of ballot-marking devices by voters with disabilities and voters in the state’s minority language communities. These three options represent, in our view, the only way, at this time, to provide both accessibility and transparency in voting, consistent with the Help America Vote Act (HAVA). PBOS voting systems have been used for 20 years – they are time-tested, reliable, cost less and retain local public bipartisan control of elections. ADA forwarded a copy of that resolution to all members of this committee, to District Leaders, and members of Board of Elections at the local and state level.

We could dwell at length on reasons why we oppose Direct Recording Electronic (DRE) Machines. Those who favor the more costly DRE’s will do that!

NYC ADA supportsWe support PBOS for three basic reasons.

First, paper ballots do not rely on blind faith (as does DRE) but insure that there is a physical vote and, therefore, the ability to audit, to count and recount with both accuracy and honesty. From North Carolina to Ohio to Texas, votes have been lost or miscounted. Voting technology must be transparent. No one can observe the handling of paperless electronic ballots. The average citizen may have blind faith in computers. We, in ADA, do not!

Secondly, paper ballots enable the voter to verify that his/her vote is tabulated correctly. The paper ballot, therefore, insures the integrity of our democratic system and closes the door to the possibility of fraud. Voter participation is an important bulwark of our democracy. Yet, in the 2004 Presidential Election only 60% of eligible voters turned out. Today, the US ranks 139th out of 163 democracies in the rate of voter participation. If citizens don’t think that their vote counts, they won’t vote! Paper ballots protect against fraud and, thus, encourage voter participation.

Finally, those most alarmed with the use of computers in voting are computer experts! For example, Avi Rubin, Director of Computer Security Systems at Johns Hopkins University is quoted in the Baltimore Sun as saying that “it is much easier to hide malicious software than to detect it.” In a 2004 election in Baltimore there were 6500 more ballots cast than voters! Rubin He also believes that it’s impossible to secure an accurate vote count without a paper ballot and. He has written extensively on the reasons why so-called “electronic paper trails” are meaningless.

Vendors including Liberty, Avante, and Sequoia Pacific should not be permitted to dictate and then vet the process which undergirds our system of government and, as our representatives, you ought not permit them to do so!

City Council Resolution #131 urges the adoption of paper ballots and precinct-based optical scanners and accessible ballot-marking machines for voters with disabilities and minority languages.

Resolution #228 urges the NYC Board of Elections to hold public hearings before selecting new voting machines. It also urges public testing to verify that the machines work before selecting them.
Similar legislation (H.R. 550 – the gold standard for federal paper record bills) is pending at the national level.

It’s time for all of you to step up to the plate. Support PBOS. Do it once! Do it right. Do it now! Get it right the first time!

Emphases are mine because I think it is worth emphasizing that 1.) DRE machines DO require us to have blind faith that our vote is being properly recorded and tabulated and 2.) those most concerned about computer voting include many computer experts who are well aware of the technology and it's problems.

Please contact your local politicians and your local media giving your opinion on voting machines. Feel free to use the above statement from NY Americans for Democratic Action as a guide.

Progressive Democrat Issue 84: Bhopal 22 years later

Twenty two years after losing his parents and 5 siblings to Union Carbide's criminal negligance at Bhopal, India, activist Sunil Kumar Verma has committed suicide after fighting for years with paranoid schizophrenia an illness which affected many Bhopal survivors.

Meanwhile, Union Carbide and its successor, Dow Chemical, has largely gotten off scott free.

From the International Capaign for Justice in Bhopal:

On the night of Dec. 2nd and 3rd, 1984, a Union Carbide plant in Bhopal, India, began leaking 27 tons of the deadly gas methyl isocyanate. None of the six safety systems designed to contain such a leak were operational, allowing the gas to spread throughout the city of Bhopal.[1] Half a million people were exposed to the gas and 20,000 have died to date as a result of their exposure. More than 120,000 people still suffer from ailments caused by the accident and the subsequent pollution at the plant site. These ailments include blindness, extreme difficulty in breathing, and gynecological disorders. The site has never been properly cleaned up and it continues to poison the residents of Bhopal. In 1999, local groundwater and wellwater testing near the site of the accident revealed mercury at levels between 20,000 and 6 million times those expected. Cancer and brain-damage- and birth-defect-causing chemicals were found in the water; trichloroethene, a chemical that has been shown to impair fetal development, was found at levels 50 times higher than EPA safety limits.[2]Testing published in a 2002 report revealed poisons such as 1,3,5 trichlorobenzene, dichloromethane, chloroform, lead and mercury in the breast milk of nursing women.[3] In 2001, Michigan-based chemical corporation Dow Chemical purchased Union Carbide, thereby acquiring its assets and liabilities. However Dow Chemical has steadfastly refused to clean up the site, provide safe drinking water, compensate the victims, or disclose the composition of the gas leak, information that doctors could use to properly treat the victims.

That is the background. The latest tragedy is reported in BBC News:

Sunil Kumar Verma, 34, was found hanging from the ceiling of his modest home in Bhopal, the capital of India's Madhya Pradesh state, on the evening of 26 July...

Born in Bhopal in 1972, the son of a carpenter, Sunil was living with his family in JP Nagar, just across from the plant run by Union Carbide, now a subsidiary of Dow Chemicals, when the gas leak occurred.

They all escaped in panic as the poisonous cloud of methyl isocyanate gas descended on the slum settlement in the middle of the freezing night.

All the family members got separated. With his eyes burning and his chest exploding with pain, Sunil managed to board a bus that took him to Hoshangabad, about 70km (35 miles) away.

He lost consciousness and was taken to the district hospital.

He returned to Bhopal a week later to find both his parents, three sisters and two brothers dead.

His younger siblings, a sister aged 10 and a brother of two-and-half, were the only survivors. The 13-year-old Sunil was now the head of the family...

At the age of 13, Sunil got involved in campaigning for the rights of gas victims. In 1987, he formed "Children Against Carbide".

In 1986 Sunil, a petitioner in the Bhopal civil suit, was sent to New York by the Indian government to testify in the gas tragedy case before Judge John Keenan...

In 1989 Sunil toured the world to garner support against the settlement agreed between the Indian government and Union Carbide.

He was arrested in Houston for trying to deliver an environmental report during Union Carbide's annual meeting. He was released after hundreds of people called the city's mayor to protest against his arrest...

n March 1997 Sunil started "hearing voices in his head". He also suffered from insomnia and imagined people were plotting to kill him. By June 1997 his condition worsened and he often ran away from home.

He had also attempted suicide several times. He was finally diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia - a mental illness which affected many gas survivors - and began treatment.

When he hanged himself, he left a note saying he was committing suicide not because he was mentally unsound but with all his wits about him.

There has never been justice for the people of Bhopal. How can we say capitalism benefits people whose lives have been ruined for 22 years by the criminal negligence of an America company that has  never even cleaned up its mess. Again from the International Capaign for Justice in Bhopal:

n 1991, the local government in Bhopal charged Warren Anderson, Union Carbide’s CEO at the time of the disaster, with manslaughter. If tried in India and convicted, he faces a maximum of ten years in prison. However Mr. Anderson has never stood trial before an Indian court; he has, instead, evaded an international arrest warrant and a summons to appear before a US court. For years Mr. Anderson’s whereabouts were unknown, and it wasn’t until August of 2002 that Greenpeace found him, living a life of luxury in the Hamptons. Neither the American nor the Indian government seem interested in disturbing him with an extradition, despite the recent scandals over corporate crime. This is unfortunate: Mr. Anderson’s decisions didn’t just wipe out retirement plans, they killed people.

The Union Carbide Corporation itself was charged with culpable homicide, a criminal charge whose penalty has no upper limit. These charges have never been resolved, as Union Carbide, like its former CEO, has refused to appear before an Indian court.

Union Carbide also remains liable for the environmental devastation its operations have caused. Environmental damages were never addressed in the 1989 settlement, and the contamination that Union Carbide left behind continues to spread. These liabilities became the property of the Dow Corporation, following its 2001 purchase of Union Carbide. The deal was completed much to the chagrin of a number of Dow stockholders, who filed suit in a desperate attempt to stop it. These stockholders were surely aware that a corporation assumes both the assets and the liabilities of any company it purchases, according to established corporate law. Indeed, Dow was quick to pay off an outstanding claim against Union Carbide soon after it acquired the company, setting aside $2.2 billion to pay off former Union Carbide asbestos workers in Texas. However Dow has consistently and stringently maintained that it isn’t liable for the Bhopal accident.

Thus the victims in Bhopal have been left in the lurch, told to fend for themselves as corporate executives elude justice and big corporations elude the blame. Dow’s unwillingness to fulfill its legal and moral obligations in Bhopal represents only the latest chapter in this horrifying humanitarian disaster.

Whatever happend to the good old fashioned American value of taking responsibility? Oh, yeah. This is Bush America where personal responsibility has been forgotten.

Help the people of Bhopal. And take action against Dow Chemicals (scroll down to the bottom for actions). Finally, find out more about Dow Chemicals, including contact info and other campaigns against Dow, from Co-op America (a group I have supported for years with a loan).

Progressive Democrat Issue 84: NYC Focus

These are ongoing efforts that really need your help. We can win in NY State and PA if we push hard.

Remember to donate as much as you can to winning Congressional and State Senate seats in NY State. We have a really good shot at taking at least 4 Congressional seats and some State Senate Seats. Please donate to the Sweep NY State effort. $725 already donated.

Target PA -- Sack Santorum and Retake the Senate!
Sunday, August 27th, 4:30 - 8:00 PM
Central Park Cell Phone Banking
Southwest corner of Sheep Meadow (east of 66th and Central Park West)

We'll be making Voter ID and Education calls using high quality campaign lists. We're helping lay the groundwork for the defeat of Senator Rick Santorum, one of the nastiest and most politically vulnerable senators of the extreme right. At the same time, we'll be working to defeat Republican Congressman Jim Gerlach, who took $30,000 from Tom DeLay's political action committee. Gerlach is considered to have one of the nation's most competitive challengers in Democrat Lois Murphy, who lost her 2004 race against Gerlach by just 2%. We're going to do our best to help Lois win.

Please bring a fully charged cell phone if you can. If you don't have one, let us know so that we can have extras handy.

If bad weather looks likely the morning of the event, we'll post an alternative indoor location on this page, and on our voicemail line, 212-714-7125.

Target PA
Meet and Canvass for Lois Murphy,
Super-Competitive Democratic Challenger -
Help Sack Santorum at the same time!

Help to retake BOTH the House and the Senate with a trip to PA.

Sunday, September 17th:

Meet at 9 AM at the NW corner of 33rd St and 7th Ave. We'll return to the same spot by 7 PM. Total cost will be $23. Let us know if this creates a financial hardship.

Join us as we meet and canvass for Lois Murphy, a Democratic challenger leading the charge to take back the House. She's a fantastic candidate with admirable positions, a winning personality, plenty of funding, and endorsements from major progressive organizations.

In turning out the vote, we'll also be helping to defeat extremist PA Senator Rick Santorum: two for the price of one.

You can learn more about Lois, who lost her 2004 bid to unseat the same Rubberstamp Republican incumbent by just 2% at her website: www.loismurphy.org. The New York Times has called this race a "toss up," which means that it's up to us: if we want to win, we need to join in.

Please bring a bag lunch and wear walking shoes and sunscreen.

Please also be sure to RSVP if you're planning to come. We need to have a reliable count.

If bad weather seems likely by Saturday evening, and you've RSVP'd, we'll get in touch about alternatives. (Please RSVP!)


Seize the State Senate

Monday, August 21st
Wednesday, August 23rd
Monday, August 28th
Wednesday, August 30th
Landline Phone Banking
420 Lexington Ave (at 43rd St), Suite 360
Bring photo ID to sign in at front desk.
Please arrive on time for orientation.

What will we be doing? We're going to be using landlines to do low-pressure Voter ID calls to dramatically increase Democratic voter turnout in the most competitive State Senate races. This is a great way for first-time callers to get started.

Why care about the State Senate? If you care about fair elections, education, transportation, the environment, healthcare, security, and other major issues in New York, you should care a lot about winning back the New York State Senate. Now that reformer Eliot Spitzer is likely to be New York's next governor, it's even more important to have a Democratic legislature in place.

Can we win? Yes, we can. We’re just four seats from Democratic control for the first time since the mid 1960s. No, that’s not a typo: the 60’s. We need to take full advantage of popular outcry this year and overwhelm them with volunteer turnout.

For more info and to RSVP, please go here. This may be the most critical action you can take for NY State this year.

Progressive Democrat Issue 84: Brooklyn/Queens Groups and Events

ALL NYC:

CRITCAL MASS BICYCLE MOVEMENT! Critical Mass is a bicyclist movement (NOT an organized group!) that holds weekly protests all over the world to protest pollution. Rides are the last Friday of every month starting in Union Sq. Park North, 7PM! At a DFNYC meeting attended by Norm Seigel, Norm used Critical Mass as an example of the kind of activism that NYC needs most and the way Bloomberg is trying to squelch our rights and our voices. Critical Mass deserves our help. According to Bloomberg, my inclusion of this in my newsletter is probably illegal. Well, I refuse to let Bloomberg tell me what I can and cannot write in my Newsletter.

And see their worldwide calendar for Bike Workshops and other locations.

There is more you can do to support Critical Mass. This comes from a reader in Manhattan:

To help keep people involved in Critical Mass, people who might be sacred off because of renewed aggressiveness by the police, I have started a pledge drive that sponsors arrestees. This is a great way for people to stay involved in Critical Mass, stay on top of the issue, and use the NYPD and Bloomberg's tactics to work for us not against us. I am pledging $2 per arrestee, and the money will go to the Legal Aid Society. Pledges are made on the honor system. The more bicyclists the cops arrest the more money for defending civil rights is raised.


BROOKLYN EVENTS:

New Democratic Majority in Brooklyn:
I will be a co-host of this meeting. We meet the 4th Thursday of every month at the 5th Ave. Ozzie’s in Park Slope, 249 5th Ave (intersection of 5th and Garfield) at 7 PM. Next meeting will be a meet and greet with Steve Harrison, candidate for Conrgess, on Aug. 25th.


Democracy for America Meetings: CLICK HERE!

Central Brooklyn Independent Democrats (CBID) (mostly covers Park Slope, Windsor Terrace, and Kensington). http://www.cbidems.org/

Lambda Independent Democrats (Brooklyn’s gay and lesbian organization) for meeting info contact LID@LIDBrooklyn.org.

DRINKING LIBERALLY: An informal, inclusive weekly Democratic drinking club. Raise your spirits while you raise your glass, and share ideas while you share a pitcher. Drinking Liberally gives like-minded, left-leaning individuals a place to talk politics. You don't need to be a policy expert and this isn't a book club - just come and learn from peers, trade jokes, vent frustration and hang out in an environment where it's not taboo to talk politics. Here are our local Brooklyn groups:

Park Slope: First Wednesday of each month, 7:00 pm onward, Commonwealth, 497 5th Ave (at 12th Street). Hosted by Emily Farris and Peter Wohlsen, parkslope (at) drinkingliberally.org

Williamsburg: Every Tuesday, 8:00 pm onward the Levee, 212 Berry St. (corner of N. 3rd). Hosted by Elana Levin and Michael Freedman-Schnapp, williamsburg (at) drinkingliberally.org

To find your nearest Brooklyn Democratic club, please CLICK HERE.

QUEENS:

Democracy for America Meetings: CLICK HERE!

To help Dmeocracy for NYC petition to get candidates on the ballot, please go here: http://www.dfnyc.org/cms/node/86993


Queens Jefferson Democratic Club: Our meetings are normally held the first Thursday of every month, @ 8:00 p.m. (the doors open @ 7:30 P.M.) except for July, August, and months in which a holiday falls on the First Thursday. Meetings are held at the Auburndale American Legion Hall, 198-09 33rd Ave Flushing, New York 11358 (just off Francis Lewis Blvd. near 33rd Avenue).

Queens County Young Democrats: for information CLICK HERE.

DRINKING LIBERALLY: An informal, inclusive weekly Democratic drinking club. Raise your spirits while you raise your glass, and share ideas while you share a pitcher. Drinking Liberally gives like-minded, left-leaning individuals a place to talk politics. You don't need to be a policy expert and this isn't a book club - just come and learn from peers, trade jokes, vent frustration and hang out in an environment where it's not taboo to talk politics. Here are our local Queens groups:

ASTORIA: Third Wednesday of each month, 7:30 pm onward. Cassidy's, 34-16 Broadway (at 35th Street). Hosted by Bob Chamerda, astoria (at) drinkingliberally.org

To find your nearest Queens Democratic club, please CLICK HERE.

Progressive Democrat Issue 84: MANHATTAN GROUPS AND EVENTS

CRITCAL MASS BICYCLE MOVEMENT! Critical Mass is a bicyclist movement (NOT an organized group!) that holds weekly protests all over the world to protest pollution. Rides are the last Friday of every month starting in Union Sq. Park North, 7PM! At a DFNYC meeting attended by Norm Seigel, Norm used Critical Mass as an example of the kind of activism that NYC needs most and the way Bloomberg is trying to squelch our rights and our voices. Critical Mass deserves our help. According to Bloomberg, my inclusion of this in my newsletter is probably illegal. Well, I refuse to let Bloomberg tell me what I can and cannot write in my Newsletter.

And see their worldwide calendar for Bike Workshops and other locations.

There is more you can do to support Critical Mass. This comes from a reader in Manhattan:

To help keep people involved in Critical Mass, people who might be sacred off because of renewed aggressiveness by the police, I have started a pledge drive that sponsors arrestees. This is a great way for people to stay involved in Critical Mass, stay on top of the issue, and use the NYPD and Bloomberg's tactics to work for us not against us. I am pledging $2 per arrestee, and the money will go to the Legal Aid Society. Pledges are made on the honor system. The more bicyclists the cops arrest the more money for defending civil rights is raised.


Democracy for America Meetings: CLICK HERE!


DRINKING LIBERALLY: An informal, inclusive weekly Democratic drinking club. Raise your spirits while you raise your glass, and share ideas while you share a pitcher. Drinking Liberally gives like-minded, left-leaning individuals a place to talk politics. You don't need to be a policy expert and this isn't a book club - just come and learn from peers, trade jokes, vent frustration and hang out in an environment where it's not taboo to talk politics. Here are our local Manhattan groups:

Upper East Side Last Tuesday of each month, 6:30 pm onward, Doc Watson's, 1490 2nd Avenue (at 77th). In the backyard, weather permitting. Hosted by Matthew Bachiochi, ues (at) drinkingliberally.org

In Manhattan: Thursday, 7:30 pm onward, Rudy's, 627 9th Avenue (between 44th & 45th Streets). Hosted by Justin Krebs and Matthew O'Neill, nyc (at) drinkingliberally.org

Bar Hopping Manhattan: Second Tuesday of each month, 6:00-9:00 pm
A monthly Democratic drinking club at different gay bars around Manhattan. Join the mailing list to receive updates of future venues. Hosted by Dirk McCall, outnyc (at) drinkingliberally.org

East Village: Last Wednesday of each month, 8:00 pm onward, Grassroots Tavern, 20 Saint Mark's Place (between 2nd and 3rd). Hosted by Quinn Raymond, Elena Morin and Abby Cook-Mack, eastvillage (at) drinkingliberally.org

For those who prefer running to drinking, you can join RUNNING FOR CHANGE: Building a progressive America through organized runs and other grassroots activities.

To find your nearest Manhattan Democratic club, please CLICK HERE.

Progressive Democrat Issue 84: VIRGINIA FOCUS

I have set up a new Act Blue Site for donations to some of Virginia's key races this year. If you can't volunteer for your local Dem party, please donate to win big this year. Let’s follow up last year’s excellent win in VA with another one this year. (note: my site for NY State has already collected $725 to winning in November. Can Virginia beat NY State? Donate and see!)

Progressive Democrat Issue 84: VIRGINIA GROUPS AND EVENTS

Democracy for America: One of the best ways to get active! FIND YOUR LOCAL DFA MEETUP AND GET INVOLVED!

The Democratic Party: Here are links to some of your local Dem clubs. This is another very important way to be active.

Albemarle County Democratic Committee, Albemarle County, VA

Arlington County Democrats, Arlington VA. Contact Name: Elizabeth Weitzman mewsician1@msn.com (703) 528-8588

Arlington Young Democrats, Arlington VA. Contact Name: Jaime Mulligan publicity@arlingtonyoungdems.org 571-334-7626

Democratic Party of Fluvanna County, Virginia, Bremo Bluff, Virginia VA

Hanover Democrats, Ashland VA

Loudoun County Democratic Committee, Leesburg, VA. Contact Name: Steve Deak chairman@lcdems.com

Norfolk Democratic Party Meetup, Norfolk VA. Contact Name: Alma D. Kesling akesling@yahoo.com 757 333-8694

Rappahannock County Democrats, Rappahannock VA.

Stafford County Democrats, Fredericksburg VA:

Virginia Beach Democrats, VA

Virginia Young Democrats, Richmond, VA. Contact Name: Justin Wilson justin@justin.net


Drinking Liberally: An informal, inclusive weekly Democratic drinking club. Raise your spirits while you raise your glass, and share ideas while you share a pitcher. Drinking Liberally gives like-minded, left-leaning individuals a place to talk politics. You don't need to be a policy expert and this isn't a book club - just come and learn from peers, trade jokes, vent frustration and hang out in an environment where it's not taboo to talk politics. Find your local drinking liberally group or start your own with a few buddies. Currently there are only two Drinking Liberally groups in all of VA (see below). But it is easy to start your own!

Charlottesville, Virginia Drinking Liberally: Every Tuesday, 7:30 pm, Mellow Mushroom, 1320 West Main Street, Hosted by Jared Jenkins, charlottesville (at) drinkingliberally.org

Richmond, Virginia Drinking Liberally: Every Thursday, 7:30 pm onward Commercial Taphouse, 111 N Robinson St. Hosted by Scott Goode, richmond (at) drinkingliberally.org


RUNNING FOR CHANGE: And if you want a healthier alternative to Drinking Liberally (or want to do some running after your drinking), you can RUN for progressive causes. Building a progressive America through organized runs and other grassroots activities. To find your local Running for Change events, CLICK HERE.

Progressive Democrat Issue 84: NATIONAL ACTION

Now that the Connecticut primary is past, I want to highlight the fact that Connecticut is a critical state this year. Not ohttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifnly is there the Senate race (a very unusual one), but there are no fewer than THREE close House races. Connecticut is crucial for retaking the House, so to winning big in Connecticut this November!

Progressive Democrat Issue 84: GETTING ACTIVE ACROSS THE COUNTRY

This is how our coalition will be built: through out local action. Our success depends on you and your activism. There are many ways you can get active. Below I try to provide a good variety of options and urge you all to find a couple that suit you. These groups below are the way we can get our country back. If we don’t get involved we won’t win in 2006 and beyond. Joy and I are currently involved in a few groups plus our own organizing efforts bringing different groups together and we are finding it a good boost to our social life. We are meeting cool people and it makes us get out a couple of times a month more than we would otherwise.

Finding your local groups:

Democracy for America: Founded by Howard Dean, now run by his brother Jim Dean, this group is very effective at the local grass roots. Many think this is the future of the Democratic Party. I think this is partly true, though the neighborhood Dem party clubs will continue to be vital to our efforts as well. This is a group that you really should be active in either by joining a local meetup or starting one of your own.


Drinking Liberally: An informal, inclusive weekly Democratic drinking club. Raise your spirits while you raise your glass, and share ideas while you share a pitcher. Drinking Liberally gives like-minded, left-leaning individuals a place to talk politics. You don't need to be a policy expert and this isn't a book club - just come and learn from peers, trade jokes, vent frustration and hang out in an environment where it's not taboo to talk politics. Find your local drinking liberally group or start your own with a few buddies.


The Democratic Party: Now that Howard Dean is in the driver’s seat I am hoping the Democrats will become more effective on the local level. One of the main complaints against the DNC in the past couple of elections is that they didn’t help the local parties in most parts of the nation. If you go to the DNC website and find the “Get Local” pull down menu on the left, you can find your local Dem groups. I strongly urge you to get involved with your local Dem club since it is often these groups that actually do much of the footwork to win each district.

Critical Mass: Critical Mass is a bicyclist movement (NOT an organized group!) that holds weekly protests all over the world to protest pollution. Go here to find the closest Critical Mass action in your area (site covers ALL of North America).


Wellstone Action: Paul Wellstone started something in Minnesota and his death hasn’t stopped it. Wellstone’s family is continuing his work and expanding it throughout the nation. Wellstone Action trains activists and grassroots candidates and they did very well in the last election. I urge you to look into any nearby Wellstone Action events.


Common Cause: Common Cause is a major force in Progressive Politics. It was founded in 1970 (by a Republican, mind you!) to counter the influence of special interests in Washington. Today they work on many of the same issues I am trying to highlight. Look for your state’s Common Cause organization.

To find the League of Conservation Voters branch in your state, CLICK HERE. This is the group you should be involved with if the environment is your thing.

To find the NARAL branch in your state, CLICK HERE. This is the group you should be involved with if choice is your thing.

Finally I suggest Americans for Democratic Action. ADA is a progressive branch of the Democratic Party. Email: adaction@ix.netcom.com for info on local groups.