Food Lines, and More Needy Families A Part of our Future

Photo/ Ricky Carioti-The Washington Post

This is a shot of a part of the line up for the 90,000 lbs of food distribution organized in DC by the Redskins and Fedex. This Thanksgiving effort is likely to be something we will need more and more of in the coming months/years. The economic outlook is bad as we all know, and in times like these, families who are already struggling are the most vulnerable.

So as we wrap up this Thanksgiving weekend, and we thank the fates for our family, friends and the food on our tables, I would ask you all to add a new charitable effort to your plans for the holidays and the new year. I know many of you already help in local efforts-- But we are all going to need to do even more. Think about it and commit yourself now. It is only by coming together and supporting each other that we are going to make it through this.

What do you do now to help your community or the world at large?
What new thing can you commit to for the months ahead?
Share your thoughts here.

There's more...

Our Friends at the SEIU--Already Working on the Future

Get your name on the SEIU health care map and send a message to ALL our elected officials that is this a priority in all states, red and blue (& purple)

On this first day of the last 2 mons. and 20 days of the Bush Administration, The SEIU is already hard at work to make SURE that we keep our eyes focused on the absolutely urgent need to provide health care in America.

Sign up now, and make sure we are ready, willing and able to help President Elect Obama hit the ground running on real, lasting, and profound health care reform in America.

There's more...

Vancouver Peak Oil: "This is Insane" Day

On October 6th, at 12 noon, Vancouver Peak Oil is sponsoring "This is Insane" Day (also known as "street theatre for long suffering citizens"). As the above video demonstrates, anyone who thinks we're headed in the wrong direction (on oil, food, population, politics, toxins, transportation, pollution, the environment, the economy, ta policy, militarization, or anything else) is encouraged to step outside and shout "This is Insane". VPO also has a Facebook page for you to post pictures of your "This is Insane" Day moment.

I'll be supporting VPO on Monday, and I hope you will be too.

Use the comment thread to talk about all the ways that "This is Insane!"

There's more...

This Brave Nation

I really think this new project could be subtitled This American Life meets front line thinkers and activists.

Greenwald's new series is launching today. It is quite amazing and fits into the picture of the changes that are needed and are happening around us. It is smart, personal and inspiring. Terrific visuals too.

In this first episode one of the things they touch on is the empowering possibility of new media. My favorite quite is "Being kept down by what we don't know is a diminishing proposition."

Episode 1;

Carl Pope & Van Jones
Sunday, June 1 2008
Environmentalism, New Media, Civil Rights, The Economy

In any other profession, Carl Pope might be considered a "company man." He has worked loyally and tirelessly in the name of the Sierra Club for thirty years, running the organization – the largest of its kind in the country – since 1992. Van Jones has founded several organizations within the last decade, including The Ella Baker Center for Human Rights and Green For All. They both live in the Bay Area. They both care intensely about saving the environment. The thing is, they use very distinct methods, although the lines differentiating those methods are blurring as we race further into the 21st century. From the environment to the economy, from old fashioned door-to-door fliers to streaming internet video, Pope and Jones discuss the myriad elements effecting our lives today and the many possible solutions that are nearly within reach.

Each episode will be a conversation between two interesting people with great video work supporting and showing their stories. It is simple, straightforward and in that simplicity quite powerful.

Coming up in future episodes;

Bonnie Raitt & Dolores Huerta about Union Organizing, NAFTA, Human Rights, Feminism,
Nuclear Energy, Environmentalism

Pete Seeger & Majora Carter about Hudson River, Urban Renewal, Protest Music, Civil Rights Environmentalism

Anthony Romero & Ava Lowery about New Media, Iraq War, Bush Admin, Civil Liberties, Youth Activism, Gay Rights

Tom Hayden & Naomi Klein about Journalism, Global Economy, NAFTA, Iraq War, Feminism, "The Sixties"

Lots to look forward to.

There's more...

Great New Tool: Cause Caller

As a part of his NYU thesis Fred Benenson has built this new activist tool, Cause Caller.

create a cause, and enter the names you want to contact. Now you can click to call immediately. Send everyone the URL, and they can start calling too. All calls are free and completed over the Internet.

Cause Caller is a VoIP application combined with a wiki of causes and contacts. The more causes you and others create, the easier it is for everyone to get involved in participatory democracy

This is great. He needs help filling out the wiki with state level politicians. Help out if you can.

There's more...

Running for office

Dear GNB family, I am taking another plunge deep into the heart of Democratic Party Politics. I am running for a post as a member of the Democratic National Committee.

I currently serve as chair of Democrats Abroad Japan (kind of like being a democratic party county club leader) But I am putting my hat in the ring for our upcoming election for a DNC position representing the Asia Pacific Region of Democrats Abroad. The election is in two weeks at our region and global caucus which will be held in Vancouver. This is a big step for me, but one that I feel strongly about and I am committed to giving it my all.

This has come about because since 2004 I have taken to heart Howard Dean's comments that voting only gets you a C grade in this day and age, to get a B you must get out there, volunteer, work for a campaign, roll up your sleeves, and for an A you should run for office or take on a leadership role in some way in the party. So I am giving it a try...

The process will be simple, I believe. At the beginning of our Regional Caucus on 4/11 the vote for DNC will be one of the first orders of business. Nominations can and will be taken from the floor, then candidates will briefly speak to the electors and then a vote by show of hands will be taken. The electors are the country chairs, vice chairs or other representatives from the main country committees in our region which include Japan, Thailand, Hong Kong, China, Indonesia, India, the Philippines, and Australia. The votes are weighted by our voting strength in the Global Primary- so if your country committee had good turn out then you have more votes.

Below is my candidate statement. Reading between the lines you can see some of the issues we have been dealing with as a state party. I would appreciate the feedback and advice of the GNB community. Thanks for your time... and I will update you as the process continues.
-tlg

Candidate Statement
Position: DNC Member, Asia Pacific

My name is Lauren Shannon, I am a proud grassroots Democrat and a true believer in pragmatic, progressive politics. This year we are choosing a new person to represent our region as a member of the Democratic National Committee. I want to be that person and believe that I can do a good job in the role. I want to take a few minutes of your time to tell you why.

The DNC seats have often been almost ceremonial in the past but as our region grows and gets organized, we really need to use the opportunity to bring information, share feedback with and get feedback from our region to the DNC meetings and to Washington.

I want to focus on representing the region... and reporting back.

I am a good communicator. I believe in the electorate and in real representational government. So if you choose me to for this post—my main focus will be communication with the chairs and country committee officers- finding out what we can do to give and to get more, with other folks in the DNC. I will work to foster energy, excitement and action - together.

I want to use the opportunity to go to DNC meetings specifically to talk to party folks about our efforts out here. I want to share with them how motivated we are, how the region is growing - and that we should be more on their radar.

I want to encourage VIP/DNC people to visit when they are traveling in the region.

In my role as Chair and previous officer positions in DAJ I have successfully arranged and managed events for visitors like Ambassador Foley, Ambassador Peterson, Congresswoman Hirono, Howard Dean and others. I would use this experience to convince and assure members of the Dem Leadership that trips to Asia are a great means of reaching out to donors, voters and volunteers.

I also want to push for better connections in getting our voting site information and absentee ballot issues on state party and campaign websites.

Some Specifics-

I would commit to doing a podcast and a written report each day of the DNC meetings that folks could listen too or read everywhere. I would also (as much as possible) circulate agendas, reports on DNC conference calls, and share what I learn with all of you. I have the Internet experience and the public service experience to commit to this and follow through on getting out the word.

I believe that real empowerment begins with sharing information and talking, thinking and acting on that information - together.

I also want access to the training and discussions that come out of the DNC meetings and I want the chance to share what I learn with everyone in our region.

I believe in complete transparency- And I believe in encouraging new people in leadership roles all through our group. I am a direct and honest communicator and I will always tell you what I am thinking and will always be interested in what the leaders in the region are thinking. I want to hear how we can best represent our members throughout the Asia Pacific group.

I have both online activist and face to face/door to door experience. I worked in the 2004 Iowa Caucus for Gov. Dean- organizing a group of 3 volunteers and garnering international press coverage which allowed us to grow our membership in Japan. And I organized a group of 11 people from Dems abroad in Japan and the UK to work in Florida (Tampa Bay and Sarasota regions) for the Kerry Campaign and for a down ticket race for Tampa County Board Supervisor of Elections. Our group was called Sunshine and Alligators...and we helped Senator Kerry win in all three precincts. I have also dedicated thousands of hours at home in Japan to register voters, meet and recruit new members, and have tried my best to serve DAJ and the membership first as a fundraiser, then secretary, vice chair and currently chair. I have wanted in the last two years to be more active in our region, and was excited to participate in and support our regional meeting in Thailand, and our Global Primary this year.

These experiences plus decades of support work with various volunteer organizations have given me off line experience that brings a well rounded approach to my political action and activities. I think my energy, outreach skills, and dedication to the region make me an excellent candidate for membership to the DNC.

Online; as a member and officer/ chair of DAJapan I have led the way experimenting and using technology for outreach, via web newsletters,interactive websites, podcasts, and other tech tools. I was also a beta tester of the new international website and still try to help with whatever that development team asks of me. You can see some of the results or my efforts, here:

DAJ Podcast: http://www.dajpodcast.org/

DAJ Webnews: http://dajwebnews.blogspot.com/

Especially in doing the podcasts we have been able to interview and reach out to members of congress and other Dem VIPS -- and I would want to continue in this effort at the DNC meetings.

In closing, I feel that though we have at least two candidates for this position and both of us are dedicated, talented women, (others may be still be nominated form the floor of our meeting) but we as a region should try to increase the number of people who represent us at the international level. No one candidate should hold multiple seats in the DPCA/ DNC leadership, as we can use the chance of these positions to actively include multiple people's perspectives. This limiting of seats/ voices in Democrats Abroad is not against any rules, but I think that it is in our members' best interest to have as many different people as possible participating at the international and the DNC leadership level. I was disappointed that both the European DNC seat, and the Americas seat will be served by people who already have a significant role in the international leadership as regional chairs, ensuring that fewer members will participate at those levels. I hope we can avoid this same narrowing of the participation in our own region.

I can't wait to meet folks at the regional/ global meetings coming up.I was so sad to miss the Singapore meeting. I am happy to report that my travel schedule and ability to commit to the DNC meetings is looking great for the future. And I am ready to commit to doing the best job that I can if I am given this opportunity to serve by our electors.

I would love your feedback, comments and questions.

So, my beloved blog family-- what do you think? Is there more I should say or do? Does anyone have advice on running for DNC positions? Or other state party elections? I will be happy to put this behind me, and serve if I get the chance, as I am not one for horsetrading and the backroom deals that are often associated with these kinds of positions... But I will try my best.

There's more...