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Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Patriotism and Public Service
 Since 2001, it seems that Republicans have had a monopoly on patriotism, or at least that's the way they've succeeded in portraying it. But how exactly do they define patriotism? If patriotism means caving into fear mongers and seeing who can hate "the terrorists" more, then conservatives are pretty damn patriotic. But the way I see it, patriotism is about more than just talk. If you really love your country, then you ought to be able to make a few sacrifices to show it. Let's take Iraq for example. When was the last time that anyone in government ever asked the American public to sacrifice anything for the Iraq War? Of course, Americans are paying a heavy price for the war in form of hundreds of billions of tax dollars and thousands of lives, but that's a different kind of cost. Nothing is asked of me. Nothing is demanded or ever expected. During World War II, Americans made tremendous sacrifices which affected their lives daily (speed limit lowered to 35 mph, food rations, gas rations, clothes rations, etc). It seems all too easy to forget that we're at war, fighting a very costly battle in a desert half way around the world. The way Republicans have framed the war is that you either support the troops, the war, and the President, or else you're unpatriotic. There are those who say that being critical and questioning of your government in times like these is the true sign of patriotism. I agree with the latter message to a certain extent, but in my opinion true patriotism goes further. Conservatives have shown us over the last few years that simply mouthing off about supposed love for freedom can be nothing more than empty words. Patriotism is about action as much as it is about talk. When I was younger I remember hearing Kennedy's famous words, "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country," and not understanding their full meaning. His message, I have now realized, was not only a call to public service, it was a deeply patriotic and altruistic statement. It asked Americans to think beyond their own self-interest, which seems to be all that Republicans care about these days, and think about the common interest of the entire country. It's a bold kind of patriotism, one that demands action and people banding together to do what's right, one that Republicans are afraid to touch. Frankly, it just doesn't fit in very well with their everyone for themselves philosophy. But it sure as hell fits in with our we're all in this together philosophy. I realized recently that I'm a very patriotic person, just not in the Republican definition of the word, which has now become commonplace. That's why I get so fired up every time John Edwards talks about a national call to public service. He says, "It is time to ask the American people to be patriotic about something other than war." It couldn't be said any better. If my President asked me to plant a tree or use an energy efficient lightbulb, I'd jump at the idea. Whether it's re-painting the rusty slide at the playground down the street, or running for public office, most people are pretty damn proud of doing something for someone else. There are many great charities and non-profits already doing this type of work, but how about something on a grander scale. What if we decided that building a better country is a national priority, and that everyone has a part to play in that endeavor. Public service is patriotic. It's time that we recognize that simple truth and get the Democratic party to start talking about it. Democrats have lost power over the last few decades because we haven't talked about values and the Republicans have. We have values too though, and there is no reason for us to ever shy away from them, because when our values are put up against theirs, ours win every time. Period. I'll leave you with the excerpt, from Homegrown Democrat by Garrison Keillor, which inspired this post: The Mississippi River rose in the spring and there were urgent flood warnings on the radio. One afternoon I put on warm clothes and took the bus to St. Paul and crossed the Wabasha Bridge to the West Side where people were at work filling sandbags and building dikes to save the low-lying houses. It was foggy, and then it began to rain. An army of hundreds of volunteers hard at work, men and women, drawn up in assembly lines, holding the sacks and filling them and passing them in a chain to the dike. It got dark. Nobody left. The Red Cross brought around sandwiches and coffee. We rested and went back to work. Trucks brought in more sand and bags. A couple of front loaders worked at anchoring the dikes with earthen banks. It felt like wartime. I worked until after midnight and lay down in the back of a truck under a tarp and slept until daybreak and got up stiff and cold and they brought us more sandwiches and coffee and I got back in the gang and worked until noon. Someone worried about the dike bursting. A man said, "When they go, they go slow, they don't go sudden." I wasn't sure about that, but I stayed because everyone else stayed. I sort of collapsed in the afternoon and was going to go home but slept a couple hours on a tarp in somebody's front yard and when I woke up, there was water in the streets, people wading through it, some men with muddy overalls, pitched emotion in the air, though nobody said much. We had put so much into beating back the flood, and we kept working- shovel, fill, tie, and pass, shovel, fill, tie, and pass- and felt privileged to be there doing it. I could hear the river boiling by and slabs of ice heaved up on the dike and National Guardsmen patrolling and when people couldn't stand up any longer, they sat down and ate baloney sandwiches and drank coffee. And got back up. Sunday, July 15, 2007
New ideas taking hold
This morning (Saturday) I met with a half dozen or so Lubbock progressives and gave them an overview of my week at NOI. Topics that stuck in our minds for further investigation and local implementation were:
And, to be good disciples of Marshall Ganz's Learn-Do-Reflect cycle, we had a nice lunch afterward. I will probably repeat my little training spiel in a month or so. Pass it on! Saturday, July 14, 2007
ACTION: Save The Internet
Hey NOI. Many of you are probably familiar with the "Net Neutrality" fight now taking place. If not, FreePress' savetheinternet.com has some great info. They're asking people for stories to submit to the FCC, but there's only one day left, so do it now.
Feel free to share your stories or links in the comments, and thanks for working to protect a free and democratic internet. Labels: FCC, net neutrality, savetheinternet
A Look Back at NOI Summer '07 (with slideshow)
Being a NOI Boot Camp attendee was an incredible experience. The most valuble element for me was making connections with a diverse group of experienced trainers and motivated peers. The NOI training also gave me an excellent view into how campaigns and organizations function, and the tactics and tools which have proven most successful in recent years. I've been inspired and energized, and plan to take the skills I've learned into the campaign work I do in the years to come.
Thanks to Zach, Judith, Roz, Lori, and all the brilliant trainers who gave time to share with us a little of their knowlege. It was an awesome week. Here is a slideshow I put together with NOI photos that people posted on their Facebook profiles. Enjoy... Thursday, July 12, 2007
Seriously.
I'm really enjoying the thought of telling future NOI participants. "Be careful when Zack Exely invites you into the basement. You won't get out for a very long time."
Where do we go from here?
(and why isn't North Carolina one of the states on the NOI masthead?)
This is what I call A Progressive Experience...
Participating in the New Organizing Institute Campaign Bootcamp was indeed an amazing and remarkable experience and if I ever have the chance to do it again, I would do it without no doubt. I personally would like to thank each one who made that possible. Zack Exley, Judith Freeman and Roz Lemieux thank you for ALL the hard work that you put into the program and each one of us; to the trainers thank you for sharing your knowledge and providing us with the tools needed to have a successful camapign. To the sponsors, thank you for giving us the opportunity to be part of such amazing program. Each one of you has contributed to the development of 60 progressive young leaders who are going to make a difference as they return to their respective communities.
The NOI Bootcamp not only provided me with the tools and skills needed to conduct an effective campaign utilizing technology, but also linked me with other progressive organizations and amazing progressive people like you. I view this program as a place where progressive people exchange ideas and gain the skills needed to serve their communities. One of my highlights of the program, from many that I had throughout the whole week, was meeting Professor Marshall Ganz. Indeed he is a fascinating person to meet and has so much history to share with progressive serving leaders like him. I was impressed with his candor and his eager to share his knowledge with progressive young leaders like us. Quite often servant leaders, likewise organizers, don't receive the credit that they deserve in this society and it’s mainly because they do it to give back not to get credit for. Servant leaders and organizers embrace the meaning of democracy throughout what they do for their communities. Democracy is not helping someone in an individual level, like some politicians do, rather than bringing people together and committee them for social changes. One of the things that Professor Ganz explained in the meeting is that many politicians use the words "constituencies” not knowing the real meaning of the word and what stand for. The word constituency is derived from the Latin root. For instance, Cons-tituency—means together; while Constituency—means stand; so constituency embraces these words: “a community that works together stand together” An organizer links the resources to empower the community under the ideology of eradicating social inequality in this society; while, some politicians, in the other hand, take away those resources available in the community so constituencies cannot empower themselves. It is important to find where is the source or who hold the power as Professor Ganz explained at the meeting. Servant leaders utilize the power to empower members of the community and other servant leaders as well; while, politicians like to abuse their power upon the constituencies in their communities When it comes to the qualities that politician and servant leader must have, I look into: 1. Relations skills—which is the foundation of a good leader 2. Motivation—knowing what’s your constituencies stand in certain issues 3. Values—highlights who you are as a person and your believes 4. Strategies—what are you going to do for your community and how you are going to achieve your goals. 5. Action—making things happening in the community and live by your promise. One of the things that drive organizers to do good for their community is the fact that they know the people their community and also they know how to serve them. I firmly believe that some politicians don’t know who their constituencies are and by not knowing them, they often don’t know how to serve them. Overall, it is time to think like organizers as we move forward in becoming server leaders in our communities. People in our communities need more organizers rather than some self-driven politician who only purpose to become an elect official is to help him or herself and help those ones who think like him/her. So, would you rather have a server leader who is community-driven or a self-driven politician? Think about it as we move on into ‘08! Once again, thank you for allowing me to participated in such amazing program. It was indeed a learning experience, THANK YOU! Sincerely, Edwin Zambrano Progressive by heart, through actions and by spirit “It is time to live the present, focusing in the future, but always retaining the past. I have seeing a lack current of leadership and we found ourselves shopping and looking back in previous great leaders. It is time to emerge a class of progressive leaders that will become the current and future Martin Luther King, Cesar Chavez, as well as others organizers”
A new kind of nonprofit
When Judith Freeman and I founded the New Organizing Institute, we knew we wanted to deviate from the traditional DC-nonprofit model. We didn't have it all worked out perfectly in our heads, but we knew we didn't want big fixed costs that needed to be fed by constant grant writing and fundraising. So often that fundraising frenzy can overwhelm an organization and subvert the original mission.
We wanted the New Organizing Institute to be driven by members of the organizer community, not by a crew of people who just train. The ideal was that top people in their respective fields would agree to set aside some time from their busy careers to train the next generation---in other words, that our trainings would be driven by current practitioners who had their own stories of trial and error to personally present. Easier said than done. It took a few tries, but last week at our 2nd annual "campaign boot camp" we saw the model really start working. Roz Lemieux, our E.D. is really the key ingredient that allowed this idea to work. Without her at the center, holding everything together, nothing would have happened. She created the framework in which all this stuff could take off this season, and gave Judith and I the freedom and the time to recruit these members of the community. Special thanks go to the following leaders in the organizing & technology communities for taking a ton of time out of their schedules to work on the training: Madeline Stanionis (Watershed Company) who spent weeks planning our email writing day, recruited and prepared some of the best practitioners in the field and came all the way out from San Francisco to lead the day. Katie Allen (DNC) for planning an amazing field training day. She's one of the rare people who both has respect for and experience in powerful "old school" field organizing principles and understands cutting edge field and targeting technology. She's one of the organizers in this country who's re-writing how this work is done, and so we were really lucky to have her. Josh Hendler (DNC) also helped out a great deal. Mark Sullivan (Voter Activation Network) for spending two full days with us and our trainees and made it possible for them to get field practice on a live installation of the VAN. Clay Johnson (Blue State Digital) for providing constant help and support to both trainers and the trainees throughout the week. (Including Bill Clinton and Al Gore impersonation voiceovers for ads some of the trainees made.) Katelyn Sabochik, Lauren Miller & Chris Stelmarski (Blue State Digital), and Nita Chaudhary (MoveOn) for not only serving as trainers but also coming back several nights of the training to work with trainee teams. Natalie Foster and Daniel Mintz (MoveOn) for traveling great distances to run one of the most exciting trainee exercises (a detailed comparison of two different live event tools). Frank O'Brien & Ari Rabin-Havt (OMP), Brent Blackaby (Blackrock), Marc Laitin (Wired for Change), Rachel Allison (Donordigital), Adam Green (MoveOn), Lilia Tam (Iraq Campaign), Hilary Zwerdling (MRSS) for presenting during Madeline's day-long email writing workshop and staying that night to work with our trainees individually on their writing. Raj Aggarwal (Join Concepts) and Jordan Higgins (Senate Dems) for providing graphic design and other assistance to our teams. Josh Hendler for putting a ton of time in with Judith to plan the "Data Track" of the training. Yair Ghitza & Jason Ost (Catalist), Amy Gershkoff (MSHC), Maren Hesla (EMILY's List), Keith Goodman (Bullseye), Dan Castleman (America Votes) for taking time out of their busy geek lives to raise a new generation of political data nerds. And to Dan (America Votes) for being the best SQL-for-beginners trainer in the world, ever! Mike Podhorzer (AFL-CIO) for putting it all into perspective with his keynote to our data track. Chris Mann (MSHC), Courtney Dozier (Forward Together PAC) and Marty Stone (Stones Phones) for teaching modeling, volunteer management and the state of the art of phone banking respectively. Mike Sager (VA Dems) for being the best VAN trainer in the world. Jamie Tincher (DFL) for coming all the way in from MN to present on the great '06 work of the MN Coordinated Campaign. John Miyasato (Crossroads Consulting) for three things: (1) conducting an amazing GOTV training, (2) for appointing himself as our official social director for the week and (3) working to put the character/personality/fun back into the progressive movement. Adam Klaus (Working Assets) for putting up with our technical difficulties and demonstrating the national voter registration widget at the NOI on the same day that it was officially launched. James Hannaway (DFL->Obama), Tate Hausman & Alex Zwerdling (John Hall for Congress), Jamie Henn (Step it Up), Kevin O'Brien (Tester), Adam Green (MoveOn), Beka Economopoulos (Greenpeace, Not an Alternative) and Robert "Biko" Baker & Jennifer England (League of Young Voters), Erin Hill (Act Blue) and Cammie Croft (Iraq Campaign) for taking the time to reflect on and present their recent cutting edge campaigns. Phil de Vellis (Murphy Putnam) for giving our class a thrilling ride through the possibilities of online video. Josh McConaha (DNC) for showing off how Party Builder can be used to boost small campaigns. Jessica Vanden Berg and Steve Jarding (Maverick Strategies) for giving us an incredibly inspiring and open view into the Webb campaign. Jane Hamsher (Fire Dog Lake), Laura Packard (Michigan Liberal), Cliff Schecter, Jesse Lee (The Gavel) and Robin Marty (Minnesota Monitor) for participating in our blog panel. And also Cliff Schecter for doing a media training workshop. Andrea Johnson (Richardson) and Aaron Myers (Edwards) for taking time that they really did not have to talk about presidential Internet campaigning. NOI Fellow Matt Stoller (Open Left) for spending pretty much the entire week with us, teaching and hanging out with our trainees. (Some of whom were actually pretty star struck!) Lori Metcalf and Beth Hanley for working behind the scenes to make sure we all were fed and housed. Ute Pannen for volunteering a week of her time to help out with logistics. Bernie Pollack, Ben Waxman, Kate Stayman-London, DJs Shred and ReeHee who packed MCCXXIII for a fundraiser to benefit this class of NOI bootcamp trainees. Dave McGonagle, Susan Markham & Kellie Dupree (EMILY's List) for mentoring and materials. And Susan especially for surprising us by marking up everyone's resumes by hand. (They really appreciated it Susan!) Amy Pritchard (Democratic GAIN) for connecting dozens of potential employers with our trainees, then taking time out to talk with them one-on-one about how to land their dream job, as well as donating hundreds of GAIN training manuals. Heather Muchow, Kari Lundstad-Vogt (EMILY's List), and Courtney Sieloff (Jobs That Are LEFT) for waking up early on a Sunday to do mock interviews and prep the trainees for the career fair. And our sponsors, for providing many of the resources to make the training possible, and especially for not expecting anything in return (except a look at the resumes of our grads!): AFL-CIO, Astro Data Services, Beaconfire, BlogAds, Blue State Digital, Care2, Democracy in Action, Dupont Circle Communications, Fenton Communications, Free Range Graphics, Indelium, Joint Concepts, MoveOn.org Civic Action, MSHC, NGP, Trellon, Voter Activation Network (VAN), Watershed And especially: Google's Ginny Hunt, Bob Boorstein, Peter Greenberger & Benjamin Weisberg for holding a special lunch event on AdWords, as well as Jeff Keltner for putting up with some scheduling changes on our part and teaching our trainees how to use Google Apps for their campaigns. Karen Ackerman (AFL-CIO) for helping us remember what we're fighting for with an inspiring talk on economic justice and the AFL-CIO's political program. Darcy Burner (Darcy Burner for Congress) for coming all the way out to DC from Seattle just to provide some inspiration to 60 future campaigners. And inspire us she did! (Did you know she was the lead project manager for Microsoft's .Net???) Marshall Ganz (Harvard) for giving a talk about the narrative, emotion, risk and craft of organizing. From the start to the finish you could hear a pin drop. Several of the trainees told me afterwards that one talk changed their lives and changed their minds on the spot about what kind of job they would seek coming out of the training.
Just the beginning...
I have to admit that after the first two days of NOI Bootcamp, I had my doubts. The turf-cutting tools and advice about phone banking and listserv management were useful, but I was asking myself (and others) - where exactly does the "new" in "new organizing" come in? Are we just learning how to use new tools to execute an old model more efficiently? If advances in technology have truly changed the way people communicate, shouldn't we be dealing with a new set of questions and assumptions about the relationship between people and politics? Does a generational divide exist between today's young people and those who were in our position just one or two election cycles ago? As the week progressed and we talked more about online organizing, the new media ecosystem, coalitions and movement-building, I started to think that the week's agenda had been designed to foster the exact questions I had been asking. And as we listened to Marshall Ganz talk about social movements, discussed our role as organizers until the wee hours of the morning, and pressed trainers on questions of inclusiveness and purpose, hints of an answer started to emerge. When Dr. Ganz said that we should be talking about values instead of issues, the trainees broke into spontaneous applause. Our group liked to clap, but this time it seemed to catch Dr. Ganz a bit off-guard. Young people wanting to talk about values? But it makes sense. Sites like Future Majority have documented a growing trend among Millennials toward increased civic engagement, religiosity, and political awareness. This could be an essay in itself, but perhaps the pendulum is swinging away from moral relativism and bank toward a more frank discussion about what we value and why. Maybe we can leverage this for victory in 2008. That's the plan, right? In high school, a friend of mine said that the most fundamental question a person can ask themselves is: Am I going to try to save the world? The people whose "yes" answer can be taken practically for granted are a special breed - idealistic critics, passionate world-changers, visionaries. When people with such inclinations start talking, something amazing happens - a better world seems possible. I know that sounds like a bunch of sappy hippie bullshit, but it's true. And I'm starting to think we should just embrace it, sappiness and all. - Erin Kenzie p.s. Everyone has been thanking Roz, Zack, and Judith (with good reason!), but I just wanted to give a quick shout out to Lori, who did a lot of work behind the scenes, and to the trainers, who took time out of their very busy lives to hang out with us. Much love to all. Wednesday, July 11, 2007
A humiliating show
Ok given my experiences over the past few weeks, I am charged to write this note. Greetings all, it has recently come to my attention that Viacom owned BET is reportedly about to air a show entitled “Hott Ghetto Mess”, this July on there Network. For those that don’t know HotGhetto mess was originally an internet site created by an African American Lawyer, who sought to broadcast images of our people to "make us aware" and "look deep within ourselves."
Apparently, BET has now joined the bandwagon and declares that this show will be a reality based show that confronts issues in a format and context that makes people who don't watch the channel comfortable or do it in a way that engages the 18- to 34-year-old viewer and makes them really think about these things?" Reginald Hudlin, BET entertainment president, told the Hollywood Reporter. This site is primarily targeted at African American men and women and has been in existence for some time now, the problem is given BETs history they do not have a long standing history of providing viewers with positive or even unstereotypical venues. In my opinion this would just be another horrible experiment that will inevitable make fools of African Americans around the world. I implore you all please let us gather our forces, and do whatever necessary to have this humiliation pulled from the upcoming television line-up. The original link to the news article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070711/ap_en_tv/tv_bet_hot_ghetto_mess_1 Thank you Sincerely Clayton Ollarvia Political Science Major Morehouse College
NOI Training and more
I had a blast at training, when I first got there and heard everyone's political experience my first thought was wtf am I doing here? I'd be lucky getting job lifting someone's bag because I dont have a political background and thought blogging was some new std via paris hilton. Back to my point, as the training went on I slowly became more confident that I could defintely do this-the canvasing I'm still lukewarm on but its like a shot just down it and move on with it and the odd feeling goes away after awhile. I learned a lot in a week and meet some really cool people-who I hope stay in contact with me just so I know how they are doing.
It feels odd being home now and contacting employers trying to break into this field to see where this road takes me. Never in a million years would I thought I would do training like this to go into politics but after 7 going 8 years of the cradle of idiotcy running the country you would be AMAZED how quickly that can change you when you see how these chages have affected the country first hand and who it affects the most how could you not get involed in politics. Sometimes you have to embody the change you want to see in the world which means sometimes stepping out of your comfort level to learn something new even if its somethings thats a self discovery all change is something constant-if its for the good or bad-either way its about learning something. I sent Roz, Zack, and Judith a email about this because I had no clue on how to use the blog-could you imagine that? I dont think there is enough money or thanks to show them how appreciative we are of the training even if I'm just speaking for myself and I am saying it again THANK YOU!!!!! To my fellow NOI07 class-some of I got to know well, some of you I didnt but it would be really cool for EVERYONE to stay in touch, even if it's meeting up for a beer (Barak & Ian-maybe in a couple more years for you two-kidding!) and playing catch up that would be cool. Hopefully now that I know what I'm doing on the blogs I can get to know everyone else who I didnt get to socialize with and there is always facebook and my space so dont be a stranger hit me up ANYTIME! Stay in touch-who knows maybe I can sweep a floor for you or somethings (KIDDING!), Peace and blessings to all of you! PS-dont you all love my sense of humor? I know, its HOT!!!! Tuesday, July 10, 2007
More than meets the eye: transformers and NOI
Coming to NOI with a limited campaign experience, I had a lot to learn. I knew that the week would provide lessons in technology and insights on field organizing. I figured there would be a campaign simulation and some interesting speakers. But it was what I had not expected that most influenced me about the campaign world which was so foreign to me. Though I learned all the fundamentals that one would imagine learning at a campaign “bootcamp” and a lot of really interesting new media stuff, what I took home at the end of the week was an understanding of how a campaign ticks. And I found that it isn’t great email writing skills of superb turf cutting (though I know those are essential too!). It is passion.
I have never met more passionate people than those surrounding me in the classroom and all of the amazing trainers. Quite frankly, I never expected to see what I saw during each (long) day and night in that classroom. Sixty people, from all of the country, from all different backgrounds, each with truly interesting and amazing pasts, coming together with one commonality: a passion for change. Overlooking all the details that will years down the line be a blur, I realized that what I took from the week was an inspiration. To be honest, I had begun to forget about trying to change the world. The passion I had years ago had at some point turned to a skepticism that I didn’t even realize was there. Seeing that passion again in all of the trainees, trainers, and speakers reminded me that there really is still hope. Thank you Roz, Zack, Judith, and the rest of the organizers and trainers for giving me the opportunity to take part in something so amazing. And thank you all for reminding me of the passion for change that is out there.
Charting the Path, Seeing the Future
Nithin Coca
It's strange to be back home. Though I was only gone for a week, home has changed. It's almost as if I have taken another trip around the world, because the week at NOI changed my worldview, the world that I'm returning to has changed dramatically. One feeling I could never get out of my head during the whole week, as I stood often dumbfounded by how smart everyone was, was just the thought of imagining what everyone here is going to be doing in a year. or 5 years. And I don't want to think any further than that cause my brain might explode. But just imagine. Next year, we'll be the oil that's gearing the machines of progressive change, and with the skills we just learned here, it won't be imported middle eastern oil, but clean, eco-friendly, Democratically elected oil. I want to, like everyone else, shower thanks upon Roz, Judith, Zach and the whole NOI team, but I'm afraid they might drown in self glorification. But I imagine for them, no thanks can match the pride in seeing any of us take what we've learned and go into the world and make it a better place. So what are we waiting for, let's do it! For anyone who's interested, I'm gonna blog my personal journey to election day 2008 at my blog, http://nithincoca.wordpress.com. anyone who's interested, take a look. Coca-OUT!
I started at the Sierra Club Today.
I feel like have entered the great progressive echo Chamber. But really it was tremendously exciting to be in a room with people who really cared but as importantly understood politics. It was just as important to me to be able to take my skills and training and but them to use. Right now we are the Sierra Club are working to make that Fox News is not able to gain money from anyone who wants to call themselves Green.
The Video is here http://foxattacks.com/ Petition is here https://secure2.convio.net/sierra/site/SPageServer?pagename=HomeDepot_Petition&JServSessionIdr011=o1yh0aq3b3.app7b Thanks to all of you for making smarter and what you will to make America better.
Quote of the week...
 "This must be the scariest thing for Republicans, a bunch of progressives sitting in a D.C. basement talking about politics," Zack Exley. And I'm sure it IS the scariest thing for Republicans and status quo Democrats. To be able to witness the rise, with my own eyes, of progressive youth storming out like gang busters to change the world as we know it, was a powerful sight to behold. The New Organizing Institute is for real and only now, as I am back out west on my parents' sheep farm, do many of the lessons truly start to take hold. My parents live in a very rural part of the pan handle of the state of Idaho, yet based on what I have learned via my training at the NOI, a person can change the world utilizing: an iron will, a sharp mind, and the power of the Internet. Nettocracy has been born! Zack, Judith, and Roz took 60 people many of whom like myself had a background in technology and a background in politics and what seemed effortless, (but no doubt wasn't) changed each one of us into a lean mean cog for the political machine. The best aspects of the program was that it fit the individual, and didn't try to hammer a cookie cutter shape out those who there to be trained. But rather, those who had jobs lined up could get the information they needed to further their campaign. Those who weren't looking found pieces to a puzzle, so that when they do go for work they are ready to lead the way in this new online politic. Those like myself, who were willing to go anywhere found that their new skills were needed everywhere, so much so that the glut of opportunities seemed almost endless. OH DECISIONS, DECISIONS! That all being said, I found just one thing troublesome. When the staffer for Nancy Pelosi, implied that it is a simplistic view for us to demand equal opportunity for the have nots to be able to share in this new Nettocracy. But I say the simplicity is its beauty, and the growing digital divide must be bridged if we are to be truly free and equal. As Cerron stated so many times this last week "As Martin Luther King once said it, "An injustice anywhere, is a threat to justice everywhere."" Thank you for reminding us all so many times Cerron, that we must include all of us, or we really are only out for our own self interests. I spoke to Judith about what seemed to be the level hegemony at this conference, I asked since we had spoken about environmental justice with the Stand Up speaker, and we had spoken about economic justice with the AFL-CIO speaker, would we touch on racial justice at the conference? Her reply, "I don't know, we'll have to wait and see." The next night was roots camp, a powerful event which came from the voice of those who gathered to learn not teach, and so at times it came out raw and untouched as if it was a cracked tooth showing an exposed nerve. Yet at others it was simple stats is it better to risk the harm of a few (Nuclear power) or the harm of many (coal power)?, as much as I hate the answer Eric I guess Nuclear is better but I hope we find something even better than that soon. Thank you Eric for sharing your knowledge. Than the next day this portly Jew started speaking with the wisdom of experience and told a story that left this Chicano shocked. He spoke of a grand journey that encompassed the two great civil rights leaders of our time. Martin Luther King and Cesar Chavez and to have personally been involved with both made me realize that my work with the Latino community is only half done and now I must work towards better personal understanding of Black America, with the hopes that someday we will all simply be Americans. After Marshall Ganz spoke I returned to Judith and simply said I'm satisfied, I can now go home happy. She laughed... I still don't know for sure which opportunity looks the best, but I do know one thing, none of them would have been possible a week ago. So thank you all for your youth and exuberance, your will to learn, your wish to strain, keep your fight alive and as Cliff Schecter said, "never give them an inch!" Thanks again and as always, Si Se Puede Sean Michael Patrick Gallegos
An Open Progressive Majority
I'll get to an open progressive majority in a second, but I first want to echo what everyone else has written and say how grateful I am for the week of training. The intelligence and insight of all the presenters was matched by their commitment to an open approach to teaching and training.
Ultimately, it was this spirit of collaboration and openness that left the largest imprint on me. From a Roots Camp grounded in this exact ethos to presenters willing to be bombarded with even the most minute query, this experience truly was about collaborative learning. The more I read and learn, the more I've found this openness to be a hallmark of the truly progressive left. Sadly, too many movement efforts have lost this approach. However, I see this spirit seeping back into the progressive framework in many forms. Clearly, the internet's function as a marketplace of ideas has informed how people think about progressive strategy and policy. I believe that the rise of the netroots has also had a similar function on campaigns. I'd like to preach about how this points towards a more participatory and open democracy, but that is for other places. In fact, I'll link to a place that discusses this much better than I could pretend to. NOI presenter Matt Stoller has partnered with two others to give us the new OpenLeft.com. While everyone may not agree with their exact framework for this spirit blossoming with MoveOn and the impeachment quagmire, it seems like an incredible site to discuss and reinforce this open progressive ideal. I'll say we've learned a progressive majority exists in this country. We also learned how to be collaborative and open in leveraging new technology to reach out to and reinforce this community. Too many existing organizations and established networks aren't born of this approach. We've been empowered to make this change. Let's make it happen.
Like a progressive summer camp on steroids...
NOI:
Going into the NOI experience I never would have guessed that things would have ended the way they did. I'd been to a few other trainings and I honestly figured they were all pretty much the same. I was excited to go to brush up on some skills and to polish some technique, but I expected to knock out the week and get back to the grind. Looking back, I never could have guessed the kind of potential that would be provided by this training. I would meet some of the best and the brightest minds from across the United States and even the world (Ute). Talk about a humbling experience. I have never been so impressed with a group of people. Every single person there seemed to have a passion to make the world a better place. And not only did they have a passion, but by the end of the week they had a plan. I had never seen a group people like this with not just incredibly large brains but also incredibly large hearts. Growing up in a red state and in an area that seemed complacent in life, this experience gave me hope again that together, we really can make a difference. I didn't want to leave. Granted, I was excited about getting some sleep. The reason I didn't get sleep was because I would learn and absorb information from people with great experience during the day (16 hours or so) and at night I would socialize with some of the most wonderful people I had ever met. The week felt like it was 2 or 3 weeks but it still didn't feel long enough. This week restored my faith in my generation. This week refreshed my hope for a better world. I have no idea how one week could do everything for me that it did, but it did. I have already recommended to several others. To my fellow NOI participants: I really wish that we could all stay in a group and travel around changing one city at a time or even one state at a time. Anyone good at organizing stuff like that? I know that the world will be a better place because of you guys. You will forever have my respect and admiration. I miss you guys. I look forward to hearing of each of your successes. And if you ever need anything, I'm there for you. To Roz, Judith and Zack: This week was revitalizing and I wouldn't trade it for the world. Please keep up the great work you are doing. You guys are keeping hope alive. You have my greatest respect and you always will. Thank you.
NOI Training Hooked Me Up
The NOI training in DC last week was an amazing experience. I learned from the best-of-the-best in online organizing, and my fellow trainees are clearly on track to really make a change in the world.
But more importantly, I got a job! Woot! Thanks to the NOI training, I was hired by the Iraq Summer campaign. I'm moving to Kentucky tomorrow to be the state's Deputy Field Director and, you know, stop the war. Wish me luck!
Let's join hands, and sing some Twisted Sister . . .
I had some reservations about who I'd meet at NOI. The combative nature of party politics has always fascinated me, and I've long clung to the belief that government can be a force that makes people's lives tangibly and measurably better. But I'd lived in DC for a couple years during the early aughts, and had formed a pretty distinct impression of the creatures trying to forge careers in Democratic politics: red ties and strands of pearls draped around the necks of over-ambitious former S.C.A. presidents, all engaged in some sort of masturbatory power grab. All too often, when talking to these people, their main concern seemed to be winning some sort of power-pissing contest: lay your business card on the bar of some Hill watering hole, and see who's is largest. There was a sense that what you did with political power was far less important than accruing as much as possible.
After my week at NOI, I couldn't be more convinced that this lame-ass model of politico is going the way of the dodo. Democratic politics is about to receive an infusion of new blood: hungry, angry, and smart operatives who firmly believe that any political activity that does not ask "How is this making the world a better, more equitable place?" is BS. 59 other NOI-ers and myself had the privelege of learning from some of best minds on the scene - operatives and organizers who not only believe that political action can make lives better, but have acted on those convictions. Sessions were led by individuals within the Democratic party who've used its machinery to advance a progressive agenda, and also by activists who've mobilized to force the Democratic party to truly act as a party of the people. We learned from people who don't shy away from a fight, and have won some huge battles in the war to make the world a better place. There is a true marriage of Democratic politics and progressive values going on right now. The entire week was inspiring and invigorating. Leaving NOI, I'm stoked. The Demo-progressives are hatching like a Mogwai feed after midnight. We are ready to kick inequality in the face, and injustice in the groin. Anybody who'd deny opportunity to all is gonna get a giant purple nurple. And may God himself help anybody who dares to question our patriotism. My week at NOI's convinced me of this: The revolution will not be televised. It will be digital, with the egalitarianism and transparency attendant that world. It will not be shy or meek. It will not cower in the face of hard questions, nuance, and complexity. And when we seize power in 2008, we're not gonna sit around and let it go to waste. That power's gonna be put to good use. To Roz, Zack, Judith, to all who took time out of busy schedules to facilitate the numerous stimuli sessions, and to my fellow NOI-ers - mahalo. Now, let the good times roll . . . .
I'm ok with being in the crazy 3%
In my entire life, I have learned that politics is not a topic of discussion – at least, not if you’re a Democrat. Stuck in red states my entire life, I have never been surrounded with such enthusiasm to change the world. I’ve felt like a misfit as far as my ideological beliefs are concerned, and it was rough to try and change the world when nobody else understands your point of view. NOI changed all that. Surrounded by progressives excited about the future state of politics in our country, I felt energized to return home and make a change. Even though I’m stuck in a position where I can’t move for three years, I’ve realized now that everything will work out if I just let it. To all of you at NOI: don’t ever let anyone tell you that you can’t do it, you can’t make a difference, or that what you do won’t matter in the end. Because it will – every single person I had the chance to meet, sit and talk to or just share a meal with is incredibly intelligent and passionate. Don’t forget your passions – and don’t let people deter you from pursuing them. Whenever I forget where I am in my life, I remember one of my favorite quotes: “Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or villify them. But the only thing you can't do is ignore them. Because they change things. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.” Let’s go change the world. I miss you guys! Anne Gepford
Teach a man to fish, and you have fed him for a lifetime...
Before coming to the NOI bootcamp, I considered myself many things: Iranian, a woman, a recent college grad, an activist, a daughter, a sister, one quarter Polish, one quarter Russian, an American, a New Yorker, a “political junky,” a globetrotter, a Latin American Studies nut, and last but not least, a Democrat.
I did not consider myself an "online organizer." To better convey this sentiment, it might be helpful to note that to me, html referred to the 8th, 20th, 13th, and 12th letters of the alphabet. Little did I know that in a mere 7 days, this would all change. I had never worked on a political campaign before coming to the NOI training. I had campaigned as president of various clubs as a student at Brandeis University, but the majority of my internships were sit-in-front-of-a-computer style internships. At NOI I experienced many firsts: my first time canvassing, my first time writing a persuasive email asking people to take action, my first time learning the ins and outs of the VAN, Act Blue, web metrics, Google AdWords, earned media, and microtargeting, and my first time organizing a campaign (a mock presidential campaign to elect Stewie from the Family Guy president- GO PINK TEAM!). Usually, when someone says it was their "first time" doing something, this means that she now knows what that "something" looks like, or has an inkling of how that "something" works. This is precisely how NOI differed from any type of training I had ever been to. I actually learned to use these programs and tools in that if someone asked me to do targeting and cut turf on the VAN, I could have it ready in less than an hour. At the NOI bootcamp, I became an online organizer in every sense of the phrase. My only regret is that it was only a week long- not because I felt like I needed to better learn the aforementioned online organizing materials, but because being at the NOI training was an opportunity to surround myself with people who will undoubtedly change the world, and put this country on a track of progressive politics. When I think of the NOI training, I can't help but think about the proverb “Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime.” For having "taught us to fish," I can't thank Roz, Zack, Judith, and all of our wonderful speakers enough. But, what I can do, is put the tools that they taught us to work. That being said, I am looking forward to seeing everyone again in the near future, on a progressive campaign. Thanks for all you do, NOI, Sarah Farhadian
Thanks NOI for the great training...
Well, I am back in my studio, on the third floor of my home, working alone on my computer. But something has changed. It is hard to believe that my amazing experience at NOI's Summer Campaign Bootcamp started with a simple response to an email invitation to get a chance at a free training. I usually never reply to unsolicited emails...but this one was different...so I thought I would give it a try. I still can not believe that I was selected, as one of 58 trainees from across the country. What talented, interesting, intelligent and ENERGETIC people they all are...with very bright and exciting futures ahead of them. I am very grateful to have been a part of this experience.
And what an experience it was...BOOTCAMP is a perfect description. Each day was packed with exciting information. Learning about the components needed to conducted an effective email campaign, field campaign, online organizing, fundraising, phone banking with call-from-home technology, effective GOTV techniques, etc. was extremely helpful and enlightening...I will be drawing upon the lessons learned in future campaigns that I work/volunteer for. It was amazing to see how new technology has expanded capabilities...it will take a while to rap my mind around all that I was introduced to. I was really impressed with the VAN and Catalist, as a former employee of the Board of Elections and one familiar with the importance of voter files, it was amazing to see how they have been enhanced...the quickness was overwhelming. As one who has "cut turf" and made attempts to "target" voter files - precinct-by-precinct through the use of Excel's "auto filter" capabilities....I WAS REALLY IMPRESSED. The Data Track classes were excellent...thanks Judith. I thought I was pretty "progressive" in my use of the computer, website development and knowledge of technology...but I have to admit that this training took me to a whole new level...and humbled me along the way. YouTube, Blogging, Facebook...just to name a few...are technologies and communication tools that I have never used before the NOI training (these comments that I am writing now, are in fact my FIRST ATTEMPT at blogging). Thanks Zack, for pulling me into the 21st century...these are powerful tools and I am really encouraged and excited to see their application and use in political/campaign communication. I really do not know where to start in talking about the trainers...other than to say THANK YOU for taking your time to share information with our group. The calliber, breath on knowledge and experience of NOI trainers was AMAZING. I would like to extend a special "thanks" to Marshall Ganz for sharing his experiences and contributions to the Civil Rights Movement. The values he embodies are the reason why I am a Democrat and fight each election year for Democratic victories and vote for Democratic candidates...40 years in the desert is long enough...I have renewed hope that 2008 will mark the beginning of a new era. Meeting all the NOI trainees, trainers and progressive organizations has renewed my belief. Finally, I would like to thank Roz, Judith and Zack. The New Organizing Institute is an excellent organization...and much needed...after recieving this training and getting the opportunity to network with so many people in the Progressive Democratic movement...I have come back with renewed optimism and belief that we can win back this country...and get back on the right track...There are alot of smart, talented and kind people, from across this country that are working to make sure that it happens. I greatly appreciated NOI's extension of opportunities provided by training, networking and job interviews and your genuine support in helping the new NOI trianees join this important movement... Thank you for my renewed hope...sitting on the third floor of my home, working in my studio - alone, I now know that there is alot of important work being done across this nation...and I now look forward to being a part of it. Monday, July 09, 2007
Changing the world one conversation at a time...
Yesterday on my flight across the country, I had an incredible conversation with a middle-aged lady from Minneapolis. We started by talking about the training in vague terms, careful -- as many people are -- not to give insight into our partisan beliefs for fear of being judged too early and ending political discourse prematurely. But as time went on, it became apparent that she was just as frustrated with our backward government as I, and that she shared all of our progressive values, and our sentiments for change.
She told me about her work in a Christian nonprofit, running small reconciliation programs for victims of genocide around the world. She also told me of their struggles to raise enough money to keep the program growing. Immediately, I was buzzing with ideas that tied together our days of practical training and inspiration. Together, we formulated a plan to revamp the website, reach out to bloggers, and utilize online video. I told her about all the amazing tools that Google Apps has to offer, and she is planning to contact me to consult her on this new and exciting strategy. Beyond that, I returned home to Montana and began working again today to help Bill Kennedy take back our Congressional seat from a four-term incumbant. It's going to be a tough fight, but I am confident that we can do it. Because of NOI, my position of Deputy Finance Director has dramatically expanded to include the subtitles "Western Montana Coordinator and Web Director," and the description is as follows: "In his role as Western Montana Coordinator, Cory Kalanick will organize fundraising, press, and field events and schedule candidate travel agendas in Western Montana. Cory Kalanick will direct campaign call centers, organize volunteers, and build relationships with local leadership in business, government, tribes, unions, and the college campus. The point is, our lessons at the NOI bootcamp will guide us forever, and have already made a tremendous impact. I am sure that many more thoughts will fill my mind and make their way to this blog, but for now, I want to thank everyone at NOI and wish you all the best in finding good jobs and making change in the world.
NOI Rox!
NOI organizers -- Roz, Zack and Judith -- planned eight days of the most incredibly intense infusion of political knowledge and awareness (generally related to online campaign fundraising) for a few dozen very fortunate people from across the country. The experiences and expertise of the speakers were diverse and deep, and the contacts, relationships and networks that we established should maintain many years of strengthening both the Democratic Party and the progressive movement.
The Data Track training was extremely interesting. Josh Hendler, of the DNC, was very engaging. I was familiar with much of the voter database information he covered; however, it was excellent information and a good refresher course, even for anyone who has used the VAN. Similarly, Dr. Amy Gershoff, of MSHC, began with a very basic statistics lecture before getting slightly technical. She very practically combined probability and statistics with politics, and I thought it was very intriguing. Additionally, Maren Hesla, of Emily's List, seemed to engage her audience with her practical Introduction to Polling. I thought Keith Goodman, of the Bullseye Political Group, further provided very useful information (Reading Polls and Banner Groups). The microtargeting research he does in battleground areas is awesome. The trainers from Google; Lola Elfman from M+R; the Wesley Clark and Jim Webb campaigners; some of the top bloggers, especially Cliff Schecter; those from Moveon.org; and of course, Dr. Marshall Ganz (Harvard professor and organizer under MLK and Cesar Chavez) -- who shared two hours on "Organizing and History" (what amazing stories and what a mensch) -- were fascinating, and in some cases, even riveting. Sunday's career preparation was also amazing. Having the opportunity to tap into minds, such as that of Kari Lundstadt-Vogt, of Emily's List, should prove to be invaluable to developing my political career. The icing on the cake, though, was the Job Fair -- the opportunity to meet with representatives from dozens of progressive polling and research firms, issue advocacy organizations, Democratic Party organizations and Presidential candidates. Roz, Zack and Judith even considered details for our comfort, such as the wonderful eating, overnight, and travel accommodations, covering practically all our expenses. When the airline agency misplaced my luggage, Zack even offered to reimburse me for out-of-pocket expenses. I would like to see future NOI training bootcamps continue providing these tremendous opportunities for politically and socially driven individuals. Areas that NOI may consider improving upon their training experience would include perhaps more training on building Web sites and integrating the various Google tools. The Friday night HTML / CSS breakout training session that Kyle and Kenny -- our fellow alums -- provided, for example, was terrific. I would have loved to have received more than the two hours for which we hijacked them. I also regret missing Monday's comprehensive e-mail training, which coincided with the important Data Track training. Additionally, I wonder whether our time spent Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Thursday nights on the simulation could have been better spent (although I did feel like I benefited from Monday's analysis of the polling banners). From my campaign training experiences, I believe that simulations are very challenging for which to produce the desired results. In final summation I would declare that the entire national movement to build a more blue and progressive-minded America needs to recognize the NOI as a major power player for building a progressive network of smart and talented, patriotic Americans. NOI is the real deal! NOI rox! --Greg Williams
On remembering why I came to DC in the first place
I've been in this city for nearly 4 years now. I came here to change the world, to reclaim my government, my country and my sense of pride. I came here to shake things up, to make the bastards who were running this country stand up and take notice. For the first year, when Cheney's ubiquitous motorcade would roll by at lunch time I would give the bastard the finger even though his Secret Service people are not averse to cracking a skull or two. Silly I know, but that is how angry I was and I was willing to take that chance. Then came the 2004 election, and the wind got knocked out of me. I stopped giving the guy the bird. I stopped talking about politics. I kept reading about what was going on, and my outrage built every day they took away my civil liberties, and every time they decided to rape the magna carta. I got more outraged every time a good guy turned out to be one of the bad guys and claimed he had no idea how they money ended up in his freezer. But I stopped talking about it. And I wasn't alone. At parties and cookouts and dinner, an embargo on political thought and speech had been put in place by unspoken consensus, and we talked, instead, about how the Nationals sucked this year. Even the joy of taking back the House and the Senate felt short lived. The bright shining light of the next day gave way to gloom of business as usual. We stopped talking about it, because we forgot how to be hopeful.
A few weeks ago I applied to this NOI Bootcamp because I'd just finished my undergraduate career and was in the job market. I knew going there and getting the training and networking was the way to break into a field of technology that I love. I didn't go because I was interested in political discourse, I went because I knew someone would offer me a job at the end. But something unexpected happened. None of the people who came had been informed about the embargo. Everyone was talking about politics. Everyone was talking about change. Everyone was talking about hope. I thought to myself, "WTF? I did NOT sign up for this. I signed up for free meals and some technology training." Then at one point, at 2 am one night I found myself sounding hopeful. I found myself breaking the embargo, and I found myself smiling while talking about our country and the direction it was headed. It was too hard to fight so I gave in. This week gave me something I thought was lost. I was surrounded by the most brilliant people, from 18 year old kids who were excited about change, to people in their 50's and 60's with stories to tell and lessons to teach about defeat and victory. I met people who have slept in the campaign office, and people who have electrified on-line communities. All together these people awoke a hope in me I thought was dead. Thomas Jefferson, in 1822, wrote to William Barry "Very many and very meritorious were the worthy patriots who assisted in bringing back our government to its republican tack. To preserve it in that will require unremitting vigilance." I know in my heart, after this amazing week that these are the worthy patriots who will lead our charge, and their capacity to remain vigilant is without reproach. Thanks to everyone at NOI and all the sponsors for your amazing work. Thanks to everyone who gave me hope again, whether they meant to or not, I hope to stand beside you on the battle front. Si Se Puede!
Home on the Range
Made it home last night in spite of delay. (Those of us in Texas use that phrase a lot less these days, fortunately. :) I had lots of time to reflect on the past week.
What strikes me as the coolest thing about the NOI training is that we had access to the best of the old school and the best of the new school at the same time. Marshall Ganz's stories from the MLK and Cesar Chavez days are still bouncing around in my brain. (I highly encourage everyone to check out Marshall's website that Zack linked us to -- it has video, charts, and summary text.) Learning the Google tools for use in a campaign was another great experience. The data track exercises as a whole were also quite good too, although I wish I could have attended the email writing exercise that went on concurrently. In general, learning from people active in recent campaigns from the local to the national level was what made this training so great. The last-minute addition of a RootsCamp was a great idea. I hope it becomes an NOI tradition. A similar idea that I would like to see for future NOI trainings is an evening of rotating practicums/workshops -- things like "Make a video and post it on youTube," "Build a basic website," "Set up a mailing list and send an html email," "Set up a campaign infrastructure in googleapps," "Run basic queries on a voter file database," and so forth. Divide into small groups and rotate through the classes (~1hr each) so that everyone samples each of the new tools in a guided, hands-on way. I can't wait to pass on as much as I can of the training to my fellow progressives in Lubbock. My advice to my fellow NOIers is to do the same: wherever you land, find a dozen or so passionate progressive people, pick an NOI topic that blew your mind, and teach it to them. To all my new friends from NOI: thank you, good luck, and let's keep in touch! --Kenny
NOI Training
Just a few thoughts on NOI:
What we did well: 1. Zack, Judith and Roz were awesome. They did a great job of setting the tone for the week and keeping everybody engaged. 2. Best trainers included the folks from MoveOn, the Webb campaign, the Harvard Professor, Lola from M+R. 3. Great work with Roots camp. Really. Let folks know ahead of time that we'll be doing this and I bet you'll have some extraordinary presentations. 4. The email writing exercise was by far the best and most thorough. Things to maybe improve upon: 1. PDF the binder! Al Gore was crying as we lugged around two and a half trees each. Let's have the agenda online. 2. A little more tech training for the non-tech folks would have helped. Something like a "One hour html crash course" would have helped a ton. Kyle from DIA did this in RootsCamp, and it was awesome. 3. It seemed like there wasn't much about actually creating web sites in the training, but that was the most arduous part of the Simpsons simulation. We should either focus more on the creation of websites, or have pre-existing sites. 4. An hour on "how to blog" could have helped some folks, too. Thanks again! Patrick P.S. If you have any web skills at all, and want to help me with our organization's god-awful website, www.ServeNext.org email me at patrick(at)servenext.org !
Homer Simpson is Really In It to Win It!
 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (7/8): HOMER WILL RUN With a growing base of support that has reached nearly 1,000* voters calling on Homer Jay Simpson to enter the race, the candidate from Springfield made his intentions to run official today. Homer's supporters are strong and emerging quickly from the grassroots. POLITICS OF CHANGE Because his campaign has taken off at a time when the country is dissatisfied with the other candidates in the race, it is in a unique position to tap into people power. Homer Simpson's website asked the people to decide which issues are important to them via a poll, and they have begun to speak loudly. Moreover, Homer's tactics have earned him the praise and adulation of Barack Obama. TOUGH ON TERRORISTS Homer Simpson has made it clear that he, and he alone, will keep America safe. Homer has committed to killing Osama Bin Laden -- and has the pictures to prove it. SMART ON PEOPLE On the domestic front, Homer is perhaps the most qualified candidate in history in terms of real job experience, holding more than 100 jobs in his life. Homer has taken an important stance on labor, calling on members of the United States Senate to do their job and pass the Employee Free Choice Act immediately. Further, Homer will push Congress to pass a Living Wage in the first 24 hours of his term. UPHOLDING THE CONSTITUTION On Inauguration Day, Homer will proudly take the oath of office to protect the Constitution. He is in a unique position to do this because unlike most candidates in the race, he meets the age and citizenship requirements established in Article II, Section I of the U.S. Constitution (**). Plain and simple -- Homer is the only viable candidate that can win. NETROOTS The netroots and blogsphere have overwhelmingly cheered Homer Simpson for jumping into the race. Major blogs have gotten behind our campaign. Homer has already been endorsed by Raising Kaine and Left in the West. Beyond this, Raising Kaine has put up an ActBlue contribution to start rolling in the money, which Homer will then donate to the good people at the New Organizing Institute. THE REAL KEY - SWING STATES To reiterate the point, Homer has already been endorsed by Raising Kaine and Left in the West. The blogs have powerful readership in their respective states -- Virginia and Montana -- the two states that tipped the Senate balance toward progressives in 2006. These states gave their support to Senators Jim Webb and Jon Tester, and they will clearly lead the way in electing Homer Jay Simpson to the Oval Office. ADD IT ALL UP It's clear that Homer Simpson is the ONLY real candidate for President. He has risen above the negative campaigning, his progressive values run deep, and his support is wide. Please visit our website and join this growing movement. Thanks so much for your support! The Draft Homer Team Go Green: Cory, Matt, Liza, Barak, Demond, Derek, Celeste, & Jason http://www.drafthomer.com =================== (*) Almost 1,000 - Current number of supports has hit 937, and is growing by the second. Full breakdown: 693 facebook 28 myspace 216 unique web signups (**) Exerpt from Article I, Section II of the U.S. Constitution: No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President; neither shall any person be eligible to that office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty five years, and been fourteen Years a resident within the United States. Sunday, July 08, 2007
KRUSTY WINS!
Krusty would like to congratulate all the other chumps... I mean candidates for a hard fought, issues based campaign. But ultimately someone has to win, and as we saw in the 2000 election it doesn't even matter if it's true. So thanks and better luck next time! The Devil's Advocate Saturday, July 07, 2007
Baby Wars: The Last Stand
 The time has come for Maggie for America to wage its final assault against the other candidates. The staff of Maggie Simpson has worked quite arduously utilizing all of the skills they learned in each session to continue building their constituency with much success.We are proud to announce that on the eve of election day the latest poll is in our favor. So on behalf of the Maggie Simpson staff I would just like to wish everyone good luck tomorrow, as the best candidate, Maggie Simpson, will win.Marge Simpson P.S. I am so grateful everyday that Stewie Griffin is not my son.
A Real Endorsement for Team Lisa
Friday, July 6, 2007, Frankfort, KY -- In the final days before the election, Jonathan Miller, Chair of the Kentucky Democratic Party threw in his support for the Lisa 2008 campaign:
After Miller's announcement, Milhouse Van Housen, spokesman for Lisa Simpson, said, "This latest endorsement clearly shows that Lisa is having great success in her campaign for the Southern vote, which the other candidates have clearly neglected. This will be critical to her victory."
Friday, July 06, 2007
An integrated progressive infrastrucutre for all
Check out this report from a lively NOI-Roots Camp dialogue. The panel revolved around the rough title: Progressive Politics in Rural and Republican dominated areas. Below are our ideas: Take away lessons: 1) Build infrastructure for candidate recruitment and training specifically in rural and Republican dominated areas. This means organizations and funders must commit not simply to a battlefield expansion, but to a specific program for down ballot offices in these rural and Republican dominated areas.
2) Expand, package, and proliferate micro-targeting technology to the progressive infrastructure and candidates in rural and Republican areas. 3) Speak intentionally. Speak with the voice of our America and be aware of the frame you present. 4) Run to win on core value issues. Run on the issues that unite our America: -A bold environmental and energy initiative for a new economy. -Robust living wage laws -Real reform of our agricultural policy -True security for our ports -Strong support for our community infrastructure: -Accountable investments in healthcare, first responders, and education. Please give us your feedback and ideas about building an integrated progressive infrastructure for all of America. -Chris
Rootscamp topic: Pensacola
Hey folks.
With a few other people, I'll be leading a discussion on what we can do tonight in response to this video given to Derek. I think there are a few things we can do in a small amount of time. -Patrick
Sorry to repost, but this got lost a few posts down I think. There's a new wiki for the Rootscamp trainings that are going on tonight at 7pm. You can find it on the |
