Puget Sound Liberals Weekly Newsletter #68

Enhancing Freedom, Opportunity and Cooperation in Puget Sound and Beyond

 Through informing and networking Liberals and Liberal Organizations.

Our vision is hundreds of thousands of well-informed Puget Sound Liberals working together.

 

May 4, 2007

 

Calendar of Events

 

Saturday, May 5 - all cell phone numbers are being released to telemarketing companies. You may then receive and be charged for sales calls. Call 888-382-1222 from your cell phone to place it on a national ‘no call’ list for five years.

 

Tuesday, May 15 at 8 PM at 222 South Main Street in Seattle – Political Comedy (Take the Money and Run for Office) Fundraiser for Washington Public Campaigns. $12 ($6 for students).  RSVP for $2 less.  For More Information .

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Washington Public Campaigns Speaker Training $5

  Saturday May 12th - Burien Library, 2-4:30 PM
  Sunday May 13th - Bellingham Educational Credit                                         Union, 3:30-6 PM
  Saturday May 19th - Mercer Island Library, 2-4:30 PM
  Sunday May 20 - Lacey Library near Olympia, 2-4:30
Pre-registration required, including which training

 

Friday, May 25 at 6:30 PM at Ann Rolio’s home (16109 SE 5th Street) – Lake Hills Liberals Salon, including an Egyptian gourmet buffet, followed by a presentation and discussion about Blogging by Andrew Villeneuve.  RSVP to davthom@att.net.

 

Quote of the Week

“There are two things that are important in politics.  The first is money, and I can’t remember what the second one is.”  Mark Hanna, 19th century political boss

 

 

 

 

Table of Contents  *** featured articles

 

Puget Sound Liberals

About Puget Sound Liberals

Free Notices for Candidates and Advocacy Groups

Do You Want an Email List?

 

Liberals and Democrats

A Scary Fable: Big Red Republicans Return ***

Democrats Fail to Mobilize Grass Roots ***

Join Our Tory Party

Ronna Weltman’s Warning to be Cautious

 

Nation and World

Reagan Initiated Massive Assault on Liberal Progress

John Roberts’ Activist Supreme Court ***

Will Data Mining Reveal Bush’s Subversion?

Washington DC Press Reacts to Bill Moyers’ Expose

Dave Broder Attacked for Attacking Harry Reid

DLC Recommended Budget to Reduce Bush Deficits

The Many Facets of Poverty ***

Under-Investment for Productivity ***

Global Unions Needed to Counter Global Businesses

Immigration Raids Tear Families Apart

 

State and Local

Democratic Legislative Leaders Avoid Over-Reaching

Seattle Port Commissioner Alec Fisken Reports ***

 

Our Liberal Spirit

Barack Obama responds to Reinhold Niebuhr ***

 

Lake Hills Liberals

Vigiling to Bring Our Troops Home Alive

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our Political Priorities

·  Fair Elections and Open Government

·  Fair Taxes and Competent Spending

·  Investment for Productivity

·  Quality Health, Education, Jobs, Income and Retirement

·  Environmental Protection and Energy Independence

·  Personal Security and Equal Rights

·  International Cooperation and Leadership

 

Conservatives oppose all of these.

Recommendations

 

·       Darcy Burner for U.S. Congress, 8th District

·       Alec Fisken for Seattle Port Commission

·       Holly Plackett for Redmond Mayor

·       Brian Conlin for Redmond City Council

·       Keri Andrews for Bellevue City Council

·       Dana Stober for Kent City Council, Position 3.

·       Support Our Grocery Workers

 

WOW!  Unbelievable!  View at least 5 minutes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Puget Sound Liberals

 

Free Notices for Advocacy Groups and Candidates

In this section, we will provide a page containing continuing free notices for any advocacy group or candidate who stimulates 50-100 liberals to join our Puget Sound Liberals.   Just inform your liberal members or friends that you are asking us to send them our newsletter, which they can quit at any time.  Or ask them permission to send their information to us.  Then send us their name, email address and residence (at least community and neighborhood).  Phone numbers allow us to check when emails bounce.  We will add them to our subscribers list, removing them immediately upon request.  In our experience, more than 90% will happily continue to enjoy our newsletter’s in-depth coverage of fundamental political issues and news.  We will publish your same notice each week until you send us an update.

 

Do You Want an Email list for Communicating with Other Members

An email list will let you ask questions, express information and opinions in an email which goes to all other members, each of whom can reply to create a conversation.  An email list is similar to a blog, but private instead of public.  Now you can only send a communication to me to publish, which people can only respond to a week later.

 

I have easily used Topica to create a half dozen email lists for members of various groups to privately communicate with each other.  Topica has advertisements, but they are not nearly as obtrusive as Google’s email lists.  I wouldn’t use Riseup because their radical views are inconsistent with our liberal ones. 

 

All communications would be unmonitored, except I would warn and then reject members who personally attack others.  I have warned several people, but never rejected anyone from my other email lists.  Members would only be identified when they send messages.  Let me know if you would join such an opt-in list.  I can create it next week if demand exists for you to converse with each other.

 

Liberals and Democrats

 

A Scary Fable: Big Red Republicans Return

It is now 2010.  The Democrats are in power nationally and at state and local levels.  But all is not going well.  U.S. troops have left Iraq, leaving increased civil strife behind.  Israel has bombed Iran, producing worldwide condemnation and uniting Persians and Arabs against Israel and our U.S. for supporting Israel.  Terrorist attacks against Israel and against overseas Americans have greatly increased.

 

Arabian states have ceased exporting oil to the U.S.  Oil production is down in Iraq and Iran, as well as in civil strife-torn Nigeria, while China continues to import more oil.  Soaring U.S. gasoline prices have stimulated inflation and recession (stagflation) as our Federal Reserve increases interest rates.  Arab countries and others reduce their funding of U.S. debt, forcing our government to further increase interest rates to attract sufficient funding.

 

As happened earlier with the New Republicans, Democrats succumb to campaign contributors.  With severe resistance from private health insurers and pharmaceuticals, Democrats fail to pass legislation to provide universal health coverage.  With falling revenues and increased welfare costs, Democrats can’t pass legislation to significantly reduce our families’ financial vulnerability, nor balance our budget.  The hopes of millions of voters remain unfulfilled.

 

Traditional Republicans like Richard Nixon and Dan Evans regain control of the Republican Party.  They continue to rail against big government, but promote compassion at state and local levels.  Giving less attention to the religious right and to libertarians, they build a strong support network among small business entrepreneurs whom Democrats have long neglected.  They show more support for immigrants and ethnic minorities.  They support many conservation measures, even energy independence and reduction of climate warming emissions.  They become more somewhat more liberal, but still strongly oppose major legislation to provide access to quality healthcare, education, jobs, income and retirement.  They also oppose regulation of businesses to protect workers, suppliers, consumers, and our general public.

 

The Conservative political infrastructure remains intact and improves, especially through applying Karl Rove’s strategies and tactics for grass roots mobilization.  Democrats continue to fail to identify and mobilize their grass roots supporters.  Our most enthusiastic Democrats prefer to use blogs to converse with each other.  Republicans remain in control of southern states which are gaining congressional seats and Electoral College votes as our 2010 census certifies population increases there.  Through gerrymandering, they will be able to gain still more seats.  They are posed to greatly weaken Democratic political control in 1012.

 

I don’t believe that all of these events will occur.  But each of them could.  It’s scary.  More important, what should Democrats do to ensure they don’t happen?  Above all, we must mobilize our grass roots.  Dave Thomas

 

Democrats Fail to Mobilize Grass Roots

Our Washington State Democratic Party Chair said that “Caucuses are a test of your ability to organize a grass roots campaign.”  If so, we flunk.  Only a minority of precincts have any members show up for caucuses.  For the rest, so few show up that most who show up can become delegates to county caucuses. 

 

Participants produce platforms, but most candidates ignore them and no attempt is made to evaluate the extent to which Democratic legislators realize these platforms.  Our 46th LD Platform/Resolutions Chair Dean Fournier and Sarajane Siegfriedt have expressed concern that our 2007 schedule provides for legislative district caucuses on April 5th and county caucuses one week later on April 12th, not leaving enough time for county platforms to be created based on legislative district platforms.  Another instance of weak bottom-up communication.

 

Another test of our ability to organize at the grassroots level is the ability to recruit Precinct Committee Officers (PCO’s).  Again we flunk.  Only a minority of precincts have PCO’s, most receive no training and many fail to canvass their precincts, leaving most likely Democratic voters unidentified.

 

A third test of our ability to organize at the grassroots level is the extent to which we have identified likely Democratic voters, regularly contact them to inform them about our party, encourage their involvement, and stimulate them to vote.  Again we fail.  Most likely Democratic voters have not been identified.  Those which have been identified receive no communication from the party, except for a minority who are canvassed (usually by candidates’ campaigns) prior to an election.

 

It is time for Democrats to get serious about grass roots mobilization.  Our Lake Hills Liberals demonstrates at least some possibilities, particularly with respect to the third test.  Other possibilities have previously been discussed in our newsletter.

 

Join Our Tory Party

Queen Elizabeth is visiting us.  I have recently joined our Tory Party.  When we obtain control over our government, we will immediately send a mission to her majesty.  We will admit that taxation with representation isn’t any better than the other kind.  That we aren’t capable of governing ourselves.  We will ask to be taken back as a colony.  Unfortunately, she will probably throw up her hands in horror and inform us that the British are no longer in the colony business.  Dave Thomas

 

Letter from Member Ronna Weltman

Hi Dave, in your suggestion to Darcy Burner, you suggest opponents aren't likely to see information in an online newsletter, and that's highly unlikely. If her opponents have any degree of sophistication, they will subscribe or have a staffer/volunteer subscribe to Democratic/liberal sites to keep an eye on what she's doing and saying. It's a good idea to remind your readers that if they wouldn't want to read something they wrote on the cover of the New York Times, then they shouldn't post it on the Internet. 

 

I googled '"Dave Thomas" liberal' and your website popped up on top. Everything you write can be -- and quite possibly is being -- monitored by Republicans -- and who knows who else!

 

I agree with Ronna that Conservatives can see our newsletters on our website and may even find a way to join our group to receive our newsletters.  So Ronna is right that we should be careful.  Secret campaign plans shouldn’t be reported here.  The public media might report on some of our contents, but it is more difficult for them to report on private communications than to report on public ones.  In addition, they have larger fish to fry.  I hope the Republicans also have bigger fish to fry than worrying about threats posed by us.  I hope we can be careful without being paranoid.  Dave Thomas

 

National and World

 

Reagan Initiated Massive Assault on Liberal Progress

Reagan's election changed the political reality. His agenda was rolling back the welfare state, and his budgets included a wide range of cuts for social programs. He was also very strategic about the process. One of his first targets was Legal Aid. This program, which provides legal services for low-income people, was staffed largely by progressive lawyers, many of whom used it as a base to win precedent-setting legal disputes against the government. Reagan drastically cut back the program's funding. He also explicitly prohibited the agency from taking on class-action suits against the government -- law suits that had been used with considerable success to expand the rights of low- and moderate-income families.

 

The Reagan administration also made weakening the power of unions a top priority. The people he appointed to the National Labor Relations Board were qualitatively more pro-management than appointees by prior Democratic or Republican presidents. This allowed companies to ignore workers' rights with impunity. Reagan also made the firing of strikers an acceptable business practice when he fired striking air traffic controllers in 1981. Many large corporations quickly embraced the practice. Also, his high dollar policy in the mid-'80s was a severe blow to manufacturing unions, who suddenly had to compete against low-cost imports that were essentially subsidized by an overvalued dollar.  The above was adapted from Dean Baker's new book, The United States since 1980 .