Puget Sound Liberals Weekly Newsletter #84

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.

August 24, 2007

Recommendations

· Endorsements by King County Democrats

· Endorsements by Progressive Majority - WA

· Endorsements by King Co. Labor Council

· Bill Sherman for King County Prosecutor

· Scott Noble for King County Assessor

· Alec Fisken for Seattle Port Commission

· Gael Tarleton for Seattle Port Commission

· Write in Brad Larssen for King Co. Council #6

· Keri Andrews for Bellevue City Council #7

· Josh Schaer for Issaquah City Council #4

· Dana Stober for Kent City Council #3.

· Both Jessica Greenway and Penny Sweet for Kirkland City Council #4

· Maureen Judge for Mercer Island City Council #3

· Meta Hogan for Olympia Mayor

· Brian Conlin for Redmond City Council #3

· Richard Cole for Redmond City Council #5

· Kathy Keolker for Renton Mayor

· Shirley Gaunt-Smith for Renton City Council #3

· Bruce Harrell and Venus Velazquez for Seattle City Council #3

· Support Our Grocery Workers

· Save Our Renton-Snohomish Rail Line

In 2008, Vote for Rodney Tom for U.S. Congress, 8^th CD

Quote of the Week

I like life. It’s something to do.

Ronnie Shakes

Our Website Our Editor

Table of Contents * featured articles

Puget Sound Liberals

About Puget Sound Liberals

Commentaries from Our Members

Commercial Media Don’t Reflect Mainstream Thought

Nathe Lawyer: Why LDs vary in # of precincts

Jack Greenlaw: What is the Gay Agenda? *

Liberals and Democrats

Planning and Accountability for LD Democrats *

Our Website Now Contains Legislative District Tools *

State and Local

King Co. Legislative Action Committee Meeting *

Neighborhood House Parties *

Nation and World Links

A Liberal Agenda for 2009-2012 *

DCCC Runs Ads Against Reichert and Others

Congressman Dave Reichert: Our Iraq War

Our Liberal Spirit

Fear, a Major Enemy of Freedom *

Recommended Books

Lake Hills Liberals

Calendar of Events à next page

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

· Justice and Peace Everywhere

· International Cooperation and Leadership

Conservatives oppose all of these.

Let’s End Our National Nightmare

Restore Our American Dream

Calendar of Events

King County Democrats - Legislative District Meetings

Friday, August 24 at 7 PM at King Co. Administration Building (960 Newport Way NE, Issaquah) – Friday Night at the Movies “Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers”, sponsored by 5^th Legislative District Democrats

Friday, August 24 at 6:30 PM at Ann Rolio’s home (16109 SE 5^th Street) – Lake Hills Liberals Salon, including a Lebanese buffet and Grocery Workers Bargaining presentation and discussion led by Union Representative Elena Perez. RSVP to davthom@att.net

Saturday, August 25, 2007 at 1-4 PM at Highlands Community Center (800 Edmonds Avenue NE, Renton) – Meet Renton Mayor Kathy Keolker.

Monday, August 27 at 1:30 PM at front of Joey’s Restaurant (800 Bellevue Way), Rally and Demonstration against Bush administrations anti-choice and anti-woman policies sponsored by NARAL Pro-Choice Washington. For more information or RSVP. Or call 206-624-1990.

Monday August 27 at 5 PM at Laurel Park Clubhouse (11012 NE 68^th Street, Kirkland) – Impeachment Potluck to honor Senator Eric Oemig and protest President Bush’s Bellevue fundraiser for Congressman Dave Reichert. For more information email Nancy Rising or phone her at 435-827-9181.

Commentaries From Our Members

Our Commercial Media Don’t Reflect Mainstream Thought

My introduction to last week’s newsletter referred to mainstream media, meaning media with the largest audiences. Several members pointed out that my term was misleading.

Dwight Rouso wrote, “I saw an article today raising a framing objection to "mainstream media" with the concept that they are not mainstream, they are a corporate media largely of the wealthy class; our newsletters and progressive media recently more a-blooming is the mainstream of America. This may well call for avoiding "mainstream media" as the usual pejorative. Perhaps "corporate media" or the bush-echo media or the traditional media ( I think that plays too much to folk who tend to trust our mythical traditional idea of the press) or the regressive media or or (other ideas welcome).” Dwight

Andrew Villeneuve wrote, “Traditional media. Not mainstream media. Our values and our beliefs are not out of the mainstream. Usage of that term implies they are.”

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I agree. Another term is needed. Perhaps commercial media since our newspapers, weekly magazines, radio, television and cable which are most visited are primarily dedicated to mass merchandizing.

Conservatives complain that our commercial media is too liberal. Liberals complain that our commercial media is too conservative. My complaint is that our commercial media are too superficial, with the result that they don’t adequately criticize deceptive Conservative framing and spin. Below are listed some non-superficial media which debunk errors of our conventional wisdom and present detailed evidence concerning major economic, political and cultural trends. Also see our resources for liberals, which includes many alternative sources of information.

On Wednesday evening, August 22, our Eastside Fellowship for Reconciliation presented a forum featuring local Puget Sound independent media, including Lila Kitaeff, Geov Parrish, Ed Mays, Bill Alford and Jonathan Lawson. They noted that our commercial media are biased toward maintaining access to power. This could be good news, if Democrats gain power. The commercial media would still be oriented toward wealthy interests, but might also become more oriented toward Democratic Party interests.

Our commercial media, like other American business, have a short term perspective. Due to their bias toward wealthy and powerful private interests, increasing number of Americans are turning to alternative media. Our commercial media is rapidly losing readers and viewers. Dave Thomas

What exactly is “The Gay Agenda”?

Email from member and correspondent Jack Greenlaw

For starters, let’s define the words:

· Gay: someone who practices homosexuality; having a sexual attraction to persons of the same sex 

· Agenda: a list, plan, outline, or the like, of things to be done, matters to be acted or voted upon, etc.:

James Dobson, the leader of Focus on the family describes “The Gay Agenda” for his followers: “Those goals include universal acceptance of the gay lifestyle, discrediting of scriptures that condemn homosexuality, muzzling of the clergy and Christian media, granting of special privileges and rights in the law, overturning laws prohibiting pedophilia, indoctrinating children and future generations through public education, and securing all the legal benefits of marriage for any two or more people who claim to have homosexual tendencies.”

My personal “Gay Agenda”: My goals and aspirations are much the same as any American. I would like to be accepted for who I am and how I conduct my personal life. I would like to be recognized as a patriot that has served my country and pays taxes and leads a productive meaningful life.

I am in an 11 year relationship with a person of the same sex. We own our home in Lake Hills and contribute to the community by gifting to charities of our choice, obeying the laws of the land, and paying our taxes. We treat everyone with respect regardless of race, religion or personal lifestyle. We also vote in every election.

Our agenda this year included holding an “open house” for our neighbors to meet and to make Lake Hills a little safer by knowing each other by name, recognizing each other as neighbors, and hopefully, friends. We accomplished that in June and were well received as part of a diverse neighborhood.

We intend to register as “domestic partners” with Washington state during the month of August in order to gain a few benefits that are enjoyed by all:

· Health care facility visitation rights;

· The ability to grant informed consent for health care for a patient who is not competent;

· The ability to be able to speak with health care providers who will now be able to disclose information about the other partner without that partner's authorization;

· A surviving domestic partner may bring a wrongful death action based on the death of the other partner;

· Title and rights to cemetery plots and rights of internment;

· The ability to authorize autopsies and request copies of autopsy reports and records;

· The right to control the disposition of the remains of a deceased partner;

· The ability to consent to the removal of human remains from a cemetery plot;

· The ability to make anatomical gifts;

· Inheritance rights when the domestic partner dies without a will; and

· Administration of an estate if the domestic partner died without a will or if the representative named in the will declines or is unable to serve.

The rest of our “agenda” is to travel to the east coast to visit relatives, see Boston and attend a few plays in New York. We will also enjoy our circle of gay and straight friends in Lake City and on Lake Sammamish, continue to dine at our favorite restaurants and visit a quaint little wine bar in Issaquah. So, tell me my liberal friends: Does our “agenda” sound a little like yours?

I am a 63 year old gay man living in Lake Hills with Owen, his partner of 11 years and their chocolate labrador “Chaps”. I work for a large non-profit agency on Capitol Hill in Seattle. Comments are welcome: jaxons@isomedia.com Jack Greenlaw

Why the Variance in Number of Precincts in Different Legislative Districts?

Email from member Nathe Lawyer

Dave, It is my understanding that the variance in precincts is determined at the county level, and ideally encompass a world of about 300 of some type of voter. In Pierce County the lines are drawn as 300 poll voters. So in some precincts you can have 300 poll voters, but nearly 2100 absentee voters so the geographic size can be rather large, as well as the management for a single PCO. In our vote by mail precincts (of which there are some wholly vote by mail) there are 300 voters.

Obviously to canvass and do proper voter ID and other organizing activities within these larger precincts, it required more than one individual, hence the committee portion of "Precinct Committee Officer."

As it stands now for the 2008 election, Pierce will be the last polling county. It is my hope, when we move to vote by mail, that we will be able, as a party. to increase the number of our precincts. This would make our organizing more efficient and greatly increase the natural base of the party. Nathe Lawver, Chair, Pierce County