Added New Link: News Hounds

Jane Fleming Kleeb

So I came across this on the web with one of the young democrat news searches LINK

Jane is the past Executive Director of the Young Democrats of America, the role now held by Al Acker. This article covers an interview that Jane had on Fox news, and this website gives her made props for a job well done. The News Hounds Website covers the news on Fox, they watch Fox so you don't have to. A neat concept, and a useful website. If you are anything like me, you can watch Fox news in short spurts, but it starts to wear on you after a bit. On the News Hounds website (link in title bar) you can review the propaganda, without having to watch it.

And if I am mentioning Jane, I want to mention Scott Kleeb, her husband. Scott ran for Congress last year in Nebraska, and did well, and is being recruited to run for the Senate. Scott would be a great Senator, and would have the support of Young Democrats from across the country. Check out his website to see a short video by Scott. I have high hopes that he will run and win and be a part of our efforts to gain a majority in the Senate.

Benazir Bhutto's 19-year-old son Bilawal Zardari New Leader

Bilawal will follow in his mother's foot steps and be the co-chair of Pakistans largest political party, sharing the responsibility with his father. All 3 Major parties will participate in the election still scheduled for the start of January. The BBC has done a short profile on Bilawal Zardari.

Benazir Bhutto's son, Bilawal Zardari, a student with no experience in politics, said he would remain at Oxford University, leaving his father, Asif Ali Zardari, who was officially designated co-chairman, as the effective leader of the country's largest political party.

"The party's long struggle for democracy will continue with renewed vigor," Bilawal told a news conference. "My mother always said democracy is the best revenge."

Supporters chanted "Benazir, princess of heaven" and "Bilawal, move ahead. We are with you."

Bhutto's grandfather was a senior figure in the Pakistan Muslim League, the party that helped Pakistan split from India and lead it to independence in 1947. Her father — Pakistan's first elected prime minister — founded the party in 1967 and its electoral success since then has largely depended on the Bhutto name.

Bilawal said that Zardari would "take care" of the party while he continued his studies. Zardari then told reporters to direct questions to him, saying his son was at a "tender age."

Zardari, who spent eight years under detention on corruption charges in Pakistan before his release in late 2004, is a party powerbroker who served as environment minister in Bhutto's second government. He has denied the charges of large-scale graft during his wife's rule.

He immediately announced the group's participation in the elections but said another party leader, Makhdoom Amin Fahim, would likely be their candidate for prime minister if they won.

Zardari appealed to the party of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to drop plans to boycott the polls. Sharif's party later agreed to the appeal and said it would take part in the elections.

Some people have called for a delay in the elections given the turmoil in the country following Bhutto's killing, but a senator from her party said it was demanding that they take place on time.

"We want elections on Jan. 8 and we will not let the government run away from the elections," said Sen. Safdar Abbasi.

Thought Police?; CA Democrat introduces legislation to quiet dissent

H.R. 1955: Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007

I suggest that everyone contact their legislators to oppose this legislation.

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h110-1955
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/philip-giraldi/the-violent-radicalizatio_b_74091.html
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/11/19/5320/
http://www.democracynow.org/2007/11/20/homegrown_terrorism_prevention_act_raises_fears
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/112907J.shtml
http://www.lewrockwell.com/knaebel/knaebel11.html

A Sad Day in Pakistan; Benazir Bhutto Assassinated

The death of Bhutto could send the nuclear-armed country into a civil war. This was at least the third, and final, attempt on her life since returning to Pakistan in October.

Let's hope for a peaceful Pakistan ahead of the January 8th elections.

Video:
http://www.democracynow.org/2007/12/27/former_pakistani_prime_minister





News Reports:
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/737B73AE-EE5D-4C41-8CA2-E04B356FBCBC.htm

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/27/AR2007122701481.html

http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/latestnews/Bhutto39s-assasination-leaves-Pakistan-in.3623006.jp

Several Stories and Tributes are published here:
http://www.3quarksdaily.com/

Severe food shortages, price spikes threaten world population

Below are a few links on the new report released by the UN FAO on the world food supply.

Makes you really think about your food choices and about world policy on food control and how we use our food supplies in other areas.

http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2007/1000733/index.html
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/12/17/europe/food.php
http://www.bangkokpost.com/breaking_news/breakingnews.php?id=124558
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2007/dec2007/food-d22.shtml
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/12/18/5877/

Where are the Clinton Bumper Stickers

Just an observation I have made recently, there are Obama and Edwards and Kucinich bumper stickers all over Tallahassee, but I haven't seen any Clinton bumper stickers.

On the other side Ron Paul, Huckabee, Romney and McCain have cars bearing their names on bumpers.

Maybe it is comment more about the type of person who supports Clinton, maybe they don't like bumper stickers. Or maybe her support isn't as strong as people think it is, at least in the activist community of people that will buy a sticker on line and put it on their car.

Turning out the Youth Vote

“‘Tis the season of targeting the youth vote,” proclaims the Washington Post’s Jose Antonio Vargas. He links to a handful of websites like Scoop08, VoteGopher, and No Vote, No Voice that are devoted to the so-called millenials. The much-anticipated Scoop08 is a daily online newspaper written and produced by students, and focused on the election; VoteGopher compares the candidates on the issues and manages to insert a cartoon gopher into almost every image; and No Vote, No Voice was started by former Congressman Jim Leach in order to link youth with online political resources.


http://scoop08.com/

http://votegopher.com/splash.php

http://www.novotenovoice.com/

Just for fun!

Christopher Walken--Gettin' Down!

Cause we are young, we are MTV's Target

Florida's Guy: FL Anthony Wojtkowiak http://think.mtv.com/mediaforchange/

Based in Miami, is a student at Miami. He seems like a decent fellow, although he interned with the Knight Foundation, and the Knight Foundation sponsored this program. But his causes seem to be worthwhile.

Reach out to him South Florida People, let's make sure he is hearing from us!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MTV TAPS 51 STATE-BASED CITIZEN JOURNALISTS FOR “CHOOSE OR LOSE ‘08”

AP Online Video Network & Top Mobile Carriers to Distribute Weekly “Street Team ‘08” Reports

December 20, 2007 – New York, NY – MTV, as part of its Emmy-winning “Choose or Lose” campaign (www.ChooseorLose.com), today unveiled “Street Team ’08”: a specially recruited group of 51 citizen journalists – one from every state and Washington, D.C. – who will cover the 2008 elections from a youth perspective and tailor their reports for mobile devices. The members will contribute weekly, multi-media reports (short form videos, blogs, animation, photos, podcasts) that will be distributed via a soon-to-launch WAP site, MTV Mobile, Think.MTV.com and to the more than 1,800 sites in the Associated Press Online Video Network. Carefully selected by MTV after an extensive nationwide search, the one-of-a-kind press corps will be armed with mobile media like laptops, video cameras and cell phones, and charged with uncovering the untold political stories that matter most to young people in their respective states.

Record inequality in the US

Record inequality in the US:
Billions for Wall Street bosses as workers’ share of income shrinks

By Patrick Martin
20 December 2007

Goldman Sachs, the most profitable US investment bank, will distribute a staggering $12.1 billion in bonuses this month, up from $9.9 billion last year. The company will pay $20.2 billion in all forms of compensation, up from $16.5 billion last year.

While the total compensation figure includes salaries and benefits for all 30,000 people employed at Goldman Sachs—leading to breathless media reports of an “average” compensation of $661,490 per employee—the lion’s share will go to a few hundred top executives, managers and partners, who will receive tens of millions apiece.

Chairman and CEO Lloyd C. Blankfein will rake in about $70 million himself, up from $53.4 million last year, which at the time was the highest income ever reported by a bank CEO.

The bank reported Tuesday that its fourth-quarter profits rose 2.2 percent to $3.2 billion, $7.01 for each share of stock, well above the expectation of $6.61 a share set by stock analysts. Total profits for 2007 were $11.6 billion, up 22 percent over 2006, on total revenues of $88 billion.

Lehman Brothers, the fourth-biggest securities firm, announced last week a bonus pool of $5.7 billion and total compensation of $9.5 billion, with CEO Richard S. Fuld Jr. awarded a $35 million stock bonus, on top of his salary and benefits.

The vice-grip on Wall Street by a handful of big firms is underscored by the report that Goldman’s bonus pool alone was bigger than the total market value of the fifth-largest investment bank, Bear Stearns.

Another yardstick of the influence of Goldman Sachs is that the company’s bonus pool of $12.1 billion was greater than the $11 billion total increase inUS government spending on all domestic social programs proposed by the congressional Democrats, and blocked last week by a White House veto threat.

A single Wall Street firm will distribute more than twice as much money to a few hundred executives as the US government spends on the State Children’s Health Insurance Program serving millions of children of low-paid workers, and more than the federal government spent this year on Hurricane Katrina reconstruction and relief.

Goldman Sachs total annual compensation exceeds the budget of the federal departments of Treasury, Justice, Labor, Agriculture or Interior, the EPA or NASA.

Such figures demonstrate the grotesque distortions inflicted on American society by the domination of financial speculators whose activities create nothing of value and have, from the standpoint of material production, an entirely parasitic and destructive impact.

Much of Goldman’s record profits this year come from its successful financial manipulations in the subprime mortgage market, where it essentially bet against its major Wall Street rivals, who plunged heavily into the business of repackaging home mortgages into ever-more-complex financial securities whose value is now problematic, even unknowable.

The company also raked in over $1 billion in profits in the fourth quarter alone from its private equity operations. Goldman-owned hedge funds serve the wealthiest one-tenth of one percent, those who can afford to bet tens of millions on financial manipulations that may return 20, 25, even 30 percent, far more than can be gained from investment in the development of the productive infrastructure of society.

One of the principal activities of hedge funds and other private equity firms is to buy up struggling companies, strip their assets, shut factories and offices, fire thousands of workers, and then refloat them on the stock exchange at a huge profit. Essentially, these firms coin the economic distress of laid-off workers and their families into gold.

Goldman Sachs reported its record bonus pool only a few days after a new report by the Congressional Budget Office that documented, from the standpoint of the US economy as a whole, the increasingly pernicious role of the super-rich.

The CBO report, made public Friday, found that the richest one percent of Americans saw a greater increase in their total income from 2003 to 2005 than the combined total income of the poorest 20 percent of the population. The income of the top one percent rose from under $1.3 trillion in 2003 to $1.8 trillion in 2005. The increase of $524.8 billion far exceeded the total income of the poorest fifth of Americans, $383.4 billion.

If the top one percent had simply been compelled to live in 2005 on the same exorbitant income they made in 2003, with the increase diverted to the poor, the incomes of the bottom 20 percent of the population could have been increased by 170 percent. In other words, the abolition of poverty inAmerica would merely require stopping the superrich from grabbing an ever-greater share of the vast wealth produced by the labor of working people.

The CBO report provided other metrics for gauging the staggering growth of economic inequality. The total 2005 income of the top three million Americans was equivalent to the total income of the bottom 166 million.

The average household in the top one percent enjoyed an increase of $465,700 in annual income; the average household in the bottom 20 percent saw an increase of only $200, while those in the middle fifth saw a rise of just $2,400.

Further analysis of the CBO data by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and the Economic Policy Institute suggests the historic dimensions of the social polarization in the United States.

The wealthiest fifth of the population now collects 55 percent of total national income, considerably more than the total combined income of the bottom 80 percent, and the highest such figure ever recorded in the US.

The wealthiest one percent saw it share of national income double from 1979 and 2005, rising from 9 percent to 18 percent. During that quarter-century, the average income of this top layer more than tripled, rising 228 percent, from $319,000 to $1.1 million. During the same period, the average after-tax income of the poorest fifth grew only 6 percent, the average income of the middle fifth grew 21 percent, less than one percent a year.

The disparities between rich and poor, and between rich and the middle, ballooned accordingly. In 1979, the top 1 percent averaged 8 times more than middle-income families and 23 times more than the poorest 20 percent. By 2005, the top 1 percent had 21 times the income of middle-income families and 70 times the average income of the poorest 20 percent.

Jared Bernstein of EPI, summing up the record of the years 2003-2005, wrote, “Over those two years, the growth of inequality transferred $400 billion dollars from the bottom 95 percent to the top 5 percent.” He concluded, “Such concentration of income is unsustainable in a democratic society.”

Or to put it more bluntly: such a concentration of income is the driving force of the present assault on democratic rights, spearheaded by the Bush administration and supported by both big business parties, which defend the existing economic order.

The Right Attacks the Left, Attacks Obama & Edwards

Check out this Greenwald anti-fox pro Edwards & Obama video:



Fight Back, Vote!

Early Primary Combined With Campaigning Ban Good For Senator Clinton

Stealing stories from other blogs... But I had heard this from Obama's campaign and Edwards campaign too. The staff that I have spoken with believe that the state is going to the person with the most name recognition and most money. Clinton had the strongest infrastructure before campaigning and there isn't a way to change that.

And, she is campaigning better. The articles this year about Senator Lawson endorsing her campaign shows that she is the better politician. She was the only person to contact the future Minority leader and the longest serving state Senator in Florida. He started off supporting Obama and switched to her because she called him several times, and Obama never did.

Read more here

The Sleeper

Will the cover of Newsweek help Edwards win?

Governor Crist is a new kind of Republican

In our state, as gerrymandered as it is, we don't need a politics of compromise. The majority of our candidates and elected officials, on both sides of the aisle, are such safe partisan seats that it makes no sense to ever compromise on an issue. They should play to the extremes on both sides (the far right and the far left). We have a few D's that will play to the left, and the have a lot of R's that play to the right(the gerrymandering does favor the R's more than the D's, always remember the D's out number the R's in registration)

But then I go read this story about Governor Crist on the Marriage Amendment from the St. Pete Buzz (which I am pretty sure he supported in the Gubernatorial race, or at least the primary):

Crist won't join gay marriage ban campaign
Don't look for Gov. Charlie Crist to trumpet a gay marriage ban in Florida's Constitution. Upon news that the measure's supporters claimed to have gathered enough signatures to put it on the ballot in November (Full story here), he told reporters in Tampa Thursday, "It's not an issue that moves me."

He said he'd rather focus on raising teacher pay, reducing property taxes and combatting climate change.

"I'm just a live and let live kind of guy," he said. Crist has previously asked the GOP to stop donating money to the initiative.

-- Asjylyn Loder

Teachers pay? Climate Change?

Back when I use to work for the Democratic Party I was led to believe that the Democrat is always better than the Republican, but there are days (rare and far between) when I sometimes question that truth. Perhaps electing this very moderate Republican Governor to lead our very Conservative legislature back to the middle as one of their own will pay off in the end. And we will have a better Florida.

We will see...

Wexler calls for impeachment hearings

Rep. Robert Wexler (FL-19) and two other Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee - Luis Gutierrez (IL-04) and Tammy Baldwin (WI-02) - today called on the committee to begin impeachment hearings for Vice President Cheney.

They declared, "The charges are too serious to ignore. There is credible evidence that the Vice President abused the power of his office, and not only brought us into an unneccesary war but violated the civil liberties and privacy of American citizens. It is the constitutional duty of Congress to hold impeachment hearings."

The three Democrats wrote an op-ed to announce their position, but none of the nation's leading newspapers would publish it - just as they refuse to include impeachment in their polls, and just as they refuse to publish their own investigations of the crimes of the Bush Administration. Why? Because the Corporate Media is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Republican Party, as it has been since the Reagan Revolution of 1980.

So this important announcement was made on a Blogcall hosted by Democrat.com, and was covered by progressive blogs - the only news media that serves the people, not the Corporations.

You can read the full op-ed at Rep. Wexler's new site - http://wexlerwantshearings.com - where you can also watch a powerful video by Wexler.

Rep. Wexler needs to collect 50,000 signatures to convince his Democratic colleagues that the American people truly support impeachment hearings. So please sign his petition:
http://wexlerwantshearings.com

You can also send an email to Wexler's other colleagues on Judiciary:
http://www.democrats.com/topelosiandjudiciary

Please share this exciting news with your friends, your favorite blogs, and your favorite talk shows.

Give Peace a Chance

Mike Gravel....from a couple weeks ago. In response to not being allowed to participate in the last debate of the year in Iowa.

Dennis Kucinich was also not invited.

Five Reasons for Public Financing in Elections

USA TODAY, December 10, 2007

Our view on elections: 5 reasons for public financing

States, cities lead with clean-money alternative to a seamy system.

The election year hasn't even begun, but the nation's political system is already awash in record amounts of money, much of it spent to buy influence.

In other times, this would have evoked outrage. But candidates have grown so dependent on the money that all but a few stand mute — afraid to push the obvious remedy, public financing of elections. So perhaps it's worth pausing to note some of the reasons that the idea makes sense, even if it's getting no attention from the major presidential contenders. Here are five:

* Wretched excess. Candidates, the two major parties and the nominally "independent" groups allied with them are on track to raise and spend $5 billion or more in the 2008 campaign, far more than ever before. In Iowa alone, it's projected that Democrats will spend the equivalent of $300 a vote for each caucus participant who turns out on Jan. 3. That kind of money doesn't come just from upright civic-minded citizens.

* Wealth test. Both parties acknowledge that in recruiting candidates for congressional races, a major criterion is whether the prospect is rich enough to personally finance a campaign. That smells of reserving public office for the elite.

* Dialing for dollars. Members of Congress complain repeatedly that running for re-election is so costly that they have to spend up to one-third of their time "dialing for dollars." For challengers, it's worse.

* Fat cats. Despite all the stories about an Internet-powered rise in small contributors, just 21% of all presidential campaign contributions have been in donations of $200 or less, little change from previous years. Meanwhile, contributions are up 91% from donors linked to the securities and investment industries, 68% from the entertainment industry, and 47% from drug makers.

* Shady bundlers. The power of "bundlers," power brokers who aggregate individual donations into giant packages, continues to grow. Hillary Clinton has been embarrassed twice by such operators, one indicted on business fraud charges.

There is an alternative already adopted by seven states. It's called clean elections, or clean-money campaigning. Pioneered in Maine a decade ago, it lets candidates accept public financing in return for a promise not to take private contributions beyond a required threshold sum of small donations.

The result is more time for candidates to talk with the voters; more women, minorities and middle-class candidates seeking office; and fewer campaign-finance transactions that look like thinly disguised bribes.

Clean election systems cost from $2 to $6 per year for each voting-age resident, a bargain for trimming costly special-interest influence. In North Carolina, for example, the clean-election option has virtually ended an outrageous special-interest bidding war for seats on the state's top courts.

But in Washington, a clean-election plan for Congress is buried (Barack Obama and Dennis Kucinich are the only presidential candidates listed as sponsors), and the presidential campaign fund is woefully outdated.

As in state and local politics across the country, reform will only happen when citizens demand it. What's missing is a high-profile champion willing to lead the charge.

John Edwards: Can He Win?

Watching Hardball tonight, they said this advertisement is an effort by the John Edwards campaign to remind people that he has a southern accent. It came out of a conversation where the consultant said that Giuliani should run commercials that show he is the only candidate that can beat Hillary Clinton. I didn't catch the name of the media consultant, but he encouraged the Mayor to run an advertisement that conveyed the message that "Sure Edwards beats me, but I won't be running against Edwards, I'll be running against Hillary, and only I beat Hillary"

Chris Matthews then went on to talk about the advertisement above, saying that John Edwards is trying to run on being southern, and by pointing out that the last two Democrats to win the Presidency had southern accents, and I would add that so does our current President. I don't think that is the message of the advertisement. I did not watch the ad and think, southerner.

But I do think that discussion is worth having regarding the southern vote. Can the south vote Democrat in a federal election? Congressman Boyd represents our thoroughly rural and southern congressional district. Our CD elects a Democrat so strongly that during the last two cycles the Republican party failed to field a candidate at all. So, yes, I do think that the south will vote Democrat, but I don't think that they are guaranteed to vote Democrat.

Southern voters are more inclined to vote for someone because they like the candidate, not the party. I think that people in the south are more inclined to like someone who speaks like they do. Which I do think gives John Edwards and Mike Huckabee an advantage, especially against some of the candidates that I think will rub many southerns the wrong way... like Mitt Romney.

I Yahoo'd (I use Yahoo over Google as a search engine) John Edwards and Southern and most of the articles were from the 2004 election, there was this one article: Link by Tom Schaller, author of "Whistling Past Dixie".

I think I might write more on this in the near future. As I sign off tonight, I still have Hardball on in the background, and it is getting ready to end. Chris Matthews keeps talking about how Sen. Edwards is the most popular D with the R's. Another interesting tid bit...

Provide some feedback, and let me know what you think....

Transitions in Tallahassee

Local Leon Young Democrat update: Immediate past LCYD President Beth Kennedy has moved on past Leon County, at least for a little while, and she is with the Democratic Leadership Council in Washington, DC. Specifically she is now working for the DLC's think tank The Progressive Policy Institute. We are really proud of Beth and wish her the best of luck on her new adventure!



Congrats Beth, we already miss you here, and if the weather continues like last week, I think you will wish your were back sooner than you thought. Here is the view of Pennsylvania Avenue from Beth's Window. Gotta love snow!




Also, with news this week, Tevya Harley will be taking Beth's place as the new Executive Director of the Florida Mainstream Democrats. Mainstream is the equivalent of the DLC in Florida. I think Tevya will do a great job, and continue the hard work of former ED's Beth, Justin Day, and the work of the Chair's Sen. Aronberg, and Rep. Ausley. Keep up the hard work! The LCYD's are here to help Mainstream in any way that we can.



Congrats & Good Luck Tevya!

Huckabee stands by his 1992 statement on AIDS & gays & exile

The Chicago Tribune reported that Huckabee is standing by his statement in 1992, when he advocated quarantining and exiling everyone with HIV/AIDS and call homosexuality a health risk. Link to Time Magazine Article

This past week a political insider told me how this coming out was going to be the end of Huckabee. But I argue that it will only help him with his primary. Huckabee is reaching out to the Christian Right and they will only embrace him for these statements that are based in ignorance and hate.

As a christian I find this intolerance despicable.

Here is the article from the Tribune


Huckabee stands by '92 comments on AIDS, gays
by Christi Parsons

Mike Huckabee says he stands by his statements fifteen years ago about AIDS patients, though he concedes he might phrase them differently today.

In some old candidate questionnaires the Associated Press has dug up, Huckabee suggested back then that AIDS patients should essentially be quarantined.

"Fifteen years ago, the AIDS crisis was just that. It was a crisis," Huckabee told reporters at a campaign stop in Asheville, N.C. this weekend. "There were a lot of questions back in that time as to just how the disease could be carried. There was just a real panic in this country."

Huckabee said he also stands by his words that homosexuality is sinful.

"I believe it would be, just as lying is sinful and stealing is sinful," he said.

Maybe some people were outraged by what Huckabee said, but those people didn't seem to be in attendance at his weekend campaign events in the Carolinas.

The former Southern Baptist preacher and Republican presidential candidate drew enthusiastic crowds for his message about conservative values and religious faith.

Who <3's Huckabee?

Here is an article from Salon.com (Link)

In this article by Max Brantley, titled "The Dark Side of Mike Huckabee" gives an inside Little Rock opinion of the man who appears to be swinging up in the polls.

Highlights from the article:

Huckabee insists he's not one of those harsh, punitive, "angry" conservatives, but again, there are witnesses who might say otherwise if anyone's interested.

Ask the retarded Fort Smith teenager, raped by her stepfather, who sought Medicaid funding for an abortion as federal law required. Huckabee stood in the hospital door, at least figuratively, to prevent state funding. Ask the gay people belittled by his cracks about "Adam and Steve." Ask the scientists who've seen evolution virtually disappear from the textbooks and classrooms of Arkansas with his administration's acquiescence.

and

At the American Spectator, once home to the anti-Clinton Arkansas Project, senior editor Quin Hillyer, a former Arkansas Democrat-Gazette editorial writer, wrote recently, "National media folks like David Brooks [of the New York Times], dealing in surface appearances only, rave about what a nice guy Huckabee is, and a moral exemplar to boot. If they only did a little homework, they would discover a guy with a thin skin, a nasty vindictive streak, and a long history of imbroglios about questionable ethics."

At last, something the national media and the Arkansas media can agree on.

Huckabee needs a little more scrutiny before he starts winning votes, then again, it could be fun to win a race by a landslide!

This article was the first time I had heard that he had his Governor's office computers crushed to ensure that there could not be any records to access in the future. That makes me happy to live in Florida with our Sunshine State Laws, and allows me to applaud Governor Crist in his efforts to expand and enforce those laws.

Today Sen. Nelson & Rep. Hastings to try to help Florida count

OrlandoSentinel.com
State Dems take presidential-primary dispute to court
By John Kennedy ~ TALLAHASSEE BUREAU CHIEF

TALLAHASSEE — The state's top congressional Democrats will make one final attempt today to breathe life into the party's all-but-ignored Florida presidential primary by pressing a federal lawsuit against national party leaders.

U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson and U.S. Rep. Alcee Hastings, chairman of Florida's congressional delegation, accuse the Democratic National Committee and its chairman, Howard Dean, of violating the Constitution and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 by stripping the state of all 210 delegates to next year's national convention.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

By contrast, the Republican presidential contenders will gather Sunday in Miami for a debate hosted by Univision, the Spanish-language network. It will mark the third time in six weeks that the Republican field has flocked to Florida for a nationally televised debate.

"I think it's a huge advantage to us," said Florida U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez, former chairman of the Republican National Committee. "Their candidates are not being known in Florida. They're not here.

"They're really kowtowing to New Hampshire at the expense of Florida," Martinez added.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Full Article posted in comments. But, again, with the 4 state pledge, I don't think this matters.

Who will John Edwards hurt worse, Hillary or Obama? What happens if he doesn't hurt anybody?

So in my effort to try to rev this blog up again this is the first of what will probably be a periodic posting of verbatim articles that I think are worth reading. I will try to splice in original thought now and again over the next month or two, but no promises from me.

On the other hand, this might reinvigorate our whole collection of bloggers, and this whole blog could pop back in full force... We will see.

The title bar of this, and future articles, links to the original story.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From the New Republic:

Spoiler Warning

Who will John Edwards hurt worse, Hillary or Obama? What happens if he doesn't hurt anybody?

E.J. Dionne, Jr., The New Republic Published: Monday, December 03, 2007


NASHUA, N.H. -- In the back of a crowded room at Daniel Webster College here, Joe Trippi, John Edwards' campaign manager, watches closely as his candidate delivers a series of passionately populist orations, summed up by his declaration that "the few are controlling this democracy for the many."

Next to Trippi, his colleague Glen Pearcy tends a camera recording every word that the tie-less, bluejeans-clad Edwards speaks for possible use in future television commercials. Standing before a large American flag, the former North Carolina senator insists that the country shouldn't "trade a crowd of corporate Republicans for a crowd of corporate Democrats."


As the news about the battle for the Democratic presidential nomination focuses on the increasingly bitter confrontation between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, Edwards is fighting for survival. He knows his fate hinges on a strong showing in the Iowa caucuses that are now less than a month away. He will be out of the race if he runs third.


If Edwards fades, supporters of all three candidates agree that his backers are more likely to drift to Obama than to Clinton. Yet if Edwards gains ground, he could push either Clinton or Obama into third place -- crippling one of them.


The Iowa polls suggest that this is Obama's time. Over the weekend, The Des Moines Register released a survey showing the Illinois senator with 28 percent to Clinton's 25 percent and Edwards' 23 percent. Obama was up six points from the paper's last poll, conducted in October. Clinton was down four, and Edwards held steady. A Pew/Associated Press poll released Monday still put Clinton on top, but interviewing for the survey began in early November.

The Clinton camp is clearly worried and the candidate herself is now taking Obama on personally. Addressing reporters in Iowa on Sunday, she spoke of "a big difference between our courage and our convictions, what we believe and what we're willing to fight for."


Standing in the way of a straight Obama-Clinton struggle is Edwards. He has been campaigning in Iowa since 2003, nearly won the caucuses over John Kerry four years ago, and stubbornly remains within easy striking distance of the front-runners. The Edwards campaign has a theory of how he can beat both of them.

As Trippi sees it, Clinton has relied on support from less affluent voters, particularly women, who are especially engaged on economic questions.


Trippi argued in an interview that some of these soft Clinton voters could eventually move to Edwards because his message of economic populism and his background as a mill worker's son will trump Clinton's arguments based on her experience. Trippi claims to see "lots of potential" among "blue-collar women who are currently leaning her way."


Similarly, he says, some of Obama's less-committed voters actually prefer Edwards' fighting style to Obama's pledges to bring Washington together across party lines. Clinton, with her emphasis this weekend on what she's "willing to fight for," clearly senses the same vulnerability.


David Plouffe, Obama's campaign manager, agreed in a telephone interview on Monday that Democratic voters want a strong advocate for "Democratic ideals," and see Obama in those terms. But he added: "Even the most hardened Democrats are tired of the partisanship and the game-playing."

Edwards, who was once tougher than Obama in his criticism of Clinton, may now profit as the onlooker in a Clinton-Obama slugfest. During his Nashua appearance last week, Edwards smilingly noted that "Sen. Obama and Sen. Clinton have been bickering about their health care plans." Edwards said he shares Clinton's view that universal health coverage would be impossible without a mandate on individuals to purchase insurance. Obama's health plan contains no such mandate.


Yet Edwards' mild tone -- in contrast to his fiery attacks on a corporate-dominated Washington -- suggested that he prefers to have Clinton take the lead in the controversy.


The Edwards theory is just that, a theory. The momentum is now with Obama even in a progressive blogosphere that has been favorably disposed toward Edwards. For example, Daily Kos' regular canvas of its readers found a substantial bump upward for Obama between October and November.


The big choice Edwards faces will be whether to move his campaign more to the sunny style that became the trademark of his 2004 effort. Edwards insists that he's as optimistic as he ever was.

Given the flow of the news, he has to be. Edwards needs a January surprise. But if he achieves it and pushes one of his leading foes into third place, he will revolutionize the Democratic campaign.

Check out a comic

It is called "A Town Called Dobson" with a tagline: Blue life in Red America

It is a comic strip, but also a bit of a blog. I think I found it on Florida Red & Blues Facebook Page. Make sure you add them as a friend if you are on Facebook.

Eleven Tips for Reporting the Youth Vote

http://www.futuremajority.com/node/794

It even gives a shout out to YDA a a model. Peer to Peer!Check the link above, here is the text, but the original post links to sources, in case you need to site them when you are telling people why we (young people) matter.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Journalist Cheat Sheet: Eleven Tips for Reporting the Youth Vote

Mike Connery's blog

Update: I've added in another tip (now # 1).
------------------------------------
It’s getting rather tiring, correcting one shoddy media report on the youth vote after another. This really came to a head this weekend when, less than 24 hours after forcing a young UNLV student to ask Hillary Clinton whether she preferred Diamonds or Pearls, CNN un-ironically aired a piece during The Situation Room that made a mockery of young voters and their participation in our electoral process.

So I created this “cheat sheet” for journalists. Basically it’s a listing of all the most common mistakes that the media makes when reporting on young voters. Enjoy. Spread widely.
Journalist Cheat Sheet: 11 Tips for Reporting on the Youth Vote:

Tip #1:
The youth vote is not synonymous with students. In fact, students make up only a small part of the eligible youth vote. Only 21% of all 18-29 year olds are currently attending a college or university. That means that when you report on "students", you are leaving out the other 79% of all the individuals that make up the "youth vote." These people serve in our military, are struggling to raise families - and yes, have very different concerns from college students. I understand that makes it difficult for you to cram them into a cookie-cutter story about student aid activism and tuition costs, but you do them and your readers and our democracy a disservice when you limit your coverage to students.
Source: Current Population Survey

Tip #2:
Stop saying that “Howard Dean courted young voters and the youth failed to show up.” Fact of the matter is, youth participation quadrupled at the 2004 Iowa Caucus, they just didn’t vote for Dean. In case you missed it, young people voted in higher than usual numbers and were 17% of all participants.
Source: Pew Trusts

Tip #3:
This tip is directly related to Tip #2. Your cognitive dissonance w/r/t the 2004 Iowa caucus springs from the fact that young people did not vote in a monolithic block like you expected. That’s called reality, and it is your job to report it accurately. Young voters chose John Kerry over Howard Dean by almost 2-1. If any candidate in Iowa was the “youth candidate” in the 2004 primary, it was John Kerry, and he won the nomination.
Source: CNN Exit Polling

Tip #4:
The idea that “young people don’t vote” is patently ridiculous. In 2004, 49% of all voters 18-29 went to the polls. That’s millions of voters. In fact, a report by the Harvard Institute of Politics stated that more voters 18-29 went to the polls (20.7 million) than did voters over 65, the so-called reliable seniors (19.4 million).
To spell this out, we may still vote at lower rates than the rest of the electorate, but there are more of us. Millennials are the largest living American generation. In 2004, we were 17% of the electorate. It’s estimated that we may well be 25% in 2008, and by 2015, we will be over 30% of all voters. That makes our support valuable, and that’s why the Obama, Clinton and Edwards campaigns all have full-time youth outreach staff.
Sources: Harvard Institute of Politics (pdf), CIRCLE (pdf), Young Voter Strategies (pdf)

Tip #5:
If you insist on reporting the same old story that young people vote at a lower rate than the rest of the electorate, then you have an obligation to also inform your readers/viewers/listeners that youth turnout has increased for 3 years straight, and is at its highest level in over a decade. You also have an obligation to note that in 2006 the youth vote swung a number of important federal races, including pushing Democratic candidates Jon Tester, Jim Webb, and Joe Courtney over the top.
Source: Historical voting patterns (pdf), Impact on Races (pdf), Midterm Turnout (pdf).

Tip #6:
If you are going to report on low-turnout among young voters, you also have an obligation to note that young people face more barriers to voting than do older voters. We move more frequently, requiring us to re-register sometimes on a yearly basis, on campus we face a lack of voting machines and long lines, and many university towns actively discourage and try to prevent students from voting.
Source: League of Conservation Voters Education Fund

Tip #7:
There are simple fixes to the problems outlined in #6 – election day and same-day registration and mail-in voting are two such fixes that can be applied at the state level. These have been proven to bump youth turnout by as much as 14%!!!!! It would be nice if you reported on them occasionally.
Source: CIRCLE

Tip #8:
Young voters will participate if they are asked to, particularly by a peer. This is proven. But the system stopped asking long ago by removing resources and manpower away from young voter outreach. Only in recent years have organizations – and a few campaigns – begin to reengage young voters in any serious way. The result is three straight years in which youth turnout increased. In plain terms: young voters are not apathetic. Rather, the system fails to engage them in any meaningful way.
Source: Young Voter Strategies, Voter Mobilization Tactics

Tip #9:
Stop reporting on “celebrity activism” as the Rosetta Stone for understanding the youth vote. This is a Boomer and Gen-X construction created for a broadcast TV culture of the 80s and 90s. Today’s young voters are interested in peer-to-peer communication and networked action. From Facebook to on the ground, peer to peer organizing at club, bars, barbershops and apartment canvassing, the most effective, and sustainable developments in youth organizing in the past five years have come from new, grassroots organizations doing peer to peer organizing on the ground or online. Stop reporting on celebrities and start doing the work of talking to and reporting on the activities of these organizations. Good places to start include:
Forward Montana, The Oregon Bus Project, New Era Colorado, Young Democrats of America, and The League of Young Voters.
There are many more, but let’s do this in baby steps. Start with these and we’ll work out way deeper into youth organizing together.

Tip #10:
Related to #9, “talking to young voters” is not code for “dumbing down.” We understand issues. We have thoughts on those issues. We’re yelling loudly for the “adults” to take action on those issues. See: Iraq, Global Warming, Global Poverty, Darfur, and college aid. Stop stereotyping us in your reporting by spotlighting frivolous questions.
Moreover, and this is very important, you REALLY need to stop force-feeding us these fluff questions in national forums (see: Mac vs. PC and Diamonds vs. Pearls). If you are going to say that we are frivolous, you shouldn’t be enabling - or worse, instigating - that behavior. This habit is doing nothing to build your credibility with a younger audience that is already abandoning you for the internet. So following this rule is not only good for Democracy, it is good for your bottom line.
Source For more on issues, visit the Harvard Institute of Politics for their annual surveys.

Tip #11:
Related to #10, we do not live in a Newtonian Universe. We live in an Einsteinian Universe. Just as the act of observing something changes it, your reporting on the youth vote has an effect on the youth vote. It effects how campaigns, staffers and consultants perceive young voters. When you fail to accurately report on increasing turnout or the impact of youth on an election, these individuals continue to believe that the youth vote is a waste of time. This feeds a vicious cycle in which campaigns put less money into youth outreach, meaning young voters are less likely to turnout because they are not being asked/engaged.

You are not neutral observers. There are no neutral observers. We all exist in a self-referential ecosystem. You are culpable here. With great power comes great responsibility. We rely on you to use it wisely. Please start living up to those not unreasonable expectations.

Canopy Roads Visioning Workshop

Theses roads are important and special to all of us, so I hope to see some of you there.
________Barb

The Tallahassee-Leon County Canopy Roads system is a local treasure providing both residents and visitors with an opportunity to step back in history and enjoy the stunning living legacy of these tree lined roads. You are invited to participate in a discussion on the future of canopy roads in our community.

The Canopy Roads Citizen's Committee is hosting a public workshop Nov. 5 to discuss the current condition of our Canopy Roads system, the desired future of the Canopy Roads, threats to that future, and opportunities to achieve common goals. The Citizen's Committee will use ideas, information, and opinions expressed at the workshop to guide development of management plans for the Canopy Roads system.

All interested members of the public are encouraged to attend. The evening will consist of presentations about Canopy Roads management, small group discussions about the current state and desired future for the system, and development of recommendations for the Citizen Committee to take forward. For more information, contact Brian Wiebler of the Tallahassee-Leon County Planning Department at 891-8616 or wieblerb@talgov.com.

This public workshop will be held Monday, November 5, from 6 to 9 p.m. at Dorothy B. Oven Park, 3205 Thomasville Road.

Contact
Jenn Meale, County Public Information Officer, (850) 606-5300; or Bill Behenna, City Communications Department, (850) 891-8533

FAMU Parade Tomorrow

Help us celebrate FAMU's Homecoming by joining the Leon County Democratic Party in FAMU's 2007 Homecoming Parade!

In 2006, several Leon Democrats joined Alex Sink, Daryl Jones, Skip Campbell, and local elected officials as they walked FAMU's parade route for their campaigns. This Saturday, November 3rd, the Party has its own entry and all Leon Democrats are welcome to join in! If you haven't participated in the FAMU Homecoming parade before, this is definitely something you won't want to miss! We'll have our Leon County Democratic Party banner, a vehicle decked out with FAMU decorations, and walkers passing out candy and Leon Dems lapel stickers to parade goers.

Logistics:

- We'll be meeting at the Cars/Trucks Staging Area, at the corner of W Georgia and Old Bainbridge facing east along W Georgia. Look for the blue Toyota Prius and/or the white Leon County Democratic Party banner.

- Please arrive at the staging area at 7:30am SHARP, giving yourself enough time beforehand to find a parking space and locate your fellow Democrats.

- Parade Route: The parade will begin in Frenchtown at the intersection of Macomb and Georgia Street. We'll travel south on Macomb to Tennessee; east on Tennessee to Monroe; and south on Monroe to Gaines. The parade will officially end at the corner of Monroe and Gaines.

- Prior to joining the parade, you will be asked to sign a Release of Liability form.

- Wear Orange and Green if at all possible! And since we're representing the Leon Democratic Party, please dress appropriately... for example, no torn t-shirts or jeans. Our participation is a privilege as well as an opportunity for us to show our support for FAMU, and so this is not an occasion to make a political statement. With this in mind, please do not wear any clothing with controversial messages - regardless of how truthful the message may be.

Participating in the FAMU Homecoming parade is always a lot of fun and there's no better way to spend your Saturday morning. If you'd like to join us, please RSVP to LeonDems@yahoo.com so that we have an idea of the size of our group.

We hope to see you there, and thanks for everything you do for the Party.

Victory for Low Power FM Radio!

The United States Senate Commerce Committee voted on Oct. 30 to substantially expand the number of community media outlets in the United States. In a consensus vote, the Committee moved to report Senate Bill 1675, the Local Community Radio Act of 2007, to the full Senate -- and opened the door for thousands of new community radio stations to be built in America's largest cities, and smaller communities across the nation.

Full Story:
[Prometheus Radio Project statement]

Senate Bill 1675, the bill designed to 'implement the recommendations of the Federal Communications Commission regarding Low Power FM', was introduced by Senators John McCain (R-AZ), and Maria Cantwell (D-WA). This bill is designed to allow thousands more Low Power FM community radio stations to reach Americans in cities, and all across the country.

The Senate Commerce Committee had moved twice in the past to expand low power FM radio opportunities to community groups in America's cities. This year, the bill is accompanied by a strong House of Representatives companion (House Bill 2802, sponsored by Mike Doyle (D-PA) and Lee Terry (R-NE)) with 55 cosponsors, and diverse bipartisan support from Georgia to Guam.

This unusual bipartisan partnership, and this successful movement of the bill into the full Congress, came about as a result of the enthusiastic and energized grassroots advocacy of Americans frustrated with the poor quality of media across the country.

"Low Power FM radio was limited back in 2000, when the big broadcasters tried to convince America that 100-watt community radio stations would interfere with the biggest stations in America's biggest cities," said Prometheus technical director Pete Tridish. "At Congress' demand, the FCC proved that there was plenty of room for low power FM radio. With today's vote, and with the growing momentum to expand low power FM radio in the House of Representatives, communities across the country have a reason to celebrate."

Over 800 Low Power FM (LPFM) radio stations currently serve communities across the United States, but almost every city and suburban area in the United States lost their chance to build their own community radio stations when Congress limited the service, at the demand of big broadcasters. Corporate lobbying interests such as the National Association of Broadcasters had curtailed the expansion of the LPFM service, keeping these non-commercial, completely local stations from being built in all but one of the top 50 markets in the US. If the Local Community Radio Act becomes law, hundreds, if not thousands, of these stations will reach American communities.

"The United Church of Christ has supported low power radio from the beginning," said Cheryl Leanza, managing director of the United Church of Christ, Office of Communication, Inc. "We support this legislation which, if passed, would mean more churches, community groups, and schools around the country will be able to reach out to their local communities."

This vote comes the day before the FCC will hold a public hearing on localism in Washington DC, the fifth in a series of six public hearings the FCC has held over the past year. It also follows close on the heels of Chairman Kevin Martin's Oct 18th announcement that he plans an FCC vote on dismantling remaining media ownership rules by the end of the year. The Commission has drawn wide fire for this decision, from civil rights leaders and community groups, as well as legislators.

"Putting LPFM licenses in the hands of communities where local voices are being silenced by large national radio chains is a step in the right direction. Finally community members across the nation will have an alternative to McRadio," said Joel Kelsey, a spokesperson for Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports.

"Low power FM radio is one strong tool that we can use to fight media consolidation," said Prometheus program director Hannah Sassaman. "The big broadcasters can try to keep us down, but we will fight to make sure our legislators listen to local civil rights, school, neighborhood, and community groups -- and we will build local radio stations that are accountable to us.

Many groups came together to support this fight to expand low power FM, including the Alliance for Community Media, Common Cause, the United Methodist Office of Communications, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, the Future of Music Coalition, the Media Access Project, Reclaim the Media, the National Hispanic Media Coalition, Free Press, the United States Public Interest Research Group, the Christian Coalition, the United Church of Christ, Office of Communication, Inc., Consumers Union, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, and many more organizations.

To find out more about the Prometheus Radio Project and it's organizers' and allies' efforts to bring diverse, community media to America and the global community, visit http://www.prometheusradio.org.

Source:
www.prometheusradio.org

Senate Committee Wants North Florida's Input on Adoption and Foster Care!

from the ACLU:

On Monday, November 5, the Senate Committee on Children, Families and Elder Affairs will hold a public hearing in Tallahassee to discuss foster care and adoption issues. This is the committee headed by former Hillsborough Commissioner Ronda Storms.

The forum will allow community members to discuss all issues related to foster care or adoption. It is vital that our community have a strong presence at this hearing to share our stories and demand the committee take action.

This will be the first, and possibly only opportunity that the North Florida community will have to speak directly to the committee that has the power to end Florida’s ban on gay and lesbian adoption.

We need families of ALL shapes and sizes to come and share their stories about how this ban hurts our families and prevents children from finding permanent, loving homes.

WHEN: Monday, November 5, 2007
6:30- 9:00pm (Arrive at 5:30 to sign up to speak)

WHERE: Pat Thomas Committee Room
412 Knott Building
Tallahassee

WHAT you can do:

Come to the hearing. Tell legislators how this ban has affected your family. Even if you do not want to speak, it is important we show many people care about this issue. If you are not able to come to the Tallahassee hearing, there will be a hearing in Miami in December.

Join the Faces of Florida's Families Campaign. Go to:
http://www.fairadoption.org/real/index.php to write your story and upload a picture of your family. The stories will be compiled and sent to legislators who have the power to end the ban.

Success!!

Thanks to all who joined us last Saturday for breakfast in Orlando.

We sold over 200 tickets!!! It was an awesome event and hopefully we will be able to have more forums like this in the future.

A special thanks to our FYD President, Alan Brock, for pulling this great event together!

Join us for Breakfast THIS Saturday!!

This year, the FYDs are hosting the official breakfast of the 2007 Florida Democratic Party Convention. All ages are invited (and encouraged)!

Join us Saturday morning, Oct. 27 for a hearty breakfast of eggs, sausage, oven-roasted potatoes, pastries, coffee and Florida orange juice at Disney's Yacht & Beach Club. Click on the title above to buy your tickets today!!

The funds raised by the breakfast will go toward turning out 18-35 year-old voters in 2008. As you may know, Florida has one of the lowest young-voter participation rates in the nation. We are going to change that, with your help.

We'll be kicking off the excitement Saturday before the General Session with our keynote speaker, the amazing Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, who was elected to the state house at age 26 and now fights for Florida in the U.S. Congress. We'll also be introducing our new Florida Young Democrats Executive Director.

Show your Democratic pride and support for the future of our party. Join us for the Florida Young Democrats Breakfast!

Remember, breakfast is the most important meal of the day!

Join us at the Comedy Zone--This Tuesday!

The Leon County Young Democrats are hosting a social at the Comedy Zone this Tuesday, October 16th from 6:00pm-7:30pm.

There is no cover charge to get in, we have great drink specials and we have a Texas Hold Em' tournament going on that night too!

So grab a friend or come alone, but make sure to be at the Comedy Zone Tuesday night at 6pm!

BTW-
If you don't already know- Comedy Zone is on the corner of Tennessee St. & Gadsden St. (directly across from Leon High School). Feel free to e-mail me or call 575-4242 for directions.

See you Tuesday and please re-post this to help spread the word:)

Nat'l Conversation on Climate Action this Thursday

Message from Commissioner Thaell:

Dear Neighbors & Friends:

Please join me this week, Thursday, October 4th, for a national
conversation on how you and I can reduce greenhouse gasses that cause
global warming. The National Conversation on Climate Action is a
coast-to-coast initiative to promote conversation about what we can
do in our homes and in our hometown. In the absence of national
leadership to address this worldwide crisis, the solution, at least
for now, is up to us.

Leon County is a member of the International Council on Environmental
Initiatives (ICLEI) – Local Governments for Sustainability. ICLEI-
member cities and counties across the nation are hosting similar
conversations this Thursday. At our conversation, we'll talk about
the science of global warming, and look at what we can do, now, to
affect positive change. Your county government is not waiting for the
state or the feds to act, and is developing methods, now, for a more
sustainable future.

The National Conversation is designed to highlight and catalyze local
efforts to address global warming, build local awareness and
facilitate community engagement. Participants at the event will hear
from scientists, public officials, climate authorities, County staff,
and can participate in an interactive conversation about climate
conditions and what and can be done right here in Leon County.

So please join me this Thursday, October 4, at the Leon County Public
Library at 6:30 PM. Let's fight this global problem together! For
more information on the National Conversation on Climate Action,
please contact Leon County Public Information Officer Jenn Meale at
(850) 606-5314. For more information on ICLEI – Local Governments for
Sustainability, visit their website at www.iclei.org.

Pass it along!

Thanks,
Cliff

ALL votes will count on Jan. 29th

I would like to applaud the FDP, the Executive Cmte. and our Democratic leaders for supporting the voices of Florida voters.

In just a little bit, Chair Thurman will be making the announcement that the January 29th elections WILL be binding! This means that every Floridian will have their vote counted, not a select few.

For more information, visit the FPD website.

Labor Day

So on your day off next week make sure your remember the working men and women who have worked so hard to give us decent labor laws. The Labor Movement still needs your support. Join a union if you can.

If you can, try to make out to the labor day picnic this Monday out at Myers Park. The Big Bend Labor Coalition is hosting it, and I am sure they would love to see you there.

Labor Day

Barack Obama--Party like a Barack Star!

Senator Barack Obama will be visiting Tallahassee on Friday, August 24th.

He will be hosting a fundraiser rally at the FAMU Gaither Gym.

Doors will open at 12:00pm.

Tickets will be $10 for students with a VALID ID and $20 for others.

To RSVP click here https://donate.barackobama.com/page/contribute/tallahassee

The LCYDs have a FACEBOOK Group now too...sign up for the group if you have an account!

CTP

State House District 5!

The St. Pete Times is running a story about Sheriff Johnny Mac from Jackson County. He is running to replace Rep. Don Brown, and I think he will win!

Here is the text of the article...


Can a Democratic sheriff break into a Republican stronghold?
By Steve Bousquet
Published July 16, 2007

TALLAHASSEE - For the past decade, Republicans have solidified their power in Florida by offering Panhandle voters a steady diet of conservative candidates.
As a result, what was once the bastion of such Democratic giants as Gov. Reubin Askew, Sen. Dempsey Barron and U.S. Rep. Bob Sikes has become their political Siberia.
Panhandle voters long ago rejected what they saw as a liberal national Democratic Party. Local Democratic candidates faced a brutal choice: Switch parties or face certain defeat. Many switched.
But now a sprawling rural legislative district west of the Apalachicola River poses a test of whether Democrats can break the Republicans' monopoly in this close-knit region of hunting, fishing and white-steepled churches.
The Democrats' possible savior is John McDaniel, who for nearly three decades has been sheriff of Jackson County.
"Johnny Mac," as he is known, is running for the District 5 House seat being vacated by Don Brown, a feisty Republican from DeFuniak Springs, who will be term-limited out of office in 2008.
McDaniel, 66, said he had made up his mind to run for the Legislature before the horrific day last January when his wife Mellie was shot to death outside their home by a rampaging murder suspect who also killed a sheriff's deputy.
"I've got 28 years in this business and I feel I've got something to offer," McDaniel said. "I want to do good for my people."
A proud Democrat and lifelong resident of Marianna, McDaniel says he would never switch parties. But he twice endorsed Republican Gov. Jeb Bush.
The district is more than 100 miles long and stretches from Marianna on the east to Fort Walton Beach on the west, past two giant military bases and through such towns as Bonifay, Chipley and Two Egg.
It's the only legislative district that borders two states: Georgia and Alabama. Along here, on U.S. 90, a young Lawton Chiles set out on his "walking campaign" through Mossy Head, Cottondale and Ponce de Leon that took him to the U.S. Senate in 1970.
The district, bisected by I-10, is home to about 5,000 more Democrats than Republicans. But it votes distinctly Republican in state and national races.
So far, three Republicans are running for Brown's seat: Brad Drake, who served as Brown's legislative aide; Sherry Campbell, an Okaloosa County commissioner and an accountant; and Andrew Dwyer, owner of a janitorial company.
Former House Speaker Allan Bense of Panama City, a Republican, said he advised McDaniel not to run for the seat because there's simply too much history on the Republicans' side.
"Johnny Mac is a great guy and I've known him a long time, but I think he faces an uphill battle in that district," Bense said.
But Democrats say McDaniel's deep roots in the area and his law-and-order profile make him a strong candidate.
Thom Eldon, a Democratic pollster, said McDaniel is the rare Democratic candidate who will make voters reconsider their partisan preferences.
"Any Democrat who wears a gun on his hip is going to be popular in the district," Eldon said.
"Authentic" is the description used by Rep. Dan Gelber, D-Miami Beach, the House minority leader, to describe McDaniel.
Brown, also a McDaniel admirer, said the sheriff's biggest challenge is not political, but geographical: doing the hard travel and investing the time to make himself known in the western part of the district.
"I wouldn't be so presumptuous as to say it's a safe Republican seat," Brown said. "Historically, the district has performed Republican, but in these times I don't think anybody would be well-advised to take anything for granted."
McDaniel spent the Fourth of July shaking hands in DeFuniak Springs in the central part of the district, and said he was surprised that people recognized him from local TV news. His GOP rivals have already begun walking neighborhoods and knocking on doors.
After his wife's death, McDaniel said he prayed about what to do next in his life. He wants to change the way the FCAT is used to grade students, emphasize vocational education more and improve mental health programs for jail inmates.
"The door seemed to be opening up for me to run for this job."
Times staff writer Alex Leary and researcher Angie Drobnic Holan contributed to this report. Steve Bousquet can be reached at bousquet@sptimes.com or 850 224-7263.
[Last modified July 16, 2007, 19:06:11]

Run Johnny, Run!

10.8 million young people voted in 2006, a nearly two million vote increase from 2002

Breaking News: Census Figures Confirm 2006 Jump in Young Voter Turnout

For the second major election in a row, 18-29 year olds' turnout was up in 2006, growing by nearly two million votes over 2002 levels

June 15, 2007- New data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that, for the second major election in a row, young voter turnout rose in 2006. An analysis of the data from the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE)at the University of Maryland confirms early estimates of increased young voter turnout and finds that10.8 million 18-29 year olds voted in 2006, a nearly two million vote increase from 2002 levels (8.9 million). This is following young voters' large turnout increase in 2004, when 18-29 year olds cast 4.3 million more ballots than in 2000 and increased their turnout rate by nine percentage points, more than twice the overall electorate's 4-point increase. CIRCLE's analysis also shows that while turnout was up among voters of all ages in 2006 (by 1.7 percentage points), 18-29 year olds yet again increased their turnout by more, jumping by 3 percentage points from 2002 to 2006 - nearly twice the increase of the overall electorate.

"The official figures confirm that a new generation has arrived at the polls and is an electorate to watch in 2008," said Kat Barr, Research Director at Young Voter Strategies. "On Election Day 2006, 10.8 million 18-29 year olds voted, two million more than in the previous midterm election. The increased civic engagement and political interest of the Millennial Generation, outreach from campus and community organizations, and attention from campaigns and candidates in 2006 all came together to build on the momentum begun by big young voter turnout in 2004. Young adults are an electorate that campaigns and candidates must reach out to in order to win on Election Day 2008 and beyond."

In 2006, Young Voter Strategies coordinated 15 nonpartisan organizations, including the PIRGs' New Voters Project, Rock the Vote, Women's Voices. Women Vote., and Black Youth Vote!, to register more than 520,000 18-30 year olds. The three million dollar project, funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts, constituted the largest nonpartisan youth-targeted registration effort in any midterm election. In addition, in 2006 several campaigns targeted young voters as part of strategies to win tight elections, as outlined in the new YVS publication Young Voter Mobilization Tactics II. Experts agree that the combination of an engaged generation, nonpartisan outreach, and campaign attention played a significant role in increased young voter turnout in 2004 and 2006, and will be key to young voter turnout in 2008.

For more information, see CIRCLE's factsheet or contact Kat Barr at Young Voter Strategies: 202-994-9528, katbarr@gwu.edu

More and More Young Voters

YDA has linked in several news articles today on their website. More young people are participating in our democracy, becoming political active and voting.

This is the energy that we are trying to work with to make our organization here stronger, and across the state.

Click on the Title of this post and it will take you to the YDA Article. The Article also links to this story from this weekend: Case Studies in Young Voter Mobilization from Future Majority. This article is discussing the same trend.

Check out this link from YDA. It also gives the links to lots of information that will help you when talking to people about what YDA, FYD's and the Leon County Young Democrats are trying to do, and when fundraising.

And this link is Democratic Party Youth Statistics

Some of the highlights:

• In the 10 most competitive 2004 battleground states, turnout was 64.4% among young voters, compared to 48% across all other states. Like older voters, young people will turn out in higher numbers when targeted.
• Young people care about politics. According to a recent Pew Research Center poll, 77% of 18-29 years olds say they are interested in local politics, up 28 points from 1999, and 87% are interested in national affairs.
• In 2006, young voters ages 18-29 supported Democratic candidates by an impressive 58%, six points higher than the voting-age population as a whole. Democrats made gains with young independents while Republicans lost ground with their young voters.
• Young people are increasingly self-identifying as Democrats. Unlike the general population, party identification has increased among young voters. In 2006, 43% of young voters called themselves Democrats as compared to 37% just two years ago. Among all ages, 38% identify as Democrats, up only two points from 2004.

I know it is a lot of links and things to read, but I hope that you take the time to look them over in the near future. The better educated we are, the better we can present ourselves in public. The more people will want to be a part of organization and work with us in the future.

Brevard County is trying to help in SD 3, you should too!

http://blog.brevardyoungdemocrats.org/2007/06/quick-update-brevard-can-help-in-sd3.html

Check out the Brevard YD blog post. Eddie, Beth and the rest of the Brevard YD's are working hard to help get the whole state motivated to call voters in the 3rd Senate District to make sure they are voting over the next 7 days.

Early voting started yesterday in SD 3. We need to make sure that everyone we know in SD 3 votes. If we turn out the voters we win!

If we win, then we are 1 seat closer to have the next Senate President be Sen. Al Lawson! And we have one more awesome Democrat in the state Senate!

Last night, Nora Herron, Barbara Henderson and Corinne Rubin hosted a great fundraiser for Suzan Franks. We are all working hard to make sure that Suzan, and the Democratic Party, win next Tuesday. I encourage you to do as much as you can also!

Get involved! Raise Money, Give Money, Canvass, Phone Bank, email! We can elect a Democrat in this seat!

Political notes from Tallahassee Democrat = All about local Democrats!

In today's Tallahassee Democrat, all of the Sunday political notes are about our local Democratic Party efforts! Announcing our Leon County YD local election results, DEC member Alan Williams candidacy, and promoting the Susan Franks fundraiser being planned by Leon County DEC members! Great job!

http://www.tallahassee.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007706170321

Article published Jun 17, 2007

Young Democrats elect president
The Leon County Young Democrats elected former Florida Democratic Party Political Director Chris Petley as the group's new president for 2007-2008. The Young Democrats also elected other new officers in hopes of taking the organization in a new direction.

New officers are vice president Barbara Henderson, treasurer Alan Brock and secretary Corinne Rubin. The Executive Board members will each serve one-year terms. Board members will advise and organize more than 100 members of the LCYD as they prepare for the 2008 presidential election cycle.- Jeff Burlew

Mayor's aide runs for House seat
Alan Williams, the aide to Tallahassee Mayor John Marks, is running for the House of Representatives District 8 seat, which is being vacated by Rep. Curtis Richardson, D-Tallahassee, because of term limits.

He said in a fundraising letter to fellow Florida A&M University alumni that he and his family are excited about the run. He grew up on Tallahassee's south side.

"I am a product of Leon County Schools, having attended Hartsfield Elementary, Fairview Middle and Rickards High schools," he said. "I am a proud graduate of Florida A&M University, where I received my bachelor's of science and master's degrees in business. I am currently serving my second term as president of the Leon County Chapter of the FAMU Alumni Association, giving back to an institution that has given so much to this family."
He has served as Marks' aide for four years.

Franks fundraiser planned

A fundraiser for Suzan Franks, Democratic candidate for the District 3 state Senate seat, is set for 7 p.m. Monday at the home of Nora & Mark Herron, 503 South Ride. To make a reservation, send an e-mail to yogichi@gmail.com or call 425-5063.

Walking for Susan Franks

The Leon County Young Democrats had a strong showing today at the LCDEC Headquarters to walk for Susan Franks for Senate race. The election is coming up very soon, June 26, 2007, and we were out walking door to door in Indian Head Acres today. The response was great, there was a positive reactions at every door we knocked on.

Two of our local YD's, Beth Kennedy and Corinne Rubin, won tickets to the upcoming Collins Steel fundraiser that the Leon DEC is hosting. They won the tickets by knocking on the most doors.

We need to keep this energy going for the next two weeks, while we try to help Susan Franks win this election! We can do it! We will be walking again next week, and phone banking from now till the election. If you want to help call the Leon DEC at 850-577-DEMS .

If you need any more information about Susan Franks, check out her website: http://suzanfranksforfloridasenate.com/

I hope to see you around as we help take this Senate seat back for Democrats!

Quotes and facebook

I found this quote on a friends (Stephanie Ruby's) facebook page today, but she didn't attribute it to anyone. So I use www.yahoo.com to search it out real quick. Turns out it was an apple advertisement.

Gotta love apple...

“Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The trouble-makers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They're not fond of rules, and they have no respect for the status-quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify, or vilify them. But the only thing you can't do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do."

~ Apple Computers, from "Think Different" Advertisement

I like it, so I am putting it out there for others to read. And this link to see:

http://www.the-human-race.com/movies/think_different.mov

Back up link, the sound is really low on this link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAGrHI9Z-90

The LCYD Logo

You may have noticed that our blog has lost it logo.

Or, I guess, first you might have noticed that we haven't been posting as much as we use to. Well, I think we are back, posting, and keeping people up to date on local politics. Newly elected LCYD President Chris Petley is bringing back the energy that we have lacked for the past few months. I am really excited about the direction we are headed, I think that the YD's across the state are going to be a major player in the 08 election.

So, back to our logo, the hosting service that Blogger was using has changed, and our logo was removed. Blogger now encourages you to post your image in a post, and let that post host your image for all time.

I am very proud of the LCYD logo, and I want to see it in our title bar again, so I am posting the image here, and explaining why, in my typical, rambling, verbose way.

Good things are on their way.

ORSWCD Surprised by Unexpected Opposition

In a surprising turn of events, local democrat Sean McGlynn opposed efforts to protect local governments from the over-zealous efforts of the republican tax-cut plan.

The motion for The Ochlockonee River Soil and Water Conservation District to join other conservation districts in Florida to urge the state legislature to consider the valuable services provided by local governments as they make a decision about the tax reform was supported by Supervisor Thure Caire, a young elected democrat and former VP of the LCYD's, and Supervisor Gomez, a local engineer and republican.

Unfortunately, because McGlynn unexpectedly opposed the measure the motion failed to pass in a tie vote.

"The Conservation Districts are stronger when we can work together,” said Supervisor Caire, “this is a lost opportunity for Leon County to be a part of an important state-wide partnership.”