Vote.

What I Want

I haven't been writing--I haven't had the time. I have been doing many, many things: working, raising kids, maintaining websites, disseminating information, canvassing, calling,  developing graphics, writing postcards, and planning and attending events. But I have not been writing. However, I find that I miss it. I sometimes have more to say than a Facebook post can get across.

The past few months have been absolutely brutal for empathetic people who are trying to push through this valley in which we find ourselves. And I am not going to discuss all the negative things we have seen and heard that have pushed so many of us over the edge, and even broken a few of us.

I have been thinking a lot about the current political landscape and so many things that make me angry or sad about the world. and I have been focused on the upcoming midterms and getting out talking to people about the candidates running that I have come to know and love, as well as the party platform that I have actually had a hand in developing. I have heard from people that "there's no clear message" or that we need to develop one. And boy do I disagree with that. The story we have is strong--what's difficult is not getting sucked down into the negative vortex and keeping your eyes and your story on what's actually important. We as progressives MUST focus on the things we want for our country and what we believe the candidates we support will work toward. For me, that is a very clear list. I don't need to talk about the president or what is happening on twitter to tell you what I believe in and want.

I want

• Clean drinking water and basic amenities like heat and electricity for every American, including not just those in US states, but also those in our territories.
• Every one of us to do everything in our power to protect the environment, which includes protecting ecosystems from collapse due to pollution from commercial endeavors, keeping our air clean, and protecting our natural wonders, our public lands, and our wildlife.
• To move away from the consumption of fossil fuels and toward cleaner sources of energy like wind and sun.
• Laws in place to hold companies and corporations accountable for the damages their operations inflict on the environment and on the people who work for or live near them. 
• A global view of trade.
• Secure borders with humane treatment of and reasonable and legal immigration opportunities for refugees who come to our country seeking help escaping desperate circumstances.
• Protection for Dreamers.
• All Americans to have equal access to good educational opportunities, from preschool through college, and beyond.
• Sensible gun laws, including more extensive background checks, waiting periods, laws ensuring that guns stay out of the hands of those with criminal records and histories of violent behavior or domestic abuse, and the removal of assault weapons and bump stocks from the open market.
• The adoption of the ERA into our national constitution, which only needs one more state.
• Equal rights under the law for all citizens of the United States, no matter their gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, economic status etc. etc. etc. NO MATTER WHAT.
• Anyone who works a full time job to be able to live a decent quality of life, period. 
• To encourage ALL citizens to vote and to make it easier for them to do so.
• To abolish the electoral college so that all votes carry the same weight in national elections.
• To set term limits on ALL positions in the government at ALL levels.
• To support and assist our veterans.
• Universal healthcare.
• A return to common decency in our government.

These are the issues I talk about to anyone who will listen. These are the things the candidates I work to support believe in. This is my personal message to the world.  And my plea is--VOTE! Let your voice be heard, and vote like your rights depend on it because they absolutely do.

The #BlueWave Trailer

Feeling hopeless? Worn down? A lot of people are reeling from the vast and overwhelming insanity of the past year and a half, and especially the relentless barrage of news since the Kavanaugh confirmation. But this? This right here filled me with hope and inspiration to get through these last couple of weeks before the midterms! Fired up! Ready to vote!

 

Happy Blue Year!

Whew! 2017 was a big year, right?! I started the year off protesting and writing and thinking, and then I got active. I took over as chair of my local precinct, and did my level best to help change my town council from red to blue in the November municipal election. Democratic voters in our municipality turned out in record numbers to win in a gigantic landslide, and I am really proud of the part I played in that. I am energized! I am ready to work hard in 2018 to take some congressional seats and help turn my state more blue!

Somewhat disconcertingly, I am becoming KNOWN. I am getting messages and friend requests from total strangers running for positions all over the state and for whom I would not be a constituent. I am becoming a person who meets state congressional candidates for drinks to see if am comfortable throwing my support behind them. Activists are trying to enlist my help with their agendas. This is not a role in which I ever expected to be, but I relish being so far outside my personal comfort zone! I am so happy to be DOING something and to have things on which to ACT.

Like the rest of the voters in the US who are paying attention, I read the news each day, mouth agape, wondering what fresh madness will come down to us from the top of our government. However, I believe with all my heart that the way to turn this mess around is to take it back from the bottom up. Every seat matters. Every vote matters. Every conversation matters.

Tonight, I will host my precinct's monthly happy hour, and then hopefully make it to the Apex Town Council meeting, where my people will be voting on paid parental and bereavement leave for town employees, something that should not be controversial, but is. I will attend more meetings and protests to stay galvanized and help motivate and direct my people in ways that hopefully make a difference. I will keep on keepin' on, learning, planning, and working my ass off. I can't wait! Onward!

Too Much to Say

In reading the news lately, it's been so overwhelming that I almost don't even know what to say. I have been writing less as more and more terrifying and infuriating events have taken place.

What do I talk about first? Here's a list of possibilities just off the top of my head:

• Russian interference in our election process and almost certainly in our current administration--this has become nearly indisputable with not only many instances of rumor and smoke, much from within the White House itself, but also with the resignation/firing of Michael Flynn, followed by his offer to testify if granted immunity, which, by his own words, is an admission of guilt. 
• The Senate changing the rules of majority in order to push Gorsuch into the Supreme Court--rules that were put in place specifically to disallow the election of a partisan judge to that very office.
• The gassing of Syrian citizens by their own ruler, the monstrous Assad, which was brutal in the extreme and absolutely horrifying to witness via video and photograph, much less in real life. And then 45's attempt to blame Obama for this incident, followed by an abrupt 180 degree turn from every word he's ever spoken about Syria and our involvement therein and subsequent bombing of a Syrian airbase (without consulting congress at all, or anyone else that knows much at all, from Mar-a-Lago surrounded by economic advisers) that remains operational after being missed by over half the tomahawk missiles fired upon it amid rumors that the Syrian government had been mysteriously warned, possibly by Putin, that the assault was imminent.
• How many days has 45 I'm-never-going-to-see-my-resorts-again-I'll-be-working-too-hard played golf since he took office? (18) How many visits to his own properties and resorts? (once every 2.8 days) How much money did that cost tax payers? ($21.6M at Mar-a-Lago so far) And how much of that cost is funnelled directly into his own pockets? Hmmm...
• Ivanka has an office where again? What the wha???
• The poor, disorganized Easter Egg Roll, wherein the current First Family once again throws tradition to the wind and disappoints the people. If they manage to pull this thing off, you know it's going to be a chaotic disaster. I sure hope Spicer still has his bunny suit.
• What was that tiny article that I read about the US moving warships up the Asian coast from Singapore and into position near North Korea, which claims it will have the strength to hit a US target with a nuclear missile before another month has passed. And 45 bragging to China that he was ready to take them on alone without support from other countries, including them? *shudder*
• Now we can shoot hibernating bears and wolves in their dens. Making America Great Again--riiiiiight...
• 3000 jobs to be cut from the EPA, which continues to be gagged on the bulk of its research. That's definitely bring jobs back, right? Not to mention protecting our planet? Oh that's right--I forgot that climate change is all a Chinese hoax.

There's a lot from which to choose. However, my point here is not to be emotional, but analytic. I am striving every day to understand the big picture of what's actually going on in this disorganized and chaotic government. And lately, folks, I have honestly been too emotional to write about it. I am just angry, disappointed, terrified, and apparently, overwhelmed into silence. This is a dangerous place to be: silence is often mistaken for acquiescence. Please don't mistake my lack of writing as a sign of submission. I promise you, it's anything but.

Juxtaposition

Observe, if you will, two official Presidential portraits:

Could two men come across more differently than these two? If I knew absolutely nothing at all about either of them, it would be incredibly easy to determine which one I would rather have over for dinner. Knowing what I know about them, that's even more the case.

President Obama looks kind, confident, friendly, professional, and open. He's at ease and standing up straight and proud. He's inside the oval office with the red fabric he chose for drapery treatments behind him and with living plants in the background outside the windows. His clothing is well-fitted and neatly pressed with flattering colors that don't overpower him so that your eyes are drawn to his face and his smile. In sharp contrast, our 45th President looks hostile, angry, and like he may take a step forward and smack the viewer. His expression is reminiscent of my emotional son when he's not getting his way. He's slump-shouldered and looks bowed down. His shirt is wrinkled and looks dingy instead of clean white, and the red tie not only accentuates his ruddy complexion that doesn't look altogether healthy, but it also draws your eyes downward away from his face--that bright red is the first thing you see in the portrait. Also, where is he standing? The White House is behind him, but there's also a flag that looks indoors. Even the sky behind him is even uneasy and stormy, as if nothing here bodes well. Is this photo-shopped together?

Part of what confuses me about this newly unveiled portrait is that 45 has all the money in the world for stylists, photographers, and staff to guide him through a photo session that should have produced something far better than this. Why in the world does he not use the resources he has to give a better impression? Does he believe that this photograph makes him look powerful? I truly don't understand.

Wake County Democratic Convention

This weekend, I attended the Wake County Democratic Convention at Apex Friendship High School, and it was an amazing experience. I was unfortunately not able to vote this year, as I didn't get my party affiliate changed in time. I am still really glad I went--I learned a ton about the process and the folks in Wake County who make things happen. I am determined to stay involved and learn as much as I can so that next year, I can take a more active role.

I read that last year, this convention was attended by 290 delegates, and that this year, it was more nearly 900 strong. If there is one positive thing to say about the current Presidential administration and the state of politics here in North Carolina, it's that people are feeling galvanized and ready to act. This meeting was not glamorous--this was an in-the-trenches type of working meeting, and it was literally standing room only. It was inspirational! This is Congressman David Price speaking to the group, and people were still in line outside to check in when I took this. You also can't see that there are people standing down both sides of the room as well. Just amazing.

Our precinct was originally up front, but enough people showed up that we ran out of space and moved to the back so that we could sit together. This is a great problem to have!

At the meeting, there were a small handful of speakers, most notably the aforementioned Congressman Price and the Chair of the Wake County Democratic Party, Brian Fitzsimmons. He was stepping down as Chair, but I will me amazed if we don't see him pop up somewhere else in politics in North Carolina. He is a fantastic speaker, and seems to really know how to get things done. New officers were elected on the spot, and the transition to them took place immediately. Most seats were uncontested with the exception of Chair. The new Chair this year is Rebecca Llewellyn, who won handily over her challenger, David Bland. I was glad to see that the new executive board was quite diverse. I also learned later that this is the very first time the board has been majority female. Just check this out!

Other things I took from the Convention:

1. The State Executive Committee has to be half female and half male. This is something I had no idea existed anywhere in our government, and honestly, I do not understand how this rule came to be. It's something I plan to research. It was bizarre to see the list of candidates separated by gender in this way.
2. What is the State Executive Committee? This was a big question from many of us who were attending our first meeting of this type. It's an elected body that meets quarterly and is apparently a large part of how the state platform is developed. In some ways, this reminded me of the Electoral College. Most people do not know the people representing them in the EC, and similarly, most people do not know the members of their SEC. And yet--it's in that SEC where the real work of developing the stance of the Democratic Party (and I assume the Republican one as well) in your state happens. This is definitely something that bears further clarification and exploration.
3. The Wake County Democratic Party has one paid employee, the Executive Director, Austen High. Every other position is strictly voluntary, and from comments made, I gather that Austen can use all the help she can get. I followed up after the meeting and sent her a message offering to assist her if I possibly can. 

I feel in some ways like getting involved is requiring me to be somewhat pushy. That's OK with me--I am willing to keep trying to find ways to help move this group and this platform forward. Right now in North Carolina, in spite of our newly installed Democratic governor, Roy Cooper, the GOP has a Super-majority in the Senate and the House of Representatives. However, even if we do not re-draw our heavily gerrymandered district lines, it would take only a few seats to flip that majority in the other direction. If I can find any small way to help that happen, I am glad to do it!

The most interesting part of the entire meeting was the last 30 minutes, during which resolutions were discussed. These are proposals for changes or additions to the party platform that are written by individuals and submitted at the precinct level where they are discussed and voted upon. If they pass there, they are handed up to the county level. There, some are thrown out for redundancy, but the list is then discussed and voted upon once again. If a resolution passes the county, it goes to state level, and so on. These can and do cover about anything from educational policy to taxation to the death penalty. 14 such resolutions passed at this particular meeting. The head of the resolutions committee, Montica Talmadge, was new to the process and was quickly becoming overwhelmed by the adopted rules of the meeting, the rules that had to be followed, and the number of people trying to talk at once. Luckily, the Second Vice Chair of the NC Democratic Party happened to be in attendance, and he was able to step in, regain control, and get through all 14 resolutions in under 30 minutes. His name is Matt Hughes, and it was very easy to tell that, though he is quite young, he knew exactly how to handle the process. He is another person who bears watching over the next few years. If he doesn't end up running for a Congressional seat or perhaps even more, I will be amazed.

I think that one of the most important things I am doing right now is learning my way around. I am learning who are the people who are doing the real, on-the-ground work of making progress, and those are the people I need to meet and get to know in order to be effective myself. This process is SO complicated, and these are the people from whom I need to learn. I have an enormous set of skills that I can and want to put to use for the party--I just need to figure out how and where to do it.