By Monday night, my voice was dry and hoarse from making phone calls in battleground states. My fingers numb from punching in the numbers on my phone. “Go to sleep!” I commanded myself, tomorrow is E Day and that meant one final day of canvassing, one final day of visibility, on final day of reminding folks to go vote. Unfortunately, I did not listen to myself and woke up every hour.
Finally, the darkness began to show signs of dawn. It’s November 4th. I got up and chanted (prayed) from the depths of my life – today, Victory.
After voting, we headed off to New Hampshire for one last canvass, for one last call. After canvassing, we did visibility on a prominent corner near the Claremont NH field office until it started to turn dark and then we drove back to Connecticut.
When I reached home, exhaustion was beginning to take hold. Then the polls began to close and the results – as well as projections – began to come in. A burst of energy renewed my senses and we went to a result watch party with friends, neighbors and family.
As I walked around, greeting familiar faces, sharing hugs and war stories, and cheering as the commentator would announce another state for Senator Obama, a sense of awe and history began to build in all of us.
I looked at my hands but not my feet. If I looked down, I might fall. This is happening. This is real. We came to the mountain and we did not walk around it or avoid it. Lead by a man who inspired us and rekindled within our hearts the natural element of self-empowerment, we moved through that mountain with clear, determined and purposeful steps until we reached the other side in complete triumph! A great sea of people, many in body, one in mind is the secret to our success. As we emerged, our battle scars transformed into golden memory jewels, expanding our lives to the far corners of 3,000 universes.
The numbers got higher – there were several ways to reach 270 and beyond. The noise level grew. We were watching several big screen TV’s in the atrium at Union Station in downtown Hartford. A vast station suddenly seemed small as the crowd filled every nook and cranny. The gap was closing, and now it was down to either of two states that would bring victory for Senator Obama. Then it happened.
High into the air, our arms raised, our voices one grand roar of eternal delight, and our feet lifted like feathers, dancing to victory’s song. This is real. Together, we changed history. We are ground warriors all and change is our right of passage!
Yes We Can. Yes We Can. Yes We Can.
McCain's Private Visit With Chilean Dictator Pinochet Revealed For First Time
John McCain, who has harshly criticized the idea of sitting down with dictators without pre-conditions, appears to have done just that. In 1985, McCain traveled to Chile for a friendly meeting with Chile's military ruler, General Augusto Pinochet, one of the world's most notorious violators of human rights credited with killing more than 3,000 civilians and jailing tens of thousands of others....
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/justinwebb/2008/10/unhelpful_messages.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-dinges/mccain-meets-a-bloody-dic_b_137422.html
How to select the best candidate?Have you looked at the candidates resumes carefully?In any profession, when they are looking into hiring someone, first they look at each candidate's resume, and there, first thing they look at is his/her education, to make sure he/she has the required degree with enough & related training from a credible univ./collage and with a high standing. If that's not the case, they don't waist their time any more - just through the resume out, and move to the next one. If the candidate passes that, then they look at his/her related experience. If that one is also good then probably interview him/her to know more about his/her character & personal values and physical fitness for the job, and also how much his/her vision/goals aligns with the company's vision/goals.For more than 20 years, every time that I've applied for a new job, I went through the same cycle of resume writing & interview process. Every time that I hired someone - from ordinary things, like car oil change to a family doctor for check up, to a repair person for the house, to hire someone for the company, I've performed the same steps.Education without experience is lame, and experience without education is blind.Probably, government positions are the only ones that may skip that process, and put someone with no, or little, or unrelated education and/or experience in the office. Ironically, higher the public responsibility, more people ignore following the above process in hiring a qualified person for the office. Positions like member of municipality, mayor of city/town, governor of state, state representative or senator of congress, or president of the country - in fact any position that you can vote for.In any election, we should look at it as if we are hiring someone for the office with the fix salary & all the benefits that come with it (and of course, the high responsibility), and try to evaluate each candidate's resume with the same process as mentioned above, i.e.:1- Education2- Experience3- Character/Personal values & Physical fitness4- Vision/goalsLet me break them more:-Education: .high degree .degree be related to the job .from top university/collage .good grade-Experience: .number of years in related field .successful achievements & progress .references/colleagues feedback-Character/Personal values & Physical fitness: .honesty, trustworthy, loyalty, integrity, leadership, good judgment, teamwork, good problem solving & decision making, good negotiating, understanding, care about people & environment, civilize/humane/moral values, intelligent, mature, good attitude .physically fit, healthy, high energy, passion-Vision/goals in related areas according to the job, like: .economy .peace/war .security .education .health .energy .environment .Tax .family .crime .employment .civil rights .foreign affairs & human rights .etcFor example for this coming presidential election we can try to define above parameters:1- What education a president should have?I think a president should have at least a bachelor's degree in one of the following areas:LawEconomicsPolitical ScienceSociology or Social WorkInternational/Foreign affairAnd enough courses/training in all the above areas as well as the following areas:Public Policy (local or global)Management & LeadershipPlanning (for cities, environments, social & economic well-being)I think a president needs to have academic training in all those areas that when he/she discusses issues in each area with a team of experts to find the best possible solution, be able to understand them and analyze their recommendations to be able to make the best decision (e.g., sitting with a team of economists with high degree & experience on economy issues).2- In terms of experience, a president should have good public service experience like US senator, US representative, governor, mayor, state official, state senator, state representative, civil rights attorney, community work, etc. But let's be careful about this. As I mentioned above, experience without knowledge is blind and has little value because he/she has never had fundamental theory to fully comprehend and build those experiences on top of knowledge.3- Character/Personal values as mentioned above are essential for a president to have, especially leadership, good judgment, good temper, and being able to work with people with different opinions. And being physically fit, healthy, and with high energy for such a stressful job is also very important. A president with little of these values can (for example) lead the country to an unnecessary war and risk the lives of millions of people, leave so many disables, and destroy so many families.4- How much the vision & goals of the presidential candidate & VP, in areas that you think are very important, is compatible with yours? We should list those areas (similar to ones I listed above) and evaluate each candidate for each area. And when you do that, you shouldn't think about the things that are important ONLY for YOU and/or have immediate benefit for you but also for the people in your neighborhood/town/city, for your state, for your country, and also for the world. We should realize that we are responsible to all people of our country and the whole world who we elect and put in the office. A president can push the green button and lead the country toward peace & prosperity or push the red button toward world nuclear war & destruction of earth. Don't forget, in the face of history, people like Hitler didn't fall to office from sky; some people voted for & elected them.We should carefully study each candidate and grade them for each & all of the parameters mentioned above to elect someone wisely & responsibly.For example, for the first element, i.e., the candidate's education, I did some research and found the following info for this presidential election:Obama:.Columbia University - B.A. Political Science with a specialization inInternational Relations.Harvard - Juris Doctor (J.D.) Magna Cum Laude, first black president of the "Harvard Law Review"Biden:.University of Delaware - B.A. in History and B.A. in Political Science..Syracuse University College of Law - Juris Doctor (J.D.)McCain:.United States Naval Academy (2.5 yrs training as a naval aviator); class rank: 894 of 899; he had conflict with higher-ranking personnel; he did not always obey the rules; struggled with mathematicsPalin:Hawaii Pacific University - 1 semesterNorth Idaho College - 2 semesters - general studyUniversity of Idaho - 2 semesters - journalismMatanuska-Susitna College - 1 semesterUniversity of Idaho - 3 semesters - B.A. in JournalismFor the rest of qualifying parameters, I suggest you do your own research. We should keep in mind that presidency is a serious job. Lives of millions are at stake. So, we want to hire some people who satisfy the education & training requirements for it, as well as experience, integrity, vision, etc.While we should study & select our candidate carefully, at the same time, someone who doesn't have enough qualification for the job shouldn't apply for it - shouldn't candidate for it. Like any profession, if someone likes to have a specific position in public service, or become a politician (for example, become a mayor, governor, member of congress, VP, president, etc.), he/she should study in that field & work for it. It’s very ridiculous that some people with no or little qualification become candidate for these types of jobs. And what is more disappointing is WE contribute, support, vote for & elect these people for the office.Vote wisely & responsibly.By: Jaabeej================One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors.--Plato--================Some of the References:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obamahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mccainhttp://www.barackobama.com/learn/meet_barack.phphttp://www.johnmccain.com/About/http://obama.senate.gov/about/http://mccain.senate.gov/
I am in total shock! I can not believe that McCain and Palin are saying that Voter Fraud is ocurring when it was Voter Registration errors. I am so sick of listening to the McCain campaign over and over talking about Ayers, Wright and ACORN.
ACORN was affiliated with McCain in 1996. But that is considered ok?!
Look at McCain onYouTube with ACORN:
It was ok for him but not Obama??? What is this McCarthism - Unbelievable!!!!
What about Ayers?!?! Look here:
Ayers is on the Annenberg board of Directors for the Annenberg
John McCain has on a list (on his website) the name of an Annenberg! Yes, you heard me right, those same Annenbergs that have given money to Bill Ayres, 50 million worth, therefore the Annenbergs must be terrorist sponsors!
Leonore Annenberg is one of the 100 U.S. Ambassadors who support McCain.
http://www.johnmccain.com/informing/news/PressReleases/1b838127-b4a0-4868-9906-62f555376089.htm
I think Obama’s relatively weak but nonetheless real interactions with William Ayers are a legitimate campaign issue. But Obama’s best response, after telling the facts of the relationship, is to point out who else supported him. Republican machers Walter and Leonora Annenberg$50 million. They also gave money to Rick Santorum, Strom Thurmond and Mitt Romney. Annenberg was Nixon’s ambassador to Britain. If Obama is “palling around with terrorists,” the Republican Annenbergs are funding them. gave the former terrorist Yesterday, the McCain campain put out a press release boasting that Leonore Annenberg had just endorsed him for president. Why is McCain happy to accept the endorsement of a funder of terrorism? http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2008/10/republicans-who.html
I think Obama’s relatively weak but nonetheless real interactions with William Ayers are a legitimate campaign issue. But Obama’s best response, after telling the facts of the relationship, is to point out who else supported him. Republican machers Walter and Leonora Annenberg$50 million. They also gave money to Rick Santorum, Strom Thurmond and Mitt Romney. Annenberg was Nixon’s ambassador to Britain. If Obama is “palling around with terrorists,” the Republican Annenbergs are funding them. gave the former terrorist
Yesterday, the McCain campain put out a press release boasting that Leonore Annenberg had just endorsed him for president. Why is McCain happy to accept the endorsement of a funder of terrorism?
http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2008/10/republicans-who.html
He also fails to point out the close relationship the Annenberg family had with the Reagan’s…..
This is going way too far and I believe is destroying the fabric of our Nation.
The beat is on in Connecticut's first Congressional District! Last week, a group of grassroots volunteers took some time out of their day to visit Weaver High School in Hartford, CT. Their purpose -- register high school students who will be 18 years old by November 4, 2008. Lead by Hartford's City Councilwoman and Majority Leader, rJo Winch, the group entered Weaver determined to reach as many students as possible.
The reception by the students was awesome. They were delighted to register to vote. Members of the group explained the importance of voting and the history of just one vote.
In a manner of a couple of hours, 100 Weaver High School students became regsitered voters!
Majority Leader Winch is working out the necessary details to obtain permission to allow students to go vote during the day. Grassroots volunteers are organizing van rides to pick up the students to drive them to and from the polls on November 4th so that they can vote.
Hartford's grassroots volunteers are determined to reach out to the other high schools in Hartford and set up the same kind of voter registration drive, coupled with van rides on election day!
Maryline Blackburn endorsed Senator Barack Obama.
See the article Miss Alaska '84 Recalls Rival's Winning Ways
www.marylineblackburn.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE www.democracynow.org
September 1, 2008
Contact: Dennis Moynihan Mike Burke
ST. PAUL, MN—Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman was unlawfully arrested in downtown St. Paul, Minnesota at approximately 5 p.m. local time. Police violently manhandled Goodman, yanking her arm, as they arrested her. Video of her arrest can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYjyvkR0bGQ
Goodman was arrested while attempting to free two Democracy Now! producers who were being unlawfuly detained. They are Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar. Kouddous and Salazar were arrested while they carried out their journalistic duties in covering street demonstrations at the Republican National Convention. Goodman’s crime appears to have been defending her colleagues and the freedom of the press.
Ramsey County Sherrif Bob Fletcher told Democracy Now! that Kouddous and Salazar were being arrested on suspicion of rioting. They are currently being held at the Ramsey County jail in St. Paul.
Democracy Now! is calling on all journalists and concerned citizens to call the office of Mayor Chris Coleman and the Ramsey County Jail and demand the immediate release of Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar. These calls can be directed to: Chris Rider from Mayor Coleman’s office at 651-266-8535 and the Ramsey County Jail at 651-266-9350 (press extension 0).
Democracy Now! stands by Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar and condemns this action by Twin Cities law enforcement as a clear violation of the freedom of the press and the First Amenmdent rights of these journalists.
During the demonstration in which they were arrested law enforcement officers used pepper spray, rubber bullets, concussion grenades and excessive force. Several dozen others were also arrested during this action.
Amy Goodman is one of the most well-known and well-respected journalists in the United States. She has received journalism’s top honors for her reporting and has a distinguished reputation of bravery and courage. The arrest of Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar is a transparent attempt to intimidate journalists from the nation’s leading independent news outlet.
Democracy Now! is a nationally-syndicated public TV and radio program that airs on over 700 radio and TV stations across the US and the globe.
Video of Amy Goodman’s Arrest: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYjyvkR0bGQ
Filed under News
On August 28, 2008, Congressman Larson hosted a Obama Watch Party at the Artist Collective in Hartford, CT. Congressman Larson fired up the energetic crowd. Over 300 supporters helped kicked off the general election.
Local Reaction to Obama Supporters
http://video.fox61.com/global/video/flash/flashvideoplayer.asp?playerName=miniplayer.swf&clipId=2855771&autoStart=false&mute=false
As a Councilwoman in the City of Hartford, CT, I find myself being concerned about more than my own re-election. I organized a meeting at my home and had 24 Obama supporters come together for Change. We registered 14 new voters at this meeting. 50% of the people who showed up were getting involved in the elections for the first time. Many said this race is the most important presidential race in their life time and they wanted to have an active part.
I encourage many of you to try and have a meeting of small groups at your home at least every two weeks right up to election day to be sure we get our Democratic President in office.
Hey Connecticut folks!
Just wanted to let you know of a very exciting fundraiser coming up for Senator Obama next week in CT with historic Tony-Award winning actress Phylicia Rashad.
We hope to see you there!
Now is not the time for us to get off course. We must continue to push forward to make real change in America. Talking about change and really wanting to make change are two different things. Lets be the doers not the talkers.
I believe Barack Obama will make real changes in America because he understands that it's the average Americans who need their government to reach their communities. Big bucks do not need more big bucks or tax breaks. Tax cuts are what the average American needs. Those of us who may be just a paycheck away from homeless.
To make real change we must first believe it can happen, then make moves toward helping that change come about.
Let's not get distracted or derailed by the Republicans, instead lets keep pushing toward the mark for a victory in November with Barack Obama becoming our 44th President of these United States.
Councilwoman rJo Winch
Hartford, CT
It's back. 35,000 people in PA for a rally, 3 key superdelegates, all intellectual and with a strong moral compass.
He's back and he's going to finish this off on May 6th. Whouda thunk it?
