Here are the volunteer opportunities for the Month of March (and early April).
Please email FP's Volunteer Co-Ordinator -- Kristi at Braunkristi@aol.com with your availability for any of the activities below. *******
We only need a couple more people for the March 6th Delivery as a bunch of folks already signed up ..... If you have already signed up, please confirm this shift.
OPRF FOOD PANTRY WEEKDAY OPPORTUNITIES
FOR MARCH 2009
March 6
FRIDAY
9:30-11:00
Delivery
Unloading of food from truck, shelving food
March 9
MONDAY
Restock & pack
Tidy up Pantry, restock shelves, pack standard allotments
March 11
WEDNESDAY
3:00-5:00
Distribution
Packing bags, serving clients
March 12
THURSDAY
10:30-12:00
March 16
March 23
March 24
TUESDAY
March 25
March 30
In an interview with a German newspaper reported by Reuters, Maliki said Obama's 16-month plan is the "right timeframe" and that he prefers Obama's plan to McCain's plan of having troops stay indefiinitely. "Artificially extending the stay of U.S. troops would cause problems." This is after Bush announced a "time horizon" yesterday.
How can they possibly spin this to the Republican advantage?
Here's the link:
http://www.reuters.com/article/vcCandidateFeed2/idUSL198009020080719
Let's see. The Clinton campaign has been bragging all along that she has 35 years of experience, even though she's held elective office for only 7 years (compared with Obama's 12).
Then in Iowa, they put her on a "likability tour."
Then the day before the New Hampshire primary, she suddenly "found her voice" (makes you wonder what she had been doing for all of those 35 years, doesn't it?).
And now, according to ABC News (via Steve Benen at the Carpetbagger Report), the Clinton campaign is going to be rebranded once again:
* ABC News: “The Texas advertising guru and branding whiz who spent most of October on a spiritual soul quest trying to reconnect with ‘the heart of America’ has been tapped for a bigger role in Sen. Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign. Roy Spence, 60, a longtime friend of the Clintons, is the quirky Austin-based advertising legend who coined the phrase ‘Don’t Mess With Texas’ and developed the Southwest Airlines slogan: ‘You are now free to move about the country.’ He was with Clinton at her Chappaqua, New York home yesterday, after she flew in overnight from New Hampshire and met with her team to develop a campaign strategy for the next four weeks of key primaries.” Spence will reportedly now have a major role in “rebranding” Clinton’s message.
Hmm. Which one are we supposed to believe?
On Wednesday in Silicon Valley, Sen. Obama created quite a stir in the technology world with his detailed proposals on his technology initiatives. He would appoint a "chief technology officer," who would open up government meetings at all levels, transmitting live Webcasts and opening them up to comments. For instance, Obama wants five days of public comments before legislation is signed. This is pretty revolutionary.
How much you want to bet that many of those folks at Google who were listening to him want to apply for that job?
I'm far from being a tech expert -- I'm a computer "user," that's all -- but Obama's proposals seem to have taken many in the tech world by storm. Just as important, he's getting all kinds of positive mentions for these proposals on many progressive blogs that were on the fence about him, such as Open Left, MyDD, etc. This has to help the campaign.
Let's hope for a great performance in the debate tonight!
I just wanted to send a congrats to all those who came out for and helped organize the Jefferson-Jackson-Obama dinner in Des Moines last Saturday.
The Iowa Caucus, more than any primary, is about organizational strength, about getting your people out in the evening to publically show their support.
And that's just what happened in Des Moines. A young and diverse crowd of nearly 3,000 Obama supporters made up a third of the entire crowd in that arena. That's a show of force, and that should make the other candidates (Democrats and Republicans) nervous ... young voters showed up in force for Obama, at least one from every county in the state.
Kudos to the supporters and kudos to the organizers for getting the word and tools out there.
If you haven't already, click on the MYBO link to hear Sen. Obama's speech at the Jefferson-Jackson dinner in Iowa on Saturday, Nov. 10. It's 20 minutes well spent.
This is the strongest I have heard Obama since he got into the race in February. Many of his ideas and values were stated clearly and forcefully. And he was able to draw some distinctions between himself and some of the other candidates without mentioning them by name and without appearing overly critical. Some of the great lines:
"I am running for president because I am sick and tired of Democrats thinking that the only way to look tough on national security by talking and acting and voting like George Bush Republicans."
"The era of Scooter Libby justice, Brownie incompetence, and Karl Rove politics will finally be over."
It also didn't hurt that the intro was with the Chicago Bulls intro music, even with Ray Clay (or at least a sound-alike) saying "AAAAAAND NOW..."
The media coverage has been pretty unanimous that his was the strongest speech of the night. It's just what the campaign needs right now. Here a comment from David Yepsen of the Des Moines Register:
“Five of them gave really good speeches,” Yepsen said. “Barack Obama’s was excellent. ... Obama was particularly impressive Saturday night. Should he win the Iowa caucuses, Saturday’s dinner will be remembered as one of the turning points in his campaign in here, a point where he laid down the marker and began closing on Clinton, the national frontrunner."
Now, if he and the other candidates would only start criticizing the Republican candidates more. Sure, it plays well to criticize Bush -- no one likes him anymore. But Obama (and ALL of the Democratic candidates) have to name names in showing why America must vote for the Democratic candidate and why voting for Guiliani, Romney or any of the others would be disastrous for the country. The material is there -- use it!
At last we left our hero, President Bill Clinton was raking in huge popularity numbers all the way down to the bitter end of his eight years in the White House.
I spent at least seven of those eight years sitting in the tiny minority wondering, "What in the world do people see in this guy?"
Without getting into details and reliving that period, let's just say I wasn't a fan ... well, it goes much farther: My history book covers President Clinton in the "What happens if a president does absolutely nothing for eight years?" chapter.
But I know I'm in the minority on this one. Myself and the far, far, far right weren't fans, but everyone else has fond memories of his presidency.
But what has happened since then? Sen. Obama is gaining ground while simultaneously putting the back of his hand to that period, calling for a turn of the page from that type of politics and policy.
Even the media seems to be getting on board with the "Bash Bill" trend.
Is history proving my opinion of this Clintonian trouble right? I don't really know, but I must say that, as an Obama supporter, it is a relief to see that he doesn't have to walk the unwalkable tightrope of knocking Sen. Clinton without muddying the beloved President Clinton. That wouldn't have worked, so however this has happened, it makes me a happy man that he can do what's right: lumping them both together.
Well, my wife in a supporter of Sen. Clinton. I know, I know ... not everyone is perfect. She's irresistible in every OTHER way.
We have a basic rule in our house: No negative campaigning. It's hard. We'll end up watching the news, or in this weekend's case, "SNL," and it's really hard to avoid the wrong word, phrase or tone when talking about the other's candidate.
But her action is spurring my action, and vice versa. I was in Iowa last week going door to door in Dubuque for Sen. Obama. This weekend, it's my turn to stay home with our dogs while she goes to Iowa for a Clinton rally and fundraiser.
And because of that, I'm going to have to make sure I get back to Iowa again in a couple weeks, and then she'll go again, and so on and so on.
But the immediate problem is this weekend. It'll be painful to think that she's out there trying to get Clinton votes while I sit at home doing nothing. So my search is on over the next few days ... what can I do Saturday to counter-balance her day in Iowa?
And I imagine this will go on and on throughout the winter.
The pains of a mixed marriage, we say.
But while I don't support Clinton and some conversations have become awkward at home, I'm really enthusiastic about the fact that both of us are involved. Sure, I wish she was supporting Obama, but there is hope to be gained from all of this. We're in an interesting age group. We're on the old end of the "too young to vote in numbers" category, but on the young end of the "too old to be knocking on doors" category.
The fact that we're both out there knocking on doors and rallying support for this country's future gives me hope that there are similar couple out there like us getting involved in a way that might surprise a pollster.
Cheers.
No one home, on to the next address ... no one home, on to the next address.
That is largely how my Saturday afternoon went when I traveled to Dubuque as a part of the Sister City program. The last time I "did doors" was when I staffed a state assembly candidate in Wisconsin, simply taking notes on the conversations my candidate had with the homeowners.
But this is different in so many ways. The idea is to engage the residents about Sen. Obama, who isn't exactly standing next to you to answer policy questions that maybe you aren't well-versed in. I mean, I know where I stand but I'm supporting Obama because of character, not because of any one particular issue. In general, I disagree with half of the things all politicians say, so going to bat for Obama's policy initiatives wasn't going to me my strong suit.
But there I was knocking on doors, hoping I got a question up my alley. As the day went on, though, my concern turned from "do I know Obama enough" to "am I going to talk to anyone?"
I started to wonder if I had wasted my day. I know the pamphlets I left will have an impact and the handful I spoke with will remember "that nice guy from the Obama campaign" when they go to caucus (I hope!). But I was hardly engaging anyone in serious conversation, so I started to worry that this was a failed venture.
With one last address on my list, I stood checking my map and my view. "OK, I have one more person to get to today and they are four blocks up and around that hill," I said to myself. Sigh. Am I going to walk four blocks up hill (Dubuque, apparently, is the San Francisco of Iowa) to likely just leave a pamphlet in a door because no one's home?
My legs were urging me to just head for home, but my sense of pride and karma were telling me to get to that door.
Evelyn answered to door. And she likes the senator and his views on most issues, and thinks it's would be great for the country if he won. "So, will you caucus for him?" I asked eagerly. "I don't think so, I mean, maybe I'll vote for him in November if he makes it to the general election."
And this is where my day, my walking all became worth it. She was balking because she used to be very politically involved. She used to volunteer for campaigns with her husband and caucus each time. But some of the candidates she supported years ago turned out to be, well, let's just say ethically challenged.
She had been soured from the process.
In many ways, this was like looking in a mirror. She was older than me, and at about the same time she was souring from the process I was just starting to be old enough to understand it. And what did I think? I was so disturbed by all of it that I kept myself from getting involved in national politics -- and with the exception of my one Wisconsin assembly campaign, I stayed out of local politics, too.
Here, staring at Evelyn, I didn't have to think about Obama's views on Issues A, B and C. I didn't have to think about his record on Issues D, E and F.
What she needed to here was my story. And my story is one of someone soured by the political process. Then, Obama came along, and suddenly I'm spending my Saturday hundreds of miles from home knocking on doors. I'm blogging during the week, I'm trying to raise money, and I registered my name to be considered in my local community to get on citizen advisory committees here at home.
She listened and seemed really intrigued by my story and said that she'd give the caucus participation another consideration.
"I'm so glad I got to speak and commiserate with you today," I closed. "And I'll be looking for you on caucus night."
Evelyn made my drive worthwhile. I would have driven that distance just to go to her door ...
Obama's story is powerful, but so are the stories of his supporters, many of whom are getting involved for the first time.
This is a powerful movement.
As late as the hour may seem to those involved in this campaign, it is still pretty early. I mean, no one has voted yet, anywhere.
But when all is said and done, and the next president takes the oath a year from January, what will the legacy of this election be?
The openness of this contest has made it the most unique of my lifetime and I've been pleasantly surprised at how interested people are as early as it is. And many of these people are taking an interest without much of a track record of political involvement.
I've been off and on with my political action. I've always been interested in national and world affairs and politics. There's even tape of me from when I was in the early half of grade school talking about how I felt about nuclear weapons and the Reagan Administration's "Star Wars" program.
But my involvement has been off and on. I did constituent relations for the mayor's office in Milwaukee during college. Also during college, I worked as a campaign office manager for now-Assemblyman Pedro Colon, whose victory that year made him Wisconsin's first Latino legislator. That was a wonderful time, though I don't think I was much of a campaign office manager!
Since then, I've really done nothing but vote. I haven't written, campaigned or volunteered for government or campaign measures.
That changed when Sen. Obama decided to run for president. I signed up with his Web site, and slowly but surely have become more and more involved, from blogging here, to the Grassroots Fundraising effort and taking trips to Iowa with the Sister City program.
But when the campaign is over, those programs are over, too.
So I want to write to encourage people to think right now, right now when you're motivated and inspired, about what you want to continue to do to make this country and your community a better place.
I went to my village clerk's office and signed up to serve on citizen advisory boards, and I do have plans to run for office locally when the opportunity presents itself.
What are you thinking of doing? Start putting the infrastructure in place right now for what you will do when this is over. If you wait, it's possible that your drive will fade. So take action now and start moving the pieces around the board to figure out how you can serve after Electionm 2008.
Do you want to have a full-time blog, do you want to volunteer year-round with your community boards or political groups, will you continue to give money to causes ... will you run for office?
What has Sen. Obama inspired you to do next?
Good move by Sen. Obama to remind people of faith that we are all "stewards of the earth."
"The bible tells us that when God created the earth, he entrusted us with the responsibility to take care of that earth," he said Sunday at an appearance at an interfaith forum in Des Moines, Iowa. "It is a responsibility to ensure that this planet remains clean and safe and livable for our children, and for all of God's children."
"Science has made it undeniably clear that our generation is not living up to this responsibility."
For too long, Democrats have ceded all things religious to right-wingnut Republicans. Taking care of the earth -- doing our part to combat global warming -- has just as much to do with religion as the divisive issues of abortion and stem cells. A silly topic like gay marriage just falls under bigotry.
And let's not forget about fighting poverty. Democrats are the real "values voters."
So GEORGE BUSH's White House says he thinks Obama is too "intellectually lazy" to be president? That Obama relies too heavily on "charm"? This, from the man who asked, "Is your children learning?"
These guys really do live in an alternate universe.
Sen. Obama is finally doing what many of us have been waiting for: He has said publicly that he will not vote to keep funding the Iraq War unless there is a specific timetable for withdrawal.
He voted the same way last time around, but at least this time, he said it publicly (and loudly) up front.
Will it make any difference? Probably not, with such a small Democratic majority. But at least he saying out loud where he stands.
Sen. Obama has been getting some limited coverage of recent opinion pieces he's written on subjects such as Cuba policy, New Orleans policy, mortgage policy, etc. Now we all know he's a great writer, and these articles clearly articulate his ideas. But is he reaching the voters he needs to reach?
The conventional wisdom in polls has shown that Obama is attracting the more educated voters and younger voters. He's not doing as well with some other groups, such as high school graduates with no college, especially women. And those groups are not the ones who would read opinion pieces in publications like the Financial Times.
Likewise, most younger voters don't spend much time reading newspapers. And he needs most of these voters if he's going to win.
So I'm torn. He's using writing -- an area in which he probably outshines every other candidate -- to deliver policy ideas. But are the people he needs to reach paying any attention?
I was glad to hear that Sen. Obama gave a forceful denunciation of the religous right at his speech before the National UCC Assembly. We need more Democrats to tell the truth about this -- most of what the religous right does has nothing to do with Christianity.
Deputy Youth has sent you an invitation to 'Chicago Kids for Obama Kick-Off Event' -- click here to view the invitation and submit your response:
Link come and bring the entire family!
Attention all voters! For all unregistered voters please get registered! I realize many people (like me) are not old enough to register to vote but if you are 18 or older and are still not registered to vote you MUST! Every vote counts and your vote WILL help make Barack Obama president. If you don't how to register contact me or someone else who can help you register.
Get out the Vote (GOTV)
