Hello Bloggers:
I spend more time on FACEBOOK now.
Drop by if you have a chance.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1555085923
MyBO: Robert Gibbs on the President's Housing Plan
C4L: Member Blog Spotlight: Santelli Responds to Gibbs
One thing for everyone to know, hearing the two of them combined is funny, but it reminds me of people going after each other on the show, Yomamma. (Look, both of them are talking about drinking coffee while criticizing sarcastically each others' opinions about the housing plan.)
Another point, I am critical about the MSM's influence on issues and opinions, and I've made this really clear on many of my pre-election posts. Also, due to the biasing that the MSM has done, it is understandable that Obama's staff have been really edgy. However, in this case, the concerns from people like Santelli are from a point of view that happened to start off as off the mainstream, but it managed to become a signal that the MSM is paying attention to on its radar!
In my opinion, I am happy that Rep. Paul's supporters are getting some well-deserved MSM coverage, but also, that Pres. Obama is also doing what he can under the stressfull and intimidating conditions he has been going through.
HOWEVER, ONE THING MUST BE KEPT IN MIND, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER OR NOT YOU SUPPORT OBAMA OR PAUL OR ANYONE ELSE, MAINSTREAM OR OTHERWISE: THE MSM, OR CORPORATE MEDIA LOVES IT WHEN A DEBATE OVER AN ISSUE DISSOLVES INTO A HISSY FIT BECAUSE IT MAKES GOOD RATINGS, AND THE SUPPORTERS OF EITHER SIDE BECOME SO POLARIZED INTO SUPPORTING THEIR PERSON OR ISSUE THAT THEY BECOME UNWILLING TO HEAR THE OTHER SIDE OUT, WHICH IS ALSO WHAT THE COPORATE LEADERS WANT IN ORDER TO KEEP THE *TRUTH* OF THE SITUATION SILENT!!!!!
I know that some MyBO members may disagree with me, while people who are C4L members that casually read MyBO might take my post as ridiculous, but granted that there are bills like HR 645 that are out there that no one is paying attention to, and there are several other events called out on blogs like MyBO and C4L, it would be nice that people remember to actually calmly and open-mindedly speak to each other.
Because it requires open and honest discussion and the issues at hand are worth looking into, I say that it is necessary that supporters from MyBO and supporters from C4L, as well as supporters from other sites have an open dialogue about this before we become too polarized!
Agree or disagree, but this is my opinion based on my observations on the video links.
Thank you for hearing me out.
Sincerely,
EMK
"The society's deprivation relies/ not on our differences/ but the separation within."
--Linkin Park, "Frgt/10"
Why didn't they make MyBO an independent blog (see the part called, sarcastically, "Jetsons vs Flintstones") is beyond me, but the MSM playing their games, as usual, it's no wonder why there seems to be a communication issue. (Though I think some debate and analysis of the stimulus package is necessary, but many of you won't agree.)
Anyway, blogs and news reports are talking about Cheney mentioning that the "country's in danger" over and over again, but what's he up to really...HR 645? Is California's situation one of his ideas for getting that bill to pass?
Pay attention to these bills, including HR 645:
IRS Revisions: HR 161, HR 162, & HR 779
Stop the Congressional Pay Raise Act: HR 156
Federal Reserve Abolition Act: HR 111
Now this one's not really important, but this is one is fun to look at: HR 778.
These are just my thoughts, but look at the bills that I have up, except HR 778, which I put up for fun!
Perhaps you have been checking here for news from time to time, wondering what's happening, if anything at all. I have sworn myself to a sort of discretion, a virtual white-out of news on the Ball because it is a complex and delicate business to organize, but we are in the final hours of decision-making, and we are not all of the same mind.Wait. That's what happens in government, too.We all felt so monolithically committed in our support for Obama, even while we fought monumentally over whether he was right or wrong to vote for the FISA bill this year, or right or wrong not to hate Hillary Clinton forever, or to pay her campaign debt, that it was always rather surprising to find ourselves in désarroi.But that is what is starting to interest me the most, oddly; it's the process itself, how we can start with a shared dream, build momentum from one another's excitement and passion, discover our points of désaccord, experience let-down, frustration, and even anger as we encounter difficulties, set-backs and conflicts, and then -- out of respect for one another and the importance of our relationships and work -- sit down and think about how to proceed, even manage to at all because the people involved are as important to all of us as the success of the project itself.How many times in the MYBO listservs did the atmosphere become tense, did a voice or two speak out and remind us all of why we were there, and that we hold one another in esteem, did cooler heads prevail and we go on? It's the same. It's a process that can teach us all a lot that we can use in our lives, at home, at work, in political action. Speak your heart, as well as your mind, and do it from that place in yourself.The ball has been hard. Harder than we imagined when we started out. I suppose no one starts out imagining the obstacles, or no one would ever begin anything. Those of us working to put it all together have made many discoveries about people -- most heartening, some laughable. There are some flakes out there, and they are not all falling to the ground to blanket Chicago in snow for its white Christmas.We succeeded, and we failed. Or, perhaps better said, we have met with success and with failure. We have raised money that can be considered significant from among the individuals supporting our ball, and we nearly did from an individual, who chose in the end not to, without ever really making that choice final, or clear. Inference is sometimes good enough, or has to be.
There have been successes that were very important to me. Yesterday, a $50 contribution arrived in the PayPal account from someone who has nothing to gain from their contribution to help make the ball happen, other than perhaps to help make sure there would be a ball for which to purchase a ticket, and at a price we can call "grassroots". That person might have thought that their $50 was "nothing" compared to others' $2,000, $1,000 or $500 (non tax deductible) donations, but that isn't how it felt to me when I heard. I felt indebted to that person and grateful for their gesture of support, that is really a gesture of belief in the dream that I had, that the other organizers had, that the more than 600 people who contacted us to get themselves and their friends and family on our list for news of the ball, when the tickets would be available had, too.And the people who have joined us to offer their time and energy, their encouragement, their contacts, anything they had, and offered their thanks for our efforts. No matter what happens to this ball, I will carry forward their group of people like a community that will live inside me. I don't know how to visit that place, or see all those people, but knowing they are there is about enough. I know that one day there will be another project, another mission, and I will reach out to them, or they will reach out to me.Today, we are asking everyone on our lists to go to the website and take a survey. The answers to the three questions are "Yes, I still planning to purchase tickets to the Grassroots Ball for the people of Mybarackobama.com to meet and celebrate our victory in Washington, DC on January 19, and hurry up!", "No, thank you, I have already made other plans for the inauguration," and "No. I just can't get to Washington, after all." Please have each person in your party register and take the survey so we can get an accurate number.We need to know if 700 people sure will purchase tickets so that we can make the deposit on the space in downtown Washington with confidence. It can hold up to 1,500, and we have the option to grow the event to that capacity if ticket sales are strong.We have become timid about committing our sponsor's money in an event that might have lost its momentum without our knowing it, especially in such uncertain times. Asking you is our best way to know if your silence has been your polite and remarkable patience, or proof of your loss of interest.Like Barack said to us throughout the campaign, more and more frequently as the numbers coming to see him grew beyond anyone's wildest imagings, this ball was never about we, the organizers, it's about you, and it's for you if you want it. If you don't, that's fine. Personally, I can accept hearing that, but I can't as easily accept ending it all because we are worried the time and the opportunity are already behind us without having asked you if they are.We shall see what happens today, and in the next hours, and then we will know.For those wondering why nothing has been happening on the website, we decided spontaneously to communicate via our email lists rather than continue to promote a ball there that was at risk of not happening owing to fund-raising disappointments and their impact on the ticket prices that we could offer.As it stands, they would be a minimum of $175, possibly closer to $200, and we would try to offer a percentage of the total tickets available at the $100 level for those whose means are limited. As we had always intended with our "Joe-the-Plumber" Ticket Plan, we would ask everyone to stop and think before purchasing and ask themselves if they really needed that $100 ticket, or if they could leave it for someone who does, each according to his conscience, and the fiscal philosophy Barack Obama laid out to Sam Wurtzenbacher in Ohio.Thank you, everyone.http://www.grassrootsballdc2009.com....
My.BarackObama.com Bloggers will Converge on Washington DC during the Inaugural Celebration.
Come celebrate the Obama-Biden victory with MYBO and learn how you as an Obama blogger can help in the future of the administration. Please read more on the Obama Blog Fest.
RSVP: Obama Blog Fest
19 Jan 2009 - Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
Obama Blog Fest Location -
Murphy's Grand Irish Pub713 King StreetAlexandria Virginia
Registration begins at 11:30 am
Hello MYBO People,
The very first Grassroots Inaugural Ball 2009 -- originating right here in MYBO -- has a challenge for 40 people in our network of campaign volunteers.
We are trying to secure a venue in Washington that is convenient, on the Metro with space for more than 1000 people, and we are trying to do this for what is regarded as the inauguration that will be the most widely attended in our nation's history. Everybody wants to be there to witness this historic event and celebrate, and maybe nobody more so than those of us here on the MYBO listservs. Obama's Internet Army soldiers.
It's really, really hard to get space in Washington right now, and MYBO has done it. Almost.
So, The Challenge.
We are on the verge of signing a contract for a venue, and to do it we need 40 people to kick in $1,000 so that we can be ready with our check for the down payment before someone else beats us to it.
Your underwriting of the down payment not only assures us the space to hold our very own Grassroots Inaugural Ball 2009, it will cover $40,000 of our total budget. Think of yourselves as part of Barack's tax plan. That top 5% that will help to reduce ticket prices and make our ball more affordable for everyone--most especially for the 95% of MYBO who need a break after all the donating to the campaign!
What else will you get? You will receive:
What else, you ask?
The undying thanks and devotion of everyone who wants this ball to happen. You can also choose one of our sponsor gifts, once we figure out what they will be.
We need this as quickly as possible. Don't think it over. Reply right away to Russell Miller, our treasurer, at Russell@grassrootsballdc2009, and we go to contract to have a ball!
You don't have $1,000? That's okay.
If you have $500 to help us underwrite the ball, we can guarantee you:
And If you don't have five hundred dollars to get the ball rolling, don't worry. We'll be rolling out other sponsor levels, and tickets will be available shortly at a range of prices that make sense for every working American. (We revere the Constitution, but we're breaking the law of supply and demand.)
This ball is going to be for EVERYONE—or at least as many as the fire codes allow.
Thank you!
Jacqueline Ashton de Floris, Mary Ritter, Russell Miller
Members, Organizing Committee
PS: Money Where Our Mouth Is Department—All three of us are already in as sponsors. It's lonely out here, but we know it won't be for long. Join us!
PPS for shy folks: You can be anonymous sponsors if you like!
Your underwriting of the down payment not only assures us the space to hold our very own Grassroots Inaugural Ball 2009, it will cover $40,000 of our total budget. Think of yourselves as part of Barack's tax plan. That top 5% that will help to reduce ticket prices and make our ball more affordable for everyone--most especially for the 95% of MYBO who need a break after all the donating to the campaign! What else will you get?
You will receive:
The Electronic Republic is here, and it works. You betcha'!
Okay, this is what my MyBO page is showing for my PM's:
But when I try to go to it:
We are focused on getting out the vote in key battleground states,so some of the standard My.BarackObama.com features are currently unavailable."
And since I've logged in, this weird error message is showing up:
(pic source)Sea urchins are pretty to look at, but they are pesky critters on this website! Please put them back in the ocean where they belong!
Does anyone else have problems with your PMs?
The following is a note I wrote to a valued member of the MYBO listservs. I decided to extend it to many, many of you. While though it was written to someone very specific, what I said to her I could say to many others.
....
Dear fellow Obama supporters,
I should not attempt this before coffee. In fact, let me run and make a quick double shot espresso... that's better. I even feel better just having my breakfast next to me. Thank you. My grandmother would tell me I could, and maybe ought, to leave it there, but I would like to be more precise. I have appreciated your informative and interesting posts for many months now, and look forward to them, knowing there is going to be something good. I have also appreciated your manner of engaging with people through the listserv. I think a lot about the listservs and MYBO, and one thing that comes back to mind each time is that it is a sort of forum in our Republic, where people can come for information, to offer information and talk about it, as well as fill themselves back up on commitment and drive to go back out and do whatever they are doing for the campaign -- no lists required, each according to his means and his personality!
There are no rules about who can come to the forum. It's open. That's its beauty and its beast. There are flare-ups, people can get nasty. Oh! The number of listservs I have quit because there were horrible personalities dominating the "place", its discussions and its ideas.
Writers, Barack Fans in the Colbert Nation, and Environmentalists for Obama, to name but a few, have been a haven from that, despite a few run-ins between people, always on the ubiquitous issue of how much email is tolerable, with no way to control that! I personally felt better the day I decided to take things on the balance -- remain in the groups where the bulk of the email interested me -- and the tone was humorous, intelligent and considerate -- and leave the others. For the individual or two, well the groups can take care of them, now, can't they? You betcha' they can! Wink. Which gets me to my point. I have come to see the listservs as a place to learn to talk to many different people, without formulating snap judgements, or resisting the inclination to do that when it rears its head, and to see them as civic forums. Places to exercise civil dialogue and discourse. When I listened to Barack talk in the 30-minute bit the other night, it blew my mind how he has single-handedly taken back the framework and the ownership of decency in civic speech for all of us who have wished it, and then he hands it to us, through the listservs, through the campaign offices, through the various political organizations that existed before and have joined him, like MoveOn, and the new ones that have been created since the election season began, and through us to our neighbors, our families, our blog audiences -- humble as they may be -- our local political efforts. This is something I wish to defend because it allows us to do so much. The radical Talking Heads talking at the nation have been replaced by a nation of Heads Talking to one another. Go YouTube! Go Kos! Go Huff Post, and the Gawker, and the Wonkette, and each person's post and conversation and blog attempt. As part of this environment, I have made a promise to myself to try, even when I am tired and feeling a little deflated from the piqued emtotions of the pitch of the election battle (especially since the GOP did the most absurd thing it could do in nominating Sarah Palin for VP), to use the most precise and honest language I can to express the ideas that mean the most to me, no matter how limited in scale or intelligence or reach they might be. I have met some amazing people here, and around the MYBO listservs. They know who I think they are! They are often far more articulate, clear and insightful than I, and I learn from them. That's it, though, we are all learning from each other. Gratius tibi ago. Cura ut valeas, Jacqueline, from Mousseaux sur Seine
Hi everyone!I just posted a new entry on my blog.
It's an overview of some of the ways the Obama Campaign is utilizing technology to kick ass in this election.
Please follow this link if you want to check it out:
Why Obama is Kicking Ass Online…and Off…
Enjoy!
Last weekend, a group of "Mamas for Obama" used the my.barackobama.com grassroots organizing tool to set up a playdate with their kids at their neighborhood park.
From the beginning, this campaign has been about everyday people stepping up to make change happen in their own communities. As Barack said today in Londonberry, NH:
John McCain thinks this campaign is all about me – but the truth is, this campaign is about you. Your jobs. Your health care. Your retirement. Your children’s future. That’s what this election is about. That’s what I’m fighting for. Because I can take 3 more weeks of these attacks from John McCain, but the American people can’t take four more years of the same failed policies and the same divisive politics. That’s why I’m running for President of the United States.
Barack was raised by a single mother who put herself through school, followed her passion for helping others, and taught Barack that there are no barriers to success if you are willing to work for it.
His grandmother, who also helped to raise him, worked on a bomber assembly line during World War II. Michelle, Barack's wife, has been described as "the rock of the Obama family." She and Barack want their two daughters, Malia and Sasha, to grow up in an America where both work and family are part of the American Dream.
All of Barack's accomplishments have been made possible because of these women. And it is because of these women that Barack fights for women's rights. He fights for healthcare and education, support for working parents and an insistence on equality.
These are the issues that are important to the women who support Barack -- women who come from all types of backgrounds, and who are united by care for their families and their communities.
We can turn the page on the last eight years and create a better world for our children, but we need your help. By talking with your neighbors about Barack's plan for women and families you can help bring change to Minnesota and to America.
This election is too important to sit on the sidelines -- so get out there, and get started!
Check out the pictures from the "Mamas for Obama" playdate and share your photos with us:
We are in a dog and cat fight. To be sure. Sarah Palin has turned out to be the Savior of the McCain campaign. She gives him a fighting chance. And, whereas this ought to be a cake-walk, let us remember that there are those who would NEVER vote for Barack Obama: they are entrenched Hillery-ites or those who harbor irrational fears tied to race and religion.
Now, I'm not one much for spam; God knows, I suffer too much already.
But I took it upon myself to spam everyone at the colleges where I teach, about 5000 people. I took two paragraphs and told those who wished to see Barack Obama elected to create a MYBO and visit the BO website. I apologized if they received the email more than once, or if they had not yet seen the Light. :o)
So: Spam.
Yes, send an email to your lists and urge them to get involved to make sure that we win this election. They can do so by creating a MYBO and using the site. These things have a way of snowballing.
myBO may seem daunting at first - but it is an extremely powerful tool that has really revolutionized this campaign.
At Obama Collin County, we have taken time to create some easy to follow training videos that will get you started on way to being a myBO expert.
Check out these training videos at www.obamacollincounty.com/mybotraining
We will take you all the way from creating your account to finding friends, creating events, and writing blog posts like this one!
Did you know that if you have several email addresses, and you have a MyBO account, you will not be given credit for any of your donations, phone calls or anything else, unless you log into your MyBo account? I didn't and was saddened to see that I hadn't been given credit for the hundreds of phone calls and dollars that I've given to this campaign.
Of course, I'm not doing any of this for personal recognition, which is why I almost never actually logged into MyBO; only to attend or schedule an event. So, today, after scheduling an event, I had a little more time to actually explore what's in my profile, etc. That's when I found out that they are actually tracking our efforts and contributions.
So, my advice: if you are receiving campain emails to more than one email address, make sure you're only using the one that is the same one you signed up your MyBO account with, before you make any contributions (financial or otherwise).
Hope that's helpful information for someone! It certainly would have been for me 6 months ago. :-)
"My"
