Stonewall Democrats, the LGBT group (http://www.stonewalldemocrats.org/ ), is having its convention here, just preceding the Democratic one. I attended their awards dinner last night. Really inspiring! Their values and supporters are progressive and right in line with Democrats Abroad, in my view. We should work with them more closely.
The featured (and only non-LGBT) speaker was Kansas Governor Kathleen Sibelius, a fantastic Democratic governor in a really red state. She is an expert in “cross-over” Republicans, who made her election possible. Even her deputy governor was a former head of the Kansas Republican Party!
Kathleen, a committed progressive, highlights the values we have in common with most Republicans. That's how she wins in a Republican state. We should learn from her. She was named as a possible vice president for Obama, and is clearly is future presidential material.
Other excellent speakers included E. Denise Simmons, the lesbian, black mayor of Cambridge, Massachusetts; a gay congressman from a very straight suburban Denver district who poked holes in the notion that people even care if their reps are gay or lesbian,; and finally an amazing man named Keith Boykin – a great thinker, journalist and speaker. The head of the California Teachers Union was there, and the AFL-CIO also sent reps.
The MC was a wonderful transgender woman named Donna Rose, whose humor, grace and intelligence left no one unmoved. She made me realize I have always skipped over the transgender part of LGBT. We shouldn’t do that.
But best of all were the hundreds of members and supporters who attended. These people are fighting in the trenches, in hand-to-hand combat with the religious hate-mongers. Wonderful people, who are doing yeoman’s work to advance human rights. Well done!
Bob
Where in the world will you vote? See www.votefromabroad.org
Monday, August 25, 2008
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Underfunded Trains
Arrived in Denver yesterday, by train from San Francisco. The train ride was fantastic – The California Zephyr , 36 hours across the Rocky Mountains, the Sierra Nevadas, through vast empty prairies, across California, Nevada, Utah and Colorado. Incredible scenery! A must.
The underfunding of our train was painfully evident. The train itself is 30 years old, but still pressing on. Amtrak no longer has its own tracks for this route, but pays private freight train companies to use their – bumpy – tracks. We seldom exceeded 40 miles (about 65 km) per hour, which is fine for freight, and nice to see the sights but slow if you want to get somewhere. We waited hours while (unexpected) freight trains took precedence. We arrived 3 hours late. We were told this train is almost always off schedule, sometimes by as much as 10 hours. A real pity. The marvellous train staff did their best to make us comfortable.
Congress demands that Amtrak show a profit, but heavily subsidizes the roads. Why a double standard? Why must US transport policy force the population into the hands of the automobile, tire and oil industries? Are there no alternatives?
Best,
Bob
Where in the world will you vote? See www.votefromabroad.org
The underfunding of our train was painfully evident. The train itself is 30 years old, but still pressing on. Amtrak no longer has its own tracks for this route, but pays private freight train companies to use their – bumpy – tracks. We seldom exceeded 40 miles (about 65 km) per hour, which is fine for freight, and nice to see the sights but slow if you want to get somewhere. We waited hours while (unexpected) freight trains took precedence. We arrived 3 hours late. We were told this train is almost always off schedule, sometimes by as much as 10 hours. A real pity. The marvellous train staff did their best to make us comfortable.
Congress demands that Amtrak show a profit, but heavily subsidizes the roads. Why a double standard? Why must US transport policy force the population into the hands of the automobile, tire and oil industries? Are there no alternatives?
Best,
Bob
Where in the world will you vote? See www.votefromabroad.org
Friday, August 22, 2008
Joe Biden!
Barack Obama is naming Senator Joe Biden of Delaware as his running mate. Frankly, I am delighted.
If you take a look at Joe’s web-page on issues, http://www.joebiden.com/issues/, both the substance and the order in which he lists them make him my kind of guy. He starts with the Bush Administration’s misuse of 9/11 and its destructive politics of fear and division. He understands America’s loss of respect in the world, and sees why we need to get it back. Even when he talks of crime, he doesn’t forget the white-collar crimes of Enron and its progeny.
Born to a working class family in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Biden will connect with some working people in ways that elude Obama.
He also brings vast experience to the team. He was one of the youngest Senators ever, elected at the age of 29 in 1972. He is now Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee, former Chair of the Judiciary Committee. He has fought for the right causes for more than 30 years.
Religion? Catholic, of Irish descent. But he doesn’t wear it on his sleeve.
Family values: He commutes 1 ½ hours every day on the train from Wilmington to Washington, D.C., so he can be with his family in Delaware every day.
Age: At 65, he will add that touch of grey hair that reassures some people.
A thinker: Like Obama, he is a teacher of Constitutional Law. He understands the roots of our civil liberties in America.
Yes, this is good!
Well done, Barack!!
Bob
If you take a look at Joe’s web-page on issues, http://www.joebiden.com/issues/, both the substance and the order in which he lists them make him my kind of guy. He starts with the Bush Administration’s misuse of 9/11 and its destructive politics of fear and division. He understands America’s loss of respect in the world, and sees why we need to get it back. Even when he talks of crime, he doesn’t forget the white-collar crimes of Enron and its progeny.
Born to a working class family in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Biden will connect with some working people in ways that elude Obama.
He also brings vast experience to the team. He was one of the youngest Senators ever, elected at the age of 29 in 1972. He is now Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee, former Chair of the Judiciary Committee. He has fought for the right causes for more than 30 years.
Religion? Catholic, of Irish descent. But he doesn’t wear it on his sleeve.
Family values: He commutes 1 ½ hours every day on the train from Wilmington to Washington, D.C., so he can be with his family in Delaware every day.
Age: At 65, he will add that touch of grey hair that reassures some people.
A thinker: Like Obama, he is a teacher of Constitutional Law. He understands the roots of our civil liberties in America.
Yes, this is good!
Well done, Barack!!
Bob
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Vote From Abroad!
We arrived in America yesterday. It’s great to be here – seeing friends, having fun, talking fast. The best.
But it’s disturbing, as well. Unlike in Europe, where it seems inevitable that Obama will win, here in the US that’s not true at all. It’s a very close race. A Reuters poll today gave McCain a big advantage. In the crucial swing states, it’s neck-on-neck.
If even a small part of what we see here on TV is true, then America is distracted by the issue-of-the-moment (offshore drilling, fears about Russian expansion) and lightening evaluations of Obama’s and McCain’s responses. Should Obama have taken a vacation last week? That was the burning blip. No attention to the things we see from abroad: America’s loss of respect, the decline of the dollar, burgeoning debt, uncontrollable and expensive war, and so forth. The Bush damage that we must repair. And no sense that McCain is Bush redux.
This makes our get-out-the-vote work URGENTLY important. With some 6 million Americans abroad, who vote in every state, we really can make an important difference. Our perspective is valuable.
If you are an American who lives outside the US and have not yet arranged to vote, please do it NOW. Time is running short. If you don’t know how, go to www.votefromabroad.org
This is important.
Thanks,
Bob
But it’s disturbing, as well. Unlike in Europe, where it seems inevitable that Obama will win, here in the US that’s not true at all. It’s a very close race. A Reuters poll today gave McCain a big advantage. In the crucial swing states, it’s neck-on-neck.
If even a small part of what we see here on TV is true, then America is distracted by the issue-of-the-moment (offshore drilling, fears about Russian expansion) and lightening evaluations of Obama’s and McCain’s responses. Should Obama have taken a vacation last week? That was the burning blip. No attention to the things we see from abroad: America’s loss of respect, the decline of the dollar, burgeoning debt, uncontrollable and expensive war, and so forth. The Bush damage that we must repair. And no sense that McCain is Bush redux.
This makes our get-out-the-vote work URGENTLY important. With some 6 million Americans abroad, who vote in every state, we really can make an important difference. Our perspective is valuable.
If you are an American who lives outside the US and have not yet arranged to vote, please do it NOW. Time is running short. If you don’t know how, go to www.votefromabroad.org
This is important.
Thanks,
Bob
Monday, August 18, 2008
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
