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Tuesday, March 29
Protest Bush at Kirkwood in Cedar Rapids on Wednesday, March 30th
by
Linda Thieman
on Tue 29 Mar 2005 03:05 PM CST
 Protest Bush at Kirkwood in Cedar Rapids on Wednesday, March 30th
Junta
puppet George W. Bush is coming to speak at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids on Wednesday,
March 30, in Johnson Hall at 12:15 p.m. Loyal Americans who
believe in Social Security will be holding
a peaceful protest across from Johnson Hall. We will meet at the baseball diamond across from Johnson Hall at 10am. Please bring signs and lots of people!
Join us as we protest Bush's attack on America's retirement. This
protest includes the IDP, labor unions, the Hawkeye Labor Council, Linn
County Democrats, Kirkwood students and other groups. The
protest will be held at 66th Street and Kirkwood Blvd SE. Parking is
available on 66th St. and other side streets. Some signs will be
available.
However, if you'd like to ATTEND the event, tickets are available through Grassley's office in Cedar Rapids.
MEETING:
The puppet's "A Conversation on Strengthening Social Security" [read
DESTROYING it] is scheduled for 12:15 p.m. at Kirkwood Community
College.
Here are Grassley's office's coordinates in Cedar Rapids:
206 Federal Building
101 1st Street, S.E.
Cedar Rapids, IA 52401
(319) 363-6832
Fax: (319) 363-7179
According
to Alejandro Andreotti, the woman in Grassley's office said people can
just stop by and pick up a ticket. She also told him that they
distributed a number of them to Kiwanis and Rotary clubs throughout the
state.
Andreotti
writes: If you can go to the talk, get yourself a ticket. Don't
wear any donkeys on your shirt or other obvious signs of
progressivism. If you get in, don't scream a question. Be
respectful [even if you have to gag].
Be ready
with two questions: a softball (so as to appease the handlers), and a
real one. Try to make your story something the handlers might
pick up.
Grassley
came out [Sunday] voicing serious doubts about the privatization of
SS. If the tickets are actually going to Rotarians and Kiwanis,
Bush might not find such a receptive crowd in Iowa.
Thanks to Alejandro Andreotti for submitting the meeting info, and to JoyAnn and Trish Nelson for submitting the protest info.
Thursday, March 24
Cornell Prof Considers Run Against Leach
by
Linda Thieman
on Thu 24 Mar 2005 04:13 AM CST
 Cornell Prof Considers Run Against Leach
by Professor David Loebsack, Cornell College
This
seems like the appropriate time to begin to go at least semi-public
with my "exploration" of a run against Leach in '06. Many of you
know me as a professor of political science at Cornell College and a
long-time Democratic Party activist in Linn (and Johnson) county and
the second district.
Having
helped on numerous campaigns in the past, I think I am aware of the
tremendous challenge this would present. Jim Leach is a good man
who has voted with us on some issues. Indeed, I have had him in class
at Cornell! And he will never lack for funds for his re-election
campaign.
However,
he remains a Republican who, as Julie Thomas put it in 2002, at a
minimum serves as an enabler for the right-wing leadership in the
House. And, most recently, he voted for the House version of Bush
budget that would significantly scale back if not completely gut many
of the programs that are the only sources of support for the poor and
disadvantaged.
In
November of last year, shortly after his re-election, Leach voted to
increase the country's debt ceiling by nearly 800 billion dollars, thus
imposing a further birth tax on future generations of Americans.
It should be noted that in both cases, 10 or so Republicans in the House had the courage to vote no, but not Jim Leach.
Of
course, I could go on and on but at this point, I invite you to be in
touch with me if you have questions about what I stand for, who I am,
etc. Also, I am open to all advice and support. If you
think this is a crazy idea, please let me know. If you think you
would support me as a volunteer or financially, please let me
know. If you think there are others who are more qualified than I
and who deserve our unified support, please let me know. I do not plan
to do this if I don't believe the necessary support (perhaps most
critically the necessary financial support) will be forthcoming.
In the meantime, my contact information is below.
Thanks and take care.
David Loebsack
Mt. Vernon
Home e-mail: dloebsack@mchsi.com
Home phone: (319) 895-8418
Office phone: (319) 895-4300
Cell phone: (319) 721-5324
 Will David Loebsack run against Leach?
The discussion will air in Iowa City on Friday, March 25, at 4pm and Saturday, March 26, at 7pm on Public Access Television.
Professor
of Political Science at Cornell College and long-time Democratic party
activist in Linn and Johnson counties, David Loebsack will discuss
foreign policy on Clara Oleson's West Branch cable access talk program.
Critique his discussion and contact him if you have constructive criticism as he explores a campaign against Leach.
Contact: dloebsack@mchsi.com
Sunday, March 20
This Week’s Town Meetings with Congressman Leach Representing the Second District of Iowa
by
Trish Nelson
on Sun 20 Mar 2005 08:36 AM CST
 This Week’s Town Meetings with Congressman Leach Representing the Second District of Iowa
“Social
Security is the most important safety net program ever developed.
Whatever approach is adopted, the goal must be fairness and
equity. Maintenance of commitments to current retirees must be
ironclad.” [Read: Future retirees are going to get screwed].
- Congressman Jim Leach Newsletter, Spring 2005
Share your comments and concerns with Rep. Leach this week at a community meeting near you, where these and other issues may be raised.
Monday, March 21
Linn County
9:00 am – 10:30 am
Afriican-American Historical Museum
Celebration Hall
55 12th Avenue SE, Cedar Rapids
Johnson County
12:00 pm – 1:30 pm
Iowa City Public Library
Meeting Room B
123 South Linn Street, Iowa City
Washington County
4:30 pm – 6:00 pm
Washington City Hall
215 East Washington, Washington
Tuesday, March 22
Cedar County
9:00 am – 10:30 am
Herbert Hoover Museum
Conference Room
210 Parkside Drive
West Branch
Louisa County
12:00 pm – 1:30 pm
Louisa County Courthouse
117 South Main
Wapello
Muscatine County
4:30 pm – 6:00 pm
Muscatine Community College
Large Conference Room, Larson Hall
152 Colorado street
Muscatine
Wednesday, March 23
Henry County
9:00 am – 10:30 am
New London Library
103 East Main Street
New London
Des Moines County
12:00 pm – 1:30 pm
Southeastern Community College
West Burlington Campus, Room 406
1500 West Agency Road
West Burlington
Lee County
4:30 pm – 6:00 pm
West Point Public Library
317 5th Street
West Point
Thursday, March 24
Jefferson County
9:00 am – 10:30 am
Fairfield Public Library
104 West Adams
Fairfield
Van Buren County
12:00 pm – 1:30 pm
Village Cup and Cakes
202 Main Street
Keosauqua
Wapello County
4:30 pm – 6:00 pm
Indian Hills Community College
Bennett Student Center, Room 104
Ottumwa
Friday, March 25
Davis County
9:00 am – 10:30 am
Davis County Courthouse
100 Courthouse Square
Bloomfield
Appanoose County
12:00 pm – 1:30 pm
Centerville City Hall
Centerville
Wayne County
4:30 pm – 6:00 pm
Wayne County Courthouse
Basement Meeting Room
Corydon
Monday, March 14
This Week in the Iowa Legislature: Tipping Point for a Ravaged Earth
by
Linda Thieman
on Mon 14 Mar 2005 09:15 PM CST
 This Week in the Iowa Legislature: Tipping Point for a Ravaged Earth
By Eileen Dannemann, National Coalition of Organized Women
The Tipping Point
Tuesday, March 15th
Steps of the Des Moines State Capitol
10:00am sharp
In the Iowa legislature this week: Genetically Engineered Foods, Seeds, and Cloned Animals unlabeled at the consumer level.
The Biogate Conspiracy: It’s on the fast track.
The word
has come down from the highest government authority, sent through Iowa
Governor Tom Vilsack’s channels, that under no circumstances should
Iowa HF 202 (amended to HF 642) and SBS 1144 (now SF 259) be stopped.
Through this bill, activated in 22 other states, the US, via its
partnership with the Biotech Industry (Biopharmaceutical industrial complex), is finalizing their acreage conversion plan that seeks totalitarian control of production. This is the last hurrah in Iowa to safeguard organic and sustainable agricultural, family farmers and community integrity.
This bill is aimed to sabotage the initiative in Mendocino and Marin
counties in California to ban GMOs and will affect the outcome of bills
all over the nation. If the bill fails in Iowa, by our efforts we
will have affected positively the national movement to save the
integrity of sustainable agriculture and consumer's right to choose.
Iowa is the Tipping Point.
Seven
years have gone by and CODEX, the lawmaking body of the World Trade
Organization (WTO), has succeeded in keeping the issue of labeling off
the calendar. This has enabled Monsanto and friends to covertly convert
185,000,000 acres all over the world into GMO crops even in the face of
great opposition by the European Union. Mexico has now fallen against
its own wishes and the once pristine and diverse corn crops are contaminated.
Many,
and perhaps the majority, of representatives in both the Iowa house and
senate have their orders. But some are beginning to think that a
totalitarian government is not what our founding fathers had in mind.
Others are beginning to see a downright evil hand at work. Shocked by
the temerity of the biotech industry to name their sterilizing
technology the Terminator and the Exorcist,
a few representatives have chosen not to follow orders. Monsanto,
seeking to terminate the reproductive nature of Mother Nature Herself,
has made many downright angry and suspicious of the source of this
bill. It certainly seems that wheat is being separated from chaff when
the choice is either to facilitate the bio-tech story by sabotaging
God’s Law of Abundance through the Terminator and the Exorcist or to
stand up for sustainability, safeguarding the sacredness of the seeds.
Seeds are being genetically manipulated, privately owned and the
quality of a free abundant reproductive nature and availability is
being terminated for the express purpose of monetary gain, with no
consideration of the land or the people. And this is being speedily
processed by Governor Vilsack and perpetrated by our State government
this week.
Inside the Iowa Legislature
Due to
many brilliant efforts in the agricultural committee last week,
discussions are now taking place in caucus whether to obey orders from
the national and international hierarchy or to make considered
decisions for the welfare of the State of Iowa. In the taking
away of local control, the Iowa State Legislature is, in turn, losing
their sovereignty as well. By falling in lockstep with the governor and
senators like Chuck Grassley who, in turn, are being pre-compliant with
the World Trade Organization, Iowa legislators see themselves as
significant players; important and connected.
But some
courageous legislators are trying to protect Iowa’s agricultural
portfolio. They are trying to preserve diversity in an irresponsible
system that has allowed Iowa to invest 90% of its soybean fields in
biotechnology, a technology that has already proven itself to be
dangerous.
The bill is being fast tracked through the Iowa house. The only place we can stop it is in the senate.
The key
leadership in the senate is Senator Kibbie, Senator Reilly and Senator
Fraise. Only an expression of outrage from their constituency
would provide a legitimate excuse for tabling this bill against blanket
orders to pass it.
We have
the opportunity, Tuesday, to take a stand, witnessed by all, to stand
up for Mother Nature. Every farmer and consumer within earshot of this
message is asked to show up on Tuesday, March 15th. Be on the steps of the State Capitol in Des Moines, a hundred strong; men, women and children at 10:00 AM. Your presence and prayers will make all the difference!
Contact your state senator here.
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