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Friday, June 30
Iowa Blog Roundup and District Heads Ups
by
Sam Garchik
on Fri 30 Jun 2006 12:53 PM CDT
 Iowa Blog Roundup and District Happenings
By Sam Garchik and Other Folks
Denise O'Brien is having a party tonight! The potluck is in Atlantic, Iowa:
Please bring a covered dish, your own table service, drinks and lawn chairs and enjoy an evening of live music and fun! Meat will be provided. Camping on the farm will be available for those of you coming from out of town.
Harris/O'Brien Farm
59624 Chicago Rd.
Atlantic, IA
Friday June 30, 2006
6-10pm
|
DIRECTIONS TO THE FARM:
If you're coming on I-80 from the East or the West take exit 54. Go 1 1/2 miles south of the interstate and turn left on Chicago Rd. We are the first house on the left.
If you're coming from Atlantic take highway 173 (the Elk Horn Road) 3 1/2 miles north to Chicago Rd. Turn right and we are the first house on the left. |
Denise also got the EMILY's List endorsement. Information about Denise will be up on their web page soon. You can help her in the meantime by giving her a good car: The O'Brien Campaign for Secretary of Agriculture is looking for a fuel efficient vehicle to drive around Iowa for the next 4 months. Please get in touch with us if you are interested in donating a vehicle to the campaign.
Ed Fallon's not gone yet. He sent out an interesting email. I want to print this in its entirety. I read this on my Feedblitz email, but it came to me from Gavin's Journal:
Dear Friends,
While the recent primary election didn't achieve the victory we'd hoped for, it has had significant political impact statewide. Here's an exchange among Kay Henderson, David Yepsen, Jeneane Beck, Mike Glover and Todd Dorman during the most recent edition of Iowa Press. This should give all of us encouragement to keep building our network of reform-minded Iowans.
One thing you can do is send this e-mail to your own lists, and recommend that others sign up for my weekly electronic updates. And be sure to share with them my promise never to inundate recipients with e-mail or sell my e-mail list. That's a promise I've kept for years, and one I continue to stand by. Thanks!
Ed Fallon
Excerpts from Iowa Press, June 23, 2006
Henderson: "Out of this race, I think I see that there is a potential in Iowa Democratic politics for a populist to be successful. Ed Fallon did incredibly well in that election. He had 38,000 people who turned out. And in a low turnout election, he would have been even more competitive. And I think you can argue that his people would have gone to the polls regardless of the type of election year it was. So I think that what it tells us is that Iowa is sort of right for a candidate, like a Paul Wellstone or maybe the former governor of Minnesota who was a wrestler, that if someone crafts a message in such a way, I think a candidate of that ilk could be successful."
Yepsen: "Jeneane, what about Ed Fallon? What do you think he did right? What did he do wrong? "
Beck: "Well, I think that his message -- I think the CIETC scandal would help an Ed Fallon because he doesn't take PAC money and he -- the time was right for him to look at the scandals that we've had in Washington with the corporate lobbyists and the CIETC scandal here in Iowa. For a candidate like that to come forward and say, 'You know, what, I don't play that game. I'm not influenced by money' -- and that's what he did well across the state and in debates in talking about that. To me that was his best argument."
Yepsen: "Mike, is the reason he did so well that the Democratic left is so very angry just about everything and Fallon became sort of the vessel for that anger?"
Glover: "That's part of it. That's part of it. But one of the things that went into Ed Fallon's relatively strong showing, 26 percent of the vote, was Ed Fallon grew as a candidate throughout the course of that campaign. And that's one of the things that -- one of the great challenges we face is to measure a candidate who is going to grow into the job. As he was in the race for governor, Fallon grew. He got more thoughtful. He got more focused. He got more -- you get better as a candidate. And as a result, he was able to attract that Democratic left that's alienated and angry. He also was able to attract a group of disaffected Republicans who are unhappy with that sort of rightward drift of the Republican Party and looking for somebody to voice their message. He actually can be a key figure in this fall election because the voters who turned out for Ed Fallon are voters that have to show up if Chet Culver is to have a chance for winning this election in the fall. Ed Fallon will be a very important person for Chet Culver come the fall election. And it will be interesting to see how he fits into that whole campaign." [emphasis mine]
Henderson: "One other point about Ed Fallon. I think when he was on the dais with Culver and Blouin at his side in debate situations, he came off looking pretty good because he didn't have consultants who said, 'In answer to this question, you give this answer.' I mean he looked normal. He looked human. There was a question; he actually answered it. So I think he came off in those settings where people were measuring the candidates against one another, I think he came off rather well."
Dorman: "There's a hunger among voters for candidates that seem genuine, and he fit that bill. Like Kay said, a lot of times the other candidates would look, you know, preprogrammed, kind of robotic. And he didn't look that way. He looked like he was answering questions honestly, and I think that built a lot of appeal to him."
And yes, I do read the JCR blog. They pointed me to this article about a new, scary group in Iowa. This is the group that dumped three Republican incumbents this spring. Beware! You may be able to fight them off with facts from Nussle and Flow. It's hard for a pimp out there, aint it, Jimmy?
District 1
Alta Price says:
I found this at DailyKos. It is long, but well worth reading, especially with the upcoming elections. The diarist discusses tactics used by the Republicans, and why the Democrats have trouble countering them. Running against Bush is not enough. Just this discussion is worth the read.
I really like the discussion on Republican "ideology". The basic idea is the conservatives have spent 40 years and millions (billions?) of dollars promoting their ideology of "government is bad" and we need "less government". This is nonsense, of course, but is accepted unthinkingly by the people. We need our own ideology to counter their ideology (the diarist also explains what an ideology is, and why we want to be ideologues!) http://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/6/28/22312/3713
If you click on the links towards the end, you get more information about the ideology this diarist suggests, which is "cheap labor conservatives", as opposed to "big government liberals". I think it is pretty good, actually.
Alta also recommends the July Linkup and Drinking Liberally in the QCA. You can email her at altaprice@yahoo.com
District 2
Dave Loebsack keeps working the phones. Two more major fundraisers were announced for this week: one with John Edwards (July 7, Cedar Rapids), and one with Evan Bayh (July 8, Iowa City).
Speaking of events this week, the Draft Gore in 08 movement (email me for my take on how this could turn into a victory ala Nixon in 1968) is hitting its stride. Martha Smithback writes:
Draft Gore 2008.org will have its national kickoff event in Iowa City July 1st. The theme is "If we build it, He will run!" Everyone is invited to this family friendly BYO picnic event at City Park From 3:00 p.m. - dark.
Covered sites (#2 & #3 on map here) have been reserved. They're next to the pool, so bring your suit. Plan to attend and help to plan! Go to DG08 to offer suggestions or order a picnic basket (includes: ticket to AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH, T-shirt, and supper for $30.) The park is about a half mile from the theater.
And if your looking to help the state party, you can canvass for the IDP!
The Iowa Democratic Party is accepting applications for the position of Canvasser in Iowa City. The Canvasser job description includes the following staff functions and is a temporary full-time position from June 1 – August 18.
Contacting registered voters by canvassing door-to-door in assigned regions of Iowa
Making phone calls to registered voters
Recruiting volunteers in assigned counties
Assisting in campaign activities as assigned
Application Requirements
Strong verbal, written and interpersonal communication skills required
Computer skills required
Extensive travel within Iowa is required
U.S. citizenship desirable
Active voting status desirable
Reliable transportation required
The Iowa Democratic Party is committed to diversity among its staff, and recognizes that its continued success requires the highest commitment to obtaining and retaining a diverse staff that provides the best quality services to supporters and constituents. The Iowa Democratic Party is an equal opportunity employer.
For more information or to apply contact the Iowa Democratic Party at (319) 337-2405 and ask for Chris Bowen, Regional Field Director.
District 3
Christina Butts sent me a link to the funniest Bumper Sticker I've ever seen. Meanwhile, Mr. Lamberti, if you need 6 debates to explain on federal issues, you should probably stay away from government.
District 5
http://www.kingwatch.org/
This explains itself. I also updated our blog links on the right side of the page. Check those out also.
Thursday, June 29
Scientists OK Gore's Move for Accuracy
by
Caroline Vernon
on Thu 29 Jun 2006 03:57 PM CDT
 Scientists OK Gore's movie for accuracy
By SETH BORENSTEIN, AP Science Writer
I'm sure many of you may have seen, Al Gore was on the Daily Show last night. When Jon Stewart asked him if he plans to run for President again, Gore said, "No way, this time I'm running a campaign for a cause." Right on Al!
Gore's movie, An Inconvenient Truth, is opening in theaters across Iowa this Saturday, July 1st. Progressive Action for the Common Good is organizing a group showing of the movie at the Great Escape 14 in Moline, located at 4100 38th St (just off John Deere Rd). We will be attending the 5:05pm showing (last matinee) but will be gathering in front of the theater at 4:45pm. If you live in the QC, please join us! Wear a blue shirt for solidarity and easy indentification; I will be holding a Progressive Action sign. After the movie, we will be gathering at Panera Bread for coffee and conversation.
Hope to see many of you there!
Caroline Vernon
Scientists OK Gore's movie for accuracy
By SETH BORENSTEIN, AP Science Writer
WASHINGTON - The nation's top climate scientists are giving "An
Inconvenient Truth," Al Gore's documentary on global warming, five
stars for accuracy.
The former vice president's movie — replete with the prospect of a
flooded New York City, an inundated Florida, more and nastier
hurricanes, worsening droughts, retreating glaciers and disappearing
ice sheets — mostly got the science right, said all 19 climate
scientists who had seen the movie or read the book and answered
questions from The Associated Press.
The AP contacted more than 100 top climate researchers by e-mail and
phone for their opinion. Among those contacted were vocal skeptics
of climate change theory. Most scientists had not seen the movie,
which is in limited release, or read the book.
But those who have seen it had the same general impression: Gore
conveyed the science correctly; the world is getting hotter and it
is a manmade catastrophe-in-the-making caused by the burning of
fossil fuels.
"Excellent," said William Schlesinger, dean of the Nicholas School
of Environment and Earth Sciences at Duke University. "He got all
the important material and got it right."
Robert Corell, chairman of the worldwide Arctic Climate Impact
Assessment group of scientists, read the book and saw Gore give the
slideshow presentation that is woven throughout the documentary.
"I sat there and I'm amazed at how thorough and accurate," Corell
said. "After the presentation I said, `Al, I'm absolutely blown
away. There's a lot of details you could get wrong.' ... I could
find no error."
Gore, in an interview with the AP, said he wasn't surprised "because
I took a lot of care to try to make sure the science was right."
The tiny errors scientists found weren't a big deal, "far, far fewer
and less significant than the shortcoming in speeches by the typical
politician explaining an issue," said Michael MacCracken, who used
to be in charge of the nation's global warming effects program and
is now chief scientist at the Climate Institute in Washington.
One concern was about the connection between hurricanes and global
warming. That is a subject of a heated debate in the science
community. Gore cited five recent scientific studies to support his
view.
"I thought the use of imagery from Hurricane Katrina was
inappropriate and unnecessary in this regard, as there are plenty of
disturbing impacts associated with global warming for which there is
much greater scientific consensus," said Brian Soden, a University
of Miami professor of meteorology and oceanography.
Some scientists said Gore confused his ice sheets when he said the
effect of the Clean Air Act is noticeable in the Antarctic ice core;
it is the Greenland ice core. Others thought Gore oversimplified the
causal-link between the key greenhouse gas carbon dioxide and rising
temperatures.
While some nonscientists could be depressed by the dire disaster-
laden warmer world scenario that Gore laid out, one top researcher
thought it was too optimistic. Tom Wigley, senior scientist at the
National Center for Atmospheric Research, thought the former vice
president sugarcoated the problem by saying that with already-
available technologies and changes in habit — such as changing light
bulbs — the world could help slow or stop global warming.
While more than 1 million people have seen the movie since it opened
in May, that does not include Washington's top science decision
makers. President Bush said he won't see it. The heads of the
Environmental Protection Agency and NASA haven't seen it, and the
president's science adviser said the movie is on his to-see list.
"They are quite literally afraid to know the truth," Gore
said. "Because if you accept the truth of what the scientific
community is saying, it gives you a moral imperative to start to
rein in the 70 million tons of global warming pollution that human
civilization is putting into the atmosphere every day."
As far as the movie's entertainment value, Scripps Institution
geosciences professor Jeff Severinghaus summed it up: "My wife fell
asleep. Of course, I was on the edge of my chair."
___
On the Net: http://www.climatecrisis.net
The Carnival Mobile is Coming to Iowa!
by
Sam Garchik
on Thu 29 Jun 2006 11:05 AM CDT
|
The Carnival Mobile is Coming to Iowa!
By Iowans for Sensible Priorities |
|
Come Join the Carnival - Priorities Style!
Join fellow Iowans for Sensible Priorities members in welcoming the CarnyMobile to Iowa. The CarnyMobile, designed by Ben from Ben and Jerry's shows where you tax dollars go in a fun and interactive form by using carnival games.
It's just in time for some serious summer fun! The CarnyMobile has two games that you will not want to miss! The HiStriker is the classic "test your strength" booth where you can slam the mallet down to ring the bell. The wheel of fortune, allows players to bet on where the wheel will stop, only our version the wheel portrays the federal budget -- which means the odds of it stopping on education or health care is very small.
From August 1st to October 31st, learn about the Sensible Priorities campaign, receive free Priorities! Pens, and of course enjoy the fun of carnival games. |
|
Want the Carnival Mobile
in Your Town?
E-mail Jessica or (515)244-1207 |
|
You Tell Us Where You Want It... We'll Bring It! |
|
The CarnyMobile is available for presentations with groups, festivals,concerts, community events... the possibilities are endless.
If you know people who want, or should see the CarnyMobile, let us know and we'll bring it! Of course, all games are free to play and everyone wins a prize!
Currently scheduling tour dates: August 1st through October 31st.
To book the CarnyMobile contact Jessica at (515) 244-1207 or email
Yours in summer fun!
Jessica Maass, Field Organizer |
|
We look forward to seeing you on
our trip around Iowa! |
| Iowans for Sensible Priorities - In the News |
Visit the web address below to tell your friends about this. Tell-a-friend!
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Iowans For Sensible Priorities is a 501(c)3 organization in Iowa dedicated to educating the public about the inequities of our current federal budget. We aim to redirect 15% of the Pentagon’s discretionary budget towards education, health care, job training, starting to repay the national debt, and foreign aid. This 15% cut, or $60 billion dollars, on obsolete Cold War era weapons systems and the further proliferation of nuclear weapons in no way impacts homeland security or our defense. We have the money; let’s spend it on sensible priorities!
Iowans for Sensible Priorities
www.sensibleiowans.org
1620 Pleasant Street #218
Des Moines, Iowa 50314
(515) 244-1207
infoisp@sensibleiowans.org
Saturday, June 24
Culver-Judge in the Second District
by
Sam Garchik
on Sat 24 Jun 2006 08:19 AM CDT
Saturday Events in the Second District
By Sam Garchik
Patty is coming to the Johnson County Dems HQ Opening (1 - 3 PM 353 East College Street, Iowa City), while Chet is headed to CR where he will be at the Linn County Dems HQ (11:45 AM, 601 2nd Avenue SE).
Also, if your in Cedar Rapids today, you should check this out:
The "Eyes Wide Open" National Guard memorial focuses on the cost of the Iraq war to our citizen soldiers, to Iraqi civilians, and to our nation. The exhibit consists of hundreds of combat boots and civilian shoes, each bearing the name of a National Guard member or an Iraqi man, woman, or child who has died in the conflict.
Women For Peace Iowa is helping with this event, which will be held in downtown Cedar Rapids on the busiest day of the Freedom Festival. The location is directly across from the barbecue contest, and should get a lot of foot traffic.
When: Saturday, June 24
When: 9am - 7pm Where: 8th Avenue and 1st Street SE, Cedar Rapids
Thursday, June 22
Iowa Blog Roundup (and other things also)
by
Sam Garchik
on Thu 22 Jun 2006 03:57 PM CDT
Iowa Blog Roundup (and other things also)
By Sam Garchik
It's been a very hectic week with the convention and all, but I wanted to bring you up to speed on a bunch of different issues and happenings.
Courtesy of The Left Coast of Iowa Blog, I posted Joyce Schulte's response to King's comments on Thomas. I encourage you all to read what she said, as she speaks for all of us.
Also, Chris at Political Forecast is doing a great job of keeping tabs on what's going on in this state. He pointed two things out to me that I want to pass on to you. The Eminem Domain issue keeps popping up, and it has the gov in a bind.
Wait, sorry. That's State 29.
Seriously, Chris linked to this article in City Pages which tries to sum up all the arguments made by which rich and famous Iowans about eminent domain. I still can't figure out why the Johnson County state reps voted against the bill, which isn't to say I am accusing them of something. It's just to say I'm looking to find out why. Chris also covered the Iowans for Sensible Priorities bloggers press conference. They had a good showing at the state convention as well, so look for them to get more traction in Iowa.
On the Trail of the Contender
Villsack was written up in the American Prospect, who teases the interview here. I got to hear the old guv talk 3 times in one day at the convention. I don't want to comment any further, and I still don't know if I am going to caucus for him, but $600,000 for Culver buys him some good will in this state.
We are starting to get a lot of event notices. It's hard to keep them all straight, and this is a statewide blog, so I'll mention these, and then encourage you all to check out our calendar:
District 1
Bill Gluba endorsed Braley, saying, "the fundamental principles and positions we share are more numerous than the few issues on which we disagree." Also, DFQC is planning an Iraq War Forum on Tuesday, June 27. You can join the group and RSVP at DFA-Link.
District 2
The Johnson County Democrats will have their grand opening this Saturday in Iowa City. Ag. Secretary Judge will be there representing the Culver-Judge ticket. That's at 535 E. College, June 24, from 1 - 3 PM.
Sunday, June 25th, from 1 - 3 PM, Dave Loebsack is having a yard sign party across the district. They are serving food, and you can find one near you:
Iowa City - City Park
Burlington - Perkins Park
Ottumwa - Central Park (between City Hall and the Library)
Cedar Rapids - Ellis Park - Harborview Pavilion
Dave Bradley got us Air America, and I'm loving every second of it. Dave reminds us that we should "follow up with KXIC and ClearChannel with positive notes on the addition of AirAmerica programming. And remember since this is a business decision for ClearChannel, they need to know that we will support advertisers of Air America programming. We will get a list of advertisers out after a couple of weeks. And it would really help to stop by the business and say "Thanks" directly to them. I am sure that Right Wingers will be vocal in their opposition. Don't let them intimidate advertisers." You can email the folks at KXIC (I used to work there, in the interest of full disclosure, but didn't know any of these folks):
Contact:
joenugent@clearchannel.com (KXIC program manager)
cc to: johnlaton@clearchannel.com (regional GM)
telephone: 319-354-9500 (KXIC)
District 3
Time to get your walking shoes on. It's Polk County Fourth of July parade time!
Call Tamyra at 515-285-1800 to join a parade and get details*
Grimes Funtastic days - June 24th - 10 AM
Bondurant - June 27th - 6:00 PM
Urbandale - July 4th - 10:00 AM
West Des Moines - July 3rd - 6:30 PM
Windsor Heights - July 4th - 1:00 PM
Ankeny Summerfest - July 8th - 10:00 AM
District 4
Thanks to Christina of the Yahoo Group Democracy for Iowa, we now know of a big human rights showdown in Fort Dodge. If you live in Fort Dodge, make sure you let the council know that it should stand up to the right wing.
District 5
Denise O'Brien is celebrating her victory in Atlantic on Friday, June 30, from 6 - 10 PM. They will have music.
In-State, Out of State, and Out of Sight!
Did you wish you could go to Florida and recount hanging chads? Black Box Voting is giving you the chance to register for the National Hand County Registry. Have good eyes, will travel! Or not, as hand counts may come to an election near you.
Selden Spencer is in the running as a Map Changer on Warner's PAC, and Culver is up for some help from Feingold's PPF.
Fighting Bob Fest is in Baraboo this September. Mary Bichell is looking for folks to go with her to this event, which is 1 1/2 hours from Dubuque. Here's the lineup so far includes Amy Goodman, Jim Hightower, and Doris “Granny D” Haddock Their theme is perfect for the moment: “Hold Them Accountable”. They are also looking forward to the return of Congresswomen Tammy Baldwin and Gwen Moore, Senator Russ Feingold, the Progressive magazine’s Matthew Rothschild, the People’s Legislature, and the largest enthusiastic crowd of progressives in the Midwest insisting that those who seem oblivious to political corruption be held accountable!"
Finally, Lewis Lapham is coming to Des Moines for the ICCI State Convention. He's the long-time editor at Harper's Magazine, and his trip is sponsored by ICCI. He'll be at the Hotel Fort Des Moines on Friday, July 14 at 8:00 PM. He will also sign copies of his book, Gag Order: on the Suppression of Dissent and the Stifling of Democracy. Tix are $15 in advance, $20 at the door. You can call ICCI at 515-282-0484 for more info.
Tuesday, June 20
DFA-Link: An Underutilized Tool; Searching for a Group
by
Sam Garchik
on Tue 20 Jun 2006 07:59 AM CDT
 DFA-Link: An Underutilized Tool
(Searching for a Group)
By Alta Price
Today I’m going to tell you how to sign up for Democracy for Iowa (DFIA) at DFA-Link. I recommend joining DFIA to anyone interested in the Progressive Caucus, whether or not you want to join Democracy for America. You can also follow these directions to learn how to find DFA-Link groups without actually signing up for DFIA.
If you just want to sign up quick, without taking the time to learn how to use DFA-Link, go here.
Now that you have a DFA-Link account (see previous blog post – although I think it’s self-explanatory if you go to blogforamerica.com and click on DFA-Link and follow the directions), you are ready to find a group to join. On the first screen that pops up after you sign in, you will see a box labeled Quick Search. I’d ignore that. Instead, I use the little gray box at the top right. The gray box is exactly the same as the colorful tabs at the top. I just like the box. Anyway, click on Groups in the box or at the top.
The next screen has button for Search Groups at the top. Click on that. Under Basic Group Search, put in your zip code and click for groups within 25 miles. You can adjust the miles up to 100. I think DFIA will pop up because it is a statewide group. You will also see any other groups within the radius you have chosen. You can also use the Advanced Group Search button and put Iowa in as the state and find all of the DFA-Link groups in the state.
Once you find DFIA, click on View Group in the box on the right. You can read about DFIA, see the list of organizers, see a list of all group members, read the DFIA blog (not to be confused with Blog for Iowa!), and check out upcoming events. You can click on a group member’s name to reach a screen where you can send that person a message. Look around!
If you like what you see, click on the Join Group button at the top of the page. Welcome to Democracy for Iowa!
Alta Price altaprice@yahoo.com
Wednesday, June 14
DFA-Link: An Underutilized Tool (Setting up an Account)
by
Sam Garchik
on Wed 14 Jun 2006 05:58 PM CDT
DFA-Link: An Underutilized Tool (Setting up an Account)
By Alta Price
Disclaimer – I don’t consider myself an expert in DFA-Link use. I am, however, starting to understand how useful it could be for online organizing since using it for the DFA Training Academy.
To make full use of DFA-Link, you need to create an account. There is a box on this page waaaayyyy down the right side with a link to Blog for America, or blogforamerica.com. I have Blog for America as one of my set of home pages, but you can just click or type in blogforamerica.com. Once you get there, click on DFA-Link.
The next part, I’m not sure what will happen because I created my account a long time ago. But you will have to give at least a valid email address and password, and quite possibly your name and address. You will be sharing this information with Democracy for America, and most likely get on their email list. However, they are very careful not to “burn” their list (translation – cause people to unsubscribe by sending too much mail) and I don’t think you will regret it. In fact, I use my “real” email address for DFA rather than the alternative “junk mail” address I use for most progressive groups. Also, I think DFA is a great organization and you should sign up anyway! (Just my $.02 worth.) When you log in you’ll need your email address and password. Keep your password handy, because you’ll have to sign in once each week for security purposes.
It took me the longest time to figure out what to do with DFA-Link once I was there. The basic idea: Use the search tool by entering your zip code and looking for groups, events, campaigns, or people. Once you find a group, event, or campaign that interests you, sign yourself up. Once you find a person, you can send them a message through DFA-Link without ever knowing their email address or sharing yours. We’ll go through the details of how to use each of these functions in subsequent tutorials!
DFA-Link: An Underutilized Tool
by
Sam Garchik
on Wed 14 Jun 2006 03:29 PM CDT
 Finding an Event
By Alta Price
I wanted to get this up ASAP to use for the Iowa Democratic Party State Convention this weekend in Des Moines. I have not been able to come up with a plan to get DFAers attending the convention and/or those who live in Des Moines together this weekend. Friday night we don’t want to conflict with the Hall of Fame Dinner. Some of us aren’t even coming down until Saturday morning (e.g., me). Saturday we don’t know how long the convention will run. What’s an organizer to do?
At someone’s brilliant suggestion (Sue? Sorry, can’t remember who!), we finally decided to share cell phone numbers and plan on the fly as events unfold. I set up two separate events at DFA-Link – Meet DFAers in Des Moines Friday and Meet DFAers in Des Moines Saturday.
If these links do not take you to the appropriate event pages, you can find them yourself now that you have a DFA-Link account (see previous blog post). Use the search tool and your zip code. If your zip code doesn’t do it, use this one – 50309 (zip code of Convention Center). Once you find the event, read the details (ignore the times and places – I had to put something in but these will change), and RSVP. Once you RSVP, the host can contact you through DFA-Link messaging (look for DFA-Link messages in your email inbox).
If you don’t want to go the DFA-Link route, but want to get together, just email me with your contact information and whether you are interested in Friday or Saturday or both. I will share your information with the Friday host (since I won’t be there on Friday).
We want to have a “formal” statewide Democracy for Iowa meeting sometime in September. But we’d also like to meet more informally at events like this. Maybe we can use DFA-Link more effectively to link up!
Alta Price altaprice@yahoo.com
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