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Saturday, August 7
Meet Jeff Danielson, Democratic Candidate for Iowa Senate, District 10
by
Linda Thieman
on Sat 07 Aug 2004 04:05 PM CDT
Meet Jeff Danielson
Democratic Candidate
Iowa Senate, District 10
Firefighter Jeff Danielson (right)
Dear Blog for Iowa readers,
Greetings!
My name is Jeff Danielson and I’m running for the Iowa Senate District
10 seat. I was born and raised in the Cedar Valley, and I am
deeply committed to improving Iowa by investing in our schools,
fighting for high-paying jobs for working families and quality health
care for all.
I spent
six years serving in the Navy and returned home to raise my family in
the hardworking and honest traditions of Iowa. Since then I have
worked as a professional firefighter and dedicated my life to improving
my community through public service.
I want
to be a Senator because I want to change the tone in Des Moines.
We need good jobs, good schools and good government that works for
everyone. Yet, what we get is old tired arguments and missed
opportunities. You can change that by electing me to go to work
on your behalf. Name your concern, and there is a better choice
than the current legislative leadership offers in Des Moines.
This is
a year for change in Iowa and the nation. Democrats from all
walks of life are fired up this year and are coming out in force to
take our government back. The work of Governor Dean has been
especially important in giving people hope that they can make a
difference. I’ve met Gov. Dean personally and I like Gov.
Dean. Thanks to Governor Dean, Democrats found their voice and
will run competitive campaigns all across the country.
I thank
Democracy for Iowa for their endorsement. Together we WILL make
change in November. If you are interested in volunteering or
contributing to my campaign, or if you just have questions, visit my
website www.jeffdanielson.org or email me at info@jeffdanielson.org.
Jeff Danielson
Democratic Candidate
Iowa Senate District 10
western Black Hawk County
 Don't miss the Birthday Bash
for Jeff tomorrow, August 8th, from 3-5pm. He'll be 34!
Special guest Lt. Governor Sally Pederson will be there, too.
The Olde Broom Factory
125 West First St
Cedar Falls, IA 50613
To learn more about Jeff Danielson or to contribute to his campaign, go here. Don't forget to add a penny for DFIA!
Scott County Becomes Iowa Battleground
by
Linda Thieman
on Sat 07 Aug 2004 01:35 PM CDT
Scott County Becomes Iowa Battleground
A Message from the Iowa MoveOn PAC
Visits
by both John Kerry and George W. Bush to Davenport on the same day, at
the same time and only blocks apart from each other indicate that Scott
County is perhaps the most important battleground county in this year's
presidential elections. Scott County residents may cast the deciding
vote in determining our next president.
That is why we need YOU to be part of our campaign to mobilize and engage voters to ensure a Bush defeat in November.
Next
Tuesday evening, August 10th, I hope you can join us for a MoveOn PAC
Scott County for Change Community meeting. At this meeting, we'll
talk about the things we need to do to bring change to the White House
- and discuss how you can join forces with MoveOn and our new "Leave No
Voter Behind" program to mobilize progressive voters.
The
Community Meeting will be on Tuesday, August 10th, at 7 pm in the
Davenport Public Library located on 321 Main Street (on the corner of
4th and Main).
Please RSVP to me at raiyan@moveonpac.org if you plan on attending. If you can come early to help with set up, please indicate that as well.
In all
likelihood, the election will be decided by only a few votes.
With hundreds of us talking to voters in our neighborhoods about what's
at stake in this election, we CAN turnout enough extra votes to swing
the county. And, with Scott County at the heart of this year's
presidential battle, these votes could well prove decisive. So
come on Tuesday and find out how we can do it.
Remember
to bring your friends, neighbors, and co-workers. Together, we can take
the first steps to restore our sense of community and faith in
democracy.
See you Tuesday!
Sincerely,
Raiyan Syed, Iowa Field Organizer
MoveOn PAC
Another Peaceful Citizen Thrown Out of Bush Event in Iowa
by
Linda Thieman
on Sat 07 Aug 2004 08:45 AM CDT
Another Peaceful Citizen Thrown Out of Bush Event in Iowa
[The spelling convention “pResident” is that of Blog for Iowa and not that of the author of this story.]
Hi, my
name is Mike Van Hulle, 19, from Davenport, IA, and I would like to
raise an issue that I feel needs to be discussed. I will first
tell a story about the Bush rally that occurred in the Quad
Cities. I decided to attend the Bush rally because I wanted to
hear my pResident speak. I had no plans of protesting, I just
wanted to listen to him and hear him out for an entire speech. I
wanted to see if there was a difference between what I have seen
through sound bites and his public speaking. As I was walking
into the event, I saw someone from my former high school working the
event. I thought he knew me as being a very liberal-minded person
and I walked up to him and said in a joking manner, "I'm glad to see
another Assumption student supporting Bush." He thought I was
serious and said "Yeah!" and pumped his fist. I then explained,
"I'm sorry, I was just joking. I am actually a Kerry supporter."
(Actually, another joke as I am undecided in the election, though I am
against Bush. I just was trying to make a friendly joke with the
kid. Apparently, he didn't get it.) He then said angrily,
"I can get you kicked out for this." I said, no, you can't and
walked away and said "Go Kerry!" in a manner that was not directed for
everyone around to hear, but at the person I was talking to. Less
than a minute later, I was asked to leave by a man who would not
identify himself, even after several requests for him to do so. I
told him I was not a protester and I planned on listening to [Bush’s
speech]. When I politely refused to leave, he went to get a
police officer to escort me out. After a short conversation with
the police officer, who was very rude, unwilling to allow me to ask
further questions, he began yelling at me and I left the scene (at this
point with the officer I was on a city sidewalk outside of the
blockaded area for the speech, and I was still told I had to leave the
area). I had done nothing wrong, nothing disruptive, and clearly
I was not guilty of any crime, yet I was not allowed to see [Bush’s]
speech.
I then
went to the Kerry Campaign offices, who allowed me into an invitation
only event that Kerry held because they felt that wrong had been done
to me. I even told them that I was truly an undecided voter at
the time and not a full-fledged Kerry supporter. I ended up
meeting John Kerry and having a conversation with him. The
Republicans did nothing but make me feel unwanted, while the Democrats
welcomed me with open arms. Now, I am a Kerry supporter and all
it took was for him and his people to be willing to give me a fair
chance to listen to what he had to say, something the Bush group could
not do!
I feel I
have been cheated by the Bush campaign. It was wrong that they
kicked me out for simply saying I was a Kerry supporter. Everyone
has a right to hear the pResident speak if they want to and that
shouldn't be taken away because you don't support the pResident.
I believe there are certain parts of the Constitution they ignored by
denying me this opportunity. I have called the Bush national
campaign and local media groups to try and get this message out:
People who do not agree with the pResident, especially people who are
not attempting to disrupt the event, should be allowed to see their
pResident (even if it might cause a severe headache).
Mike Van Hulle,
Davenport, Iowa
Mike added this to his report:
I am not
surprised to see that other people were also asked to leave for simply
being a Kerry supporter. In fact, there was at least one teenager
that I spoke with before she attempted to enter who entered wearing a
Kerry t-shirt. She was on the local news later saying her ticket
had also been ripped apart. Her Republican friend who came with
her also was not allowed to enter. Something needs to be done
about this.
I would
also like to let you know that there were people at the rally asking to
get signatures to get Nader's name on the ballot. They said
"Support pResident Bush by signing up to get Nader's name on the ballot
in order to take away votes from Kerry." They also found it
appropriate to remind people, "This does not mean you support Ralph
Nader." The Bush-Cheney shirts had already answered my question,
but I asked them if they worked for the Nader campaign. The
person responded and laughed, "Yes!" Sleazy politics to the
extreme!
Thank you for turning in this report, Mike!
Iowa in the News: Environment
by
Linda Thieman
on Sat 07 Aug 2004 05:09 AM CDT
DFIA Environmentalist Throws Her Hat in the Ring
In
her first race since college days, DFIA Environmentalist Molly Regan
has taken out nomination papers for the Scott Soil and Water
Conservation Commission.
There are 5 people on the Scott County non-partisan, volunteer commission, with 3 seats up for grabs this year.
Molly
obtained over 50 signatures on her petition before the Kerry rally the
other day, with the help of fellow Deaniacs Monica Kurth and Paul
Elgation, and got her last signature yesterday.
According to Iowa's Washington Evening Journal, this year, Soil and Water Conservation District Commissioners (SWCDs)
will be elected in 100 districts throughout Iowa. The commissioners are
elected volunteers and have been working with voluntary, private land
conservation in Iowa since as early as 1939. Commissioners help guide
soil and water conservation programs in the district and watersheds,
identify local issues and concerns, and influence state and national
conservation programs. SWCDs work closely with a number of local, state
and federal agencies, particularly the Iowa Department of Agriculture
and Land Stewardship-Division of Soil Conservation and the USDA Natural
Resources Conservation Service.
This is an opportunity to become involved in environmental work at the local level.
Nomination forms, including a
petition, are available in your county auditor's office. At least 25
eligible voters must sign the petition. Nomination papers need to be
filed at the auditor's office by Aug. 25, in order to be on the ballot
in November. Only one person per township within a district can be
represented on the district board.
For more information, go here.
Iowa Bicyclists learn about conservation practices
Iowa Farm Bureau
Riders
on the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI)
learned how Iowa farmers are working with state and federal agencies to
protect the environment.
The
“Iowa Conservation Team” worked to educate all riders, including
Iowans, out-of-staters and international riders, about conservation
practices they were seeing as they huffed, puffed and ate their way
across Iowa.
The goal
was to show that Iowa farmers, who lead the nation in creation of
buffers and have reduced soil erosion significantly, are protecting the
environment.
(more)
Iowa Middle School Teacher Receives Award
Disney
The
DisneyHand Teacher Awards, dedicated to honoring the most creative and
inspiring teachers in America, this year bestowed Hector Ibarra, a 6th
and 7th grade teacher from West Branch Middle School in West Branch,
Iowa, with the first Youth Service America Award. The honor, presented
by multi-platinum performing artist and former special education
teacher Clay Aiken, was given to Ibarra for his exemplary use of
community service as a teaching methodology.
Since
1993, Ibarra's flagship youth service learning program, Timber Stand
Improvement, has successfully linked science to the community. Some of
Timber Stand Improvement's success includes planting more than 2,000
oak, hickory and walnut trees in Iowa's Cedar Valley Park; collecting
4,265 used oil filters and extracting 37.2 gallons of oil, preventing
the substance from entering the Cedar County landfill; encouraging
retrofitting of inefficient shower heads and sink aerators; planting
amaryllis bulbs for senior citizen homes and local businesses; and
holding a student-run reading program for elementary, preschool and
daycare children.
(more)
Marvel chemicals pop up in animals all over world
Chicago Tribune
Chemicals
used to make Teflon and Scotchgard have been promoted as modern marvels
for their ability to keep food from sticking to pots and fast-food
packaging, repel stains on carpets and furniture and make water roll
off coats and clothing.
Now
scientists are finding that the chemicals also have managed to spread
throughout the world. Researchers have detected them in polar bears
roaming near the Arctic Circle, dolphins swimming in the Mediterranean
Sea off the coast of Italy and gulls flying above ocean cliffs outside
Tokyo.
Known as
perfluoronated compounds, the chemicals also were recently detected for
the first time in the Great Lakes, one-fifth of the Earth's fresh water
and the source of drinking water for more than 7 million people in
Illinois and 33 million others in the United States and Canada.
(more)
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