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Wednesday, September 29
Ohio SOS Caves In To Pressure from Voting-rights Groups
by
Linda Thieman
on Wed 29 Sep 2004 03:37 PM CDT
 Ohio SOS Caves In To Pressure from Voting-rights Groups
The Columbus Dispatch
Blackwell ends paper chase
Some could be unable to vote because of flap over registration forms
Under
fire from voting-rights advocates, Ohio Secretary of State J. Kenneth
Blackwell retreated yesterday from a directive that critics said would
slow voter-registration efforts and even block some people from casting
a ballot Nov. 2.
At issue
is a reminder Blackwell issued this month to county boards of election
that voter-registration forms must be printed on "white, uncoated paper
of not less than 80-pound text weight," a heavy, cardlike stock.
...Jocelyn
Travis, Ohio coordinator for the Election Protection coalition and
People for the American Way Foundation, said, "We can’t let a piece of
paper stand between people and their right to register and vote."
The
national coalition of more than 60 civil-rights organizations has been
assisting voters and has trained 25,000 poll monitors to assist voters
in black and Latino precincts in Ohio and 16 other states.
Last
night, a spokesman for Blackwell denied that the GOP officeholder was
trying to prevent people from voting and said county boards should
accept voter registration forms on paper of any weight as long as they
are otherwise valid.
(Click here to read the complete story.)
My hat is off to
the progressive activists who wrote letters, signed petitions, and
generally caused a big stink as the GOP tried to disenfranchise
Democratic voters in Ohio. Well done!
OPENING OCTOBER 1st AT THE FLEUR CINEMA & CAFE in Des Moines
by
Linda Thieman
on Wed 29 Sep 2004 12:41 PM CDT
 OPENING OCTOBER 1st AT THE FLEUR CINEMA & CAFE in Des Moines
GOING UP RIVER
A
documentary on Senator John Kerry's Navy tour of duty in Vietnam, his
contributions to the peace movement that followed, and the ultimate
shape of his future political career.
Fri-Sun 1:30 4:35 7:20 9:20
Mon-Thurs 4:35 7:20 9:20
******************
THE CORPORATION
Since
the late 18th Century American legal decision that the business
corporation organizational model is legally a person, it has become a
dominant economic, political and social force around the globe. This
film takes an in-depth psychological examination of the organization
model through various case studies. What the study illustrates is that
in the behavior, this type of "person" typically acts like a
dangerously destructive psychopath without conscience. Furthermore, we
see the profound threat this psychopath has for our world and our
future, but also what the people with courage, intelligence and
determination can do to stop it.
Fri-Sun 1:00 4:20 7:05 9:45
Mon- Thurs 4:20 7:05 9:45
*******************
Kucinich: It's Time to Close Ranks
by
Linda Thieman
on Wed 29 Sep 2004 10:01 AM CDT
 Kucinich: It's Time to Close Ranks
by Dennis Kucinich
There are
a lot of people throwing up their hands right now and saying, "Well, the
campaign isn't strong enough...the candidate this...the candidate
that...." Know what? The time's over for those discussions. We have to
close ranks. We have to get out there - knock on doors, put up signs,
and make phone calls, and rally people because there is a profound
difference between John Kerry and George Bush.
...Now's
the time we need to come together. This isn't even a close question.
This is not the time for temporizing about, you know, "What should we
do?", "What can we do?", "Can we win?" Of course, we can win!
Let
me give you an example. In Ohio, four years ago, I was contacted by the
Presidential campaign of our candidate then who told me they were
pulling out of Ohio because they had a poll that showed them 14 points
down. Said they couldn't win. You know what? We said, "We have to stay
in this anyway because of what we believe in. We're gonna keep
pushing." And we persisted. And you know what happened? A 14 point gap
closed to within three points in Ohio. We could've won Ohio if only
we'd had a campaign that would've stayed with us. John Kerry's staying
with us in Ohio, and we're staying with him. And we're going to help
him win Ohio, and you can help him win not only Ohio, but every state
that's represented right now.
(Click here to read the entire article or to view the video online.)
Tonight in Mason City: Stop Outsourcing Our Future Comes to Town
by
Linda Thieman
on Wed 29 Sep 2004 07:46 AM CDT
 Tonight in Mason City: "Stop Outsourcing Our Future" Comes to Town
A Town Hall Meeting for people concerned about good jobs, the environment, and a healthy future for their community
Wednesday, Sept. 29
7:00-8:30 PM
Mason City Public Library
225 2nd St. SE, Mason City
Join
your friends and neighbors to learn about global trade agreements now
being negotiated by the Bush administration, their implications for
good jobs, a clean environment, and healthy communities, and the choice
that voters have in the Presidential election on the issue of
outsourcing our future.
Panelists
*Amanda Ragan, Iowa State Senator, District 7
*Chris Petersen, President, Iowa Farmers Union
*Niel Ritchie, Executive Director, League of Rural Voters
*Sandra Sanchez, American Friends Service Committee
*Alan Anderson, President, United Steel Workers Local 9310
*Janice Grandstaff, Iowa Workforce Development
Sponsors
*Iowa Farmers Union
*PACE Local 7-0604
*Iowa Conference United Methodist Church
*League of Rural Voters
*Iowa Fair Trade Campaign
*American Federation of Teachers Local 716
*National Catholic Rural Life Conference
*Americans for Democratic Action
*Iowa Citizen Action Network
*SEIU Local 199
*AFSCME Council 61
*Women, Food, and Agriculture Network
*Iowa Sierra ClubAmerican Federation of Teachers Local 716
*United Steel Workers of America District 11
For more information on the Iowa Fair Trade Campaign, click here.
Other Town Hall Meetings in Iowa
Muscatine, Oct. 2, Muscatine Commuity College, 10:30am-Noon
CHANGE OF VENUE!
Keokuk, Oct. 4, Keokuk City Council Chambers, 6:30-8:00 pm
Ottumwa, Oct. 11, Ottumwa Public Library, 7:00-8:30pm
Iowa: Confusion, Bad Ballots Hinder First Voting Days
by
Linda Thieman
on Wed 29 Sep 2004 04:38 AM CDT
 Iowa: Confusion, Bad Ballots Hinder First Voting Days
by Lynn Campbell, Des Moines Register
The
first few days of early voting in Iowa were marked by complaints and
confusion as Republicans tried to turn the state's absentee-ballot
efforts to their advantage, and a costly mistake in northwest Iowa
caused hundreds of spoiled ballots.
...In
Plymouth County, the auditor's office sent a letter Monday to hundreds
of voters, informing them that about half the 758 absentee ballots sent
out Thursday inadvertently omitted the race for U.S. House District 5.
"They
made a fairly gross, glaring error not proofreading the damn thing,"
said David Rogers, a spokesman for Democrat Joyce Schulte, who's
challenging Republican U.S. Rep. Steve King. "They might want to bend
over backwards to make things right."
The
mistake is expected to cost Plymouth County hundreds of dollars. Voters
who received the incorrect ballot should mark it "spoiled" and return
it to receive a correct one, said Jan Beck of the Plymouth County
auditor's office. However, voters who decide to use the wrong ballot
will still have their votes counted.
(Click here to read the complete article, which includes information about a new Grassley/absentee ballot controversy.)
**Click here
to download your Iowa absentee ballot request form. You then send
it in to your county auditor's office at the courthouse.
**Click here to get the address of your county auditor.
Just find your county on the map of Iowa and click on the map.
Iowa's DEADLINE to Register: Mailed By October 18th or Delivered by October 23rd. Click here to download an Iowa voter registration form.
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