Progressive Action For The Common Good Summit II/Part II

We were hungry for knowledge, we were hungry for a new direction, we were hungry for action.  The atmosphere was wide open with the charged energy of minds willing to learn and contribute.  This describes the mood of the nearly 250 who attended the PACG Summit II.

Head organizer Cathy Bolkom encouraged all those who ever marched or stood on a street corner protesting to stand.  She asked for all of those who ever spoke in front of their City Council or Board of Supervisors to stand, as well as anyone who volunteered their time to address an envelope for the common good.  Eventually all in the room were on their feet.  This helped charge up the group.  It was a day when new faces and regulars came together with a commitment to change things in their community.

We listened as keynote speaker David Osterberg, executive director of the IOWA POLICY PROJECT, described how pay inequity has become detrimental to so many people.  The national minimum wage has not changed in 16 years.  Wages have not kept up with inflation.  Too many IOWANS still suffer from low wages.  According to IPP's report, THE STATE OF WORKING IOWA 2005,  …"IOWA's nonfarm job base fell by over 22,000 between 2000 and 2004.  Over the same span, the unemployment rate grew from 2.6 percent to 4.6 percent…

" 'Unemployment' captures only those who are not working, but are actively looking for work at the time surveyed; it does not capture those who are working fewer hours than they would prefer, who would like to work but cannot arrange child care, or who have become permanently discouraged from looking for a job."

To fully read the report, go to www.iowapolicyproject.org

The attendants then chose their favorite workshop.  For example, one group watched George Lakoff's CD about reclaiming the language of progressivism.  We must all learn to use more consistent, precise terms that are simple to explain.  We do not need to spend 5 minutes explaining something that should have taken 30 seconds.  (That goes for windy writers, too.)

So, let's keep it simple: that is what I got out of watching it when I first saw it.  In the meantime, I will be waiting for more reports coming in from the other workshops.

Don't forget to   CPR…CONSERVE/PARTICIPATE/RECYCLE