Green News and Opinion

This one effects unionized healthcare workers in the UK. Not right around the corner perhaps, but the good working folks of London deserve proper treatment, eh? These folks are being asked to accept 30% pay cuts, an end to sick leave, pension cuts and other insults. Visit this link to send a message to the folks in charge. Afterall, if we don't stop them now, who will fight for us when we need help, eh?

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Over at The Wilder Side you will find a video featuring Dr. Luis Valenzuela. He is the Executive Director of the Long Island Immigrant Alliance (LIIA), and an adjunct professor of social work at the Adelphi University School of Social Work.

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I have said that I had no evidence that Proposal 218 had passed. The national party website does not disclose the results of the proposal vote, but a review of the national party mailing list brought these results:
Voting for the following proposal is now closed. Here are the results:

Proposal ID: 218
Proposal: Resolution To Pose Challenge To Two-Party System
Floor Manager: Rebecca Rotzler, rebelrot at yahoo.com
Discussion: 04/03/2006 - 04/16/2006
Voting: 04/17/2006 - 04/23/2006

Result: Adopted

86 Total Votes Received from 38 States/Caucuses
Presens Quorum: 32 0.6666 of 48 Accredited States/Caucuses
Consens Quorum: 40 A Majority of 78 Yes and No Votes

Yes: 63
No: 15
Abstain: 8

Yes: Rob Collins - Alabama
Yes: Claudia Ellquist - Arizona
Yes: Andrew Spencer - Arizona
Yes: Donna Werley - Arkansas
Yes: Anita Wessling - Arkansas
Yes: Jan Arnold - California
Yes: Peter Camejo - California
Yes: Budd Dickinson - California
Yes: Sanda Everette - California
Yes: Forrest Hill - California
Yes: Fred Hosea - California
Yes: Kent Mesplay - California
Yes: Nanette Pratini - California
Yes: Michael Rubin - California
Yes: Donna Warren - California
Yes: Cat Woods - California
Yes: Dave Chandler - Colorado
Yes: Bruce Meyer - Colorado
No: David McCorquodale - Delaware
Yes: Dean Myerson - District of Columbia
Yes: Nikolas Schiller - District of Columbia
Yes: Cara L. Campbell - Florida
Yes: Gary Hecker - Florida
Yes: Sarah (echo) Steiner - Florida
Yes: Claire Mortimer - Hawaii
Yes: Robert McMinn - Idaho
Yes: Phil Huckelberry - Illinois
No: Marc Sanson - Illinois
Yes: Jennifer Walling - Illinois
No: Jim Coplen - Indiana
No: Jeff Sutter - Indiana
No: Daryl Northrop - Iowa
No: Larry Orr - Iowa
Abstain: Paul Krumm - Kansas
No: Morgen D'Arc - Maine
No: Heather E. Betsy Garrold - Maine
Yes: Steve Kramer - Maryland
Yes: Virginia Rodino - Maryland
Yes: Owen Broadhurst - Massachusetts
Yes: Jamie McLaughlin - Massachusetts
Yes: Matthew Abel - Michigan
Yes: Linda Manning Myatt - Michigan
Yes: Louis Novak - Michigan
Yes: Karen Shelley - Michigan
Yes: Eric Makela - Minnesota
Yes: Kristen Olson - Minnesota
Yes: Victor Fleitas - Mississippi
Yes: Gwendolyn Wages - Mississippi
Abstain: Dee Berry - Missouri
No: Ben Kjelshus - Missouri
Yes: Tom McCormick - Nebraska
Yes: Paul Etxeberri - Nevada
Yes: Elizabeth Arnone - New Jersey
Yes: Mike Spector - New Jersey
No: Francine Cronshaw - New Mexico
Yes: Mato Ska - New Mexico
Yes: Howie Hawkins - New York
Yes: Margaret Human - New York
No: Jason Nabewaniec - New York
Yes: Roger Snyder - New York
Yes: Paul Dumochelle - Ohio
Yes: Laura Hampton - Ohio
Yes: Logan Martinez - Ohio
Yes: Joni LeViness - Oklahoma
Abstain: Marnie Glickman - Oregon
Abstain: Paul Loney - Oregon
Yes: Guy Anthony - Pennsylvania
Yes: Traci Confer - Pennsylvania
Yes: Jonah McAllister-Erickson - Pennsylvania
No: Mike Rosenberg - Pennsylvania
Yes: Diane White - Pennsylvania
Abstain: James DeBoer - Rhode Island
No: Greg Gerritt - Rhode Island
No: Howard Switzer - Tennessee
Abstain: Rachel Clary - Texas
Yes: Bill Holloway - Texas
Abstain: David Pollard - Texas
No: Thomas King - Utah
Yes: Elisabeth Luntz - Utah
Yes: James Leas - Vermont
Yes: George Plumb - Vermont
Yes: Kirit Mookerjee - Virginia
Yes: Aram Falsafi - Washington
Abstain: Jody Grage Haug - Washington
Yes: Jill Bussiere - Wisconsin
Yes: Jeff Peterson - Wisconsin

Full proposal details and results are online at:

http://gp.org/cgi-bin/vote/propresult?pid=218


The proposal did in fact pass and I was totally wrong to have said otherwise.

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I am beginning to think that I have lost focus on what is important in the green philosophy, and is reflected in decentralization as one of the Ten Key Values.

By focusing on what the national Green Party is doing, from press releases to Green National Committee, goings-on to who may or may not run for President, I am spending way too much time on things I am likely to be able to exert little influence over. In short, I am coming to the opinion that national level Green Politics is a waste of my time.

Instead, I think that covering local Green chapters and candidates will both allow me to spend less time...the Green National Committee email list is literally over a dozen emails a day, some several pages long...and more time on other things.

Specifically, I hope to take much of the time I spend here and invest it instead in writing a series of websites covering York County news. In addition, I am helping plan the York County (SC) Greens first foray into elective partisan politics. Finally, I am running this Saturday for my state's Green Party steering committee. Bry, who reads and comments here and keeps his own fine blog right here, is running for a seat as well. I hope that much of the work we are hoping to do in York County will help Greens in the rest of the state to get excited and active.

In short, I believe that this blog must become a much more infrequently posted to blog so I can concentrate on local and state Green activism, but I will cross post most of the stuff I find, and will discuss Green Party news, and my opinions, but from a local instead of national perspective. The local news I cover, and opinions I may offer, may concern York County, SC, or York County, PA. Washington DC or Madison, GA.

I hope some of you will hang out and see if you don't still find worthwhile stuff here...

Read more!

The contents are hiding behind the "Read more!" link...

PRESS RELEASE. For immediate release.

Press Contact:

Roger Snyder, Chair, Green Party of Suffolk
(631) 351-5763 rogersnyder@pobox.com

Kimberly Wilder, Press Secretary, Green Party of Suffolk
(631) 422-4702 votewilder@yahoo.com

Ahmad Ali Mitchel-El nominated by the Green Party for Suffolk County Executive

On August 21, 2007, the Green Party filed signatures at the Suffolk Board of Elections to place its candidate, Ahmad Ali Mitchel-El on the ballot for County Executive. Election day is Tuesday, November 6th.

Mitchel-El is a lifelong resident of Suffolk County, a professional musician, and a producer on progressive radio station WBAI 99.5 FM. Mitchel-El is also a peace and justice activist, who has performed at the PeaceSmiths Coffeehouse in Amityville. Mitchel-El's campaign has already received coverage in the media, including: "Noticias" newspaper; "In The Moment" on WBAI radio; and "'Tis Treason" on WUSB radio.

Mitchel-El says of his nomination:

"It is with great pride that I, an American descendant of a people marked 3/5ths a man by the preamble of the Constitution of this Republic, can have the opportunity to serve the public, and pursue this one of many American Dreams. Being a child of the Sixties, the Utopian Society of Martin Luther King, John Kennedy and Robert Kennedy had a real impact on me. I believed America would reach that Mountain top. We would build a better world. The political parties keep selling us the dream, and delivering nightmares: The economics of the Eighties, trade agreements of the Nineties, and the Bridge to the New Millennium, which is soaked with blood and debt. Meanwhile, here in Suffolk, the political party that is supposed to perpetuate the Kennedy vision of America is practicing the "Good Old Boy" style of politics. Inclusion and diversity are absent from Suffolk County’s vision. The older minority groups are being forced out economically, and the new ones aren’t welcome unless they are cheap, invisible labor. Their methods of survival offend us but we don’t want to pay them a fair wage and give them the humane conditions that labor unions have fought for. Suddenly, our concern for Justice and Fairness only applies to 'certain people'.

The opportunity to stand for Right in opposition to Might is what I have accepted. So, as David with a sling, I stand with Truth, Justice and the Zeal to build that Utopian Society for all Human Beings not just the privileged."

Ian Wilder, Secretary of the Green Party of Suffolk stated, "The Green Party is excited to have Ahmad Ali Mitchel-El carry our banner, because his thinking represents the values of our party."

The Green Party is an alternative to the Democrats and Republicans. Green Party candidates do not accept contributions from corporations. The four pillars of the Green Party are: Social and Economic Justice; Grassroots Democracy; Ecological Wisdom, and Non-violence.

More information on the Green Party and Ahmad Ali Mitchel-El may be found at www.gpsuffolk.org.
# # #

Background:

Photo posted on-line at:
Headshot posted at www.gpsuffolk.org
Group shot with Babylon Greens at photo


"Noticias" article


Video of Ahmad Ali: Green Party Show

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According to the global union federation for building workers (BWI), Osvaldo Lorenzo -- a union activist -- was shot and killed, and two other workers injured, in a confrontation between a company-controlled union and SUNTRACS, which is a real union. The BWI is calling for a full investigation and has sharply criticized the transnational corporation involved, which is notorious for violating workers rights elsewhere. It has launched an online campaign and I urge all of you to sign up today.

This labor update stolen from LabourStart.

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Think the nuclear industry is doing a good job of pulling the wool over our eyes? Seems like every day we have someone from NBC (General Electric) or another part of the Lamestream Media telling us that "Environmentalists are re-thinking nuclear power in light of global warming issues". Well....no...we're not.

To put your name amongst those of us environmentalists who continue to oppose nuclear power, click here and join the solar future!

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The Green Queen was taking tea and discussing all sorts of serious things. Phil the Wordsmith was listening carefully as were people from the Land of Write-Ins, but Gregg the Ignorant was bored yet again.

"We must make it clear that we are a political party."

"Sure, but how?"

"We'll pass a resolution!"

Hearing this, the people from the Land of Write-ins jumped to their feet and ran around, shouting "Pass a Resolution! Pass a Resolution!" They went to the Lands of Conflicting Tribes and the Lands of Success and invited them to join in, shouting all along, "Pass a Resolution!"

Ultimately ten different Lands and their members were running around shouting "Pass a Resolution!"

What did the resolution say? It said "We will run." We will run. The Ten Lands were asking the rest of the Lands to agree that they would all do their best to get a candidate for President on the ballot everywhere, and would do all they can to help that candidate succeed.

And one of the representatives from one of the Lands of the Write-ins said that they would need $100,000 to get on the ballot. Based on that estimate, one of the other Lands of the Write-ins will cost over $160,000.

And Gregg the Ignorant asked "How can we promise to do all this if we don't even have chapters in several Lands, the Big Budget has not been written, and the Big Checks are not coming in as fast as we would need?"

"Don't say another word!" said the Green Queen. "Your observations have no power here!"

Quivering in his ignorance, Gregg asked "But, you say that this Resolution is based on Proposal 218, which you say was passed by the Lands, but I find no record of a vote.

But, a few minutes passed and Phil the Wordsmith presented a new and improved Resolution that changed almost nothing. Phil the Wordsmith was especially proud of being able to change the Resolution without actually changing anything.

So, Gregg the Ignorant just decided to prop his feet up, whittle hisself a bit on his whittlin stick and thinkin 'bout....

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I think this is facinating. Greens from OK have written about concerns they have about a presidential candidate seeking the Green Party nod running exclusively on a rail based platform. War in Iraq? High speed rail is the answer! Education? Railroads! Environmental problems? Rail transport for all is the answer!

But, don't doubt for a moment that rail is not a big part of the picture on several fronts, and the OK Greens know it.

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Jonathan Cymberknopf is calling for folks to draft Nader in 2008.

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Click here to learn more about Maria Allwine and her race for President of the Baltimore City Council

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Any political system which is run lock-stock-and-barrel by only one political party is bound to find that corruption is rampant. There are those who would point to New Orleans as an example. Others might point to entire states like my state of South Carolina as an example of a one party state.

In Baltimore, apparently the local political system is operated by the Democratic Party, and Greens in that city are taking the question of corruption in the Democratic Party and local government directly to the voters. Learn more about that clicking on this link.

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Apparently the Greens in South Bend Indiana believe we are an electoral party. They are running three write-in candidates, and one of their number secured a place on the actual ballot. According to an article at the South Bend Tribune,

Green Party candidate Kathleen Petitjean has filed to run in the South Bend Common Council 1st District race

.

In addition:

The St. Joseph County Green Party has two write-in candidates for South Bend and one write-in candidate in Mishawaka. Thomas Eugene Brown is running a write-in campaign for South Bend mayor, and Karl Hardy is running for a Common Council at-large seat. In Mishawaka, David Alan Vollrath is running for Common Council at-large.

In a related story, the South Bend Tribune reports that the County Elections Board has agreed to actually count those write-in votes. Good thing to check in advance, eh?

Go get 'em Greens!

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California Greens are making sure California Democrats in Congress know we want the war over NOW!

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Apparently the name will not change, which I think is great.

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Democrats and Republicans cooperate in destroying the Constitution

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Fredrick Douglass wrote "Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will."

If we believe that the rich and powerful will not use every arrow in their quiver to retain their privileged position then we don't understand history. As Douglass points out, not only does power concede nothing without a demand, it never has and never will. I hesitate to use absolutes like "never", but in this case I think it's appropriate.

We Greens, once we have established ourselves in majority status, will refuse to change unless we are forced to do so. Hopefully that pressure will come from our own constituents pushing us to actually implement the Ten Key Values, but the truth is that the Green Party is made up of people, therefore it is unlikely that we will create a system that will overcome the tendency to bog down once entrenched.

Well, as an example of how power refuses to concede to even allow demand, take a look at the town of Reading, PA. Host city to the 2007 national meeting, the Reading Greens have done a kick ass job of rounding up what seems like a great team of candidates. One of these fine folks is Jessica L. Ashman. She's running for Clerk of Court in Berks County, and the incumbent Republican, James P. Troutman personally went to her house to serve papers on her. These details come from an article over at The Reading Eagle In the piece, Mary E. Young says that Troutman went to Judge Scott E. Lash and asked that Ashman be removed from the ballot as she had, according to him, as many as 260 invalid signatures on her petition.

Remember folks that this is PA, where Ralph Nader and Carl Romanelli were essentially fined for daring to try to get on the state ballot.

For unexplained "time constraints", Judge Lash allowed Troutman to accompany a trooper as he delivered the papers to her.

Think about this folks. You file paperwork to get on the ballot. The guy you are seeking to run against goes to court and says "Judge, time is clicking away. We need to get this woman off the ballot and we need to do it now." The judge gives the incumbent paperwork and a deputy to deliver it to the challenger. The incumbent, side by side with an armed police officer hand delivers official paperwork on you at your home.

This is clearly intimidation and I can only hope the Berks County Greens are prepared to defend themselves, as I can see that the Power in Berks County PA concedes nothing without a demand. Douglass told us it would be so, and he was right.

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One of the things that upsets some folks is the idea that the Green Party is not a "Democratic Party the way it should be". One reason I am concerned about Phil Huckleberry is the oft reported statement he made saying something to the effect of "I didn't join the Green Party to hurt the Democrats." That sort of talk makes me very uncomfortable.

You see, the Democratic Party never was a green party. The Democratic Party has forever and always been a party of wealthy white men using poor people to secure favor for their friends and family. From protecting and promoting the spread of slavery to a policy of genocide which succeeded in reducing the indigenous population to a tiny portion of their previous numbers. The Democratic Party has from it's inception and to this day been a party of war, not reconciliation. It has been a party of empire and oppression with such a deep roots in military, industrial, financial and service industries that it's leadership is almost indistinguishable from the membership of Corporate America's board rooms.

But, them's jest my thinkin...'til now.

It seems that a certain William P. Meyers thinks the Democratic Party is not worthy of your time. He believes instead that we should focus energy on trying to make the Green Party into the second party in parts of the nation where there is, in reality, only one party. He gives, as an example, northern California, where, in some places, the Green Party has already supplanted the Republicans as the second party.

The flip side of that is the areas where the Republican Party have a stranglehold. Here where I live, for example, the Republican Party controls every seat on the County Council, so, if we win one seat on the County Council we become, in reality, the second party in our "two party" system.

But, Mr. Meyers says it far better than I do. Hit the link above, read what he has to say, and leave him a comment if you're so inclined. I think he made our points very well indeed.

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I stole this from Green Commons, and I gather they stole it from Democracy in Action. It was apparently created by Jason Z.

IF I get this right, you'll be able to see the image right here. If not, well, then you can always click here. If by some circumstance it does not show up here, hit the link...it's well worth it.


Well shoot...couldn't make it work. Hit the link...you'll be glad you did. :-)

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Billed as a "Southeastern" campaign training school, the event will be held at The Farm in Summertown, TN. Scheduled from August 24th to August 26th, with the 25th the day of the main event, the training session will feature Brent McMillan, national party political director. It will be held at The Ecovillage Training Center.

An eight hour drive for us here in York County SC, but a five and a half hour drive from Atlanta, a six hour drive from St. Louis, a ten hour drive from Davenport, Iowa, eight hours from Springfield, MO, and ten and a half hours from Dallas, TX.

It's also an eight hour drive from New Orleans.

So, my point is, a LOT of Greens should consider this a prime-time opportunity to sign up and learn from the party's most eminent political trainer. If there is any way that you can make this exceptionally cheap campaign training school, you simply must attend. If you plan to do anything at all, from organizing to just giving a few dollars, you really should make this campaign training school. Click on the link and get your fine self out to The Farm, and get educated by the best we have.

Here is an agenda of sorts for the training.

1) What Every Green Candidate Should Know.

Following the 2004 general election a questionnaire was sent out by the Coordinated Campaign Committee (CCC) to all the Green candidates who ran. With the luxury of hindsight, candidates reflected and shared their experiences of what worked best, and what could have been better. Then CCC member, Susan Fawcett, compiled these into a checklist of things candidates and their campaign committees should have in mind before deciding to run for office that was released on Jan 29, 2005.

Brent McMillan, Political Director for the Green Party of the United States will take participants through this checklist along with handouts and additional information.

This workshop is for those that are considering running for office for the first time or who want to work on a campaign. That's not to say that those that have run before or worked on campaigns can not also benefit from this workshop.

2)Fundraising for Candidates.

The best person to do fundraising for a campaign is the candidate.

This workshop is for both those that are considering running for office for the first time and those who have run before.

Comment from a participant when this workshop was delivered at the Annual National Meeting in Tulsa was, "I which I had known this stuff the first time I ran, it would have been much stronger campaign."

3) Working with the Media.

Often time we hear from greens who have run for office that they were unable to get any coverage from the Media. In the process of interviewing them about it, one of the questions regurlaly asked was, "how many press releases did you put out?" A typical answer is, "We put one out when we announced and did a couple of others throughout
the campaign." No wonder were not getting much media!

This workshop will explore building relationships with people in the media and how to get more coverage. Topics will also include: how to write a press release, what is the difference between a press release and a press advisory, and how to structure and deliver your message.

Also, Grey Newman, GP member and head of his county conservation comission from NC will contribute to the fundraising presentation and talk about how to get out the vote and watch the polls on election day.

Read more!

An article at Aspen Times says that Ernest Callenbach, author of "Ecotopia", will address folks in Aspen about his vision.

This book was, according to the article, was the inspiration for the establishment of the German Green Party.

From the article

Ernest Callenbach, 78, will appear at two events - a workshop on "Living Cheaply with Style" from 4-6 p.m. Aug. 15 at the Gordon Cooper Library in Carbondale; and an "interactive presentation" titled "Tipping Points Toward a Sustainable Future," from 7-9 p.m., Aug. 16, at the Eagle County Community Center in El Jebel.

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Concerns that the Minneapolis police and other para-military forces might suppress free speech at the Republican National Convention planned for that city have prompted Cam Gordon, Green member of City Council, to sponsor a position, adopted unanimously by the city council, laying out the appropriate response to demonstrations in the street.

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Over in New York, the Greens are holding GreenFest, a fundraising and awareness raising event, with over a hundred participants planned for.

Sounds like a great plan to me. Can't wait to get the results back from the organizers.

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KVOA has run an article explaining that early voting in the race begins August 9th and runs through Sept. 7th. The election is set for September 11th for those who did not vote early.

These votes are primary votes. Anyone registered as a Green or unaffiliated may vote in the Green Party primary, but not Democrats, Republicans or Libertarians.

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In a piece over at Thug Life Army, Jared Ball discusses his campaign for the Green Party nomination and it's goals. I left off the "Dr." because the article didn't emphasis it, a good move IMHO.

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In a Press Release, the Green Party has called for focus on infrastructure. It quotes Cam Gordon, a Green Party member of city council from Minneapolis. The Minnesota Green Party also issued a statement.

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Describing himself as a lifelong Democrat who took a temporary leave-of-absence to participate in the Green Party, Walter Ballin writes a column over at Daily KOS in which he suggests that we Greens must reject all campaigns for office at the state-wide or national level. According to him, we should not run anyone for President, US Senate, Governor, Superintendent of Education, State Supreme Court, or any other such position. Read the "Comments" and you'll find that the "netroots" of the Democratic Party has a visceral hatred for we Greens. Neither the Democrats nor the Republicans offer us any hope of real progress.

Money talks, and it's been whispering in Democratic and Republican ears for decades.

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Sometimes I think that the Green National Committee should seriously consider having one person or a small committee responsible for drafting proposals. There are those on the GNC who disagree with using the proposal number unless you include the proposal title. Some oppose using the word "title", saying that the word "name" is better.

Some proposals are written in all sorts of legalese, rendering them unreadable by me at least. Others sound as if they are attacks on this or that perceived evil, followed almost inevitably by the "Therefore" and "Whereby", as if Hamilton and Franklin were not long dead.

Some are utterly useless.

Some are designed to accomplish a specific goal. Establishing a Senatorial Campaign Committee. Deciding on where to hold a convention. Establishing policies and procedures for committees and caucuses and states.

If there were one person or a small committee of people who could take the raw material and turn it into common language, removing the vituperative language, and composing it consistently, we would not have some of the fights the GNC has now.

As an example, hiding behind the "Read more!" link you will find the text of proposal 305, also known as the "We will run" resolution. Please note that in the first paragraph the resolution refers to Resolution 218, also known as "Resolution to challenge the two-party system" and says, in part,

On April 23, 2006, the National Committee adopted Proposal 218, "Resolution To Pose Challenge To Two-Party System". This resolution put GPUS squarely on record as "posing an electoral challenge to the corporate-funded and controlled two-party system" and as resolving to "run electoral campaigns full out".

Unfortunately, I am here to tell you that Proposal 218, aka "Posing an electoral challenge to the two-party system" never did pass the GNC. If you click on the link you'll see that the "Results" slot is empty. Why? Because it was not submitted to a full vote, but was pulled before the voting could wrap up.

So, why does Proposal 305, aka the "We will run" resolution, say "On April 23, 2006, the National Committee adopted Proposal 218" when in fact it did not do so?

This sort of sloppy actions by, in this case, 10 different state party chapters, leads to mis-understanding and ill will.

Reputable people hesitate to participate in the internal politics of the Green Party not out of fear of being called a Democrat, Republican, or any other nasty thing, but because they don't see the value in spending time on all the unnecessary stuff to get to the few things, like the still un-written budget, dealt with properly.

Anyhoo, the text of Proposal 218 is right here, and Proposal 305 is right here, and the text of both, in their entirety, are hiding behind the "Read more!" link...


Green Party of the United States
Home Vote Results History Contacts Admin
National Committee Voting
Login
Proposal Details
Proposal ID 218
Proposal Resolution To Pose Challenge To Two-Party System
Presenter Green Parties of California, Michigan, DC, and Wisconsin
Floor Manager Rebecca Rotzler
Phase Closed
Discussion 04/03/2006 - 04/16/2006
Voting 04/17/2006 - 04/23/2006
Result
Presens Quorum 0.6666
Consens Quorum A Majority of Yes and No Votes
Background
The two-party electoral system has maintained a stranglehold
on political expression in the U.S. since before the two
parties became the current ones. This has proved disastrous
for progressive politics in this country. While each of the
two dominant parties (the Democrats and Republicans) use
wedge issues like abortion or gun-control to persuade voters
to continue to vote for them, they spend the vast majority
of their time in office serving the same corporate elite
which funds and controls both parties. This is their true
constituency, and therefore both party institutions continue
to promote war and the elimination of our constitutional
freedoms. The nominal "opposition party," the Democratic
party, provides virtually no real opposition to these
policies. [Countless examples include the refusal to
filibuster to oppose Supreme Court nominees (the vote on
Scalia was 98 to 0), giving Bush the right to invade Iraq,
passing the Patriot Act multiple times, refusing to hear the
case of electoral fraud in Florida in 2000, leading the
fight to gut welfare and pass NAFTA and GATT under Clinton,
etc.]

The Green Party was formed to pose an electoral challenge to
this system. Reforms of the two parties and lobbying of
those parties are the strategy of caucuses within those
parties and progressive groups which are not political
parties. The reason for being a political party, as opposed
to a caucus or general Green issues group, is to pose a
challenge to the two-party system within the electoral
arena.

Every election year, the inadequate plurality system of
voting is used to create a tremendous pressure against third
parties running full-out and making their challenge as
strong as possible. It is our party that promotes electoral
reforms such as ranked voting, which would render lesser
evilism powerless, and yet we are the ones expected to give
way, time after time, to the inferior and corrupting
two-party system.

The Green Party needs to take a stand on this issue - in
order to make it clear both to its membership and the
outside world our identity and purpose as a political party,
and in order to strengthen all of us in the face of the
regular onslaughts of "lesser evil" pressure against our
right to organize politically according to our values and
platform.
Proposal
Be it resolved that the GPUS affirms one of its main
purposes to be that of posing an electoral challenge to the
corporate-funded and controlled two-party system.

Be it resolved that the GPUS therefore declares its
intention to run electoral campaigns full out, in order to
promote its messages for peace, civil liberties, social
justice, and environmental protection; in order to give
voters an opportunity to cast votes for these values and
create a new mandate; and in order to build the Green Party
to be able to pose even stronger challenges. Full-out
campaigns include running in all states possible as actively
and as eagerly as possible, running on all Green Party
ballot lines possible, participating in Green Party primary elections
wherever possible, and running for all levels of public
office for which the party is able to find credible
candidates to run as Greens and sustain Green Party
campaigns.

Be it resolved that the GPUS encourages state and county
Green Parties to stand firm against the pressure of lesser
evilism, and to use it instead as an opportunity to promote
the reforms of ranked voting (i.e., instant runoff voting
and proportional representation).
Resources
Contact Persons:
Karen Shelley, Michigan delegate
Cat Woods, California delegate
References
None

Questions about this system?
Contact the Voting Admin.
The Green Party of the United States voting system is free software, licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL).
You can download a copy here.
To independently verify a ranked choice vote, or for information about how that works, go to Jonathan Lundell's Voting Page and upload the ballot file from the ranked choice vote result page. JL's ranked choice module is licensed under an alternate free software license. Green Party of the United States


Green Party of the United States
Home Vote Results History Contacts Admin
National Committee Voting
Login
Proposal Details
Proposal ID 305
Proposal We Will Run Resolution
Presenter Green Parties of IL, MI, NC, OR, RI, UT, VT, VA, WI, FL
Floor Manager Jim Coplen
Phase Discussion
Discussion 08/06/2007 - 08/19/2007
Voting 08/20/2007 - 08/26/2007
Presens Quorum 0.6666
Consens Quorum 0.6666 of Yes and No Votes
Background
On April 23, 2006, the National Committee adopted Proposal 218, "Resolution
To Pose Challenge To Two-Party System". This resolution put GPUS squarely
on record as "posing an electoral challenge to the corporate-funded and
controlled two-party system" and as resolving to "run electoral campaigns
full out".

The political climate as we enter 2008 is different from the political
climate in 2004. GPUS is beginning to show hopeful signs on the
fundraising front. Numerous Green candidates posted strong showings in
2006 elections, demonstrating that the public is increasingly willing to
listen to the Green message. GPUS's electoral committees, which have had
limited resources to work with recently, have nevertheless seen recent
increases in activity. Numerous Green congressional candidates have
already declared, and Green ballot drives are already underway in numerous
states.

At the 2003 Annual National Meeting, the GNC staked a clear position to run
for President in 2004; but prior to the convention, official party
statements were much more ambivalent. These mixed messages became part of
a larger fabric of Green inactivity that helped spur many Green activists
into abandoning the party to support corporatist candidates. GPUS's lack
of backbone heading into the 2004 convention also had a sharply detrimental
impact on ballot drives, as several states, confronted with the possibility
that they were working tirelessly for ballot lines that weren't even going
to be used, gave up hope early. GPUS can not afford to make the same
mistake in 2007 that it made in 2003.

This resolution, following largely from Proposal 218, will make the Green
Party's intentions clear for 2008: We will field a presidential ticket in
2008 and will apply resources to the best of our ability to give our
nominees the strongest support possible.
Proposal
The Green National Committee hereby adopts the following resolution:

WHEREAS the GPUS National Committee has clearly stated, through passage of
Proposal 218, a commitment to run "full out" campaigns, and

WHEREAS running "full out" requires gathering the greatest amount of
resources such that a campaign can be as strong as possible, and

WHEREAS the reality of modern American politics is that the longer we wait
to make our involvement clear, the more resources we will lose, and
WHEREAS past election cycles have demonstrated the absolute necessity of
making it clear that we will hold a competitive nomination process
culminating in our quadrennial presidential nominating convention lest we
send mixed signals to Greens, prospective candidates, the media, and the
public at large, and

WHEREAS prospective presidential candidates considering whether to run as a
Green will look for clarity from the national party as to intentions for
2008, and will be encouraged by a party with determination to run,

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that it is the firm intention of the Green
National Committee that the Green Party will nominate a presidential ticket
at its 2008 convention, and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that it is the firm intention of the Green National
Committee to strengthen our eventual ticket by generating and applying
resources as available to ensure, among other things, that we will maximize
the number of ballot lines that our nominees will appear on, and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Green National Committee hereby directs its
officers and committees, when addressing the matter of the party's
intentions in 2008, and to the extent appropriate given the context of any
such public statements, that the Green Party is conducting a contested
presidential nomination process and that we will be nominating a
presidential ticket at our 2008 convention.
Resources
As to be determined by the National Committee at a later time.

Contact: Phil Huckelberry, phil.huckelberry@gmail.com
References
GNC Proposal 218, http://gp.org/cgi-bin/vote/propdetail?pid=218
GPUS Press Release of July 21, 2003, http://www.gp.org/press/pr_07_21_03b.html

Questions about this system?
Contact the Voting Admin.
The Green Party of the United States voting system is free software, licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL).
You can download a copy here.
To independently verify a ranked choice vote, or for information about how that works, go to Jonathan Lundell's Voting Page and upload the ballot file from the ranked choice vote result page. JL's ranked choice module is licensed under an alternate free software license. Green Party of the United States

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The question is called "Proposal 307" and is behind the "Read more!" link below...Green Party of the United States
Home Vote Results History Contacts Admin
National Committee Voting
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Ranked Choice Vote Details
Ranked Choice Vote ID 307
Ranked Choice Vote Selection of Site and Dates for 2008 Presidential Nominating Convention
Type Open Ballot
Number of Seats 1
Ranked Choice Vote Administrator Holly Hart
Phase Discussion
Discussion 08/07/2007 - 08/21/2007
Voting 08/22/2007 - 08/28/2007
Presens Quorum 0.6666
Candidates C1 - Chicago
C2 - Chicago
M3 - Minneapolis
M4 - Minneapolis
B5 - Berkeley
O6 - Oakland
D7 - Detroit
D8 - Dearborn

Background
PRESENTERS: Annual National Meeting Committee, Steering Committee

BACKGROUND
In early 2007 the Annual National Meeting Committee formally solicited proposals for hosting the 2008 GPUS Presidential Nominating Convention. Four locations responded with Letters of Interest/Intent and subsequently submitted proposals: Chicago, Detroit/Dearborn, Minneapolis, and Oakland/Berkeley.

The groups were asked to provide answers to a matrix of questions for inclusion in a substantive document providing
information on the locations. In addition to this ANMC-prepared document, delegates are requested to consider the
websites of the bidding groups, which contain information which is not included in the document.

The document contains a lengthier explanation of the bidding process and the voting process. Please do not vote without reading the information included in the document!

For the ANMC-prepared document, please see:
http://gp.org/committees/anmc/2008SiteBidInformation.pdf

Chicago packages (c1 & c2)
http://www.greenconvention2008.com
Contact: Patrick Kelly, patrickfkelly@gmail.com

Minneapolis packages (M3 & M4)
http://gpus2008.mngreens.org
Contact: Annie Young, anniey@visi.com

Oakland/Berkeley packages (B5 & O6)
http://rachel.cagreens.org/oakland/html/2008_convention.html
Contact: Greg Jan, gregjan4@yahoo.com

Detroit/Dearborn packages (D7 & D8)
http://www.detroitgreens.org/anm08/
Contact: Lou Novak, lmn@lppals.com

CANDIDATES

C1 - Chicago
C2 - Chicago
M3 - Minneapolis
M4 - Minneapolis
B5 - Berkeley
O6 - Oakland
D7 - Detroit
D8 - Dearborn

RESOURCES
Contact: Ruth Weill, ANMC Chair, ruthweill@gmail.com

REFERENCES
As specified in the background section.

Candidate Information
C1 - Chicago
Chicago packages (c1 & c2)
http://www.greenconvention2008.com
Contact: Patrick Kelly, patrickfkelly@gmail.com

C2 - Chicago
Chicago packages (c1 & c2)
http://www.greenconvention2008.com
Contact: Patrick Kelly, patrickfkelly@gmail.com

M3 - Minneapolis
Minneapolis packages (M3 & M4)
http://gpus2008.mngreens.org
Contact: Annie Young, anniey@visi.com

M4 - Minneapolis
Minneapolis packages (M3 & M4)
http://gpus2008.mngreens.org
Contact: Annie Young, anniey@visi.com

B5 - Berkeley
Oakland/Berkeley packages (B5 & O6)
http://rachel.cagreens.org/oakland/html/2008_convention.html
Contact: Greg Jan, gregjan4@yahoo.com


O6 - Oakland
Oakland/Berkeley packages (B5 & O6)
http://rachel.cagreens.org/oakland/html/2008_convention.html
Contact: Greg Jan, gregjan4@yahoo.com


D7 - Detroit
Detroit/Dearborn packages (D7 & D8)
http://www.detroitgreens.org/anm08/
Contact: Lou Novak, lmn@lppals.com


D8 - Dearborn
Detroit/Dearborn packages (D7 & D8)
http://www.detroitgreens.org/anm08/
Contact: Lou Novak, lmn@lppals.com



Questions about this system?
Contact the Voting Admin.
The Green Party of the United States voting system is free software, licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL).
You can download a copy here.
To independently verify a ranked choice vote, or for information about how that works, go to Jonathan Lundell's Voting Page and upload the ballot file from the ranked choice vote result page. JL's ranked choice module is licensed under an alternate free software license. Green Party of the United States

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In a post over at Open Hearts and Open Minds, GreenCutip links to several articles about the ILGP, and includes several photos of IL Greens campaigning, fundraising and tabling. It would seem that they have it going on in IL.

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In a brief article over at Hip Hop DX, Jared Ball is presented as a Hip Hop Presidential Candidate seeking the Green Party nomination.

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Lewis Carroll could not have written a better parody than the "Saga of John Kromko".

First, the Tucson Greens were said to have decided to run David Croteau for Mayor. Then, John Kromko announces that he will engage in a write-in campaign for Mayor with the help and blessing of the Green Party.

Today it would seem that Kromko is out, and Croteau is back in. At least that's what is being said now over at The Tucson Citizen.

Curiouser and curiouser.

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New London CT Greens announce slate of candidates

Tucson Greens back write-in for Mayor

More on Tucson race

Green Party stand against "War on Drugs" gets us noticed

Black Agenda Report: Greens Put Mass Incarceration at Top of Agenda, While Democrats Mumble

Cynthia McKinney stumps for Green candidate

Brian Rudnick posts video in city council race

Get yer Green Party "Meetup" here

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In a piece over at Green Commons, Alan Augustson writes about rezoning and higher taxes in that ravaged city. As he points out, the most frustrating thing is that officials are saying "Who would have thunk it?

Augustson thunk it. So did others I am sure.

"Who would have imagined terrorists attacking the World Trade Center?" "Who would have seen that Iraq would have turned into such a quagmire?" "Who would have believed that Hillary Clinton would have kept us in Iraq and attack Iran?"

Anyone with a brain.

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From time to time I have engaged in discussion with Greens and potential Greens who don't understand why we are pro-choice. "You're against violence, surely you must be against abortion, as it is the ultimate violence."

I understand this position. I don't agree with it because it ain't that simple. If abortion were outlawed then women who did not want to bear a child would be forced to carry a pregnancy to term. In addition, the only way to enforce such a law would be to incarcerate both the doctor and patient.

Even so, I do understand why folks don't see eye to eye on the issue. One who doesn't agree with that position is Joe Schriner. An article from Grove City, PA explains a bit about Schriner, and a bit about the Green Party. Schriner is quoted saying "at the convention, the majority of Green Party members I talked with were willing to listen,". I think this reflects well on us, and while I don't see my state voting for Schriner, I am glad to see that we are getting a better reception from the Gravy Train media.

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Pretty much every Green Party across the nation suffers from a slim checkbook. Well, the good folks in New York are doing something about it, and from the looks of things, they may have a recipe for success.

To read all the details of what they are doing to raise cash and awareness, just click and read.

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In a report you can find right here, Cathy Keen sites research by Fabio Rojas which breaks down the anti-war voter this way:

40% are Democrats
2% are Republicans
39% are independents
20% are "third party, like the Greens"

Of course, pretty much all smaller parties oppose the war. Libertarians, Constitution Party folks, Greens and others all oppose the war, but for different reasons. Constitution Party members oppose the war because it was not properly declared. Had the Congress declared war against the government of Iraq, one might assume they would be OK with it.

Libertarians oppose the war for the same reason, and also because the war represents a sort of imperialism, which, to their credit, Libertarians oppose.

But we Greens oppose the war for all these reasons, and because we believe differently about violence. As a good Southerner might say, "We're a'gin it." The question is not one of finding the right way to fight a war, but of finding ways to promote justice with non-violence as a goal.

Anyway, the bottom line is, with 20% telling pollsters that they support "third parties like the Green Party", this might be a year when Greens break out across the nation with success.

And that would be a very good thing.

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PRESS RELEASE

Press Contacts:

Kimberly Wilder, Press Secretary, Green Party of Suffolk
(631) 422-4702

Roger Snyder, Chair, Green Party of Suffolk
(631) 351-5763
rogersnyder@pobox.com

The Green Party of Suffolk County held its annual countywide membership meeting on Saturday, July 28th in Bellport.

Ahmad Mitchel-El, the Green Party candidate for Suffolk County Executive, gave a presentation on the importance of his petition drive and his run for office. Mitchel-El is a lifelong resident of Suffolk County, a professional musician, and a producer on progressive radio station WBAI 99.5 FM.

Mitchel-El supports the creation of a Hiring Center for day laborers. Other campaign issues include bringing fairness and equity to government policies and tax rates, and making government more transparent and accountable.

Mitchel-El noted that part of his motivation in running, was that the incumbent Suffolk County Executive is running on both the Democratic and Republican lines. So, there may be no choice on the ballot for voters, and no other voice in the campaign. Mitchel-El said, "With my campaign, I hope at least some of these issues will get attention, because with Steve Levy running on both party lines, there will not even be a discussion of the issues."

Mitchel-El was also elected Vice-Chair of the of the Green Party of Suffolk along with Chair Roger Snyder; Vice-Chair Ed Hague; Secretary Ian Wilder; Treasurer Wendy Dann; and Press Secretary Kimberly Wilder. Also elected were: Islip Town Rep, John Keenan; Southampton Town Rep, Scott Carlin; and Smithtown Town Rep, Peggy Powell.

Three Suffolk Greens recently attended the Green Party of the United States Annual Meeting in Reading, Pennsylvania. Roger Snyder, a Green Party of New York State (GPNYS) Representative to the Green Party of the United States (GP-US); Ian Wilder, a GPNYS Representative to the Presidential Campaign Support Committee; and Kimberly Wilder, a GPNYS Executive Committee member, attended workshops, strategy sessions and plenaries about the national Green Party. At the Suffolk meeting, a report was given on the Green Party's process for the 2008 Presidential campaign.

The Green Party is an alternative to the two, major parties. The Four Pillars of the Green Party are: Social and economic justice; Grassroots democracy; Non-violence; and Ecological wisdom. To enroll in the Green Party, you check off "other" and write in "green" on a voter registration form.

For more information, please go to www.gpsuffolk.org or call 631-351-5763.

Background:

Ahmad Ali:

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Again, a post written by someone I respect, Greencutip, states clearly that Phil Huckleberry is 100% Green. I know that Huckleberry has worked diligently for the Green Party in IL. I know that his contributions in that regard will far outstrip anything I have done or am likely to do.

I continue to believe that we Greens should stay the hell out of other party's primaries or other functions unless you are voting for a Green running in another party's primary in a fusion state. If the Green will ultimately wind up on the ballot as a Green, voting for him or her is fine. But voting for the lesser of the evils in another party's primary makes one very suspect to me.

As before, I think Greencutip's comments are at least as important as mine, so I pull it from the "comments" section and re-post it here:

What rubbish! Michael does have a right to ask questions. From my dealings with Phil Huckelberry I can ascertain that he is NOT a Democratic operative as this letter implies and does his damnbest to help elect Greens here in Illinois as he will all across the country as Co-chair of the national party.

In addition, this comment was posted about Huckleberry by Tom Abram:

Well to this Green, voting in a party's primary is trying to have an influence in the electoral process. In 2006, only a few areas had Green primaries. Previous to that, it wasn't possible to pull a Green primary ballot. In 2008, Greens across the state will be able to pull a Green primary ballot, thanks in no small part to Phil's monumental work in attaining ballot access.

In many areas in Illinois, voting in the primary is the only way you can have a voice in who represents you. The districts are so severely gerrymandered and the ballot laws are so oppressive, that the primary oftentimes decides the election. Now that we have ballot access, I look forward to seeing more Greens opposing the unopposed (and the already opposed for that matter!)

Phil is in no uncertain terms a Democrat in Green Clothing. He's one of the most hardworking Greens in Illinois and in the GPUS. He developed our plan to get Whitney and the rest of our statewide slate on the ballot in 2006 and defend our signatures against the Democrats. He ran for State Representative in both 2004 and 2006 - as the Green he is. If he was really so sympathetic to the Democrats, why wouldn't he run with them?

And if you question the credibility of "newly minted Greens" (Terry Campbell, by the way, has been very hardworking and full of ideas since he joined), then I'll let you know I am not too new. I've been involved with the Greens for over 5 years, voted Green since I could, and ran for State Rep last year. I'm a delegate to GPUS and the statewide volunteer coordinator.

I find the entire attack on the "Greenness" of our most dedicated volunteers tired, baseless, and a distraction from all the actual work that could be done.

Tom Abram
Illinois

I am not as salient about Phil Huckleberry. I am not as impressed as some others, but the others in question know Huckleberry much better than I do. That is why I am torn. Ultimately, it doesn't matter a whit what I think of Huckleberry.

But, anyone who doubts that there are folks in the Green Party who are trying to play both sides against the middle are not paying attention. There absolutely are folks involved in the Green Party who's primary goal seems to be influencing the Democrats instead of growing the Green Party.

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Because I have set this blog up so that only I can write pieces here, those I write about are left to make reply, if they are so inclined. I am sure there is some way to allow the general public to create primary posts here, but I have no idea how.

As a result, those I write about are left to submit comments (thank you!) and hope others check out their comments.

Most of the time I let the comments sit where they are. Sometimes I take the comment and turn it into a primary post. That's what I am doing here.

This was posted by Dr. Jared Ball. Out of respect for his right to post on at least something of a level field, I'll make my comment to his message in the comment section. Here's what he wrote in reply to my message:

Interesting how little of this post actually has to do with who i am. Yes, I have a Ph.D. but nobody familiar with my work, academic or otherwise, could possibly suggest this is something that separates me (or is even taken seriously by me) from those 85% i am supposedly removed from. Of course, this author, knowing very little about me, can say nothing about me, my work or the fact that if a qualified woman – who is a member of the party – runs or is nominated ill gladly support her. Ive said as much about either Cynthia McKinney or Elaine Brown (for instance). But deal with me, who i am and why im running before dismissing my rightful attempt to gain the party's nomination, that is, if you are genuinely interested in building a party.

Jared Ball
http://voxunion.com/jaredball

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