Wednesday, July 30, 2008

60 More Small Donors to Get FPC to Denver

Okay, now we're in the homestretch. With less than four weeks to go until we leave for Denver, we need you to really commit to helping us get to Denver. Even if you can only toss us a few bucks, please do it as soon as you can. We want to get things taken care of before prices rise on travel costs and the like. The sooner you donate to us, the less money we have to raise. Pay day is tomorrow or the next day for many people. Please set aside a little bit to help us get to Denver, be it $10, $25, $50 or more.

In our fundraising efforts to attend the Democratic Convention in August, we've decided to focus on a small donor campaign. We originally figured out that it'll take us 240 people contributing $25 each for us to reach what we need to go to Denver and provide you with the best convention coverage in America. We've managed to cut some costs, though, so we've reduced that number a bit. So far, we have the equivalent of 98 ($2460). That means we need only about $1500 more to be able to cover our costs. That's just 60 more $25 donors. We need you to be one of them.

(BTW, if you want a preview of our Denver coverage, check out our Netroots Nation 2008 Coverage).

Go to PayPal and donate through our Florida Progressive Coalition account (quinnelk@gmail.com), or you can write a check to Florida Progressive Coalition and send it to me:

Kenneth Quinnell
3328 Whirlaway Trail
Tallahassee, FL 32309

You can also inquire about advertising by sending me an e-mail. FPC is a media entity set up as an LLC, so we don't fall under campaign finance laws and contributions are not tax-deductible. But they do go to a good cause.

If we don't get the 60 donations we still need, someone will have to stay home and miss the convention. That shouldn't happen, as there's no need for your $25 to prevent someone from going, so give as soon and as often as you can.

We'll also publicly thank all of the donors, so let us know if you wish to remain anonymous or pseudonymous. Our latest contributions came from:

Rosa Castro Feinberg
Leslie Scales
Ed Luscinskas
Edwin Wujciak
Ellyn Stevenson
Ben Kirby
Katherine Howard
Linda Miklowitz
Roxane Dow
Shirley Zahn
Susan & Kenneth McLeod
Norma Washington
Ray & Delphine Herbert
Nancy Noonan

You can read more about Florida Progressive Coalition's fundraiser and Democratic Convention Coverage if you'd like.

Monday, July 28, 2008

Adventures in "Big Waffle"

Ladies and Gentleman and those still confused, I had a dream last night and when I woke up, it frightened me. I went to bed thinking about how much the United States of Belgium hates us. Think about it Citizens, what happened whenBritian, Russia, Japan, Vietnam, and Korea got mad at us or vice versa? We went to war and they attacked us. They attacked our men and our Nations patriotism. Remember when "guerilla warfare" was invented? Well we are dealing with is a new type of warfare, something only seen in acient times and in the movies. See while we were looking Iraq dead in the eye, going for the victory that we all want so bad and just around the corner from getting, then all of a sudden BigWaffel hits us from both sides stealing our livelyhood and one of our GREATEST AMERICAN icons. Because I think it fits and I love the movie, I call it "Raptor Warfare". I woke up and started thinking about what other things "Big Waffle" could steal from us tocompleatly rip away all of our AMERICAN way of life, so here are the top five


5.)Porn - Let me ask you something, you know on the last clear night, when that illegal hookup you have was comming in pretty clear, and it was about 11:43 at night and you caught the "Naughty" channel? Through the somewhat fuzzy screen, you saw him rubbing something all over her and it was pretty amazing.Thats body oil you thought, or maby Whipped Cream. as you get closer to the T.V., you notice that you have never seen whipped cream come in a container like that. Then. just for a momentary lapse, you notice........HUNGRY JACK IS HAVING A FIELD DAY ALL OVER THIS WOMAN!!! Look other countries may have invented it, but we perfected it.


4.)Baseball-O.K. Let me ask you something, You go to the ballgame, get your program, sit in your seat, and name the to three vendors that are walking around. Coke, Bud and....PRALINES?!?! WHERE IN THE HELL ARE MY CRACKER JACKS?!?! DAMN IT BIG WAFFLE STRIKES AGAIN!! OH THE HUMANITY!! Speaking of which.


3.)BEER- The invasion has already begun.(See previous posts) By the way the new official AMERICAN beer, as voted on by AMERICAN college students, is now.........Samual Adams.(More to come later.)


2.)Apple Pie- This tasty little AMERICAN treat is the pinnacle of AMERICANA life. Just think about it, back at the end of WWII, when or fighten' boys came home, what was sitting in the window ledge Apple Pie, When little Timmy comes in from playing a friendly game of neighborhood baseball, what is for dessert? Apple Pie. When I finish my quarter pounder with cheese(Royal with cheese for you overseas group)(Ketchup only) What do I want next, my APPLE PIE! If the Belginiums want to attack my soul reason for living, they will attack my pie. I will surrender struddle to them, but never my pie!

1.)THE ALAMO- Citizens, this is our last stand. If we have one last great icon of America it is the Alamo. We let our enemy think that they beat us there but they really didn't cause obviously, as General Sam Houston said" I want Texas!" Well as red as the state is, it very well be the last stronghold we have as an AMERICAN Icon.

So Ladies and Gentlemen in closing, I ask you for one thing,
" REMEMBER THE ALAMO "

Stay Safe Citizens
Legend Killer

Sunday, July 27, 2008

McCain Hates History, Troops Serving in Afghanistan

McCain said Iraq was the first major conflict after 9/11. I wonder what the people serving in Afghanistan and their families think about that?

McCain Loves Castro


The St. Louis Post Dispatch reported InBev has "570 full-time workers and 44 percent share of the Cuban beer market flowing from its brewery in Holguin, Cuba." [St. Louis Post Dispatch, 7/24/08]


McCain's family holdings include Anheuser's Arizona distributorship and McCain is going to make nearly $2 million on InBev's takeover. And he'll have a direct line into the Cuban dictatorship through his business holdings. Will he sell it or will he tell Cubans to go screw themselves?

Action Alerts

Send an e-mail: Drilling in Sensitive Areas (TWS)

Send an e-mail: S.3212: A Step Backward for Voting System Transparency (VV)

Send an e-mail: Urge Senate to Recognize Suffragist Alice Paul with a Congressional Gold Medal (NOW)

Send an e-mail: Why does the US keep poisoning our children? (UFW)

Send an e-mail: Hold Karl Rove In Contempt (PFAW)

Send an e-mail: NO EXCUSES - Women Deserve Fair Pay (NOW)

Send an e-mail: The NRA Wants Loaded Guns in Parks. What do YOU Want? (NPCA)

Donate money: Help us lay the groundwork for change (ARAW)

Donate money: Please make a tax-deductible contribution to help Amnesty draw worldwide attention to the plight of thousands of Chinese citizens who have been silenced against their will (AI)

Donate money: Help us Recapture the Flag! (CC)

Donate money: Access to birth control for millions of women is under attack (NARAL)

McCain Hates Veterans

Apparently McCain wants to ration health care for veterans. That's just plain wrong. This isn't a zero-sum game, it's quite easy for us to afford to take care of all of our veterans, just like we said we would when they signed up. Shame on McCain.

WTF? McCain Now Supports A Timetable?

McCain on timetables:


BLITZER: So Why do you think he said that 16 months is basically a pretty good timetable?

MCCAIN: He said it's a pretty good timetable based on conditions on the ground. I think it's a pretty good timetable, as we should -- or horizons for withdrawal. But they have to be based on conditions on the ground.


I basically agree with this statement, but McCain doesn't:

MCCAIN YESTERDAY: “Speaking at a town hall meeting here, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee said that Obama, even after visiting Iraq, was showing ‘a remarkable failure to understand the facts on the ground’ by continuing to call for a withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq on a fixed timetable.” [Atlanta Journal Constitution, July 24, 2008]

MCCAIN LAST WEEK: “An artificial timetable based on political expediency would have led to disaster and could still turn success into defeat,” Mr. McCain said. [New York Times, 7/19/08]

MCCAIN DURING THE PRIMARIES: Later, McCain turned his fire on Democrats, including Obama and Sen. Hillary Clinton, accusing them of endangering Americans by advocating a specific timetable for withdrawal. "It would be an unconscionable act of betrayal, a stain on our character as a great nation, if we were to walk away from the Iraqi people and consign them to the horrendous violence, ethnic cleansing and possibly genocide that would follow a reckless, irresponsible and premature withdrawal," he said in a California speech.

McCain Loves the Big Oil Money

I wonder why he flip-flopped on offshore drilling:


Campaign contributions from oil industry executives to Sen. John McCain rose dramatically in the last half of June, after the senator from Arizona made a high-profile split with environmentalists and reversed his opposition to the federal ban on offshore drilling.

Oil and gas industry executives and employees donated $1.1 million to McCain last month -- three-quarters of which came after his June 16 speech calling for an end to the ban -- compared with $116,000 in March, $283,000 in April and $208,000 in May.


This is wrong on so many levels and is filled with hypocrisy from a so-called supporter of campaign finance laws.

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Tools of the Trade -- Netroots Nation

Tools of the Trade will be a regular Tuesday feature on the blog, but I got a bit behind this week.

I'm a big fan of Netroots Nation. In addition to the basic concept of trying to gather as many bloggers and Netroots activists together in one place, which is a great idea, there are so many things available for anyone who attends the convention that it's difficult to know where to begin.

One of the key offerings were the 90 or so informational and training sessions. From the DFA training school, to issues-specific sessions on any issue you can think of from Iraq to the subprime crisis, to blogging on military affairs or at the state level, to hot elections to learning to infuse comedy and improve in your work, pretty much anything you wanted to learn about, you could.

There was also a day filled with caucuses for various bloggers and activists based on demographics, favorite blogs, issues and various other topics (such as the "Geek" caucus). And if you couldn't find a session or caucus that you liked, you had the option of creating your own, there were two dedicated rooms that people could use to create self-organizing caucuses.

Throughout the even there were a number of keynote speeches. Thursday offered both an outdoor rally and a keynote speech with Howard Dean, Friday offered the battle of wits between Markos Moulitsas and Harold Ford, the latter who was booed when he praised Fox News, Saturday morning Nancy Pelosi answered questions, Al Gore did as well, Donna Edwards gave the evening keynote, Lawrence Lessig gave a wildly entertaining lunch keynote and on Sunday Van Jones and Gavin Newsom were on tap. Sprinkled throughout were appearances by local politicians, prominent bloggers and hilarious comedians such as Baratunde Thurston and Katie Halper.

You could also spend a lot of time in the exhibition hall, where hundreds of blogs, nonprofits, interest groups and businesses set up booths to inform people about their mission, provide demonstrations, give out literature and reports on numerous issues, sign up members, give away free bumper stickers, buttons and other swag, sell books and t-shirts and engage in the ever-present exchange of business cards.

And then there were the parties, oh the parties. There were too many of them to count and most of them were good. Many of them offered free drinks and/or food and most of them had great groups of people at them. There were big parties like the Netroots Candidates event (that featured three Florida candidates Annette Taddeo, Alan Grayson and Joe Garcia) with more than 1,000 people, a mixer with various authors of progressive books, the already-legendary party at Maggie May's, the celebrity bartender event, and the nightly parties in the DFA suite.

The point of the parties wasn't just fun, though, it was all about networking. Where else can you get to have breakfast with Joe Garcia and Markos Moulitsas and they actually listen to you? Where else can you have conversations with hugely popular national candidates like Darcy Burner and Donna Edwards. Where else can you be walking down the hall and bump into Bob Barr (seriously, what the hell was Bob Barr doing there?) More importantly, this is a place where you get to interact with as many different bloggers and Netroots activists as you want to. It's where you get to put names to faces and learn about what successes and failures people have in other states. It's where you meet so many people who are doing amazing things that you grab every business card, e-mail and phone number you can because you can't possibly remember it all. It's where you go to get re-inspired and to come away with new ideas and new approaches to accomplishing the things you want to accomplish.

And there were a host of other happenings that I never even had a chance to get to, from the numerous original films that were screened on site for free, the care package for the troops event, a Sunday morning interfaith service, the Pub Quiz, a career fair and other multimedia presentations.

Now, I will say that Netroots Nation isn't without its critics, but like many things, the convention is what you make of it. If you want it to be a fantastic learning and networking experience, it will be. If you want it to be something else, it can be that, too, for good or bad. With more than 2,500 participants this year, I'd say it's safe to wager that there were more than 2,500 different experiences, no two alike, and very few that didn't involve significant increases in knowledge and contacts, or at least a good time. I got all three.

157 Small Donors to Go

In our fundraising efforts to attend the Democratic Convention in August, we've decided to focus on a small donor campaign. We figured out that it'll take us 240 people contributing $25 each for us to reach what we need to go to Denver and provide you with the best convention coverage in America. So far, we have the equivalent of 83 ($2085), leaving us 157 to go. Anyone reading this should be able to donate $25 to help us get there.

(BTW, if you want a preview of our Denver coverage, check out our Netroots Nation 2008 Coverage).

Go to PayPal and donate through our Florida Progressive Coalition account (quinnelk@gmail.com), or you can write a check to Florida Progressive Coalition and send it to me:

Kenneth Quinnell
3328 Whirlaway Trail
Tallahassee, FL 32309

You can also inquire about advertising by sending me an e-mail. FPC is a media entity set up as an LLC, so we don't fall under campaign finance laws and contributions are not tax-deductible. But they do go to a good cause.

If we don't get the 157 donations we still need, someone will have to stay home and miss the convention. That shouldn't happen, as there's no need for your $25 to prevent someone from going, so give as soon and as often as you can.

We'll also publicly thank all of the donors, so let us know if you wish to remain anonymous or pseudonymous. Our latest contributions came from:

Betsy Angert

You can read more about Florida Progressive Coalition's fundraiser and Democratic Convention Coverage if you'd like.

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Winners & Losers

Winner: Annette Taddeo, Joe Garcia & Alan Grayson - All three were big hits at Netroots Nation.

Winner: The progressive blogosphere - Learning and networking combined with growing access and influence makes us a bigger and bigger force in American politics.

Winner: State and local bloggers - The fertile new ground in the Netroots revolution.

Loser: Conservative bloggers - Their "convention" in Austin had 1/5th the attendance of the liberal convention.

Loser: Bob Barr - He's grasping for a last few minutes of fame, but he's an unimportant man.

Loser: Harold Ford - Combative, heckled and just plain wrong at Netroots Nation.

The Road to the White House

What are Florida bloggers saying about the presidential race? Here are the top 5 posts from yesterday...

1. becoming change: john mc-cant solve america's problems...

2. Blast Off!: Variation on a theme

3. BlueHerald 2.0 (QuestionGirl): A Nation of Idiots.......

4. Incertus (Brian): Desperate for attention?

5. Pushing Rope: Without Borders

Action Alerts

The latest action alerts from Florida and around the country.

Send an e-mail: No to Offshore Drilling, Yes to Energy Innovation (EDF)

Sign the petition: Invest, Don't Drill (AA)

Send an e-mail: Birth Control Pills Are Not Abortion (NPFW&F)

Send an e-mail: Demand a Strong Consumer Bill Today (PC)

Send an e-mail: End sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (AI)

Send an e-mail: Urge Your Senator to Defend Scientific Integrity (UCS)

Send an e-mail: Senator John McCain: Ban all torture, no exceptions (TM)

Donate money: When Will Congress Ban Dangerous Toys? (U.S. PIRG)

Donate money: I want to help end biomedical research and testing on chimps (THS)

Donate money: Support Recapture the Flag (CC)

Sign the petition: Send Karl Rove to Jail (Credo)

Sign the petition: Support a National Wolf Recovery Plan (DOW)

Action Alerts

Send an e-mail: Put Pressure on Lowe's (Progress Florida)

Donate money: Stop Irresponsible Drilling (LCV)

Sign the petition: Stop the Mahan Massacre (Progress Florida)

Send an e-mail: Release Our Oil Today, Reduce Oil Consumption Tomorrow (CAP)

Send an e-mail: Speak out to end the civil use of highly enriched uranium (NRDC)

Make a phone call: Respond to Michael Savage's Autism Comments (MM)

Send an e-mail: Tell the Democratic & Republican Parties: End the War in Iraq Now, No New War in Iran! (UPJ)

Donate money: Get Congress to Ban Dangerous Toys (US PIRG)

Send an e-mail: Tell the Census Bureau: Stick to the Facts and Stop Playing Politics (PFAW)

Send a letter to the editor: TELL YOUR NEWSPAPERS WE CANNOT "MUDDLE THROUGH" AFGHANISTAN (VV)

Sign the petition: Tell McCain: Viagra is not more important than birth control (Credo)

Sign the petition: Ask for a guarantee of quality affordable health care for all (HCN)

Sign the petition: Support Protection Plan for Stellwagen Marine Ecosystem (ORI)

Sign the petition: Let Washington Vote - Support Equal Rights for D.C. (DCV)

Monday, July 21, 2008

Daily Humor

Today's reason to laugh...

How to Honor the Bush Legacy

29 Guesses

Why does McCain favor Big Oil?

Netroots Nation Coverage

Here is a complete round-up of our coverage of Netroots Nation and the coverage done by other Floridians (or about topics relevant to Floridians)...

Florida Progressive Coalition/Florida Speaks Coverage

*NN08: Taking the Populist Uprising to the States
*NN08: Donna Edwards
*NN08: Marketing and Monetizing Your Progressive Blog
*NN08: Lawrence Lessig
*NN08: Ask the Speaker with Nancy Pelosi and Al Gore
*NN08: Working from the Inside Out: Success Stories in Netroots Organizing
*NN08: DFA Caucus
*NN08: Different Tones and Wider Nets
*NN08: Howard Dean
*NN08: Wesley Clark
*NN08 Update
*NN08: DFA Training - Volunteer Recruitment, Management & Development

Radio Shows from Netroots Nation

*Jeffrey Feldman (coming tomorrow)
*More From Netroots Nation: "The Big Show": Joe Garcia, Candidate, FL Congress, District 25
*Live From Netroots Nation: "The Big Show" Jim Dean, Chairman, Democracy for America
*Live from Netroots Nation: Howard Dean and the "Register For Change" Rally
*Live From Netroots Nation: "The Big Show" Arshad Hasan, Executive Director for Democracy for America
*Interview with Gina Cooper - Alison Morano Reports from Netroots Nation

Coverage from Other Florida Blogs

*BeThink: Netroots Nation 2008; A Dream Realized
*MadFloridian: Live from Netroots Nation in Austin: Markos vs Harold Ford
*Discourse.net: NN08: Annette Taddeo Is a 'Future Leader'
*Achieving Our Country: Showing It To The Speaker
*Discourse.net: Joe Garcia is Cool
*Miami-Dade Dems: Netroots pal
*Discourse.net: Matt Stoller Talks Sense About Obama's Fundraising
*Discourse.net: Off to Netroots Nation
*Miami-Dade Dems: Finally in Austin: Netroots Nation starts on Thursday

Coverage from other states with some Florida content

*Daily Kos: Pittsburgh Bound
*Daily Kos: NN08: Tell Us What You Thought
*The Trail: What Do the Netroots Want? Straw Poll Offers Answers
*Open Left: Netroots Nation
*Pam's House Blend: Netroots Nation: livestreaming - your blogmistress
*SquareState: Netroots Nation State Blog Caucus

180 Small Donors to Go

In our fundraising efforts to attend the Democratic Convention in August, we've decided to focus on a small donor campaign. We figured out that it'll take us 240 people contributing $25 each for us to reach what we need to go to Denver and provide you with the best convention coverage in America. So far, we have the equivalent of 60 ($1500), leaving us 180 to go. Anyone reading this should be able to donate $25 to help us get there.

(BTW, if you want a preview of our Denver coverage, check out our Netroots Nation 2008 Coverage).

Go to PayPal and donate through our Florida Progressive Coalition account (quinnelk@gmail.com), or you can write a check to Florida Progressive Coalition and send it to me:

Kenneth Quinnell
3328 Whirlaway Trail
Tallahassee, FL 32309

You can also inquire about advertising by sending me an e-mail. FPC is a media entity set up as an LLC, so we don't fall under campaign finance laws and contributions are not tax-deductible. But they do go to a good cause.

If we don't get the 180 donations we still need, someone will have to stay home and miss the convention. That shouldn't happen, as there's no need for your $25 to prevent someone from going, so give as soon and as often as you can.

We'll also publicly thank all of the donors, so let us know if you wish to remain anonymous or pseudonymous. Our latest contributions came from:

John Cosgrove
Vicki
Sheree Shatsky
Impact Politics
Allison Macdonald
Nancy Barlow
James O'Gara
Adam Trebrugge
Sandra Fernandez
Toni Craig
Nirmal Mankani

Here's the full pitch:

As you may already know, Florida Progressive Coalition has been selected as Florida's official blogger representative at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. We take this as an honor that we will do our best to live up to. We can't do it alone, though, we need your help. Before I ask for that, though, let me tell you what we'll be bringing you. The official schedule for the convention hasn't been set yet, but I attended the convention in 2004 and there has been some info released about what will happen. And now that the news networks are declaring that the convention is a "non-news event" you won't know much about what happens in Denver. Or if you read the extensive coverage that Florida Progressive Coalition will bring you.

We're sending a delegation of eight people to Denver (we'll start introducing them to you via the blog and radio show over the next few weeks). While the group isn't quite as diverse as we'd like, it is more diverse than many other state blog delegations. We're one of the few groups that will be bringing an African-American. We also have three people under 25 in attendance and a few who are old enough to not want their ages mentioned here. We have more men than women, but we have more women that most states. We have North, Central and South Florida covered. We have people from urban and from rural counties. We have experienced bloggers and newbies. And unlike the process in some other states, we opened our delegation up to anyone who requested it and could make the trip. We'll also be working with a few other bloggers or blogger-friendly people who are delegates or will otherwise be attending the convention.

So what does that mean? That we have a virtual army of people to cover the convention. We can spread out our people at as many of the events possible and provide you the broadest and most in-depth coverage of the convention anywhere. Florida Progressive Coalition has done a lot of liveblogging in the past, so we have several experienced people who will do that during the more notable events and speeches. We'll also send our members to the various committee meetings, including the Credentials Committee, which will decide the final fate of the voting power of the Florida delegation. We'll blog that one live and you'll probably here the outcome from us before you hear it from anyone else in the world.

We'll bring you coverage of the Florida delegation breakfast meeting, which will be loaded with speakers. Because of Florida's stature as a swing state, we attract many high profile people. In addition to the best of the best of Florida politicians, we'll get top members of Congress, the Obama team and elsewhere in politics. In Boston in 2004, the delegate breakfasts featured guests like Bob Graham, Michael Moore, Elizabeth Edwards and Max Cleland, amongst many others.

We'll bring you live coverage of the many training sessions that will go on during the convention as well as constituency caucus meetings. We'll bring you coverage of the debate and discussion on the party's national platform. We'll bring you wall-to-wall coverage of speeches and events from the floor of the convention. We'll bring you coverage of Barack Obama's historic acceptance speech at mile high stadium.

But we'll go beyond simple the high profile events. We'll introduce you to the delegates from Florida with personal profiles. We'll do live radio shows from Denver and try to get some guests we might not normally get. We'll report from the multitude of unofficial events surrounding the convention, such as the things that happen in the bloggers' Big Tent. We'll give you a nightly group round-up of what were the best and worst things we saw that day and we'll bring you a taste of the parties and other social events as well.

So that's what you'll get. How will we get it to you? Through your contributions. We need to raise $6000 to cover the costs of the trip. Are whole delegation will be raising the money and we'll do it through advertising sales, sponsorships and through small donations. Go to PayPal and donate through our Florida Progressive Coalition account (quinnelk@gmail.com), or you can write a check to Florida Progressive Coalition and send it to me:

Kenneth Quinnell
3328 Whirlaway Trail
Tallahassee, FL 32309

You can also inquire about advertising by sending me an e-mail. FPC is a media entity set up as an LLC, so we don't fall under campaign finance laws and contributions are not tax-deductible. But they do go to a good cause. You'll help pay for the most meaningful political experience of several people's young lives, you'll be training the next generation of Florida leaders and you'll pay helping us provide the best coverage of the convention in the entire country.

No donation is too small. Six $1000 contributions work out to be the same as 6000 $1 contributions. I'm sure you can do something in between.

Saturday, July 19, 2008

NN08: Donna Edwards

Okay. Last Netroots Nation event. Blogged live from mt blackberry, so it'll be a bit slow and may have a few typos.

The netroots and grasroots, she says, were responsible for her win.

Bloggers changed the entire landscape.

We let someone into the insider club who represents working people and women and African-Americans, etc.

Bloggers sent a message to the Democratic Party and Democratic Congress that we must have better Democrats.

She says that the internet is democratizing politics.

We need more Democrats, for sure, but we MUST have better Democrats.

She's proud to be a member of the vast left-wing conspiracy.

Edwards mentioned that she needs more help and that there are a lot of great candidates out there. I yelled out Joe Garcia and she agreed with me and repeated his name, agreeing with me that Joe is a great candidate.

She says she can afford the $50 fill-up, but what about the average person who can't?

She is very strongly opposed to driiling off Florida for more oil.

We want a health care system that isn't about propping up the insurance industry.

NN08: Lawrence Lessig

12:51: Lessig has a good multimedia presentation with it, very, very entertaining. Hopefully you can see the whole thing online.

12:54: Lessig says a big part of the problem is: Socialized risk, privatized benefits.

12:59: Trust is built by keeping money off the table. Money poisons trust. Trust is the key we need to focus on.

1:04: He mentioned a movie called "Maxed Out," which talks about the issues related to credit card debt.

1:05: Under current law, Enron and similar companies are able to run up huge debts and get out of them, but people can't get out from under credit card debt.

1:08: Favorable views of Congress will soon be within the margin of error within 0% and money is a big part of the problem. They won't regain that trust until we do something about the money.

1:12: How much less money would be influencing decisions if there were public funding of public elections.

1:17: The government gets easy public policy questions wrong because of the distorting effect of money in Washington.

1:19: The subtle corruption of the private money system makes good people do bad things.

1:20: Bloggers and net activists are central to solving the problem.

1:22: Freedom of the press as envisioned by the founders was less CNN/Fox/New York Times and more the pamphlet-style work (think Thomas Paine) that is being done by bloggers.

1:25: There is extraordinary opportunity to do something now before they destroy what's being done. Change Congress was created to seize this opportunity and change Congress.

1:30: Today they'll be launching a blogger council, they're sending out a letter to each candidate/member of Congress requesting them to take a stance on their reform platform and then put the info on their website. They need people to contribute to the campaign. Just say 9. When you contribute, make sure the donations end with .09 (9 cents), so we can track what people are doing and so we can send a message.

1:35: Quoting Al Gore: "To solve the climate crisis, we have to solve our democracy crisis." This goes well beyond simply the climate crisis. This isn't the most important problem to deal with, it's the first one. We can't solve the other problems we face until we solve the money problem that causes the democracy crisis.

NN08: Ask the Speaker

9:00: Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi will be joining us shortly, apparently she's running a little late. The Code Pink ladies are in the room all dressed as superheroes with the message: "It doesn't take a superhero to stop George Bush." Bush is here, too, dressed in prison fatigues and chains. As well he should be.

9:15: Finally getting started, Gina Cooper is doing the intro, explaining the origins of the "Ask the Speaker" event. Lloyd Doggett, a Texas congressman, is up first. He has introduced Pelosi to a standing ovation. Good to see that the Netroots can disagree with someone and still support them, much like Markos did when he was on with David Gregory yesterday. Gregory tried to paint Markos into a corner repeatedly, with the goal of getting Markos to criticize Obama and Markos wouldn't give Gregory the soundbite he wanted.

9:31: Pelosi says that the primary reason the war hasn't ended yet is that Bush has vetoed their attempts and the Senate Republicans have filibustered it.

9:33: She says we should continued to be persistent, committed and dissatisfied that things haven't gotten to where we want to yet.

9:36: Pelosi said that the contempt charges against Bush administration officials, such as Karl Rove, for defying Congress are now in the hands of John Conyers and the judiciary committee.

9:38: She says that once 17 Democrats in the Senate caved on FISA, that her options were limited so she went for the best bill she could.

9:45: Good line: The bigger our victories in the elections, the more bipartisanship you'll see in Congress.

9:47: Pelosi says that science and innovation are the keys to the party's vision of what America should be. This means better health care, better education, rebuilding our infrastructure, and energy security in a green way.

9:54: She says that she doesn't think Congress is going to bail out GM. She says we should help the workers and retirees, but not the shareholders who made a bad investment.

9:57: Pelosi opposes abstinence-only sex ed programs and says they are dangerous to the health of young people, particularly women.

10:05: She says she supports net neutrality and expanding broadband access to areas that don't have it, including rural areas.

10:13: Al Gore is in the house!

10:14: Gore says it's important for bloggers to continue what they are doing with the creativity that we're showing.

10:16: Even more important, he says, than many of the constitutional protections we have to prevent corruption and bad government is a well-informed citizenry. He thanks us for our role in making that happen.

10:22: Gore says the idea that we can drill our way out of our energy problems is absurd. They are offering a "hair of the dog" solution to our oil problems -- we have a shortage of oil, let's go get more oil. He says instead, that when we are in a hole, stop digging.

10:24: The defenders of the status quo are the ones who got us in this hole. We need to transform our energy-supply grid completely within the next 10 years. We don't need to increase oil drilling now, which will only produce oil in 10-15 years, which'll only be sold to China anyway.

10:28: The Alliance for Climate Protection is working on changing this problem. He wants us all to join the We Campaign. Stop reading this now and go sign up. Now. Go. Are you signed up yet? No, then what are you waiting for? Go.

10:35: Gore says that he doesn't think that the best use of his time is to take a government position in an Obama administration. Instead he thinks his best approach to solving problems is through creating a new climate of being able to discuss and pursue change, so he's focused on that through the We campaign and Current.tv.

10:36: He says that the idea of turning coal into liquid fuel for our cars is insane. And he says that mountain-top mining is an atrocity.

10:41: Pelosi thanked Gore for his devotion to the future and that the enemies of progress are not even in the present, they're wedded to the past.

10:45: Pelosi says that we need to end speculation, drill only in areas that are environmentally sound and release no more than 10% of the strategic oil reserves.

10:52: Pelosi says Gore's challenge for 100% change to renewable energy resources in the next 10 years is completely possible.

10:55: As an aside, Pelosi has done a great job of making sure that everyone's questions get answered, even when moderators try to move along.

10:56: Pelosi says No Child Left Behind won't be renewed this year.

10:58: Gore says that one of the many problems with using nuclear power is that it means putting potential weapons-creation facilities in parts of the world we don't want them. We should be helping poor countries convert to renewable energy sources.

Thursday, July 17, 2008

NN08: DFA Caucus

Arshad Hasan specifically talked about the process for DFA endorsements that involves talking to grassroots people on the ground in the area and trusting them. He even specifically gave a shout-out to Susan S. about a recent endorsement.

Several DFA-endorsed candidates have dropped by to talk to the caucus – Darcy Burner & Charlie Brown.

Burner talked about how important the work the DFA chapters are doing is.

Brown talked about how grassroots action and fundraising have really made his race a legitimately competitive race in a formerly strongly Republican district. He told us to keep working at it and never give up, because what we're doing works.

Jim Dean thanked a lot of people for the hard work that they do, but pointed out that it is the hard work of registering voters and knocking on doors that will change the country and that are a lot of DFA people around the country who are making these things happen.

Brown would like to see every candidate around the country donate 5% of their campaign funds to help veterans in their communities. He's doing it and others could do it to.

DFA is planning their training schedule for 2009 and Tallahassee is going to apply.

NN08: Howard Dean

9:00: Dean says John McCain represents another four years of Bush. We want real change in America. Even small towns like Crawford, Texas (where Dean was earlier in the day) need change and we're going to bring it to them.

9:02: Dean: If it wasn't for the netroots nation,we wouldn't have a majority in Congress today.

9:02: The best way to guarantee election integrity is to make sure that we have Democratic secretaries of state who have actual principles and are dedicated to fair, honest and accurate elections.

9:03: When Obama wins, he'll be the president for all Americans, not just those who agree with him.

9:23: The Internet is a much better place to get your news than the traditional media.

9:24: In grading people's participation, an "A" only goes to those people who themselves run for office.

NN08: Wesley Clark

8:17: Clark says that the bloggers are the ones who really tell the truth and that he owes a lot to them.

8:20: He only ran for president because people on the Internet made it possible and pushed him to do it.

8:22: The voices of bloggers helped lead to the meeting today in Europe where the Bush administration is meeting directly with representatives of the Iranian government in order to work out the problems between the two countries.

8:24: "You'll never get Americans to believe that Democrats will defend them until Democrats stand up and defend each other."

8:25: "We have to make more friends and fewer enemies in the world."

8:26: Our economy can't be about getting more perks and pay to CEOs, we need to help the working people instead.

8:27: Everyone who wants to college should be able to go. Every American has a right to health care.

8:32: Clark says that bloggers are very important for the future of America. The Netroots are leaders and they can lead us forward toward positive change.

NN08: DFA Training - Volunteer Recruitment, Management & Development

9:00 (Central Time): This session is lead by Matt Blizek of DFA.

9:10: People you recruit are not just for the current campaign, but they are building the base for future recruiting and activism in the future.

9:12: The key is "The Ask." You have to go out and find people and persuade them to invest their time in your cause.

9:13: You are not asking people to do you a favor, you are giving people an opportunity to better their community, state and country. You have to get over the fear of asking people to participate.

9:14: Most people will say no (75-80%). If everyone you ask says "yes," then you aren't asking enough people. Ask yourself why you're involved and use that as a basis to convince others.

9:15: Find out what motivates people and focus on that in your recruitment activities, whether it be excitement about the candidate or opposition to the other side or whatever. Other motives: issues, ideology, partisanship, social interaction. Ask them why they are there.

9:18: If your volunteers are having fun, they'll come back and they'll bring others.

9:19: First,set some goals. How many volunteers do you need? What do you need them to do? Start with a needs assessment that includes everything you could possibly need.

9:22: Volunteers are making a contribution to the campaign. You have to have something for them to do, don't waste their contribution. No volunteer should ever be standing around doing nothing.

9:25: We really should be keeping track of the data that people obtain when canvassing and things like that to help us maximize future efforts in the same area. Keep track of info such as how far apart houses are, etc.

9:27: The rule of halves: You can only count on half the people who say they are going to do something to actually show up and do it.

9:28: Five C's for any ask: 1. Connect with people. 2. Context. 3. Commitment. 4. Catapult. 5. Confirm.

9:29: Who do you ask? 1. Friends, family, co-workers, people you have a personal connection with. 2. Previous volunteers. 3. Reach out to organizations: unions, interest groups, student groups, high schools, etc. 4. Any large-scale event have table, sign-up sheet, and ask large numbers of people.

9:32: The more personal the interaction, the higher the success rate. Face-to-face asks have the highest success rate, but they take a lot of time. Phone is probably the best bang for the buck. E-mail has a very low rate of success, but can get to more people quickly and cheaply. The best approach is to blend your tactics.

9:34: Busy people are more likely to volunteer than non-busy people.

9:36: The most powerful recruitment tool: Energy and enthusiasm.

9:38: In the ask, give some personal information. Matt starts off with his full name, where he's from and what organization he works with. Using a title can be an effective tool as well, the person may feel more important if someone with a title is calling them.

9:43: Have your volunteers bring in others using their own connections.

9:44: Provide the context behind what it is that you want them to do. Let them know how valuable/important what they are doing will be towards your success.

9:46: You have to get them to commit. To get a solid commitment, you have to make a solid ask. Wishy-washy questions get wishy-washy answers. When the what, when and where are locked in, then you have a commitment.

9:50: Catapult them into the commitment. Find ways to break down the inevitable excuses. When they commit, show a lot of excitement (not fake excitement, however). Try to hook them in with one other little ask ("We're ordering pizza, what do you like on your pizza?" "We're relying on volunteers to bring in some supplies, could you bring in some pens." "Could you stop by and pick up Bob who needs a ride?").

9:54: Call and confirm the commitments the day before. (Again, connect and/or context should be included in the call).

9:55: Follow up on those who didn't show up, find out what happened. Get them to commit to something else. Learn if there were problems (such as bad directions, etc.) that prevented them from coming.

9:58: Be careful of an over-ask. Don't overwhelm the shaky commitment by asking them for too much more than what they've already committed to.

9:59: You need one person to be the contact/person in charge of volunteers. Don't do it by committee. This person should always have something for volunteers to do.

10:01: One hour of volunteer work is worth $36 according to non-profit studies.

10:01: The first experience is crucial for both keeping the volunteer and for getting them to talk to other people about the campaign in the future.

10:03: You need a volunteer database that includes information such as: Who, contact info, skills, when they're available, memberships in organizations (who do they know?), etc.

10:08: Be creative in recognizing your best volunteers.

Plan for Liveblogging

Okay, here's how the liveblogging plan will work for Netroots Nation. Anything I post about that relates to general activism or state-level blogging will be posted both here and at Florida Progressive Coalition. If it only deals with national politics, then it will only be posted here. The first session will start shortly.

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Daily Humor

Today's reason to laugh...

Rejected New Yorker Cover Art

New Yorker

Via South Florida Daily Blog

198 Small Donors to Go

In our fundraising efforts to attend the Democratic Convention in August, we've decided to focus on a small donor campaign. We figured out that it'll take us 240 people contributing $25 each for us to reach what we need to go to Denver and provide you with the best convention coverage in America. So far, we have the equivalent of 42 ($1050), leaving us 198 to go. Anyone reading this should be able to donate $25 to help us get there.

Go to PayPal and donate through our Florida Progressive Coalition account (quinnelk@gmail.com), or you can write a check to Florida Progressive Coalition and send it to me:

Kenneth Quinnell
3328 Whirlaway Trail
Tallahassee, FL 32309

You can also inquire about advertising by sending me an e-mail. FPC is a media entity set up as an LLC, so we don't fall under campaign finance laws and contributions are not tax-deductible. But they do go to a good cause.

If we don't get the 198 donations we still need, someone will have to stay home and miss the convention. That shouldn't happen, as there's no need for your $25 to prevent someone from going, so give as soon and as often as you can.

We'll also publicly thank all of the donors, so let us know if you wish to remain anonymous or pseudonymous. Our first two contributions came from:

Roz/Don Moffett
Alison Berke Morano
Rick Spisak
Susan Smith
James Henry
Mark Glickman
Candace Palmer
Mr. & Ms. Hope
Alan Farago
Ray Seaman
Lori Poole
Annette Odom
N. Todd Pritsky & Ericka
Mike
Maria Szabo

Here's the full pitch:

As you may already know, Florida Progressive Coalition has been selected as Florida's official blogger representative at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. We take this as an honor that we will do our best to live up to. We can't do it alone, though, we need your help. Before I ask for that, though, let me tell you what we'll be bringing you. The official schedule for the convention hasn't been set yet, but I attended the convention in 2004 and there has been some info released about what will happen. And now that the news networks are declaring that the convention is a "non-news event" you won't know much about what happens in Denver. Or if you read the extensive coverage that Florida Progressive Coalition will bring you.

We're sending a delegation of eight people to Denver (we'll start introducing them to you via the blog and radio show over the next few weeks). While the group isn't quite as diverse as we'd like, it is more diverse than many other state blog delegations. We're one of the few groups that will be bringing an African-American. We also have three people under 25 in attendance and a few who are old enough to not want their ages mentioned here. We have more men than women, but we have more women that most states. We have North, Central and South Florida covered. We have people from urban and from rural counties. We have experienced bloggers and newbies. And unlike the process in some other states, we opened our delegation up to anyone who requested it and could make the trip. We'll also be working with a few other bloggers or blogger-friendly people who are delegates or will otherwise be attending the convention.

So what does that mean? That we have a virtual army of people to cover the convention. We can spread out our people at as many of the events possible and provide you the broadest and most in-depth coverage of the convention anywhere. Florida Progressive Coalition has done a lot of liveblogging in the past, so we have several experienced people who will do that during the more notable events and speeches. We'll also send our members to the various committee meetings, including the Credentials Committee, which will decide the final fate of the voting power of the Florida delegation. We'll blog that one live and you'll probably here the outcome from us before you hear it from anyone else in the world.

We'll bring you coverage of the Florida delegation breakfast meeting, which will be loaded with speakers. Because of Florida's stature as a swing state, we attract many high profile people. In addition to the best of the best of Florida politicians, we'll get top members of Congress, the Obama team and elsewhere in politics. In Boston in 2004, the delegate breakfasts featured guests like Bob Graham, Michael Moore, Elizabeth Edwards and Max Cleland, amongst many others.

We'll bring you live coverage of the many training sessions that will go on during the convention as well as constituency caucus meetings. We'll bring you coverage of the debate and discussion on the party's national platform. We'll bring you wall-to-wall coverage of speeches and events from the floor of the convention. We'll bring you coverage of Barack Obama's historic acceptance speech at mile high stadium.

But we'll go beyond simple the high profile events. We'll introduce you to the delegates from Florida with personal profiles. We'll do live radio shows from Denver and try to get some guests we might not normally get. We'll report from the multitude of unofficial events surrounding the convention, such as the things that happen in the bloggers' Big Tent. We'll give you a nightly group round-up of what were the best and worst things we saw that day and we'll bring you a taste of the parties and other social events as well.

So that's what you'll get. How will we get it to you? Through your contributions. We need to raise $6000 to cover the costs of the trip. Are whole delegation will be raising the money and we'll do it through advertising sales, sponsorships and through small donations. Go to PayPal and donate through our Florida Progressive Coalition account (quinnelk@gmail.com), or you can write a check to Florida Progressive Coalition and send it to me:

Kenneth Quinnell
3328 Whirlaway Trail
Tallahassee, FL 32309

You can also inquire about advertising by sending me an e-mail. FPC is a media entity set up as an LLC, so we don't fall under campaign finance laws and contributions are not tax-deductible. But they do go to a good cause. You'll help pay for the most meaningful political experience of several people's young lives, you'll be training the next generation of Florida leaders and you'll pay helping us provide the best coverage of the convention in the entire country.

No donation is too small. Six $1000 contributions work out to be the same as 6000 $1 contributions. I'm sure you can do something in between.

Monday, July 14, 2008

Story of the Day

The most talked about story on the Florida blogs yesterday was the "satirical" Obama New Yorker cover. Here's what people said...

ReidBlog - Satirically speaking...

South Florida Daily Blog - Satirizing The Right

Pensito Review (Trish) - Dear The New Yorker: WTF???

BlueHerald 2.0 (Buck) - The New Yorker: Tasteless And Offensive

Bark Bark Woof Woof - Humor 101

Pensacola Beach Blog - The New Yorker's Obama Cover

Why Now? - Missing the Point

The Road to the White House

What are Florida bloggers saying about the presidential race? Here are the top 5 posts from yesterday...

1. BlueHerald 2.0 - There’s That Pesky Temper Again

2. Pushing Rope - McCain Wrong on Captial Gains Tax Cuts

3. Interstate4Jamming2 - Sometimes The Truth Hurts

4. Bark Bark Woof Woof - Jesse Jackson's Message

5. The Spencerian - Obama and Democrats Go To Work in Florida

Action Alerts

Donate Money - To Stop Irresponsible Drilling. (LCV)

Donate Money - To help Auriel fight for Florida and keep kids tobacco-free (CFTFK)

Donate Money - To fight the "silent tsunami" of rising food prices. (Oxfam)

Sign Up - For TrueMajority's new phonebanking tool.

One Million Terrorists

Apparently, that's how many of them there are in the U.S. according to the Bush administration. If this were even remotely true, no amount of "watching" would help. Somewhere in all of this is a colossal waste of government resources that will come back to haunt us some day.

Good Obama

From the Obama campaign:


"If offshore drilling would provide short-term relief at the pump or a long-term strategy for energy independence, it would be worthy of our consideration, regardless of the risks. But most experts, even within the Bush Administration, concede it would do neither. It would merely prolong the failed energy policies we have seen from Washington for thirty years. Senator Obama believes Americans need real short-term relief, which is why he has proposed a second round of stimulus with energy rebates for working families. And over the long-term, Senator Obama understands that our national security and the survival of the planet demand a real strategy to break our dependence on foreign oil by developing clean, new sources of energy and by vastly improving the energy efficiency of our cars, trucks and our economy. He is ready to lead such a transformation," said Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton.


I'm not sure about the "regardless of the risks" part, but other than that, Obama is right on this issue and is drastically different than John McCain and his continuation of failed energy policies.

WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKIN?!?

Hello again their Citizens. It has been a great day to not get out of the bed, due to the fact that this is one of those days where nothing can seem to go right. Which led me to the bathroom mirror, looking myself directly into my eyes(I might have been coming onto myself, I don't know) and scream at the top of my lungs, "WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING GETTING OUT BED THIS MORNING?!?" Which as I was trying to find the Advil (pretty sure that’s trademarked), it made me think of a great new series I could start on the inter-web. I am going to look at the insight on some of the things that are going on today in America and see if I can't figure some things out.
The Accused:
The "W" Show, FISA, and all of the telecommunication without balls.
Now, Your Honor, (This means you Citizens, time to wake up and actually do some work you lazy Democrat) I, in no way want to point out the logistics of this case today, because every major news organization and political web-site in the country has already painted the picture, framed it, put it on the auction block and sold it for way more than it is worth. I want to look at the reality of the case. OK Citizen, let me break out a new canvas and attempt to show you what I mean with Stick figures, because (enter you Higher Power here) knows that I can't draw to save my life, the mortgage problem, or Dick Cheney's heart.
Let's say that I knock on your front door with my partner, because we never travel alone, and you and your significant other, who is HOTT.....with anticipation to find out why these strangers who are sharply dressed are at your door. As they open the door, I introduce myself as a member of the National Organization to Better Engulf Liberals in Everyday Values and Bake Little Edibles....or as I call it "N.O.T. B.E.L.I.E.V.A.B.L.E" (Trademarked too by the way). The fact that I had a really long name, looked awesome in my suit and had an 6'11, 345 pound black man in a similar suit wearing dark sunglasses whom I introduced as "Agent Jones" standing behind me, automatically told you that I was here for business. As I walk into your house, and start taking things off the wall, test driving your car, buying random pay-per-views on your cable bill, and using your bathroom, you ask me what I was looking for and when I would be leaving? "Shouldn't you have a warrant or something?" you ask. I look you dead in your eye and tell you that what I about to tell you is top secret and if you repeat it to anyone, you will wind up in the middle of the arctic tundra, up to your waist in ice while we poor fish guts on you and await the great migration of the polar bear. You agree and I tell you that at some point we received what we thought to be a five second transmission from an area close to a place we use to be at war with that involved the words(insert your town, Last name and type of fish you own here). We, the National Organization, don't want to automatically believe that you or your significant other was involved with any crime. So Agent Smith, my boss, came to me and said "Killer, I need you and Jones to go down to Florida and figure this shit out. You two are the best agents we got and if you guys can't, than nobody can, and we all going to be some fightin' Motha fuckers up in here" As you fix the puzzled look on you face, we enter the kitchen and I tell you that long story short, you just assisted the N.O.T. B.E.L.I.E.V.A.B.L.E. in securing National Safetyness. I take the Banana Cream Pie out of the fridge, as you feel incredibly patriotic, and start walking me to the front door. As you open the door for me, your hot significant other is walking out of your bedroom with my partner putting his shirt back on and her hair is a mess. You look at her and she at you and just when you go to open your mouth, my partner says in a deep voice "If we didn't take each others clothes off and I smear her make up, as well as destroy your headboard making awkward sounds, then the terrorists win." On that note we walk out the door I eating the pie, and my partner finishing tucking in his shirt.
That about sums up what happen in reality. Government went to telecom companies, said to tap these lines, "Warrant? We don't need no stinkin warrant" "OH OK "(Which way did he go George which way did he go?) and boom Citizens, your 96 year old grandmothers phone is tapped because she watched one too many episodes of "That cute Alan Alda" on M.A.S.H. and is now a potential Threat. The only thing I can honestly ask the Telecom companies is "WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKIN?!?"
Stay Safe Citizens, Until Next Time,
Legend Killer

Review of Robert Wexler's "Fire-Breathing Liberal"

For most Americans (and Floridians), members of Congress are these distant things that aren't human and don't connect to regular human beings. They don't have lives and they don't have emotions. Sometimes these feelings are true.

And then you have the Robert Wexler's of the world. In his new book Fire-Breathing Liberal: How I Learned to Survive (And Thrive) in the Contact Sport of Congress, Wexler gives us a inside look not only into his own decision-making process, his campaigns for office and the day-to-day workings of Congress, but also a look inside many of the major political events of the last decade or so.

The Congressman gives us detailed descriptions behind his thinking and the behind-the-scenes aspects of various events, such as the start of the Iraq War, the stolen 2000 election, the Clinton impeachment, Terry Schiavo, Katrina, the Anthrax scare, and his hilarious and controversial appearance on the Colbert Report. Wexler examines the way that Republicans operate in Washington since the beginning of the Gingrich era and the way they destroyed tradition and crippled the legislative branch. He talks a lot about Florida, his district, constituent casework, foreign policy and how Congress and lawmaking really works. In the process he gives us insights into these things we don't usually get.

Throughout the book, he also continually defines and expands upon what being a liberal means to him. One thing it isn't is ideological purity. To Wexler, being a liberal means being true to yourself, being open and honest, respecting the rules, respecting reality, and doing what you can to help the most people possible. I don't agree with Wexler on everything -- and I think that most liberals reading the book will find things they disagree with the Congressman on -- but after reading the book, I respect the process that leads him to those decisions and I feel comfortable that he does have the best interests of Floridians and Americans at heart. He's probably not as liberal as I am, but after reading "Fire-Breathing Liberal," I'm confident he's liberal enough.

Wexler (along with co-author David Fisher) uses a very personal and personable style in the book that is sometimes brutally honest, such as the part where he names the person who accidentally urinated on a mailout during one campaign and how they fixed the problem. Throughout it all, Wexler shows a very strong loyalty to his family, his constituents, his staffers and co-workers and those who helped him along the way.

Toward the end of the book, he almost mentions Florida Progressive Coalition, but not quite, leaving it at "bloggers" and "liberal talk radio." The book would have, of course, been improved if he had mentioned us directly. And it would've been relevant, too, since our interview on his Dick Cheney impeachment efforts broke the record for most listeners in the history of BlogTalkRadio. This would've shown Wexler's connection to the cutting edge of technology even better. Hopefully he still has that sense of humor he showed on Colbert. Oh well, he did actually mention our old friend Brian Franklin twice, so that's something.

All in all, this book is a good quick read that gives you some insight into one of the best members of the Florida congressional delegation as well as the way that politics work in Washington in the Gingrinch-Bush era and beyond. If you get a chance, you really should read it.

238 Small Donors to Go

In our fundraising efforts to attend the Democratic Convention in August, we've decided to focus on a small donor campaign. We figured out that it'll take us 240 people contributing $25 each for us to reach what we need to go to Denver and provide you with the best convention coverage in America. So far, we have two, leaving us 238 to go. Anyone reading this should be able to donate $25 to help us get there.

Go to PayPal and donate through our Florida Progressive Coalition account (quinnelk@gmail.com), or you can write a check to Florida Progressive Coalition and send it to me:

Kenneth Quinnell
3328 Whirlaway Trail
Tallahassee, FL 32309

You can also inquire about advertising by sending me an e-mail. FPC is a media entity set up as an LLC, so we don't fall under campaign finance laws and contributions are not tax-deductible. But they do go to a good cause.

If we don't get the 238 donations we still need, someone will have to stay home and miss the convention. That shouldn't happen, as there's no need for your $25 to prevent someone from going, so give as soon and as often as you can.

We'll also publicly thank all of the donors, so let us know if you wish to remain anonymous or pseudonymous. Our first two contributions came from:

Mustang Bobby of Bark Bark Woof Woof
Phil Perry of FDP

Here's the full pitch:

As you may already know, Florida Progressive Coalition has been selected as Florida's official blogger representative at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. We take this as an honor that we will do our best to live up to. We can't do it alone, though, we need your help. Before I ask for that, though, let me tell you what we'll be bringing you. The official schedule for the convention hasn't been set yet, but I attended the convention in 2004 and there has been some info released about what will happen. And now that the news networks are declaring that the convention is a "non-news event" you won't know much about what happens in Denver. Or if you read the extensive coverage that Florida Progressive Coalition will bring you.

We're sending a delegation of eight people to Denver (we'll start introducing them to you via the blog and radio show over the next few weeks). While the group isn't quite as diverse as we'd like, it is more diverse than many other state blog delegations. We're one of the few groups that will be bringing an African-American. We also have three people under 25 in attendance and a few who are old enough to not want their ages mentioned here. We have more men than women, but we have more women that most states. We have North, Central and South Florida covered. We have people from urban and from rural counties. We have experienced bloggers and newbies. And unlike the process in some other states, we opened our delegation up to anyone who requested it and could make the trip. We'll also be working with a few other bloggers or blogger-friendly people who are delegates or will otherwise be attending the convention.

So what does that mean? That we have a virtual army of people to cover the convention. We can spread out our people at as many of the events possible and provide you the broadest and most in-depth coverage of the convention anywhere. Florida Progressive Coalition has done a lot of liveblogging in the past, so we have several experienced people who will do that during the more notable events and speeches. We'll also send our members to the various committee meetings, including the Credentials Committee, which will decide the final fate of the voting power of the Florida delegation. We'll blog that one live and you'll probably here the outcome from us before you hear it from anyone else in the world.

We'll bring you coverage of the Florida delegation breakfast meeting, which will be loaded with speakers. Because of Florida's stature as a swing state, we attract many high profile people. In addition to the best of the best of Florida politicians, we'll get top members of Congress, the Obama team and elsewhere in politics. In Boston in 2004, the delegate breakfasts featured guests like Bob Graham, Michael Moore, Elizabeth Edwards and Max Cleland, amongst many others.

We'll bring you live coverage of the many training sessions that will go on during the convention as well as constituency caucus meetings. We'll bring you coverage of the debate and discussion on the party's national platform. We'll bring you wall-to-wall coverage of speeches and events from the floor of the convention. We'll bring you coverage of Barack Obama's historic acceptance speech at mile high stadium.

But we'll go beyond simple the high profile events. We'll introduce you to the delegates from Florida with personal profiles. We'll do live radio shows from Denver and try to get some guests we might not normally get. We'll report from the multitude of unofficial events surrounding the convention, such as the things that happen in the bloggers' Big Tent. We'll give you a nightly group round-up of what were the best and worst things we saw that day and we'll bring you a taste of the parties and other social events as well.

So that's what you'll get. How will we get it to you? Through your contributions. We need to raise $6000 to cover the costs of the trip. Are whole delegation will be raising the money and we'll do it through advertising sales, sponsorships and through small donations. Go to PayPal and donate through our Florida Progressive Coalition account (quinnelk@gmail.com), or you can write a check to Florida Progressive Coalition and send it to me:

Kenneth Quinnell
3328 Whirlaway Trail
Tallahassee, FL 32309

You can also inquire about advertising by sending me an e-mail. FPC is a media entity set up as an LLC, so we don't fall under campaign finance laws and contributions are not tax-deductible. But they do go to a good cause. You'll help pay for the most meaningful political experience of several people's young lives, you'll be training the next generation of Florida leaders and you'll pay helping us provide the best coverage of the convention in the entire country.

No donation is too small. Six $1000 contributions work out to be the same as 6000 $1 contributions. I'm sure you can do something in between.

Sunday, July 13, 2008

Story of the Day

The most talked about story on the Florida blogs this weekend was Phil Gramm's "whiners" comment. Here's what people said...

Pensito Review (Trish) - A Fine Whine: Telling Phil Gramm How It Really Is

Pushing Rope - Quote of the Day

Miami & Beyond - "Nation of whiners"

BlueHerald 2.0 (Buck) - Out of Touch Much, Phil?

Bark Bark Woof Woof - Suck It Up, Whiners

The Spencerian - Where the Economy and Cajones Come Together

The Road to the White House

What are Florida bloggers saying about the presidential race? Here are the top 5 posts from yesterday...

1. The Spencerian - Where the Economy and Cajones Come Together

2. BlueHerald 2.0 (QuestionGirl) - To Say I’m Displeased With Obama is an Understatement

3. Miami & Beyond - More cheap political theater Cuban American style

4. Why Now? - And The Candidates Respond

5. Pushing Rope - John McCain's Empty Promises

Action Alerts

Join the Fairness for All Families Campaign

Send an e-mail - Keep Medicare Fair (AARP)

Sign the petition - FOX must stop injecting racism, prejudice, and fear into our political dialogue (MoveOn)

Donate Money - Triple Your Support to Protect Ocelots! (ED)

Send an e-mail - Another farm worker just died from heat stroke (UFW)

Send an e-mail - Stop the Polar Bear Whitewash (DoW)

Sign the petition - Thank Congress for Funding Humanitarian Efforts in West Africa (Project Hope)

Sign the petition - Non-Profit Downpayment Assistance Programs in Jeopardy! (TNP)

Sign the petition - BLM: Don't Kill Our Wild Horses (Care2)

Sign the petition - Object to Privacy-Invading FISA Law (ACLU)

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

New Blogger Attacks Amendment 2

Crude, Lewd and Tatooed says in his post, "You're stupid and here's why- Amendment 2"


Will somebody please explain to me why what people do in their house that they pay for, and pay their bills for, and put food in, while not bugging me at any point in history, why does this cause such an uproar in modern American life? Isn't this the land of opportunity that people came to escape oppression?

The Road to the White House

What are Florida bloggers saying about the presidential race? Here are the top 5 posts from yesterday...

1. Blast Off! - Huggy Bear to Cuban-American group: I won't meet with you

2. Miami-Dade Dems - McCain: Don’t know economics, math, facts...

3. Incertus (Brian) - Not a joke

4. Pensito Review (Trish) - McCain’s Latest Joke: Maybe Cigarettes Would Kill Iranians

5. South Florida Daily Blog - Jukebox John Changes His Tune

Story of the Day

The most talked about story on the Florida blogs yesterday was the passage of the FISA bill. Here's what people said...

Samm Simpson - Can you hear me now?

Pushing Rope - ACLU To Sue Over FISA Bill

Blue Herald 2.0 (QuestionGirl) - Jonathan Turley Explains Last Night What the DEMOCRATS Did Today

Pensito Review (Jon Ponder) - Obama Votes for FISA and Immunity for Bush, Telecoms - Clinton Votes Against It

madfloridian's journal - Congress votes to immunize lawbreaking telecoms, legalize warrantless eavesdropping

Why Now? - Real Americans

Pensacola Beach Blog - Fear vs. Constitution: The Box Score

Discourse.net - Senator Bill Nelson Lets Us Down Again, This Time on FISA

Blast Off! - Dems fail on FISA while another American stands up for principle

Blue Herald 2.0 - Democrats Who Voted Against Dodd Amendment

Action Alerts

Take the pledge and send an e-mail - Tell Your Friends About Amendments 7 and 9 (Progress Florida)

Send an e-mail - Tell Congress to Resist Calls for Drilling (LCV)

Sign the petition - Add your name to the ACLU's Newspaper Ad on the FISA law.

Signed the petition - FOX: Stop the smears (MoveOn)

Send an e-mail - Tell the House to Veto the FCC (FP)

Send an e-mail - Speak Out for Red Knots Before It's Too Late (DoW)

Good Obama

From now on, I'll briefly highlight actual policy positions of both presidential campaigns and what I think of those positions. This is a good statement from Obama:


“Today, the U.S. Senate took a major step forward in addressing the needs of seniors and military families all across this nation. At a time when doctors are facing double digit increases in the costs of providing care, I am proud to have joined with my colleagues to stop a devastating cut in physician reimbursement that would have caused them to shut the door to many Medicare and Tricare beneficiaries. John McCain has said that he would have opposed this bill, demonstrating yet again that he’s more than willing to put the interests of the health insurance industry over our nation’s 44 million seniors and 9 million uniformed service members,” said Senator Barack Obama.


If this had gone through, Florida would've lost $1.3 billion by December of next year, averaging a loss of $25,000 per doctor who accepts Medicare. More importantly, more than 200 thousand employees would've lost their jobs and nearly four million patients on Medicare and TRICARE would've lost some or all of their coverage. At a time when the economy sucks, this would've compounded the many problems the state faces.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

The Road to the White House

What are Florida bloggers saying about the presidential race? Here are the top 5 posts from yesterday...

1. Man or Maniac? - McCain Campaign Crushed Free Speech

2. Betty Cracker - Holding McCain accuntable

3. The Spencerian - It's a Numbers Game: Overviews & Introductions/Presidential Rundown

4. Bark Bark Woof Woof - Cage Match: Lurching or Sensible Turn?

5. BlueHerald 2.0 - Dumbest Story Ever Written

Action Alerts

Donate Money - To save the fewer than 100 wild ocelots left in the United States and have your donation tripled. (EDF)

Sign the Pledge - Not to trash the oceans! (Oceana)

Sign the petition - Health Care for America Now!

Donate money - To fight for health care for all. (MoveOn)

Monday, July 7, 2008

The Road to the White House

What are Florida bloggers saying about the presidential race? Here are the top 5 posts from yesterday...

1. Incertus - Disapppointed in Obama?

2. Blast Off! - Today's Daily Schadenfreude: John McCain

3. Pensito Review - McFlipflop: Olbermann Counts Down 30 of McCain’s Greatest Flipflops

4. Tampa Bay Blue - Open letter to Barack Obama on Iran

5. Smashed Frog - FISA Fish Bowl

Story of the Day

The most talked about story on the Florida blogs this weekend was the death of Jesse Helms. Here's what people said...

Situation Awareness - One of America's most notorious race-baiters has died

South Florida Daily Blog - Their Hope and Inspiration

South Florida Daily Blog - Jesse Helms Is Dead

The Spencerian - Racist, Former Senator Jesse Helms Dead at 86

Pushing Rope - Quote of the Day

Miami & Beyond - Whitewashing Helms

Why Now? - There Are Limits To All Things

Blast Off! - Jesse Helms (1921-2008)

BlueHerald 2.0 - But Two Will Take His Place

Bark Bark Woof Woof - Jesse Helms

Incertus (Brian) - Jesse Helms is Dead

Pensito Review (Jon Ponder) - Jesse Helms Dead at 86

Action Alerts

Donate money - to support Covenant House.

Donate money - to support the FISA Fight Back Fund (DFA)

Sign the petition - An Open Letter to Barack Obama on Iran

Sign the petition - Stand Up Against Big Oil! (DSCC)

Friday, July 4, 2008

Supreme Court Allowing Money To Hurt America

Like I said, the federal judiciary -- particularly the Supreme Court -- sucks. Otherwise, why would they continue to put out rulings like this:


The Supreme Court has struck down the "millionaire's amendment" as an unfair way to help opponents of wealthy candidates who spend from their personal fortunes.

The law allows candidates to receive larger contributions when their wealthy opponents spend heavily from their personal fortunes.

The court says by a 5-4 vote that the law violates the First Amendment.


They base this on their past ruling that somehow money = free speech. There's no logic to that concept, though, because that would mean that free speech is based not on citizenship or, you know, freedom, but instead based on who has a bigger checkbook. Freedom goes to the highest bidder. That's not only completely at odds with the First Amendment, it's completely at odds with American ideals.

McCain Loves Lobbyist, Big Money

And when he takes this much money from the big interests, how could he possibly care for the common people?


Apparently, one of the best investments corporate America could make right now is to make a campaign contribution to John McCain, or to hire one of the many lobbyists working for his campaign,” commented David Donnelly, director of Campaign Money Watch. “But regular Americans can’t afford to hire a lobbyist like Charlie Black or Rick Davis, or to make a $2,300 contribution. Perhaps that’s why McCain’s tax plan is so skewed to help corporate America.”

...

McCain has received $5,590,003 from the employees and Political Action Committees (PACs) of the Fortune 200 since 1989. These same 200 companies have paid $98,693,835 to lobbyists connected to the McCain campaign since 1998.

McCain Hates the Troops, Lies About It

He claimed credit for the passage of the new G.I. Bill:


I'm happy to tell you that we probably agreed to an increase in educational benefits for our veterans that not only gives them increase in their educational benefits, but if they stay in for a certain period of time than they can transfer those educational benefits to their spouses and or children. That's a very important aspect I think of incentivizing people of staying in the military.


But this was a bill he didn't vote for and, in fact, actively opposed.

Another in a great line of Republicans who are more than willing to use the troops as a political props without actually supporting them when push comes to shove. Shameful.

McCain Is An Angry Man

Do we really want someone with this kind of temper in the White House?


John McCain engaged in a physical confrontation in 1987 with a left-wing Sandinista leader during a diplomatic meeting in Nicaragua, according to one of his colleagues, Sen. Thad Cochran, a Mississippi Republican.

Notably mild-mannered, Cochran startled many people earlier this year with comments about McCain's volatile temper, but has since mended fences with the presumptive Republican presidential nominee.

Still, Cochran told the Sun Herald of Biloxi, Miss., on Monday that he'd witnessed a confrontation between McCain and a Sandinista leader that shocked him, in which McCain "got mad at the guy and he just reached over there and snatched him."


The president of the United States shouldn't be "snatching" people, particularly foreign leaders he's angry at.

McCain Hates Honesty, Doesn't Understand the Economy

McCain now says he understands the economy, but he's repeatedly said he doesn't understand it. We've got the video:

Darcy Burner Needs Your Help

Burner is a congressional candidate from Washington state who will be a great member of Congress. She's also the candidate who came up with the Responsible Plan to End the War in Iraq.

She lost her home this week in a fire. Her family made it out of the house alive because their five-year-old son woke them up and got them out. This is a great story to come out of a tragedy, but the good news is that no one was hurt and that the Netroots has rallied to help her out so she can recover and not lose her ability to raise funds to stay competitive in her race.

If you can, help her out. You can also read a lot more on this story:

HorsesAss - Help Darcy get her house in order… and ours

Daily Kos - WA-08: Giving Darcy time to rebuild

AMERICAblog - Dem House candidate saved from fire by five year old son

Daily Kos - WA-08: "It's just stuff"

Daily Kos - WA-08: Helping Darcy recover

Daily Kos - Burner's House Destroyed in Fire

OpenLeft - Help Out Darcy - Send Your Well-wishes