This past legislative session I worked with Representative Judy Solano to introduce House Bill 12-1091. The bill reduced high stakes testing to the minimum federal requirements and re-directed the $7million dollars in savings to the Colorado Preschool Program. If you don't think your vote counts, please watch this short video of the committee hearing in the House of Representatives where Republicans voted against children. There are nearly 1,100 registered lobbyists in the state of Colorado. You - parents, teachers, and grandparents - are the only voices for our children. Make sure you are carrying the voices of children to your government representatives during this critical election period.
I find it amazing that a plutocrat can buy the airwaves and broadcast his faux expertise on teaching (which is really how to turn a profit on teaching), and people have again bought into what whitey says.
I wanna know who made the call. Was it Bennet?
*DCTA is listed below Bloomberg on the major contributors reports. What a poor, neutered union. Enjoy your scraps!!!
I'm not going to deny that to abstain from taking a clear position on whether or not to endorse because of "several (board) members abstaining" isn't a cop out. I think it is. Colorado Latino Forum should come out against 3B.
Regardless, it's clear to me that with this statement, CLF shows that Latinos make up a majority of students in DPS and that DPS has a history of institutional racism via inequitable funding. Big shock, eh? The only explanation for inequitable funding is cronyism that has resulted in more institutional racism. That's pretty clear.
Right now, the balance of power in the Colorado house is teetering on the outcome of a very close race in my very own House District (29). The race was so close that the provisional ballots, election day drop-off ballots and every single vote really needs to be counted to determine the true winner. County wide, thousands of ballots have not been counted because the envelope wasn't signed, or the signature didn't match the signature on file. These are hazards that come with a mail-in election. At the polls, the election judges work with each voter to make sure the technicalities are covered. The folks filling the ballot out at the kitchen table, have no such help. The County Clerk will send a letter to the people who made these mistakes, but there is a very short window to resolve the matter before results are certified. Is sending a letter enough?
The claim we hear over and over is that mail-in voting is cheaper. Where do these voters fit into that picture? Do we have an obligation to mail-in voters to provide them the same assistance in following the process that we would give an in person voter? If that costs money because it requires phone calls, multiple letters, additional voter education, etc., isn't that a cost we should factor in? Are we willing to discard a certain number of votes because the overall convenience and "cost savings" of mail-in voting is so tempting? I don't know. With so much hanging in the balance, from who will represent me in the State House, to who will hold a majority for Colorado, I'm feeling like every vote needs to count and be counted.
In the next three weeks, you will have an opportunity to participate in your democracy by voting. There is nothing more patriotic or important to your country than your participation in elections. Below are my observations and recommendations for how to vote in this election. I do not speak for anyone but myself with these comments. Even if you disagree with me, your voice should be heard. I hope you will vote. If you want more information about the races specific to your ballot, I recommend www.vote411.org . I lifted much of this from that site. Since this is so long, I'm putting a "cheat sheet" at the beginning for quick and easy reference.
Ever since I discovered squarestate.net, it has been a forum for progressives to air their internal disputes. I have stayed out of it for many reasons but through it all, democracy has prevailed. I don't like all the outcomes of last night's primary. Some people I care about and supported will not be going on to the general, but we did have a free and fair election.
The second most painful thing about democracy is that my causes don't always win. But, the most painful thing is when people allow the losses to drive them away from the process. Our world is not decided during any one election. I thought we would never recover from the travesty we saw in 2000. But now that is so long ago, you may not even know what I'm talking about. If your leadership is not exactly the one you want, the answer is not to be less involved. The answer is to be MORE involved. I know it's hard when you work tirelessly for a cause you believe in and still fail. But the larger cause that you have worked for has not gone away.
If you're one of those poor bastards whose unemployment benefits are running out, you're about to get a reprieve. The late Sen. Byrd's replacement will be sworn in today, and unless one of the Democrats steps in front of a motorcade, gets locked in the Senate bathroom, or has an intern-related heart attack, they should have the 60 votes they need to overcome the Republican filibuster and extend unemployment benefits. (more)
If you're registered with a political party you should be receiving your primary election ballot in the mail very soon. The commercials are going to increase and the fights of Norton v Buck and Bennet v Romanoff are going to get real scrappy. I look forward to normally uninvolved people expressing great inconvenience at the emotive reactions felt during their normally programmed commercial breaks.
Cry babies :'(
According to the Colorado Secretary of State, Democrat and Republican party registration numbers for the entire state of Colorado as of June is
Dems: 817,458
Reps: 855,667
Unaff: 765,849
And, as Eluning points out in the comments, the Libertarians have their own primary with nearly 8,000 registered Libs.
If you have any questions or need resources from your County Clerk & Recorder, you can find contact information here.
Vote for MinistryOfTruth to get a DFA Scholarship to NetrootsNation2010! and all of your wildest dreams will come true!
This is the feel good Sunday Night diary, so let your hair down, break out your pootie pics, and let's dance!
Sweet!
Before we get into the real fun though, I have some great news to share with everyone!
PeanutButterPAC, the Kossacks founded, small d democratically funded political action committee will be making our first candidate donation at the end of the first week of May! After hours of volunteering, steering committee meetings, conference calls and diaries on the subject, PeanutButterPAC is proud to have our first 19 members. Together, we will be donating $242 dollars to the candidate who receives the most votes from our members, but anyone can join up and make a donation or become a member of PeanutButterPAC. For good measure, we will be adding the extra $8 from our working capital to make our donation an even $250!
Not bad for a bunch of liberal bloggers living in their mothers basement! We didn't even have to carry water for the big banks or chant "Drill, baby, drill" or nothing!
PeanutButterPAC hasn't made our choice or donation yet, so anyone who joins between now and when the donation is made will be grandfathered in as an April member, and their donation will help increase our total donation to be made at the end of the first week of May!
Even if you aren't a member of PeanutButterPAC, we would love to get your suggestions for our candidate pool, which you can leave in the comments below, but to really have a say in what PeanutButterPAC does, join up today!
To make a working capital donation to help further the advocacy of our grassroots, netroots, people powered organization, click here and donate with ActBlue!
Now, for the fun, and where all of your MoJo inspired dreams may come true . . . .
Before we get into the real fun though, I have some great news to share with everyone!
