Another Dumb-Ass in Ohio

Good lord. It is increasingly embarrassing to admit that I grew up in Cleveland...

Obama Goes Door-to-Door in Ohio!

This is why I love this guy. He is pulling away in the election and he is still out there going for the political kill. If he wins Ohio, there is almost no path to victory for McShame. The Obama campaign cannot be accused of coasting or taking it easy. As the campaign stated recently, "We plan to run through the finish line." Amen!

ACTION ALERT! Postcards for Obama

Since Governor Palin's acceptance speech at the RNC convention in a locked-down St. Paul a week or so ago, there has been a lot of frustration and outrage on the liberal, progressive, left at her insult toward community organizing. Similarly, there has been a lot of hand-wringing and nervous worrying over the last week about the tightening of the presidential race, the daily tracking poll horse-race, and the increasing sliminess of the McCain/Palin campaign.

Well, there is an antidote for all of this: COMMUNITY ORGANIZING, or ACTION! This thing is far from over and we shouldn't get all defeatist at this critical moment. It was never going to be easy. So, over the next 6-7 weeks, we need to be concrete and energetic in our attempt to win this election and bring some kind of sanity back to our government. The stakes are even higher than they were in 2000 or 2004!

In that spirit, here is one really, really good, concrete idea that anyone, anywhere can do to help the cause:

Postcards for Obama in Ohio
(This is awesome and could be easily duplicated in other swing states...)

Invite some folks over to your house for a postcard writing party and help the Obama/Biden ticket in Ohio.

Here is how it works: Get your friends and family to send 10 postcards each to the address below and the folks there will mail them to voters in Ohio. To make it fun, you might consider inviting a few friends over to have a postcard writing session while you eat pizza or drink a beer. And I know of one person who is going to a block party this weekend, so she went out and bought a bunch of postcards to bring along for people to fill out there. There are all kinds of creative ways to gather postcards!

Please remember how important Ohio is and that it is one of the states where GOP voter fraud was blatant in 2004. Just a couple of lines on 10 postcards showing off your home state might make all the difference in the world! Your investment on postage if you send 10 cards will only be $2.70 plus 10 postcards, which are usually 25-50 cents at your local drugstore. And it is easy; it's possible to write a short note 10 times in an hour or so. Of course, feel free to write and send more than 10, too, but 10 is a good base.

Here is a more detailed step-by-step:

STEP ONE: Purchase 10 or more postcards representing your city, state or region. Get ones that have a significant monument or iconic image from your state. Purchase 27 cent stamps for each card.

STEP TWO: Write a brief, to the point message no more than 2-4 sentences long. Here is some sample language: "Dear Fellow Voter, I am voting for Barack Obama because he will get us out of the war in Iraq sensibly and will push out the special interests that have dominated our politics for too long. For a better economy, more affordable health care, better schools, a healthy environment, and a more sane foreign policy, there is really only one choice in this election. The Obama/Biden ticket presents the only chance to change directions from the tragedy of the last 7+ years of Bush/Republican dominance. Please vote for Barack on November 4 and spread the word! Sincerely, (Sign Your First Name, City and State)"

STEP THREE: Stamp each card, leave the return address and mailing address areas on each card blank (the cards will be addressed by volunteers), and mail all of your postcards together in an envelope(s) or box to:

WFO Post Card Campaign
193 E. Rich Street
Columbus, Ohio 43215

Women for Obama (WFO) suggests that you please mail your postcards by September 20, 2008, but I suspect you could still send them through early October. They need to have volunteers address them and send them, so they need some time on their end, too.

There is evidence that these types of personal, grassroots outreach efforts are effective. So, get involved. Make a difference. Be a part of history... write to Ohio this week!

Yes We Can!!! Happy Writing!

(forward this link to ten of your friends)

Water Kept from Central Ohio Black Community for Decades, Jury Finds

According to AP:

Residents of a mostly black neighborhood in rural Ohio were awarded nearly $11 million Thursday by a federal jury that found local authorities denied them public water service for decades out of racial discrimination.

Each of the 67 plaintiffs was awarded $15,000 to $300,000, depending on how long they had lived in the Coal Run neighborhood, about 5 miles east of Zanesville in Muskingum County in east-central Ohio.

The money covers both monetary losses and the residents' pain and suffering between 1956, when water lines were first laid in the area, and 2003, when Coal Run got public water.

The lawsuit was filed in 2003 after the Ohio Civil Rights Commission concluded the residents were victims of discrimination. The city, county and East Muskingum Water Authority all denied it and noted that many residents in the lightly populated county don't have public water.

Coal Run residents either paid to have wells dug, hauled water for cisterns or collected rain water so they could drink, cook and bathe.

Here is the link to the full story at CNN.com

To My Friends in TX, OH, RI and VT...

Please take a moment to watch this important public service announcement, which was first posted over at DailyKos...

Tomorrow is the Day...

Please, God, liberate us from the torture of the Democratic primary process tomorrow! Have mercy on us by ending this thing decisively. I'm begging You...



Anyone want to venture a prediction on tomorrow's results?

Obama Survives Clinton Death Ray!

What was hopefully the final debate in the Democratic primary took place tonight and overall it was a bit of a snoozer, which means Obama won. Hillary landed no significant blows against Obama and certainly did not change the basic dynamics of the race. I'm not an unbiased viewer, but I thought Obama was poised and presidential throughout and sounded particularly good on foreign policy. By contrast, Hillary was testy and just plain strange on a few questions. Beyond the candidates and their responses, Tim Russert was simply abysmal as the moderator. He was combative and even tried to read a bunch of anti-semitic quotes from Louis Farrakhan on national television before Obama cut him off. It was a terrible performance by Russert.

Anyway, given the debate, I don't see how Hillary is able to meaningfully go on after March 4th. There is no indication that she has stopped the bleeding in her campaign. It will be interesting to see what happens over the next week. Which Hillary will be on the campaign trail? Nice Hillary or mean Hillary? We shall see...