Progressive Democrats Sonoma County

David Swanson
March 11, 2010

Take Action: Eat lunch for peace—become a “brown-bagger”; learn more here .

Published by AfterDowningStreet.org.

Sixty-five congress members, including 60 Democrats and 5 Republicans, voted to end the occupation of Afghanistan on Wednesday. But 356 congress members, including 189 Democrats and 167 Republicans voted to keep the war going. The vote followed three hours of debate created by Congressman Dennis Kucinich’s introduction of a privileged resolution.

Read the Rest Here

In the third installment of the Agitator Voices of PDA, Tim Carpenter interviews two PDA Advisory board members. Get the lowdown from the always witty and cheeky Jim Hightower. Following Jim, hear Rep. Donna Edwards inside-the-beltway perspective on Healthcare NOT Warfare.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN

March 9, 2010

We highly encourage signing up for a PDA Issue Organizing Team (IOT) if you wish to actively engage in the work of PDA and PDSonoma County. If you have not already done so, you can get started by clicking on ‘Committees’ on the menu at the top of this website page and there you can:

*sign up for a PDA Issue Organizing Team via the PDA website and

*find the name and contact information for the local PDSonoma chapter team leader for that IOT. If you have not already done so, let that person know that you have signed up for the PDA IOT and they can add you to their local chapter list of activists on that particular issue.

Multiple television showings beginning Wednesday, Mar. 17

The film representation of Norman Solomon’s book War Made Easy will be shown on Public Access Television, Channel 26 (Comcast TV).

Schedule:
Wed. 3/17 & 3/ 24 – 10:00-11:15 p.m.
Thurs. 3/18 & 3/25 – 6:00-7:15 a.m.
Sat. 3/20 & 3/27 – 3:30-4:45 a.m.
Sun. 3/21 & 3/28 – 7:30-8:45 p.m.

Sponsored by Women’s Spaces, Elaine B. Holtz, host
Information – 579-5319

Robert Naiman
March 8, 2010

Take Action: Tell Congress – Support debate of the Afghan War

Published by Common Dreams.

On Thursday, Ohio Representative Dennis Kucinich introduced H. Con Res. 248, a privileged resolution with 16 original cosponsors that will require the House of Representatives to debate whether to continue the war in Afghanistan. Debate on the resolution is expected early next week.

Read the Rest Here

David Swanson
March 4, 2010

Take Action: Tell Congress – Debate the Afghan War

Published by AfterDowning Street.

[Today], Thursday, March 4, Congressman Dennis Kucinich plans to introduce a privileged resolution to end the Afghan War. The resolution requires that the House debate, within the next week, the continuing war in Afghanistan, now the second longest war in American history.

While we may not win a majority vote in the House on this first go-round, and would still have to get past the Senate and the President (a good time if ever there was one to throw Scylla and Charybdis into a blog), we will completely change the conversation and put many congress members on record claiming to oppose the war. While the president can send congressional Democrats out to fall on their swords for unpopular wars and healthcare mandates, they may be less willing to do so if the end of their careers is held up to their noses. To keep their careers alive, congress members in progressive districts will have to claim to oppose the war in/on Afghanistan.

Read the Rest Here

SPREAD THE WORD ...
by George Lakoff

Dear Friends,

The California budget crisis is a democracy crisis.

The 2/3 vote rules have destroyed democracy. A small minority of extreme conservatives – 37 percent – has been controlling the state legislature
by saying no to all proposals until it gets what it wants. They want to destroy the ability of the state to serve public needs. They like the budget cuts. They don’t care about the pain they have caused.

We – the majority of voters – can change all that. We can pass the California Democracy Act, an initiative on the November 2010 ballot. It is one sentence long – only 14 words. It is simple democracy.

Elliott Gould warns us not to believe the myths about single payer health care. “Single payer is no more socialized medicine than the police department is socialized crime fighting,” he says. California OneCare is publicly financed, privately delivered health care, and poll after poll has shown

Link to Original

March 3, 2010, Washington, DC

Take Action: Tell Congress Support the Kucinich privileged resolution to debate the Afghan War

Millions of Americans have no healthcare, and the economy continues to bleed jobs and generate foreclosures—yet there’s still money for war. The Afghan War is now the second longest war in US history—it’s time for an open debate on ending US involvement. On the eve of introduction, by Rep. Dennis Kucinich, of a privileged resolution to debate the Afghan War, Congressman Kucinich recorded this message (select the second recording) to PDA members. Please contact your member of Congress to co-sponsor the Kucinich privileged resolution.

Read the Rest Here

This IOT conference call had its usual stellar lineup of guests, including last-minute guest Rep. Dennis Kucinich.

PDA Conference Call Guests: David Swanson, Cole Harrison of UFPJ, PDA Field Director Conor Boylan,

Brown Bag Lunch Vigils (BBLV) partner David Swanson started the call off with comments on and advice for the BBLVs, to move the vigils to a higher degree of action, and he spoke about the legislation to halt Afghanistan funding.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN & to read more

Join PDA’s End War & Occupations, Redirect Funding Issue Organizing Team (IOT); learn more here.

Senator Mark Leno, author of Senate Bill 810, says that it’s time for Californians to be innovators once again. We can become the first state to enact a publicly funded, privately delivered single payer health care system that will cover everybody and save money.

Byron DeLear
March 1, 2010

Join PDA’s Healthcare for All Issue Organizing Team (IOT); learn more here

Published by Examiner.com.

A report released Thursday entitled, “Lives on the Line: The Deadly Cost of Delaying Health Reform,” sheds light on the real moral issue at the heart of America’s national debate on health care: people needlessly dying because they don’t have access to preventive or primary medical care.

At a current rate of 68 deaths each and every day, the Families USA report cautions that without immediate action on health care reform, the body count will grow to a shocking 84 people a day in 2019: this is over 30,000 dead each year; a far more conservative estimate than the well-known Harvard study claiming 45,000 unnecessary deaths are happening each year.

Read the Rest Here

Norman Solomon
February 25, 2010

Take Action: Tell Congress Stop funding war

Playwright Lillian Hellman said: “I cannot and will not cut my conscience to fit this year’s fashions.”

The statement was in a letter to the House Un-American Activities Committee. The year was 1952. We tell ourselves that the McCarthy era was vastly different than our own—but what about the political fashions of 2010?

This year’s fashions cut mean figures on Washington’s runways. Conformities lie, and people die.

Read the Rest Here

Dear Single-Payer Supporter:

If you’re in the San Francisco area, please attend this rally for single-payer healthcare.

Medicare for All Rally

Join with activists from the California Physicians Alliance, California Alliance for Retired Americans, Gray Panthers, and Single Payer Now to let President Obama know that we want Medicare for All.

When: Thurs. 10am, Feb. 25
Where: San Francisco Federal Building, 90 7th St., between Market and Mission – Civic Center

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On this month’s Stop Global Warming/Environmental Issues Organizing Team call, the following topics were covered: assembling a new leadership team for the IOT, and our campaign to achieve national climate legislation based on direct carbon pricing with revenue recycling. We discussed the Price Carbon Campaign’s strategy workshop and legislative lay of the land, and meeting with Congressional staff in Washington, DC, and around the country.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN

Join PDA’s Stop Global Warming/Environmental Issue Organizing Team (IOT); learn more here

On this call we had -Donna Smith, Healthcare NOT Warfare co-chair, updated us from the Hill on where we stand and also the Brown Bag Lunch Vigil campaign from DC.

Chuck Pennacchio, Executive Director of Healthcare 4 All PA, updated us on single-payer progress in PA.

Ben Day, Executive Director of Mass-Care, updated us on MA.

The BBLV Team updated the group on where the campaign currently stands on the eve of the February BBLVs.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN

Join PDA’s Healthcare for All Issue Organizing Team (IOT); learn more here

February 24, 2010

Click on the link below to hear archived radio show with Norman Solomon speaking about Afghanistan. The interview begins at 12:40 minutes into the program and was recorded this morning on KPFA.

http://www.kpfa.org/archive/id/58888

By David Swanson
February 21, 2010

Everything you’re reading about torture lawyers John Yoo and Jay Bybee getting off the hook is wrong. They are not torture lawyers, they are not off the hook, there never was any hook, they may not be lawyers for long, impeachment and indictment are on the agenda, and you have a role to play.

Read the Story Here

By Marcy Winograd
For OpEd News
February 22, 2010

Imagine if in 2010 we did not spend one more borrowed penny to manufacture new weapons, occupy new lands, or recruit new mercenaries. Going cold turkey on military spending would wipe out nearly $1 trillion of our 1.6 trillion dollar deficit. A year and a half of war & weapons abstinence could erase our debt entirely.

Read the Rest Here

February 22nd 2010. Donna Smith and Norman Solomon discuss Healthcare NOT Warfare and Brown Bag Lunch Vigils

Listen to “Healthcare NOT Warfare” national co-chairs Donna Smith and Norman Solomon in the next installment of Agitator Voices of PDA, a new series of podcasts from Progressive Democrats of America’s. It was a busy week for PDA activists and our allies as we gathered in front of 65 congressional offices for the second Brown Bag Lunch Vigil.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN

February 20, 2010

Progressive Democrats Sonoma County held its second Brown Bag Lunch Vigil in front of Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey’s office on Wednesday, calling for healthcare not warfare & for a ‘No’ vote on any further war funding. Progressive Democrats of America (PDA) and allies held at least 60 similar vigils outside or in Congressional District offices around the country.

Sonoma County vigil participants were buoyed by the news that at the same time we were on the sidewalk, members of the PDA Healthcare NOT Warfare campaign and allies were on Capitol hill, visiting the DC offices of these same 60 Representatives, delivering information on the costs of war to that Congressperson’s District and specific information on what the money could have paid for instead.

February 17, 2010

Dear Representative Woolsey,

We thank you for signing on to support HR 2454, calling for an exit strategy from Afghanistan & HR 3699, prohibiting any increase in the number of U.S. Armed Forces in Afghanistan.

Further, we call on you to publicly commit to voting “No” on any bills that fund wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, or Yemen, and to publicly urge your colleagues and the House leadership to make the same commitment.