September/October 2004 News and Actions from ReclaimDemocracy.org
Contents- Act Now! Help Us Shift Debate on the Debates
- ReclaimDemocracy.org Chapters forming Nationwide
- Recent Articles from ReclaimDemocracy.org Writers
- Recent "Editor's Picks"
- Continuing Outreach Opportunities
- ReclaimDemocracy.org Goes Interactive
- Seizing the Ballot Initiative Away from Corporations
- From Electoral Politics to Building Democracy
1. Act Now! Help Build Momentum for Real Debates
While it's not our business to join the judging game about who "won" the first major-party presidential debate last night, one judgment we offer confidently: the debate clearly was more substantive and useful to voters than its counterpart in 2000.
So why is the group that's hammered the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) since 2000 for its lifeless formats and exclusion of both serious third-party candidates and critical issues praising the event? First, let's be clear that much more is needed. Having the major parties and their candidates controlling the debates and who participates is illegitimate. That must change. But thanks primarily to pressure applied Citizens' Debate Commission, co-founded by ReclaimDemocracy.org, Open Debates and some committed volunteers, the events are improving. For instance, our critiques of the CPD's sound-bite exchange formats of previous years led the CPD to lengthen rebuttal times by one third and, for the first time, permit surrebuttals -- making the events more like a real debate and less a joint press conference.
Our pressure for transparency led to the Memorandum of Understanding between candidates being released for the first time. As you've likely seen, this led to more critical media coverage than ever before. Other changes implemented in response to the CDC challenge this year include assigning different moderators to host each debate and empowering them to ask follow-up questions in order to discourage evasive or pat answers.
So while present circumstances have not allowed us to displace the CPD this year, our pressure already has created meaningful change. These improvements are only a beginning, but our progress is instructive -- it demonstrates the power of proactive movement, rather than typical reactive/defensive activism.
Help us keep the pressure on and the momentum going!
Write letters to the editor, call in to talk radio and talk to your friends
about continued need to democratize the debates and establish the CDC, while
recognizing improvement. Refer to our Guide
to Writing Effective Letters to the Editor for writing tips. The so-called "town
hall" debate on Oct. 8 is an especially good time to point out the manipulation
of the events, as documented in our op-ed. Please correct any mention of
the CPD as "non-partisan," an inaccurate label that no serious
editor should permit.
Our latest commentary, "Replace Bi-partisan Show With Real Debates," offers a good overview of the fatally-flawed CPD, and the need for the positive alternative, the Citizens' Debate Commission. Thanks to all of you who've helped create the significant changes realized thus far.
2. ReclaimDemocracy.org Chapters Forming Nationwide
Since our inception (in 2000), we've received inquiries about starting local chapters. Lacking resources to support such efforts, we held off to focus first on building the core national infrastructure. Our resources are as scarce as ever, but after positive initial experiences with our first (San Francisco Area) chapter, we decided in September to take the leap into establishing chapter affiliation guidelines and devoting energy to support the development of committed local groups.
So what can be done via local chapters, and how do they work? Please see our new Chapter Guidelines to learn more. Local chapters and other locally-focused organizations are now listed on our "Local Groups" link. The brand-new Olympia, Washington chapter has done the most extensive work on its web page thus far, which may provide some useful ideas for anyone considering local organizing.
3. Recent Articles from ReclaimDemocracy.org Writers
Opportunity Lost: Lack of Affordable Higher Education Hurts Us All The cost of college is pricing it beyond the reach of many, but even those who attend may pay a heavy price.También en español: Desaparecen oportunidades de estudios universitarios
Perverting Democracy: A Mining Corporation Runs Its Own Ballot Initiative
Current initiatives in Montana and California illustrate a broader threat to citizen governance.
Replace Bi-partisan Stage Shows With Real Presidential Debates (See first item for summary)An Indigenous Perspective on Corporate Power and Democracy
An Oneida Indian Nation member and ReclaimDemocracy.org intern offers his views on moving from damage control to progress and linking the Democracy Movement with Indigenous struggles.
4. Recent Editor's Picks at ReclaimDemocracy.org
(a sampling of notable articles from other news sources--see our Editors' Picks index for a full listing)
* Corporate
Tax Rates Continue to Plummet (Forbes Magazine)
*
Do
Black-Majority Districts Weaken Black Citizens' Power? (NY
Times)
* Use
Wi-Fi to Strengthen Communities, Not Corporations (Seattle
Times)
*
The
First Unionized Wal-Mart? (Toronto Globe and Mail)
*
The
Absurd "Induce Act" (Reason Magazine)
5. Local Outreach Opportunities
We continue to see excellent results from the efforts of local activists doing in-person outreach at screenings of the documentary, The Corporation (see U.S. schedule). Please contact Kirsten at sfpersonhood@yahoo.com if your community is on the list and you'd like to set up an information table or distribute literature.
6. ReclaimDemocracy.org Goes Interactive!
One common response to our readers poll last year was a desire to have discussion boards focused specifically on the issues ReclaimDemocracy.org addresses. Well, here it is: ReclaimDemocracy.org/forum/
Please give it a try, and be conscious of setting a positive example in initial posts with clear, spell-checked, polite and on-topic postings. For those of you unfamiliar with such forums, the help menus should provide all you need to know to get started. Please let us know your thoughts on how we can improve this new tool. We may add other topics over time.
Current projects to improve our website as a communication and organizing tool include creating chapter pages that can be updated directly by chapter delegates (using "wiki" pages and password access) and creating an online database, combined with a mapping function that will allow prospective organizers to find folks in their region interested in working with others on democracy / corporate power issues. Please let us know if you have skills or experience to offer.
7. Seizing the Ballot Initiative Away from Corporations
Some of you already may have read one of several op-eds we've published on the topic of corporations funding -- and even running -- their own ballot initiatives. We are using high-profile battles in California and Montana, among other places, to broaden awareness of this outrageous usurpation of citizens' power and build toward an ambitious long-term goal: overturning the US Supreme Court. In First National Bank of Boston v. Bellotti, the Court effectively created a "right" for corporations to corrupt what is theoretically the purest form of democracy, the citizen ballot initiative.
For those wishing to explore the details of our campaign plans, you can view the outline here (the presentation is informal and not for publication elsewhere). We welcome questions and suggestions on this critical, long-term campaign.
8. From Electoral Politics to Building Democracy
The weeks after election day this year will be a critical period. Will the energy and organizing developed to influence the ballot issues and elections in 2004 simply fade away or will it be channeled into proactive work to advance democracy?
We can play a crucial role to make the latter happen -- if we receive the most support we need to do it. We finished September $18,000 short of the funding needed to keep our grassroots education, campaigns, and support for creating new local groups going at full strength. Please don't let the opportunities presented in the next few months die for lack of funding -- join us today or renew your support via our secure server (or mail in the page), and help us end 2004 with a resurgence for democracy. Please don't wait!
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