Inland Empire For Bernie

On The Eve Of Destruction...

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Wed, 27 Jul 2016 01:44:00 -0700

I hardly know where to begin. I feel like the country just threw its best hope in the trash. I want to write about it, but every time I try my teeth grind.

Just remember, DNC, you had a generation of Progressivism on your doormat knocking.

You closed the polling places. You failed to count the ballots. You purged the voter rolls. You changed the rules by chicanery, and you wrote the emails.

You don't deserve the likes of Bernie Sanders. That man has more class in one hair on his head than you do in your entire party.

Enjoy the karma.

Dan

Tough Love For Berners, Or A New Movement Rising?

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 18:49:00 -0700

What do you expect Bernie to do, wave a magic wand and negate the current primary results in the blink of an eye? Levitate while summoning Hillary in a pentagram made of organic tofu while pixie sprites tickle her into peeing herself on national TV?

It is going to take long, hard, sustained work to break the control of massive corporations that own everything from news outlets to voting machines.

Hell, there were still 1.3 million CA ballots left to count as of yesterday. We need to do the ground game work that has been left untouched for the past 40 years!!

I was an elected Dem precinct rep in IL for two terms, and boy did I ever get an education. HALF the damn precincts had NO ONE to fill them because everyone was too busy forming a thousand little organizations that never did anything but hold meetings.

A bunch of local offices went to Republicans unopposed because we couldn't find anyone to run for them, and the Republicans ALWAYS could.

Our main job was to get petition signatures to get Dem candidates names on the ballot for the races where we actually could find candidates to run, because in IL, you can't pay to get on the ballot. You either have enough petition signatures, or you'd best change your name to Blank, because that's what would be on the ballot.

The DEMOCRATIC voters would be acting like we were beggars asking for crumbs when we knocked on their doors looking for signatures. You'd think we were trying to sell them nuclear waste pills!

Bernie is exactly effing right! If you want a government that works for you, get out there and BECOME THAT GOVERNMENT, and treat well those that make the effort to do so!

#StillSanders, dammit!

In a self-governing nation, #YouGetTheGovernmentYouAre. It's long past due that Progressives dive whole-heartedly into #CivilService. (Notice that the first results that come up are in the UK, not the USA?)

Ok, so I'm down off my soap box. I love you Bernie Brigade people. You're my people. Really and truly. All of the above is historical now. I believe over 11,000 people around the country have responded to Bernie's call since last night's live-stream address. I only wish it were a couple of million of us.

Finally we are getting to the local-level involvement in government that will shift the ground under the feet of the political establishment in an organized fashion.

We have a LOT of catching up to do. The Republicans have been at it for 30 years or more, maybe 40. This is why they have been able to drag the country so far to the right.

The good news is that a lot of people agree with us. We can do this. We must do this.

Bern on,

Dan

Bernie Sanders calls for American Progressives to step up for Civil Service

Trying To Peer Into A Crystal Ball; Why I Am #StillSanders

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Thu, 16 Jun 2016 21:24:00 -0700

I'm still a little bit hopeful that with California starting to flip, Bernie may yet stand a chance at the convention, and so are a lot of Berners.

Some things to consider:

Bernie only needs to pull HALF of the Stated difference in pledged delegates away from Hillary in the upcoming State conventions and California count completion in order to take the lead in pledged delegates. I think he needs to flip 193 or so, as at this point, every delegate he adds comes off Hillary's total.
I saw an infographic earlier showing that as of yesterday, 15 CA counties have flipped to Sanders. However, not by yuuuge margins. these are mostly smaller counties. The big, heavily-populated counties will take longer.
As of today, there are still 1.3+ million ballots un-counted. Source: http://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/statewide-elections/2016-primary/unprocessed-ballots-report.pdf
Polling Sanders vs. Trump is still waaay better than Clinton vs. Trump
Poll-after-online-poll is showing that Bernie voters STILL will not vote for Clinton, much less work to get her elected like they were doing for Bernie. They're not scientific polls, but I can tell you that a large segment of Sanders voters will not vote for or back Hillary.
All of these points may be weighing heavily on any "super delegates" that have any loyalty left to the ideals of the USA, if such persons exist.

As for the FBI investigation and the leaks by hackers, Wikileaks, and Anonymous, I will only credit those as factors should they actually happen prior to the Democratic national convention.

As for what may happen after the Dem convention - and I think this is an important point - I have seen posts online stating that Bernie's campaign has been doing the legwork necessary to put his name on the ballot in all 50 States already, just in case he decides that he needs to run as an independent for one reason or another. I think of this differently than I think the vast majority of Bernie supporters are. What if this is Bernie's insurance policy in the event that Hillary is indicted or otherwise hyper-damaged to the point of non-viability post convention? If Hillary tanks so badly that it looks like Trump will actually get elected, Bernie could put his name on the ballot in 50 States, and the DNC could then back Bernie as a Democratic-leaning independent candidate, which would pull in a large number of Green and independent voters.

Still, with all of the above stated, my hopes aren't too high for the 2016 Presidential election in the US.

Which is where I turn to an absolutely brilliant move on Bernie's part just this evening:

Bernie Sanders National Live Stream Address 06-16-2016:

While Bernie didn't concede, he also gave his supporters a new direction to channel their energy now that the last primary in DC is over; Working to strengthen the political revolution down-ballot. He is asking his supporters to work hard on down-ballot races and State and local races. He has set up a page on his website ( http://www.berniesanders.com/win ) to help organize exactly that effort.

Also, when I donated on his website just today, this happened:

"NOTE: Your contribution will be divided evenly between Bernie Sanders, Russ Feingold, Tim Canova, Zephyr Teachout, Lucy Flores, Pramila Jayapal, Carol Ammons, Justin Bamberg, Terry Alexander, David Bowen, Joe Salazar, Clara Hart, Jane Kim, Chris Pearson, Eric Kingson, Paul Clements, Tulsi Gabbard, Raul Grijalva, Jeff Merkley, Marcy Kaptur, and Rick Nolan."

This was the response I received when I completed the donation on the Act Blue website.
As I've been thinking, Bernie needs to put his fundraising prowess behind down-ballot Berniecrats.
I have to wonder, just how many election races can these election fraudsters manage to keep up with and rig?

Bernie has given the Berner Brigade something constructive to do, that will help them remain cohesive and focused on the true goal - enacting progressive policy around the country. That is an excellent way to maintain a movement, and strain the Oligarcs.

This is FAR from over.

Dan

Berning On The Eve Of The California Primary...

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Mon, 6 Jun 2016 22:31:00 -0700

I have to write this, as my heart is kind of full right now.

I spent two & 1/2 hours this evening phonebanking for the Bernie Sanders campaign at one of the local campaign headquarters. The setting was interesting enough in and of itself. It turns out that the national campaign has been renting vacant houses for their volunteers to stay in - and paying the campaign staffers' travel and living expenses too. This not only gives the campaign volunteers room and board for their trips, it also helps out folk who are trying to rent out vacant houses - local landlords or people who had to move for work and haven't sold their houses yet. That rent money may well be preventing a forclosure and a black mark on someone's credit score. It's certainly good for the local economy.

The volunteers are young folk who have been driving from State to State working for the candidate of their - and our - lifetimes. One young gal was 17 years old, and from Maryland. She is one month and nine days too young to vote in the November general election. So she is doing the only thing she can - volunteering for Bernie's campaign.

These young folk volunteering for the campaign are filling in the gaps that us older folk can't get away from work so much to do. There were several people my age and older also there, volunteering to phonebank. I'm 54, by the way.

I have been to two debate watch parties and one "last bash before the Primary" party. The folk FILLING the restaurant where these events were to capacity were of all ages, both sexes, and every race. It was an extremely diverse crowd.

Speaking of volunteering, I have been to phonebanking events organized completely outside the campaign by local non-affiliated volunteers. They've been using their own equipment at local coffee shops like Starbucks, local restaurants and the like. The comraderie, good will, and hope are amazing. The energy at these events is like none other; It is so positive and uplifting that you can't help walking away knowing that the world is a better place than you ever thought it was.

I spent three years as an elected Democratic Precinct Committeeman in Illionis before moving to California. I was volunteer I.T. and web support for the county party organization where I lived. I was directly involved in that office and technical suport for the county party in Obama's home State during his second run for office. I have NEVER seen volunteerism like what Bernie Sanders campaign is receiving from un-solicited members of the general population. I have never seen a candidate with the honesty and clear-cut Progressive record of one Bernard Sanders in my lifetime.

As to the calls I was making, most of them where I was able to speak to someone were very positive. This, in a heavily-Republican part of California. I got a couple of Hillary supporters who were civil, and one poll worker who was not happy with me, and a lot of voice mail messages.

I left polite messages reminding folk that tomorrow is the California primary, and asking them to come out and vote for Bernie tomorrow. One gal had a full inbox, but her voicemail greeting said it was OK to text her, so I did. I received a text back from her later that evening, thanking me for volunteering for the campaign, and saying that she had already voted for Bernie by mail. I also received a phone call back a little later from another gal I had left a voice message for, with essentially the same message.

In fact, almost every person I reached and actually spoke to in some form had already voted for Bernie by mail. By the way - my wife and I did the same, and when we were pulling up to the big blue mailbox at the post office, so was the gal in the car ahead of us.

One can only hope that the rest of the ones I left messages for had done the same.

When I got home afterward, I found this hanging from my door handle:

Yeah. You can feel the bern in Cali, alright.

Dan

Bern, The Movie

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Mon, 6 Jun 2016 14:46:00 -0700

How Daily Kos Lost My Trust After Eleven Years...

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Sat, 21 May 2016 16:52:00 -0700

I saw a couple of VERY anti-Bernie Sanders opinion pieces on the site. Reading them made it fairly clear to me that they were hit pieces on Bernie by supporters of Hillary Clinton. Fair enough. I decided to give them a taste of their own medicine, and wrote this piece on Dail Kos:

What Clinton Campaign Would Never Admit; Trolls Writing Bernie Hit Pieces All Over The Web...

The dawn of a renewed America being shot at by corporate hacks...

...including right here on Daily Kos. “Sanders campaign admits it wants to hurt Clinton, even if that means helping Trump”, “Sanders supporters and white entitlement”, and their ilk.
*If telling the truth about Hillary Clinton (As defined by what the Sanders Presidential Campaign puts out in its official campaign messaging, that is historically factual, and NOT just something spouted by a random Bernie supporter.) hurts her Presidential campaign, then she deserves to lose, and has no business anywhere near the Presidency of the United States of America.*
No candidate who can be harmed by the telling of the actual and factual record of their words and actions — especially while in public office — deserves to be in office. It is that simple.

We the People have had enough of being run over at every turn by large corporations and the wealthy few who actually control them.

We the People have had enough of wars fought to enrich certain corporations who either provide the weaponry that is used in all sides of such conflicts, or who profit off the natural resources brought under their control by those conflicts.

We the People have had enough of our national infrastructure needs being ignored so that our military can be used as a tool to enact these types of wars.

We the People do not want this planet to become uninhabitable, nor billions of human beings to be displaced by climate change.

We the People have had enough of the mass media, now owned by just a few corporations, lying to us either directly or by omission.

We the People have had enough of subsidizing large and profitable corporations at the expense of actual human beings.

We the People have had enough of trade policy that supports all of the above while attempting to inhibit or negate our rights under our national Constitution.

We the People have had enough of the wealthy few funding politicians who enact such policies, and who enact laws meant to create divisions between classes of human beings that are only codified into law for the purpose of dividing our citizenry along lines of race, religion, ancestral nationality, age, sex, or sexual orientation, along with anything else they can dream up.

If Hillary Clinton has supported any of the above, and informing the public of such facts harms her candidacy, then her candidacy deserves to reap what she has sown through her actions.
Attempting to smear the Bernie campaign with racism is a falshood deserves to be at the bottom of the deepest reaches of the ocean along with all the other detritus of the eons.
Attempting to hide the truth by playing the wounded victim card while running for public office deserves to be in the exact same place.
Writing such pieces as described in the first paragraph of this article in an attempt to derail an honest man supports all of the things that are wrong and evil about the current state of affairs in the USA.
Declaring a primary election “won” before all votes are counted and before one campaign has enough elected, pledged delegates to make securing the nomination by the other an actual mathematic fact based solely on math and not just on the writers’ opinions is a subversion of democracy and a violation of the rights of the voters who haven’t yet voted, because it is spreading falshoods and disinformation.
Such writers should bow their heads in shame and renounce their citizenship to the United States, because they obviously do not believe in the U.S. Constitution, nor in promoting the general welfare of actual human beings who are citizens of the United States of America. Perhaps such writers need to be reminded of the preamble to that amazing document:
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States...”
To these writers I say: Tell the FACTUAL truth, and let the people VOTE. Or be forever known as online trolls…
Otherwise write about it if you can find an actual LIE that Bernie Sanders has told. Then you might actually have a case. Good luck with that one.

The comments were fast and half supportive, half furious. That is OK. This is the United State of America. I fully expected different opinions and beliefs than those I hold to be expressed.
A few of the opposing camp, or OC as I will call them, also labeled me as a troll, and several labeled me a conspiracy theorist. I was busy working the rest of the day, and it was evening before I got a chance to respond. The following is what I was intending to post:

Point to me where I actually accused the Clinton campaign of doing anything at all. The title simply says they wouldn’t admit it if they did. No conspiracy is actually alleged, so all the references to conspiracy theory are non-factual mis-interpretations of a title. Everything stated in this post is clearly stated in the hypothetical. You might want to re-read it and find a concrete accusation somewhere. Again, good luck with that one.

I have been reading DK for about 15 years, I just don’t post here much. I think my last post was around 2004 after GWB and the Ohio fun with Ken Blackwell.

The two articles I referenced were opinion pieces with intimations of intentional malfeasance on the part of the Bernie Sanders campaign or his supporters, which favor Hillary in exactly the same way many of you have accused me of in these comments. Enjoying a taste of your own medicine much?

It’s about time somebody stuck up for Bernie on this rag. If the site admins ban me for voicing an opinion in support of Bernie, while leaving the other two writers intact to write further opinionated smears of Bernie and his supporters, that will just prove to a great number of people just exactly how “unbiased” a site this is. Their choice.

Have a lovely day.

It was at this point that I discovered that several of the OC comments were correct; Daily Kos had banned me from posting or commenting on the site, even in the thread I had started. There was no recourse to defend myself that was worth my time.

From my perspective, if you post an opinion that defends Bernie - especially to Hillary's detriment - on the Daily Kos website, you get banned. As far as I am concerned, the site operators or administrators or moderators or whatever they call themselves might as well be in the tank for Hillary, even if it's not official on some payroll.

In the spirit of giving them a sample of their own snake oil, I do not allow comments on this blog, so they won't be able to defend their actions on this website. That's actually because I got way too many spam comments back in the day, but it kind of works out.

In the end, here's the final result, as far as I'm concerned, and my last mention of that pitiful excuse for a "progressive, democratic" news and - mostly - opinion site:

Regards, and #FeelTheBern,

Dan

Hoping New York Really Shows Up For Bernie Tomorrow!

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Mon, 18 Apr 2016 18:57:00 -0700

So many people have phonebanked, (Over 3,000,000 just this past weekend) canvassed, facebanked, posted, prayed, donated, and everything else you can do to encourage for Bernie, that I have high hopes for tomorrow. No letting up!

It's a mix of pragmatism, love, hope for the future, and compassion for all of Humanity that pulls a voter to Bernie Sanders. Let's hope that carries the day.

Dan

Bernie Sanders has breakfast plans in Harlem Wednesday with Al Sharpton - The Washington Post

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Mon, 18 Apr 2016 18:21:00 -0700

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/02/09/bernie-sanders-has-breakfast-plans-in-harlem-wednesday-with-al-sharpton/

The Presidential Race and Environmental Racism: Flint Water Crisis Center Stage at Democratic Debate

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Mon, 18 Apr 2016 18:21:00 -0700

http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/35113-the-presidential-race-and-environmental-racism-flint-water-crisis-center-stage-at-democratic-debate

Revealed: The Fossil Fuel Tycoons Trying to Buy the US Election

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Mon, 18 Apr 2016 18:20:00 -0700

http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/35105-revealed-the-fossil-fuel-tycoons-trying-to-buy-the-us-election

Check Your California Voter Registration

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Mon, 18 Apr 2016 18:16:00 -0700

http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/registration-status/

You must be registered as a Democrat or No Party Preference in order to vote for Bernie Sanders.

(**NOT** "Independent" - there is an American Independent Party registered with the CA SOS, and if you register as "Independent", you are registering as an AIP voter and will only be able to vote in their primary.)

You can check your registration status here: http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/registration-status/

Do so today, the deadline for changes is coming up soon!

Dan

RSVP now (Temecula): After last night's victories, Bernie needs your help

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Sun, 6 Mar 2016 09:07:00 -0800

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "DFA for Bernie Sanders" <info@democracyforamerica.com>
Date: Mar 6, 2016 9:02 AM
Subject: RSVP now (Temecula): After last night's victories, Bernie needs your help
To: "Dan Stafford"
Cc:

After Bernie's big victories in Kansas and Nebraska last night, our political revolution now has a huge opportunity to shock the establishment in Maine, Michigan and in seven other states around the corner.

Bernie's campaign urgently needs Democracy for America members like you to contact voters in states that have not voted yet. Can you make calls to voters from home to help Bernie? (Click here for more information.) If not, can you chip in $3 or more to support Bernie and DFA? (Click here to contribute!) Thank you so much. -- Karli Wallace Thompson, Campaign Manager, Democracy for America

Daniel -

Last night's results showed that a grassroots political revolution is spreading across our country.

Eighteen states have voted, Maine is caucusing today, and 31 states (plus D.C.) remain. Millions of voters need to hear from volunteers like you over the next few weeks to make this political revolution a reality. Please join as many events as you can to contact voters in critical March states.

Here's how to get involved.

Phone banking for Bernie - Fallbrook, CA:
Sunday, March 6th at 2:00 PM in Fallbrook

Phone Bank Party at Christine's House:
Monday, March 7th at 5:00 PM in Riverside

Phone banking for Bernie - Oceanside, CA:
Wednesday, March 9th at 12:00 PM in Oceanside

Phone banking for Bernie - Vista, CA:
Thursday, March 10th at 6:00 PM in Vista

Phone Bank for Bernie:
Friday, March 11th at 4:00 PM in Banning

Every day: Bernie Dialer is available from 10 am to 9 pm local time. We especially need calls into Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Missouri, Florida and North Carolina this week!

You can also check our map for other events near you.

What we are proving on our campaign is that when people stand together, anything is possible. Thank you for everything you are doing to help Bernie win the nomination!

- Team Bernie

Contribute

Paid for by Democracy for America, http://www.democracyforamerica.com?akid=7555.2035490.iR0Po5 and not authorized by any candidate. Contributions to Democracy for America are not deductible for federal income tax purposes.

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Our Thoughts Are With Nevada

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Sat, 20 Feb 2016 00:44:00 -0800

Stand strong, Sisters & Brothers!

2016 Presidential Primary Results | New Hampshire Public Radio

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Tue, 9 Feb 2016 15:04:00 -0800

http://nhpr.org/post/2016-presidential-primary-results

New Hampshire Primary Voting Rules

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Tue, 9 Feb 2016 11:28:00 -0800

#FeelTheBern

Peace, Love, And Bernie: Back To The "Bernie Or" Debate...

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Wed, 30 Dec 2015 10:26:00 -0800

This has come up time-after-time on Facebook, so here's a meme for you:

Why Bernie?

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Fri, 20 Nov 2015 19:04:00 -0800

The idea is to videograph a collection of "man-on-the-street" cellphone videos of Bernie supporters answering the following for questions:

Intro: "Hi, I'm (Name of interviewer) with the Inland Empire For Bernie Sanders blog. We are here with a segment of our 'Why Bernie?' interviews in the Inland Empire."

Questions:

1. Name, Rank, & Bernie Number: Who are you, and what are you doing to help Bernie get elected?

2. How did you find out about Bernie?

3. What are the top three things you like about Bernie's policies?

4. Has Bernie changed how you feel about US elections?

Interviewer: Thank you, (Name of interviewee) and please visit us at WhyBernie.US (Forwards right to this post)

Post the results to Youtube, share on Twitter, Facebook, and other social media.

I think this could become a very powerful tool for the campaign if it gets done all over the country.

To promote this idea, use www.WhyBernie.US .

Dan Stafford

Peace, Love, And Bernie: Writing Paris...

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Mon, 16 Nov 2015 02:13:00 -0800

Like Bernie, I'm horrified by the attacks in Paris. It's taken me a bit to process at all...but it raises a different fear in me than it does in many others, I think. Being a writer and artist a heart, this is how I have to express it:

Dan

Fwd: [So Cal!] Join Bernie Staff in Southern California

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Thu, 12 Nov 2015 11:30:00 -0800

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Zack Exley, Bernie 2016" <info@berniesanders.com>
Date: Nov 12, 2015 9:55 AM
Subject: [So Cal!] Join Bernie Staff in Southern California
To: "Daniel Stafford" <aquarianm@gmail.com>
Cc:

Dear Daniel,

Bernie is giving us a real shot at taking our country back from the billionaire class. Now the only question is: will we, Bernie's millions of supporters, actually do the work that wins presidential campaigns? Californians have played an increadible role in past campaigns contacting voters in the early primary states that we must win for Bernie to have a chance. We believe you're ready to surpass what past presidential campaigns have only dreamed might be possible.

Come get started with national campaign staff in person in Beverly Hills, Santa Ana, North Hollywood, Inland Empire, and San Diego. (Details below and more cities to come!)

We'll also talk about how to keep your amazing local organizing moving, so that we never stop bringing new people into this movement.

Click the city nearest you below to RSVP:

BEVERLY HILLS » Saturday, November 14th - 10:00 a.m. - noon
Ahrya Fine Arts Movie Theater
8556 Wilshire Blvd
Beverly Hills, CA 90211

ORANGE COUNTY » Saturday, November 14th - 4:00 - 8:00 p.m.
The Frida Cinema - Santa Ana - Organizing meeting followed by Debate Watch Party!
305 E. 4th Street
Santa Ana, CA 92701

NORTH HOLLYWOOD » Sunday, November 15th - 10:00 a.m. - noon
Laemmle NoHo7 Theater (North Hollywood, CA)
5240 Lankershim Blvd
North Hollywood, CA 91601

INLAND EMPIRE » Sunday, November 15th - 3:00 - 5:00 p.m.
El Prado Golf Course, Banquet Room
6555 Pine Avenue
Chino, CA 91708

SAN DIEGO » Monday, November 16th - 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Grassroots Oasis
3130 Moore Street
San Diego, CA 92110

Please don't miss this important meeting. Many of you have been doing so much incredible work already and now we want to meet you in person. We are here to support your efforts. And the rest of you who are looking for a way to get started, here it is! We're looking forward to meeting you.

In solidarity,

Zack Exley
Bernie 2016

Paid for by Bernie 2016

PO Box 905 - Burlington VT 05402 United States - (855) 4-BERNIE

This email was sent to aquarianm@gmail.com. If you need to update or change your information or email address, click here to update your info. Email is one of the most important tools we have to reach supporters like you, but you can let us know if you'd like to receive fewer emails. We'd hate to see you go, but if you need to do so, click here to unsubscribe. Stand against the powerful special interests who are systematically buying our Congress and have their sights set on the presidency by contributing to Bernie here.

Peace Love, And Bernie: Overpass Light Brigade; How-To Light Up For Bernie

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Tue, 10 Nov 2015 22:07:00 -0800

Overpass Light Brigade shows you here how to make battery-powered light-up signs that you can use for Bernie signs at night:

Letter Making with the Overpass Light Brigade from Occupy Riverwest on Vimeo.

They ask that you form a local Overpass Light Brigade chapter by using "Light Brigade" somewhere in your group name:

"More importantly, open up a Light Brigade chapter in your town! We ask that you use the words “Light Brigade” somewhere in your name, build a Facebook page, blog, or website, and then join us in our working group where we share tricks, tips, concerns, and actions, as well as plan messaging for larger collaborations."

Light Up For Bernie!!

Dan

Responding To "Why Are Middle-Aged Whites Dying?" On "The Weekly Sift"

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Tue, 10 Nov 2015 20:01:00 -0800

Article Link

Quoting the article linked above:

In 1990, the death rate for American whites aged 45-54 (USW) was within the normal range of similarly aged people in comparable countries, and similar to the death rate for middle-aged American Hispanics (USH). In all the other countries, death rates continued their centuries-long trend of dropping, with USH tracking the United Kingdom rate almost perfectly. But starting in 1998, USW turns up.

A good summary of this new study is in The Atlantic. The upshot is that about half a million American whites are dead who would be alive if USW death rates had followed the downward track of other first-world countries. The effect seems concentrated in the less-educated classes, and the cause is a sudden jump in the rate of what are called “poisonings” — mainly deaths related to alcohol and drugs — as well as an increase in suicides and other causes related to not taking care of yourself. Atlantic concludes that middle-aged whites “are dying of despair”.

My response:

The entire issue goes right back to income inequality derived from corporatism. It is harder to be successfully middle-class every year.

In addition, most corporate jobs are requiring longer and longer hours, longer commutes due to inner-city gentrification, and with ever-greater workloads after layer-upon-layer of layoffs in the past three decades, with the worst of it over the past 15 years.

I can attest to it first-hand, I saw it in my own industry, and nearly everyone I knew in every other industry I could imagine were reporting the same things: wave after wave of mergers/buyouts, each followed within months by layoffs.

I can't tell you how many offices I worked in Chicago, each with 15-20 desks, most with only one or

three still in use.

The combination of abandoning anti-trust enforcement and adoption of pro-corporate trade agreements has made worker stress on the job and off a Made-In-The-USA product, where few still exist.

Workers in union shops are barely protected from this. Those of us in non-union shops have been mercilessly abused. The vast majority of the US workforce has the employee equivalent of battered-spouse syndrome.

They stay, because they see no way out. Once they pass the age of 50, it is triply-so. Age discrimination is never admitted, but constantly practiced.

I know this because I personally lived it. I know friends and former colleagues who are STILL living it. I know the rampant exhaustion and depression

The only way many can maintain any sense of pride or status is by pointing to those in even more dire circumstances than they are. It certainly doesn't come from a sense of having done "a good job" when the corporate rule is multi-tasking at all levels, and at all times.

Nowhere in the spreadsheet calculations of "efficiency experts" accounting for the time it takes to keep accurate records amidst constant interruptions. They do not take into account travel time between offices. They do not take into account combative competition in the multiple work requests coming in from multiple requestors in many different departments dispersed all over the globe. They do not take into account any variation from the "laboratory" conditions under which they observe tasks being done.

What we really need in this country is a mass exodus from corporate employment into entrepreneurial employment, which would shut down the corporate illusion factory. Couple that with technology-assisted barter...which I like to call "Techism."

What Bernie Sanders proposes will go a long way toward helping youth achieve a better future. It will help the environment. It will drive up economic activity and jobs, and it will solve many infrastructure issues. There are a lot of positives in Bernie's plan.

Still, it leaves the issues of corporate personhood and the abandonment of anti-trust investigation and enforcement. It also leaves the existing workforce with a form of PTSD on a national scale.

We have a long, long way to go in this country before any real respect for human values and needs like rest, exercise, and social bonds are respected in actual fact, and not just given lip service.

Globally, we also face the looming spectre of automation breathing down Labor's neck. There is no mechanism built into traditional Capitalism to deal with this. Everyone knows the robots are coming, yet few are talking about it. Capitalism only relates labor to money, and has no means built into it to provide for the needs of those who are displaced from work by automation as it will be in thirty years or so.

This is why I believe that we will need to have a global paradigm shift in the ways we use to allocate resources based on both human and societal needs.

The only answer that makes sense is something that I call "Techism," for lack of a better term. We need to use technology to track resource needs globally, and administer resource distribution. We need to remove money from the equation and base it on a hierarchal series of values:

Environmental sustainability.
Human needs and values.
Obsolescence due to technological improvement.

Capitalism as it currently stands both drives and hinders improvements in technology:

Newer, smaller companies attempt to disrupt and displace their way into a competitive capitalist market.
Older, established companies use every means possible to avoid being displaced and to wring every dime from existing capital infrastructure.

Clearly the latter players in this game have the money and resources to fight change through every means available. They clearly have financial incentive to do so.

The only way to speed newer and more sustainable technological adoption is to remove finance from the picture, and simply base re-tooling and technology adoption on testing for more successful resolution of a given engineering problem.

As for motivation, we need to culturally change what we see as status from the accumulation of wealth and material goods to the accomplishment of innovation.

We need to change the ground under society's collective feet, and we need to give the abused everywhere a reason for hope.

Bernie is the first step down that road, laying the first few paving stones...if he is not blocked by the same forces of capitalism that are abusing and blocking the potential of billions around the globe.

We have many psychoses in modern culture; Corporate capitalism drives most of them, and uses them to perpetuate itself.

With hope,

Dan

Peace, Love, & Bernie: On Passion, Getting Things Done, And The Psychosis Of Self-Fulfilling Apocalypse

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Mon, 9 Nov 2015 01:16:00 -0800

I see it online, and I see it in local meetings; People are passionate in their support of Bernie Sanders. To many, possibly even millions now, Bernie represents hope at the edge of a cliff.

The fear of oligarchy and feudalism is sharp in the air to those who have awakened and are aware.

The hope of salvation is found in the memory of great American Presidents such as Lincoln, FDR, JFK, and others. To many, Bernie Sanders is reminiscent of FDR. Both men presented something that was and has been severely lacking in US culture prior to their arrival on the scene: a positive vision of the future, and a wider prosperity for the people of this nation. I will return to that part about a positive vision for the future later in this writing.

Over 750,000 people have donated to the campaign, with an average donation amount of $35.00. Many have donated repeatedly, with the campaign having received over a million individual donations. These numbers are noth HISTORIC and record-breaking. No other campaign in US history has received donations from so many individual donors.

These numbers not only speak volumes about the grass-roots popular support of the campaign, they also speak greatly about the passion of the people in their support of Bernie Sanders. To me, that passion is a sign of the deep sincerity that Bernie's supporters share widely. It also is a sign of the stressful dichotomy I mentioned above, that sharp contrast of hope and fear.

Anger is one component of passion, hope is the other. It is the strangest alchemy of Human emotion. I do not think great passion can exist without the mix of both hope and fear.

Anger is always a derivative of fear. It is well-known that there are two natural responses to fear; Fight or flight. Think back to any point in your life where anger was in your heart. Anger at a failing relationship is the "fight" response to the fear of losing someone dear to you. Anger at someone cutting you off in traffic is the fight response to the fear of what a collision could do to your life.

Anger at someone suggesting a different approach to a problem is the fight response to the fear of losing control over a situation that could affect your life or the life of others. It doesn't matter who is right or wrong in the heat of the moment; We're simply too invested to just let someone else take the reigns without "fighting" for what we believe is right - and against an outcome we fear. It is only after the emotional reaction has subsided that the two sides - who may well agree on the outcome they are trying to achieve - can come together with some degree of logic and work out a compromise solution that everyone hopes they can live with.

It is exactly this part of being human that the democratic form of government we have is supposed to mediate. Control of the means to an end is at the heart of the divide between all the dualities in modern politics, and all the factions in every political coalition. Democrat or Republican, Progressive or Conservative, Populist or Corporatist...or Bernie supporter and other Bernie supporter.

The NEED for Bernie's campaign is clear; Bernie stands as the only visible route in modern times out of a nearly catastrophic global psychotic maelstrom of corporatism that is eating our freedom, prosperity, and even possibly the habitability of the planet and any hope of future generations. For those of you who do not see corporatism as a threat to the very survival of humanity, rest assured that there are millions who very much do. I do not exaggerate the level of long-term threat felt by those who are working to free the world from corporocracy.

That means that we are going to have disagreement within the ranks on strategy, on timing, and on a host of other issues. Even more; We are a grass-roots, self-organized army of volunteers. There may be leaders, but they are most definitely not rulers.

All this means that it is critical that when tempers flare as multiple methods of supporting the campaign are debated, we remember that we are all trying to achieve the same end: a breakthrough in the current political paradigm and the election of a true populist to the Presidency. We MUST take the time to step back, see our fellow Bernie supporters as allies and not opponents, and wait for reason to rise above emotion again.

In speaking to the dearth of a positive vision for the future in modern culture, I look directly to the entertainment that surrounds us.

On television and in the movies, and online, we are bombarded constantly with stories and images of apocalypse, violence, war, and crime. Stories that outline what we could truly achieve with modern technology are almost never told. Such stories are as exotic as a meteorite of solid gold landing softly in your backyard. Even documentaries tend to focus far more on the problems facing us than on potential solutions.

Stories of the great triumphs of human engineering are relegated to the rapidly-receding past of the post-depression era of the 20th century, with rare examples peeking through. Perhaps if you read science and engineering magazines, you may see glimmers of hope, but how many among the general population do? It wasn't much different after the 1930's depression, either, especially once the second world war was engaged.

The entertainment constantly submitted before us in the few hours we have away from work, along with the general struggle of life for the current working class after forty years of the erosion of wages, benefits, and working conditions amounts to a psychic assault. I'm not talking telepaths, I'm just talking about everything we see being struggle, strife, violence, or even the fall of civilization, leading to exactly what the wealthy want us to feel: competition between ourselves and every other human on the planet instead of cooperation.

Modern mass media, and to a fair extent social media are used to:

Pit men against women.
Pit people of differing skin color against each other.
Pit one religion against the others.
Pit secular people against religious people.
Pit the elderly against those of working age AND against youth.
Pit younger workers against older experienced workers.
Pit one nation against another.
Pit groups of nations against other groups of nations.
Pit those struggling for positive change against those who fear the loss of what little they now have.

The list could go on and on and on.

I have personally witnessed the media in both film and on television getting progressively darker from year-to-year over the past twenty years.

With this psycological backdrop, is it any wonder that someone offering hope such as Bernie Sanders does seems like some sort of miracle?

Still, there is only one way out of collective darkness; We must join hands, share what light we can find together, and all put one foot in front of the other to leave it behind. Bernie may be walking out in front, but he would be walking alone if we weren't all walking with him, sharing our lights.

#FeelTheBern - and try to hold your own candle flames steady as you may without burning each other along the way.

Dan

When Democrats Vote Their Conscience, Bernie Sanders Will Defeat a 'Moderate' Hillary Clinton

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Wed, 4 Nov 2015 10:00:00 -0800

H. A. Goodman Become a fan Columnist published in The Cleveland Plain Dealer, The Baltimore Sun, The Hill, Salon, The Jerusalem Post www.hagoodman.com

Posted: 11/02/2015 8:46 am EST Updated: 11/02/2015 12:59 pm EST

Assuming Democrats have a progressive conscience in 2016, only one candidate will be victorious in the primaries, and I explain my thought process in this YouTube segment. In addition, my appearances on The Benjamin Dixon Show and The Ring of Fire also highlight the vast differences between Bernie and Hillary.

Read full story

2nd Dem Debate Watch Party Hosted By Lake Elsinore For Bernie - All Voters Welcome

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Tue, 3 Nov 2015 02:59:00 -0800

Event Links:

Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/192259034443581/

Bernie Events RSVP Link: https://go.berniesanders.com/page/event/detail/debatewatchpartynov14th/4vgls

When: Saturday, November 14th - 5pm to 9pm PST

Host: Angela Derrick

Location:

Azteca Grill (Lake Elsinore, CA)

31701 Riverside Drive, Suite D
Lake Elsinore, CA 92530

Maps:

Directions:

From Highway I-5 North and South: Exit Central Avenue (Hwy. 74). Drive west on Hwy. 74 for 2.5 miles. Restaurant is on right, between W. Lakeshore Drive and Grand Avenue. It is almost across the street from the Lake Elsinore Recreation Area and approx. 3 blocks east of Lakeside High School. Their phone number is (951) 245-8822.

Description:

Please join us for the second Democratic Debate from Des Moines, Iowa. We are pleased to host this event at Azteca Grill, a new restaurant in Lake Elsinore. This location has three TV screens and a projection system to ensure good viewing and audio capabilities. Great Mexican food and drinks will be available for purchase, and parking is plentiful. The exact debate broadcast time is still unknown, but please come early to meet and dine with your fellow Bernie supporters.

We believe that Bernie Sanders is the most consistent and best qualified presidential candidate to address our challenging national and global issues.

Mark your calendars for this important event, and be sure to invite your friends and family to help us cheer for Bernie!

Real Change

Dan@IE4Bernie.org (Dan Stafford) — Sun, 1 Nov 2015 10:53:00 -0800