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JoAnna Mendoza (AZ-SD-11) and Felipe Perez (AZ-HD-11) are the future of Arizona politics.

2020-09-29T20:51:00.002-07:00

{Cross-post of a Blog Post I published on Dailykos.com on 9.27.2020}

I don’t need to tell you the news.

Today every State Legislative race in the USA got a huge kick in the pants.

(Link to Amy Klobuchar speaking for all of us.)

Our best and first line of attack is our state legislatures.

Who we elect and where we elect them matters. Now, more than ever. Not just in terms of defending our rights and fighting the GOP gerrymander, but also in terms of passing laws that reflect the will of the people.

And yeah, whether it’s the ACA or Roe, Gun Sense or LGBTQ equality, Voting rights or BLM, if the Republican party can’t respect the clearly expressed voice of the people then the people need to kick the Republican party out on its posterior.

(That link is to the just released DLCC Act Blue page targeting 48 races to flip power in no fewer than 10 Republican controlled state legislatures.)

So let’s talk about Arizona.

Arizona’s state legislature is currently primed to flip both the Senate (3 Seats to FLIP) and the House (2 Seats to FLIP.)

The districts, unlike other states, overlap exactly.

In this case LD-11, per the local Dem website, covers the Northwest portion of Pima County as well as portions of Pinal County.

And we have two excellent candidates in a “stretch-the-map” district not included in the DLCC’s list above, but who are very much worth a look.

Veteran, mother and leader, JoAnna Mendoza is the Democratic Senate candidate in AZ LD-11 who is running exactly the kind of people-powered, close to the district campaign that would do Howard Dean’s 50 state strategy proud...which is no coincidence because she has the backing of none other than Democracy for America.

The thing is, if you read JoAnna’s bio, you will be inspired by her journey as Just a Kid from Eloy through 20 years in the Navy and Marines including deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan and serving as a Marine Corps Drill Instructor. (You read that right.)

She writes:

I am the kid people didn't expect to make it out of the poverty because the odds were stacked against me. But I did and now I am back to make a difference in the communities in which I grew up in. I have never forgotten where I came from or who I've been fighting for. Committed to changing our district in a positive way, I will not stop fighting until we have achieved unity, progress, and the future we deserve.

-JoAnna Mendoza, AZ SD-11 Democratic candidate

F elipe Perez is an MD who worked who worked his way to being a family physician at one of Arizona’s largest community health centers and is the Democratic House candidate in AZ LD-11 (running against two Republican opponents for one of two seats.)

Both candidates have an impressive array of endorsements that include excellent environmental, reproductive rights, gun sense and labor groups (Here and here) as well as, as of yesterday, President Barack Obama.

Every last vote they turn out will help Dems win in Arizona.

Every last vote for these two candidates will send the clearest message in opposition to Republican attempts to foist their minority views on the majority of the population.

JoAnna Mendoza and Felipe Perez are leaders who represent the FUTURE of Arizona politics, but that can only happen if we have their backs in what promises to be a hard fought campaign.

Why not check out the inspiring and funny social media below, and consider donating above?

About this series:

I’m a longtime local election activist and Dailykos blogger dating back to 2003. I was part of helping local blogs and the netroots drive Democrats to take back the House in 2006 and helped build some of the biggest and most successful grassroots and online groups supporting Barack Obama.

The 2020 Democratic State Legislative candidates are heroes, and deserve our support. They are our best chance of changing US politics including GOP voter suppression and gerrymandering for decades to come and many of them will run campaigns that help us win electoral college votes and key US Senate and House votes:

You can also visit the State Level Impact 2020 ActBlue Page (Page created w/ an email privacy option for those who prefer to make a one time donation to multiple candidates.)

the corner booth

2015-08-26T20:30:00.000-07:00

Every union organizer has a ritual.

It might be where you stand near the gate where the cars drive up to the job site. It might be how you hold the clip board when you get ready to knock on a door. It might be how you sort and re-sort your list, going over names of workers, shifts and departments until you know them like they were permanently etched inside your skull.

For me, in this case, it was a table, in a cafeteria, in a hospital. I'd order a cup of coffee and sit in the same chair, facing the same direction with my materials carefully tucked away and my ball cap sitting on the chair beside me.

And then I'd wait...

It was a big city Children's Hospital serving kids from all over.

If you live anywhere near me, you've seen it from the freeway, Life Flight helicopters occasionally touching down yards from traffic.

I'd sit at a central table, facing the entrance, cashiers and serving stations to the right of me and salad bar at my back. I'd be there morning, noon, and night.

Sometimes there were managers a few tables away. Sometimes groups of workers would come to see me. Other times it was just me and a handful of families and one or two workers on break.

Over time, you'd get the rhythm of the workplace.

You'd learn all the little ways to meet someone. To hear them out. You'd share the details with your fellow organizers. You'd have a great conversation at 7am and a not so great conversation at 8am. You'd do your work and the hospital workers did theirs.

And in the midst of all this families would come and go. And eventually you learned that part, too. The kids who were there for weeks on end, you'd recognize. The kids who were there for a quick evaluation, you wouldn't. The sisters and brothers, grandmas and mothers, fathers and uncles and friends would come and go in an endless procession.

And that's when I noticed the corner booth.

It was the one you couldn't see from the entrance. Hidden, and to the right. This was the first booth you would naturally sit in if you walked in to the cafeteria and didn't want to eat.

And that's where they always came, sitting side-by-side, backs to the wall, hidden, the best they could manage, from everyone. It was unerringly young couples, that's what parents mostly are. And that's where they would process their bad news.

And, yeah, it broke your heart because you knew that while a Children's Hospital is the best place in the world for a child who is sick...and so many kids go home healthy, go home happy, go home healed. It was also a place where families learned bad news, too.

And it just takes a piece of you to see that.

To see a couple crying and hugging and knowing that there's not really anything you can say or do for them at all, other than to be present and respectful by giving them their privacy and space.

::

I don't have much to add to this reflection other than to say that while I happened to be working on a union campaign, the workers who work in that cafeteria work there every day.

They know the corner booth better than I could say.

They know, too, firsthand, the joy that comes from healing, from healthy food, from the respite of a shared meal in a stressful time.

Life, real life, after all, isn't black and white, one thing or another, it's a continuum, it's shades of gray.

But sometimes, life hurts so much.

And, personally, it is hard to convey how much respect I have for everyone who is there, who is truly witness, and helpful, in ways large and small, to others in time of need.

::

Our society has become so frenetic and obsessed with trivia. We've gotten so hooked into our routines and rituals. In an age with access to more information than ever before, we've lost track of what truly matters. None of us is immune.

I've long since finished with that campaign and I no longer work as a union organizer.

But sometimes, when I'm taking that curve on the freeway by the hospital, I'll see a Life Flight helicopter hovering to make a landing, and I'll think of the corner booth and all the workers waiting to help.

And then I'll think of the child inside.

And my heart will jump.

Genius of Love

2014-02-08T00:17:00.002-08:00

3 AM Eternal

2014-02-08T00:07:00.001-08:00

New Google Terms of Service. Bolding is mine.

2013-10-21T12:09:00.000-07:00

From Google Terms of Service:

When you upload or otherwise submit content to our Services, you give Google (and those we work with) a worldwide license to use, host, store, reproduce, modify, create derivative works (such as those resulting from translations, adaptations or other changes we make so that your content works better with our Services), communicate, publish, publicly perform, publicly display and distribute such content. The rights you grant in this license are for the limited purpose of operating, promoting, and improving our Services, and to develop new ones. This license continues even if you stop using our Services (for example, for a business listing you have added to Google Maps). Some Services may offer you ways to access and remove content that has been provided to that Service. Also, in some of our Services, there are terms or settings that narrow the scope of our use of the content submitted in those Services. Make sure you have the necessary rights to grant us this license for any content that you submit to our Services.

If you have a Google Account, we may display your Profile name, Profile photo, and actions you take on Google or on third-party applications connected to your Google Account (such as +1’s, reviews you write and comments you post) in our Services, including displaying in ads and other commercial contexts. We will respect the choices you make to limit sharing or visibility settings in your Google Account. For example, you can choose your settings so your name and photo do not appear in an ad.

You can find more information about how Google uses and stores content in the privacy policy or additional terms for particular Services. If you submit feedback or suggestions about our Services, we may use your feedback or suggestions without obligation to you.

Open note to Arsenal fans on August 28, 2013

2013-08-28T18:59:00.000-07:00

Dear Arsenal fans,

At a moment when many in the press have made Arsenal and Arsene Wenger the focus of unkind jokes, and even some fans are giving in to pessimism, I think there's still strong reason for hope. Arsenal's financial position is strong and the team has a stable core of experienced players. There is time in this window and a powerful rationale for more players to join; Arsenal will compete in four competitions and may well win a trophy, or even a title, this year.

That doesn't negate the stark realities facing the team.

First, having cleared out a large number of players, some of whom played a good bit last year (Gervinho, Arshavin) and also struggling with short (Arteta, Vemaelen) and long term (Diaby, Ox, Podolski) injuries, Arsenal need to add depth to the squad. Depth is needed not just to avoid fatigue in a season with four competitions, but also to fuel the attacking style of play that Arsenal is famous for.

Second, the team needs, and has needed, to add two (or even three) outstanding players to its core in order to compete and win at the highest level. Of the players who are, or seem to be, "in" with five days left in the transfer window, unproven Sonogo does not add depth, nor is he an outstanding player (yet), but Flamini would undoubtedly add depth (passing, positioning, top level experience) and should be welcomed as an addition to the squad without greater expectations than were placed on Yossi Benayoun, who did a good job at a similar moment.

There is also no doubt that if Gonzalo Higuain and Luiz Gustavo had come to Arsenal, two of the "outstanding players" boxes would now be ticked off. Both would have been perfectly appropriate additions, and worth OVER spending for if they could have been added to the squad in time for the opening game. Those two missed opportunities, seem to be the single greatest criticism you could level at Wenger at this point. Even if it cost 60 million pounds, having those two players...and perhaps winning the game against Aston Villa...would likely have meant that critics would now be talking about Arsenal as a title contender and strong competition in the CL. The club would also be a stronger magnet for other new signings.

That did not happen.

So, on August 28, with Flamini...maybe...already in the squad, my advice is to think about the challenge Arsenal faces this way.

Wenger needs to add three or four signings, with two of them "outstanding." That would mean securing two additions on the quality level of Higuain/Gustavo, and one or two "solid" signings in addition to Flamini.

While time is running short, it is likely this will happen, and fans can hope that the additions, in particular, will bolster the attack and solidify the back. But time is running out on marquee signings. It may well be that these three or four slots will be filled by somewhat surprising additions who can only be judged after they've played with the team for awhile. It may be that one of the two "outstanding" players may only come clear in retrospect.

In sum, there is little doubt that Arsenal will add players, only that it has been left late. Come January, fans should look at where Arsenal stands in all competitions (and in terms of squad strength) and ask, "Is this better/worse than we could have been if we had secured Higuain/Gustavo earlier in the summer?" That's the relevant question.

There should also be no doubt that Arsenal will continue to play its aggressive, attacking, technical style of play; and of that fans should rightly be proud. That is the hallmark of AFC. Add quality and depth to this squad, and there is reason yet to think that 2013/14 may be a season in which Arsenal shock the world, and surprise the critics.

Vote Hyatt Worst

2012-07-26T12:00:00.004-07:00

Proud to have joined this action.

Mitt Romney is the problem

2012-07-14T17:15:00.000-07:00

...and the GOP, and Big Oil, and the Big Banks, and Big Energy, and the Club for Growth, and the Koch Brothers.

Worst Congress Ever

2012-07-13T10:47:00.001-07:00

Worst Congress Ever. Read it and weep. All the more reason to kick: Brian Bilbray, Scott Brown David McKinley, and these folks out of office.

Aguero

2012-05-13T13:57:00.003-07:00

To his credit, Aguero didn't attempt to get a penalty. He pushed through two players to even have a chance to run on to Balotelli's pass, rounded a third and refused to fall when that would have been the easy call...and beat a fourth and fifth defender AND the keeper with his speed...and scored. Monumental goal.

Kaiser workers Fight Back!

2012-02-03T10:18:00.000-08:00

Good stuff from Kaiser workers speaking out against Kaiser Permanente's race to become "just one more greedy corporation."

Kaiser's CEO George Halvorson made $8.9 million in total compensation in 2010. What did he make in 2011 while asking these NUHW workers to give up their defined benefit pension and refusing to agree to sensible safe staffing proposals at the bargaining table?

Shame on Kaiser Permanente!

Cesaria Evora, 1941-2011

2011-12-17T17:22:00.000-08:00

"Essa canção sempre estará nos nossos corações. Muito obrigado Cesária. Descanse em Paz..."

"Vamos a toda prisa a amar a la gente - que mueren tan rápido. A partir de hoy el mundo ya no es el mismo."

"ATÉ SEMPRE CESÁRIA, africa viva"

"Mindelo pleure la reine Evora,
Ti otu diâ… Ti otu diâ, Césaria !
Femme de l’Afrique, impératrice du Cap-Vert…
La diva aux pieds nus s’est tue, a mis le cap vers
Les cieux, en chantonnant et dansant sa Sodade,
Qui résonne désormais ici-bas de façon maussade…
Le monde pleure la reine Evora,
Au revoir… Au revoir, Césaria !"

"Sodade i'm crying.
From Italy
Im Capeverdien."

"Une étoile qui brillera dans le beau ciel cap verdien ! Césaria, la diva aux pieds nus à la voix si mélancolique va nous manquer !"

Oakland General Strike, November 2, 2011

2011-11-23T14:06:00.000-08:00

This is what it looked and felt like when the people shut down the powerful for one day in Oakland, California:

Video by the organizers and participants of War-Times.org.

"Kaiser, get with the program!"

2011-11-01T16:20:00.000-07:00

Kaiser CEO George Halvorson made $7.9 million in 2009. Kaiser Permanente has made $5.7 billion in profits in the last 30 months, and yet Halvorson has the audacity to ask healthcare workers to give up their defined benefit pension, retiree health benefits and to accept deep cutbacks that will fundamentally change how Kaiser healthcare workers receive healthcare from their employer.

Kaiser's healthcare takeaway will essentially convert healthcare workers into Kaiser customers who will then be forced into incentivized "cafeteria" plans based on hours worked instead of receiving, as they do now, full coverage as part of their overall compensation.

Chris Rauber and the San Francisco Business Times get it wrong...again

2011-10-05T11:40:00.000-07:00

Once again, writer Chris Rauber of the San Francisco Business Times, has simply reprinted a press release and gotten an entire story wrong.

You'd think that after completely mischaracterizing a significant story about how unfair Kaiser rate hikes were impacting California healthcare consumers and in the process making insinuations about the Chronicle's Victoria Colliver (who actually got the story right!), Rauber would think twice about reflexively diving in on the side of established business interests. Apparently not.

In the case of Rauber's nanny-journalism attack on Colliver, it turns out healthcare giant Kaiser Permanente did hike its rates unfairly and is now paying millions back to California consumers. If Rauber had his way, would Colliver's story have even been written, and would hundreds of thousands of Californians have a few extra bucks in their pockets today? It's doubtful.

It's pretty clear that Rauber has a bias against unions and consumers. He has been upfront about his deep suspicions about unions and union activism. In this piece attacking the California Nurses Association, Rauber even went so far as to call the largest nurses' strike in California history not that "big of a deal." Nurses and patients might disagree.

But with today's story attacking yet another healthcare union, the National Union of Healthcare Workers, in which Rauber got the facts so wrong he had to print a correction no sooner than he had posted his story, Rauber has indicated not only that he can't be trusted to write about workers' and consumers' interests in an unbiased manner, but that when it comes to working people, Rauber can't be trusted for reporting on basic facts.

As Kaiser workers choose NUHW over SEIU, national media covers union election

2010-09-19T04:01:00.000-07:00

A compendium of Los Angeles Times articles about corruption within SEIU

2010-09-12T22:35:00.000-07:00

A compendium of Los Angeles Times articles about corruption within SEIU.

Featuring articles on Alejandro Stephens, Annelle Grajeda, Tyrone Freeman, Rickman Jackson, Sharon Frances Moore and James Bryant.

Important information for Kaiser workers considering the choice between SEIU and NUHW.

Make an informed choice.

SEIU versus NUHW: which is better? Kaiser workers decide

2010-09-03T21:18:00.001-07:00

Here's a new website for Kaiser workers seeking to make an informed decision about their choice of union in the upcoming election between NUHW and the SEIU-UHW.

It's called Kaisercoworkers.org.

You'll find sections on the Facts, a discussion of what's important to Kaiser workers, and important information about how cast your ballot for NUHW.

SEIU Stewards moving to NUHW

2010-08-30T18:16:00.000-07:00

The Santa Rosa Stewards open letter.

NUHW v. SEIU: NUHW members describe why they are better off than with SEIU

2010-08-23T19:13:00.000-07:00

NUHW members describe what's changed at work and how joining NUHW and leaving SEIU was the right choice for them.

More information here.

Abbey Lincoln, 1930-2010

2010-08-14T12:34:00.000-07:00

Abbey Lincoln, goodbye and thank you.

Salute the Black Stars of Ghana

2010-07-02T21:35:00.001-07:00

Shame on Suarez and Uruguay for a hollow victory!

Outfield players grabbing the ball at the goal line like Suarez did goes against the spirit of the game.

My opinion is that the rules should give the referee the discretion to award a goal in that situation.

Players should know that it's futile to try to illegally block a goal with your hands.

There's enough cynicism in soccer/football already.

Here's hoping the rest of the World Cup is played with the same spirit and determination that Ghana showed playing against Uruguay.

Ned Landin - Flathead "Ordinary Man"

2010-06-25T23:17:00.000-07:00

I like Ned and his music. I knew him as Flathead from when he played outside Coffman Memorial Union at the University of Minnesota back in 1986-7.

Then, almost by coincidence, I saw him perform Astor Place in NYC a few years later and Harvard Square a few years after that, only to catch up with him one night in the 90's in Santa Monica, where the above clip, I think, is from.

Ned's music, in particular his guitar playing and thoughtful singing, owes a ton to Cat Stevens and Ritchie Havens, but for countless students, more of whom who should see this video and check out his website...it's that we owe Ned for his music and for being a voice of our student years.

I got a chance to hang out with Ned over lo mein in Chinatown NYC after he opened for Michelle Shocked one night. He was a nice, quiet guy.

I know I said it already in person, but Thank you, Flathead.

Link to Flatworld.net

Jabulani + Mourinho Tactics = Boring World Cup

2010-06-16T23:28:00.001-07:00

I wish I could conclude differently. I agree with Rob Smyth. The ball is off. And the tactics are over defensive in this World Cup so far.

Too many passes and shots are off target. Too many hard passes hit the recipients' foot and balloon up out of control. Too many great players have no touch and howlers outbalance successful executions of finesse.

On top of which, it seems every manager has studied Barcelona vs. Inter Milan and have put not just "men behind the ball" but disciplined formations organized to meet and thwart all attacks a la Mourinho.

And, given the Adidas Jabulani ball, there's no easy way to unlock the bus that's parked, more often than not, in front of the goal.

With this ball so far, there's no real threat from shots and free kicks from long distance and crosses often sail over the intended targets.

The teams I'm enjoying watching pass the ball on the ground and run incessantly in the attack. Ivory Coast, South Africa, for two, have been fun to watch but have scored one goal in three games between them.

Given the ball's unreliability in flight, I don't know why more teams don't try to take it to the byline and pass it back into the box. That's where a ball passed on the ground can be redirected into the goal...or if you're Maicon, you can skip that step and send the ball straight to the back of the net.

We all love the World Cup, but the often boring tactics and lack of finesse in this one so far are hard to miss. Wish it wasn't so, but it seems to be for now.

The plastic ball and negative tactics mean it will take something special to lift this cup.

Let's hope we get it.

USC workers defeat SEIU, the Weissman Group and their anti-union employer

2010-05-30T12:26:00.000-07:00

This is what workers leading the labor movement looks like:

The Weissmann Group is a union avoidance firm.