A Golden Political Opportunity

Before I get into what defines a golden political opportuinity I must point out that Pearl Jam puts on one of the most kick ass shows of all time. They are high energy, good chemistry, and well obviously have very good songs. At their August 29th performance which was a benefit for U.S. Senate candidate Jon Tester their performance kept to these standards, and the almost to capacity crowd loved it, and they also loved Jeff Ament the bass player who just happens to be a Montana kid himself. And this is just a wild guess on my part since I am not closely tied to the Tester campaign, but it looked like he raised himself quite a bit of money so it would be a safe assumption to call the benefit concert a success.

However he missed his golden opportunity. One that most politicians, especially ones from states like Montana, never seem to get. He had the Adams Center at the University of Montana filled to almost capacity, thousands of people of all backgrounds however it appeared as though the majority was comprised of young people, yet he barely mentioned his campaign when he took the stage right before Pearl Jam. Instead he said a few words about both him and Jeff Ament being from Big Sandy, and thanked them. Now I realize that everyone was amped up to see Pearl Jam, but when you have a captive audience like that you have to say something, instead he left it up to the band. Eddie Vetter later explained that those in the audience back Tester, because the band backed him which left most reasoning that if they thought Pearl Jam was cool Tester was therefore cool as well, which is not my idea of voter education.

Obviously it wouldn't have been a good idea to have Tester drone on about issues and politics right before Pearl Jam, but a quick 5 minute "this is who I am" thing would have sufficed, because the fact of the matter is that not everyone in the audience was already a Tester supporter. It was a very mixed crowd, some who were there solely for Tester, others solely for Pearl Jam, and many many others who I felt were somewhere in the middle. It is not enough to allow the "cool through association" factor to win votes, especially with young people who don't like to be tricked and have, shall I say, short attention spans.

Overall the concert was amazing, and I was happy to give $46 of my hard earned dollars to Tester's campaign. I just feel that since it was for him, he could have used the opportunity to persuade a possible voter that perhaps saw through the "well he must be cool, becuase Pearl Jam likes him, and they are cool" logic.

Koop continued

So I am a hate blogger. I can't really believe it, but according to the Koopster I run a hate blog because of my criticisms of Koopman and other conservatives, as does Matt at left in west and Wulfgar!.

As it has been discussed a lot today, I can't bring myself to repeat them as they will only make me angrier, however as I have said repeatedly in the past KOOPMAN IS A HYPOCRITE!!!! He runs around referring to progressives as "intellectually bankrupt" and "lice on the body politic", and so on and then refers to those who crticize him as hate bloggers, yet he is free to criticize whomever he wants.

I find it highly ironic that the Koopmans, O'Reilly's, Limbaughs, etc seem to think that they are above criticism while they run around name-calling everyone else. Bottom line is it ain't cool and to be frank I am quite sick of it.

Leave it to the Chronicle to ignore the real stories and focus on those desperate for attention, like Koopman and the actual hate monging nazi guy. By giving them the attention that they are craving the Chronicle just spurs them on.. (why do you think the Nazi tried running for office??)

The Koopster--Always good for a laugh

The Bozeman Chronicle reported today that good ol boy Roger Koopman accused City Commissioner Marcia Youngman of being "manipulative" in calling for public support against privatization. Supposedly she sent an e-mail with fact sheets to an official from the Gallatin Valley Independent Business Alliance, and Koopman intercepted it. He is now grandstanding and claiming that Youngman is unethical.

Hmm... there is so much for me to comment on here with very little time, but here goes.

First of all, why is Koopman intercepting Marcia Youngman's e-mails??? This alone blows my mind.

Secondly, why does it even matter? I receive e-mails from elected officials all the time calling on me to be at some event or the other. Hell I get e-mails from elected officials (most of whom are considering Presidential runs) from around the country to speak out on this or to sign a petition or some form. That doesn't mean I'm going to do it, they are just giving me info of what is going on. This is not new, and this is not Youngman "orchestrating support", instead a good chunk of the constituents are opposed to privatization and Youngman is aware of this. She gave info to those she believed would need it. Also, have you ever tried to find out what issues are going to be talked about at which city commission meetings. Its quite the challenge.

And this fact sheet that she sent she signed "don't tell anyone who gave this to you" scares me for different reasons. WHY IS THERE A SECRET FACT SHEET!! This is the problem with Bozeman's city government is that nothing is open, it seems to be secretive and hush hush. Its happening with privatization and the blight thing, and people are pissed because they don't know what anything means, and they aren't allowed access to any information. I don't want to criticize Youngman for giving out the fact sheet, I would like to congratulate her. Bozeman city commissioners have to realize that Bozemanites have some intelligence, and they should have more access to the city government.

So Koop- give it a rest. Just imagine that this was an issue regarding your dreaded abortions. If that was the case you would be out there rallying your right wing troops.

And on a final note I have to say about this issue of privatization. I'm a Butte girl, grand-daughter of a Montana Power V.P., daughter of a Colstrip plant engineer and if there is one thing I witnessed from the MPC de-regulation (or privatization) is that YOU DON'T SELL ALL OF YOUR ASSETS OR YOU ARE GOING TO GET SCREWED!!!

Homemaker v. Lawyer. What's a girl to do??

When Sandra Day O'Connor (the first female Supreme Court Justice) announced her retirement women everywhere (including Laura Bush herself) called for a female replacement. Well that didn't happen. And now the Washington Post (www.washingtonpost.com) has reported that good old run of the mill "qualified white guy" John Roberts is pretty much totally anti-woman.

Supreme Court nominee John G. Roberts Jr. consistently opposed legal and legislative attempts to strengthen women's rights during his years as a legal adviser in the Reagan White House, disparaging what he called "the purported gender gap" and, at one point, questioning "whether encouraging homemakers to become lawyers contributes to the common good."

Hah! This guy has now made more motivated than ever to go to Law School. Lets face it, anyone who knows me knows that I would make an awful homemaker. If Robert's gets confirmed then Bush will have fulfilled his goal to turn back the clock on women's rights.

Thank You

Thank yous are neccesary for the 130 men, women and children who attended last night's peace vigil. Bush must be held accountable for what he has done, and this will only happen when people come forward to protest.

I regret that I did not attend, since I was confined to my job far away from the Courthouse in the dreaded Gallatin Valley Mall, but rest assured that I did attempt to have a little one in my store!

Thanks for all you do.

Peace.

P.S. You can see the story and pictures of the event at www.gallatindemocrats.com

Another side note about Cindy Sheehan

I am sick and tired of the right wingers trying to portray this woman as a radical left extremist. I qualify more for that description than she does. She is not radical. She is a mom that has lost her son. I know five men who have surived Iraq, if one of them had died I don't know what I would do, and they are my friends, not family. She has every right to be doing what she is, and I am very proud of her. America needs more Cindy Sheehans to end this tragedy.

For all of you against the war keep up the good fight!!

From www.gallatindemocrats.com

Peace Vigil to support Cindy Sheehan
Where: Gallatin County Courthouse on Main St.311 W. Main St.Bozeman, MT 59715
When: Wednesday, 17 Aug 2005, 7:30 PM

Candlelight Vigil to be held on courthouse steps, supporting Cindy Sheehanand a swift end to the war in Iraq.

We welcome everyone -- Democrats, Republicans, independents, families,veterans, and all others who are concerned about the war in Iraq.Please bring a candle, we’ll provide some but this looks like it’s goingto be a fairly large gathering.

Reverend Roxanne Klingensmith Pastor of the St James Episcopal Church willgive the invocation.

Please talk to me!

I now have a public e-mail for anyone who wants to shoot me stuff without having to comment or what have you:

swmontanadem@gmail.com

I would love to have a reason to check it, so write me!

Peace

MSU College Dems are up and Running!!!!

That's right after a few years barely on life support, we are up and running. The interim executive board has formed and we are kicking!

President- Stacy Parenteau
Vice-President- Ryan Seher
Secretary- Gretchen Kruesi
Treasurer- Sheena Rice

We are currently organizing events for Homecoming, Cat/Griz, the City Commission Race, the Senate, House, and Legislative Races, and much more. If you are interested in the organization please e-mail us at democrats@montana.edu.

We are committed to encouraging young people to get involved in the political process and be informed on all issues. We have a lot of plans right now, but need money desperately. So even if you can only spare a few bucks it would be appreciated. Mail contribution checks to
M.S.U. College Democrats
c/o Sheena Rice
205 S. 8th Ave.
Bozeman, MT 59715

We are going to prove that Democrats exist on the M.S.U. Campus!!

Kerry White and John Vincent

The Gallatin County Comissioners have postponed the vote on the planning board due to the controversy spurred by the Gallatin County Democrats opposition to Kerry White.
John Vincent criticized the GCDs role in and was trying to get a retraction from us (I say us because I am a committed member of the GCD). However what Vincent fails to realize is that he is not the voice of the GCD and that we had every right to oppose White's re-appointment. White is a milder form of John Stokes, who claims that all environmentalists are "eco-terrorists". He is anti-planning, and close minded, which are not qualifications of someone on the planning commission for one of the fastest growing regions in Montana.