Note for the day:
The first Playing to Win went up just over a week ago. Are you guys finding it inspiring to see what everyone is doing? These threads are for you guys, so please speak up about what you want and what works for you.
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
Let’s try late mornings on Wednesday and Friday mornings and Sunday afternoons.
You asked for easy ways to find these threads:
· there’s a link in the sidebar under Calling All Jackals (on computers & tablets in landscape mode)
· there’s a link in the hamburger menu bar (on mobile)
· click on the Playing to Win category that shows up just under the byline at the top of the post
· if you’re super lazy worn out from all your work canvassing and calling and texting, click here
The resource page – with suggestions and resources from previous threads – can be found here and at Playing to Win. Additional links will be added as you provide them in ongoing threads.
*****
A couple of our jackals requested a regular political “action” thread, which we are calling Playing to Win. We’ll keep this up for as long as there is interest.
The goal is a poll-free, spin-free, prognostication-free, media-free, what’s-wrong-with-the-other-candidate-free-zone – a political thread where the focus is on ACTION: What can be done to help our candidates, and what are we doing to help them, every day?
The hope is that this will help provide inspiration, and encourage action, as an alternative to anger, frustration and despair.
Everyone is free to chime in about what they are doing for their their preferred candidate. What actions are we taking at Balloon Juice, individually or collectively, to help candidates we believe in?
What might you like to do, if you weren’t stuck on not quite knowing how to go from thinking about doing something to actually doing something?
· Make calls
· Canvass
· Write postcards
· Text for your candidate
· Donate
· Register people to vote
· Give people rides to the polls to vote
· Bring food and drinks to campaign offices in your area
· Be an election judge
· Be a poll watcher
· Put together a bullet list of what you like about YOUR preferred candidate
· Go to a battleground state to work on a campaign.
· Use your frequent flyer miles to send a volunteer to a battleground state
· If you live in a battleground state, host a volunteer who could stay at your house
· Share a great informational article about YOUR preferred candidate
· If you have campaign connections, connect interested jackals with that campaign
· Organize a postcard-writing campaign and help other BJ peeps get started
What else are you doing?
Tell us what actions you’ve taken today, whether it’s calling or donating or canvassing or writing postcards or talking to someone about your candidate, or anything else that’s on that list. Or even something that isn’t!
Forget the other candidates. Tell us what you LIKE about your candidate.
Share your worries or concerns about canvassing or other activities. What’s holding you back?
If Playing to Win appeals to you, what else would you want to see in this space?
Dupe1970
Right now, I am maxing out my donation to Colin Allred.
I will also probably send a couple hundred bucks to my local house and senate reps.
Last time I talked to Colin he was focused on fundraising when I offered to volunteer.
WaterGirl
I normally get paid on the 1st, but because that’s on Sunday, I got paid today. So I get to sit down today and figure out my strategy for how much I give to which candidates.
UncleEbeneezer
I’m finishing up postcards for Mayor John Harabedian for D-5, LA County Board of Supervisors. We have the lone Republican, Kathryn Barger, in LA County BoS and we’ve been wanting to replace her for 4 years. She’s terrible on Immigrants’ Rights and Policing. I know there are a few people here from Pasadena, Glendale, Burbank etc. Please vote for John Harabedian on 3/3. He is endorsed by the Democratic Party and Jerry Brown.
Also vote YES on Measure R to give the LA County Oversight Commission greater subpoena powers over the LA County Sheriff’s Dept.
WaterGirl
Barb 2 mentioned Four Directions in one of the other threads – I added them to the Resources page.
Omnes Omnibus
VidaLoca mention BLOC in the last thread. They are working in organizing the political potential of Balc voters in Milwaukee. They are working on long term involvement and civic education, not just getting out the vote for an election. Their website is here. I think they are doing something great. I just sent them some cash.
WaterGirl
@Omnes Omnibus: Added them just now, thank you!
VidaLoca is commenting? Cool. I had no idea.
WaterGirl
I think the posting times last week (closer to 10:30 or 11:00) worked better, so unless there are objections, going forward I will post these late mornings. That’s way too early for the west cost, and pretty darn early even in the midwest.
Chime in if you have any thoughts on time.
TomatoQueen
I love this new feature and wish it could be incorporated wherever angst and discouragement are sold. Real on the ground stuff in the trenches, the home of real change–sometimes our hopes seem to be so much smoke, and then we see write some postcards and it’s effective.
What holds me back is the Hatch Act, and not just on gov’t time; in spite of all the guidance memos I’ve seen since 2006 when I started back w/gov’t, there exists enough ambiguity in the rules, regs, and enforcement to prevent participation. I believe very strongly that this is exactly as the Act was intended, and it pisses me off. So, cash donations budgeted as needed.
Reboot
I signed up to canvass this weekend for Elizabeth Warren. Fingers crossed for Super Tuesday….
topclimber
@Reboot: Trying to sign up for texts but am stuck in a loop about joining Slack. I created an account, but following EW campaign’s instructions just takes me back to a defunct link. We will see if they respond but in the meantime, any experience with this?
WaterGirl
@TomatoQueen: Could you be involved in stuff that is not for a particular candidate or party? Like voter registration?
TomatoQueen
@WaterGirl: That’s really the only safe option apart from giving money, or more generally, trying to do service work with individuals, for example assisting someone with getting identification documents to enable registration to vote. I am disabled as well so doing things one on one as long as it’s not me having to try to go somewhere is the major limiting factor. What’s really important under Hatch Act conditions is to maintain one’s anonymity, which is a bit tricky if I help someone get ID, then they’ll send all their friends to me. Trying times, when the greatest reward in working for the government is helping that new citizen register to vote but having to be stealthy in the process. I remember the 90s when somebody else was president and I worked in Federal Court, several mass admissions ceremonies were the best thing on the planet–almost indescribably happy occasions for all. The worst was when an order came down to mark the handwritten index card, in the file since the late forties, “REVOKED.” Sorry, I get carried away sometimes.
WaterGirl
@TomatoQueen: There are several organizations with links on the resource page – none of them connected with a particular party or candidate – maybe you could contact some of them to see what kinds of work you can do that isn’t terribly public.
Mousebumples
I think my grandma would love to do Postcards for Voters. She’s in her 80s, and used to be a poll worker before the days got too long for her. I’m hoping to mention this to her next time we’re visiting (probably around Easter).
Any particular suggestions to help her figure out how to navigate the websites? She’s not super computer literate, so that’s my main concern, especially since I don’t live super close.
Do any of the postcard options work via email? I think she’d be much better with that than trying to navigate a website.
Thanks!
H.E.Wolf
@Mousebumples:
Yes, there is an email option to sign up, and also to request addresses. If you’re going to see her at Easter, the best bet might be for you to read through the info on the website ahead of time, including the FAQ, and if she’s interested, for you to help her get signed up while you’re there.
Note: It’s possible that a person in her/his 80s might need some ongoing help with the address requests, proofreading of finished cards, etc. Does she have someone who could be a project buddy?
WaterGirl
@H.E.Wolf: Or she might be sharp as a tack!
Diceros bicornis
@Mousebumples: I’m leaving this on a dead thread, sorry, I’ll try to figure out how to add this to the resources page somehow!
I would be delighted to help your grandma through PostcardsToVoters.org – I am one of the elves assigning addresses to folks who request them via email. We have a cadre of writers who can’t request addresses through text or Abby the Address bot.
We have a process, and i can help her through it with a combination of canned and personalized messages if I can snag her signup before one of the other busy elves. Maybe we can coordinate by email? Can @WaterGirl put us in email contact if you want to work with me directly to help your grandma?