[Sosfbay-discuss] Ideas from Far-Flung Places
JamBoi
jamboi at yahoo.com
Sat Mar 3 00:22:38 PST 2007
I feel the four e-mails from Mark in rapid succession were starting to
approach spamming. He has a legit point of view, certainly, but that
doesn't entitle him to intervene in another party. NOPE!
Alex I've been feeling kinda borderline about and have considered
saying something. The fact that he seems to have built bonds here from
before stayed my hand. People who've spent time with us I think counts
for something. So occasional input from people who've moved away I
would welcome. It'd be nice to hear from Jim Moreno for instance.
On the other hand we Greens are all about Decentralization and spamming
from afar is an insidious form of Centralization. So I'll continue to
'just say no' if folks who are not in our county overdo it. After all,
they have their own Counties to be doing their work in and need to be
about their own work, not meddling in ours.
Green means GO!
Drew
--- Gerry Gras <gerrygras at earthlink.net> wrote:
>
> Alex,
>
> I am unclear what you are trying to do here. Are you asking for
> input from others on what they/we think of having someone from
> outside the county on the list?
>
> I don't have an easy answer. Some thoughts:
>
> - I think anyone should be able to subscribe.
>
> - I am not sure how much participation should be ok from
> someone outside the county.
>
> - I was on the Vermont Green Party list until they discontinued
> it due to excessive infighting. I rarely participated, but
> when I did it was usually to provide some perspective available
> only to outsiders. I think I always/usually mentioned that I
> was in California. No one ever objected to my participation
> (at least I never heard of any objections).
>
> - Mark sent 4 emails in a short period on a specific subject,
> but had never sent any emails before. So I don't think his
> emails are excessive so far.
>
> - I appreciate the emails from you (Alex) whether you are in
> or out of the county.
>
> Gerry Gras
> Member of the County Council
>
>
> alexcathy at aol.com wrote:
>
> > Dear Friends,
> >
> > A question has come up on the South San Francisco Bay Green list
> about
> > the participation of a Green activist from Ohio.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > -----Begin Original Message-----
> > From: MLause at cinci.rr.com
> > To: jamboi at yahoo.com; tnharter at ispwest.com;
> sosfbay-discuss at cagreens.org
> > Sent: Fri, 2 Mar 2007 4:55 AM
> > Subject: Re: [Sosfbay-discuss] Lorna Salzman on Chris Hedges
> >
> > Ah, well.
> >
> >
> >
> > If you read the email address, you know I'm in Ohio, and have been
> on this
> >
> > list for some time because I wanted to see how a healthy
> organization with
> >
> > an engaged membership functions. We don't have one.
> >
> >
> >
> > . . .
> >
> >
> >
> > In keeping with your wishes, I'll unsub from this list and leave
> you
> >
> > "leaders" the "autonomy" to manage information about how good your
> past
> >
> > decisions have been and, particularly, how peachy keen those
> decisions have
> >
> > made things here in the cornbelt.
> >
> >
> >
> > Solidarity!
> >
> > Mark L.
> >
> >
> >
> > -----End Original Message-----
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > This situation is precisely why I was originally so excited about
> the Green Commons Web Site.
> >
> >
> >
> > Since we are totally ignored by the mainstream media, it is almost
> impossible
> >
> > to know about Green activity around the country or even around the
> State. I used to
> >
> > live in Northern California, but my wife and I recently moved to
> Los Angeles. I follow
> >
> > sosfbay-discuss because I am interested, I personally know many of
> the people, and I we get
> >
> > nothing from the Los Angeles MSM about what goes on among Bay Area
> Greens.
> >
> >
> >
> > Furthermore, if an individual Green is successful, then that person
> is seen as even
> >
> > more threatening to the status quo, and therefore, more likely to
> be blackballed by the
> >
> > MSM. Thus, for example, when Gayle McLaughlin was elected Mayor of
> Richmond, that
> >
> > should have been a big, statewide story. Instead, the MSM buried
> it. As I write this the
> >
> > City of Los Angeles is struggling (yet, again) to deal with new
> wave of gang violence. Alas,
> >
> > it is unthinkable that the good-for-nothing MSM would even mention
> that McLaughlin is dealing
> >
> > with these very issues in Richmond or that Donna Warren has
> literally been on the front lines
> >
> > in this particular battle right in inner-city LA for many years.
> The Los Angeles Times
> >
> > dutifuly reported the current troubles of San Fransisco Democratic
> Mayor Gavin Newsome,
> >
> > but of course, they never mention that the good people of San
> Francisco had a superior alternative
> >
> > when they elected San Francisco's "Little Bill Clinton" back in
> 2003.
> >
> >
> >
> > As an African-American I have been dying to get input about what
> works and what doesn't work
> >
> > for Greens organizing in so-called minority communities.
> >
> >
> >
> > I have had a nice exchange of views with one sister in Los Angeles
> about Barack Obama. I
> >
> > received an e-mail from KCM Curry touting her own candidacy, but
> otherwise I'm getting nothing.
> >
> >
> >
> > In 2004 a tremendous amount of time and effort went into certifying
> the Green Party Black Caucus.
> >
> > Members of the GPBC went to the national convention and gave a nice
> presentation. There were the
> >
> > familiar charges and counter-charges of racism. Almost every day
> somebody would post that
> >
> > Green Party was hopelessly "racist." And almost every day I
> replied with a post that said:
> >
> > "Compared to what?"
> >
> >
> >
> > Despite all this, fights over Nader vs Cobb, a silly dispute with
> the Lavender Greens, and an even
> >
> > sillier objection to a Black Latina joining the group (BTW, I am
> proud to say that when the matter
> >
> > finally came to a vote, the group voted overwhelmingly to accept
> the Latina sister),
> >
> > the Green Party Black Caucus was duly certified and Michelle
> Tingling-Simmons elected chair.
> >
> >
> >
> > Guess what?
> >
> >
> >
> > It almost immediately fell apart!
> >
> >
> >
> > I have seen this sort of thing in other organizations before and
> it's one of the reasons why I am
> >
> > one of the very few "minority" activists nowadays who does not
> believe in "minority" caucuses.
> >
> > Despite the best intentions of the best people involved in these
> efforts, they almost always end up
> >
> > being both divisive and a waste of money, energy, and time. This
> "caucuses" model is a throwback
> >
> > to the '40s, '50s, and '60s when old white men in smoke-filled
> rooms in the Democratic Party and
> >
> > in the AFL-CIO allowed... grudgingly... a few "minorites" to
> participate. It is just my eccentric
> >
> > personal opinion, but I think this is part of the
> Democratic-Repubican legacy that Greens would discard.
> >
> >
> >
> > But I digress.
> >
> >
> >
> > My point in relating this story is that some mechanism needs to be
> in place to allow an exchange
> >
> > of ideas, techniques, and experiences among far-flung Greens. When
> the Green Party Black Caucus
> >
> > was active, I read posts by couple of well-informed members of the
> Illinois Green Party
> >
> > about a certain Illinois State Senator named Barack Obama. I'd
> love to know what these brothers
> >
> > think today but I've lost those contacts.
> >
> >
> >
> > One of the posts to sosfbay-discuss asked the fellow from Ohio
> whatever happened to all the Green
> >
> > activity right after the 2004 elections in Ohio? Good question. I
> would really like to know. Ohio
> >
> > happens to be one of the states where we could surely use some
> hard-hitting Black Greens. I mean,
> >
> > the Black Republican Kenneth Blackwell was the one who masterminded
> the stolen election, and the
> >
> > clueless, weak Black Democrats around Cleveland were the ones who
> let the "Brotha" get away with
> >
> > it. And working-class Cleveland is the base for none other than
> Dennis Kucinich. By now Cleveland
> >
> > should be ripe for revolution!
> >
> >
> >
> > Comes now, from out of nowhere, Elaine Brown declaring her
> candidacy for president.
> >
> >
> >
> > I know she ran as Green Party candidate for mayor of a city in
> Georgia.
> >
> >
> >
> > I know her history in the Black Panther Party in California (and
> most of what I know is not good).
> >
> >
> >
> > Now she wants the Green Party to nominate her for President of the
> United States?
> >
> >
> >
> > For PRESIDENT?
> >
> >
> >
> > I guess it falls on me, the Black guy, to say out loud what some
> may be thinking privately. Are
> >
> > Greens in Ohio and Oregon and Montana and in the Central Valley of
> California going to go tabling
> >
> > at their local farmer's market and say:
> >
> >
> >
> > "Here's our Black Panther Green Party candidate FOR PRESIDENT!" ?
> >
> >
> >
> > Rhetoric aside, what do any of us really know about this candidate?
> >
> >
> >
> > We need to know.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
------------------------------------------------------------------------
> > AOL now offers free email to everyone. Find out more about what's
> free
> > from AOL at AOL.com
> >
>
<http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/1615326657x4311227241x4298082137/aol?redir=http://www.aol.com>.
> >
> >
> >
>
------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > sosfbay-discuss mailing list
> > sosfbay-discuss at cagreens.org
> > http://lists.cagreens.org/mailman/listinfo/sosfbay-discuss
> >
>
>
>
___________________
JamBoi
Jammy The Sacred Cow Slayer
"Live humbly, laugh often and love unconditionally" (anon)
http://dailyJam.blogspot.com
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