[GPSCC-chat] Special Electoral Reform agenda for Feb. 27 mtg?
Spencer Graves
spencer.graves at structuremonitoring.com
Sat Feb 15 14:47:44 PST 2014
Hello, All:
1. What do you think about modifying the agenda for our Feb. 27
meeting so it starts 7 PM with a 1-hour panel discussion of electoral
reform, with speakers depending on whom we can get with this short
notice? Then at 8 or 8:30 we could move to a shortened version of our
regular agenda. We could still finish by 9:30 PM by moving moderate to
long discussions to email, telephone or another meeting.
* Richard Hobbs is eager to come, I think, because his
chapter of Move to Amend wants signatures, signature gathers and money
for an initiative they want to put on the ballot this year. Someone like
Craig Dunkerly from the California Clean Money campaign might want to
speak. Two campaign finance disclosure bills passed the California
Senate last year but were stalled in the Assembly (SB 27 and SB 52). I
think we can help build momentum to get something passed in this area.
CA Clean supports SB 52 but hardly mentions SB 27. Common Cause
supports SB 27. I don't know if we can get someone from Common Cause to
participate in a panel Feb. 27. Getting someone from CA Clean seems
more likely.
2. If you like this idea, what do you think about organizing a
discussion of Instant Runoff Voting for March 27? We could probably get
someone like Steve Chessin from Californians for Electoral Reform, the
primary organization pushing IRV. I also want to invite Gloria Chun
Hoo, President of the Santa Clara / San José chapter of the League of
Women Voters. She's a known IRV opponent. I've so far been unable to
find out why she opposes IRV. By inviting her to debate with someone
like Chessin, we may learn something and advance this issue.
3. If these go well, I would like to organize something around
citizen-funded elections and news. By this I mean something like a tax
rebate for the first $50 or so that people give each year or every two
years to a political campaign or to the media of their choice. The
first could generate more campaign contributions than currently provided
by the big money. The second could fund substantive investigative
journalism at a level far beyond anything we've seen any place in human
history and could provide the information people need to get past the
propaganda that currently dominates mainstream broadcasting.
What do you think?
Best Wishes,
Spencer
###################
Hi, Sandy:
1. Thanks for offering to serve on the County Council. Someone
needs to check the rules on procedure so we can make it official.
2. I'd be open to changing the format of our monthly meeting.
For example, we could start at 7 PM with a guest presentation or a movie
followed by a discussion that would run until 9 PM followed by a half
hour general business meeting with agenda organized by the County Council.
2.1. However, a change like this would require someone
taking the lead to organize this. The obvious lead organizers should, I
think, be people most concerned about our major foci. These are
currently environment and universal health care. Those are important,
but I'm more concerned about government secrecy and democracy.
Regarding the latter, I've recently attended regular meetings of the
Santa Clara County Citizens' Advisory Commission on Elections and the
League of Women Voters. I've already been able to restart stalled
discussions on getting Instant Runoff Voting here in Santa Clara County.
2.2. Is anyone interested in helping organize a showing of
"Inequality for All"? Just over an hour ago, I finally received word
that we can now show "Inequality for All" on reasonable terms -- after
having had tentative showing canceled twice because of misinformation
about licensing. Dream Menders will meet next Wednesday and discuss
showing this at the Peace Center, presumably 2-4:30 PM on a Sunday like
March 16, 23, or 30. Any preferences?
3. Some will remember that Merriam Kathleen, Caroline Yacoub and
others (John Thielking?) organized a Green Movie night at the Peace
Center for 2 years. The results from that were OK but not adequate to
justify the level of effort required to keep it going. Before we change
how we manage our monthly meeting(s), we need to ask Caroline and others
what we should do to try to obtain greater success.
Spencer
On 2/11/2014 5:34 PM, perrysandy at aol.com wrote:
> Hi Spencer,
> I would be willing to serve on the County Council, but only as a last
> resort, after we have taken serious steps to recruit minority
> candidates and women. Otherwise, I am afraid our County Council will
> dwindle further, from three to two, two to one, etc. until we are on
> the verge of disappearing - just at the very time the situation for
> the Green Party is getting riper than ever.
> I also believe we should consider a suggestion made by Drew a while
> ago: to grow the Green Party in small local committees as we are
> attempting to do with some small success at De Anza. To have the main
> (tedious) business of the Party handled by the County Council in a
> separate meeting (open to any member). To have our monthly membership
> meeting be an educational or organizing event geared toward new
> members and prospective members, with films, lectures, or actions, and
> broadly publicized.
> With all due respect, I am tired of long discussions about whether or
> not we should endorse a long list of projects, while in the meantime
> we are growing so small that people care less and less whether we
> endorse their activity or not.
> Sandy
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Spencer Graves <spencer.graves at structuremonitoring.com>
> To: GPSCC <sosfbay-discuss at cagreens.org>
> Sent: Thu, Feb 6, 2014 9:03 pm
> Subject: [GPSCC-chat] recruiting volunteers for Citizens' Advisory
> Commission on Elections & Greens County Council
>
> Hello, All:
>
>
> 1. COUNTY COUNCIL: Our official County Council is supposed to have 7.
> After John Thielking leaves in June, we will be down to 3 (Jim Doyle,
> Betsy and me). The duties are simple: Respond to an occasional email or
> phone call to help decide an issue that we prefer not wait for the next
> monthly meeting. Other requirements: Live in Santa Clara County and have
> been registered Green for at least a year. It's not necessary to come to
> meetings.
>
>
> 2. SANTA CLARA COUNTY CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS: This
> Commission meets the first Tuesday of each month except on election
> days. It helps the Board of Supervisors manage the Registrar of Voters.
> They currently have a vacancy in Supervisorial District 2
> (www.sccgov.org/sites/bos/bnc/CABODocs/MaddyReport.html#CITIZENS’ <http://www.sccgov.org/sites/bos/bnc/CABODocs/MaddyReport.html#CITIZENS%E2%80%99>
> ADVISORY COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS).
>
>
> ** This is a key post from which to advance instant runoff voting (IRV)
> and increasing the volume of information available to the public
> including about campaign finance. I've been attending their meetings
> since last September. If we had had 1 or 2 people actively attending
> these meetings for the past decade and pushing gently for IRV, we would
> likely have gotten it 5 years ago or so, shortly after San Francisco and
> Alameda Counties started using IRV. One of the current Commissioners is
> a Peace & Freedom party member (Dave Kadlecek), which indicates that you
> don't have to be a Democrat or a Republican to be appointed to this
> board. Two of the current board members asked me to apply.
> Unfortunately, I'm not eligible, because I do not live in Supervisorial
> District 2. This is an unpaid position.
>
>
> I'd be pleased to talk with anyone who might be interested either in
> serving in trying to find someone to serve in either of these capacities.
>
>
> Best Wishes,
> Spencer
>
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--
Spencer Graves, PE, PhD
President and Chief Technology Officer
Structure Inspection and Monitoring, Inc.
751 Emerson Ct.
San José, CA 95126
ph: 408-655-4567
web:www.structuremonitoring.com
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