Green Party Watch

The Ohio State Green Party is meeting Saturday January 23 in Columbus, OH. They are also seeking candidates for public office, candidates for State Party positions, and help collecting signatures for Dennis Spisak and other candidates.

Details below from the Ohio Green Party’s GreenBeat:

The Ohio Green Party January 16, 2010

_____________________________________________________

In this issue:

Haiti
• Earthquakes devastate Western Hemisphere’s poorest nation
• History of a Haitian Holocaust by Greg Palast
Convention News
• Correction
• Bringing it all together – What is your vision?
• The Ohio Green Party State Convention Venue
• Lunch at the convention
Campaign News
• Seeking candidates for party officers
• Filing deadline approaching for candidates
• Candidates need petitions circulated
________________________________________________
Haiti

Earthquakes devastate Western Hemisphere’s poorest nation
More grim news for the long suffering people of Haiti. Relief agency workers who survived the level 7 earthquake are projecting casualty figures in the tens of thousands with thousands more dying from lack of water, rampant disease, and untreated injuries. The next 24 hours is critical. Those of our readers who may wish to respond to appeals for aid can find a list of trusted organizations working in Haiti from a link posted by ABC News.
—————————————————————————–

History of a Haitian Holocaust
by Greg Palast
1.
Bless the President for having rescue teams in the air almost immediately. That was President Olafur Grimsson of Iceland. On Wednesday, the AP reported that the President of the United States promised, “The initial contingent of 2,000 Marines could be deployed to the quake-ravaged country within the next few days.” “In a few days,” Mr. Obama?
2.
There’s no such thing as a ‘natural’ disaster. 200,000 Haitians have been slaughtered by slum housing and IMF “austerity” plans.
3.
A friend of mine called. Do I know a journalist who could get medicine to her father? And she added, trying to hold her voice together, “My sister, she’s under the rubble. Is anyone going who can help, anyone?” Should I tell her, “Obama will have Marines there in ‘a few days’”?
4.
China deployed rescuers with sniffer dogs within 48 hours. China, Mr. President. China: 8,000 miles distant. Miami: 700 miles close. US bases in Puerto Rico: right there.
5.
Obama’s Defense Secretary Robert Gates said, “I don’t know how this government could have responded faster or more comprehensively than it has.” We know Gates doesn’t know.
6.
>From my own work in the field, I know that FEMA has access to ready-to-go potable water, generators, mobile medical equipment and more for hurricane relief on the Gulf Coast. It’s all still there. Army Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré, who served as the task force commander for emergency response after Hurricane Katrina, told the Christian Science Monitor, “I thought we had learned that from Katrina, take food and water and start evacuating people.” Maybe we learned but, apparently, Gates and the Defense Department missed school that day. (Read More)
____________________________________________
Convention News

Correction
The last day to register as a Green Party Member in order to have voting rights at the 2010 State Convention is Friday, January 22, by 10 am. If you need to join or have questions about your membership status contact Secretary Tim Kettler at tmkettler@aol.com or call him at 740 502 6453.
———————————————————————–
Bringing it all together – What is your vision?

When people think of the Green Party the first thing that comes to their mind is the environment. In fact, the Greens have an agenda that extends far beyond living in harmony with the planet. They have a vision of social justice and economic democracy where people work together for the common good and share in the wealth and bounty of our world; where the American people are not compelled to fight one another for the crumbs left behind by the greedy few; where our labor brings rewards to ourselves and our families rather than to those who have used our effort and dedication to amass wealth and power far exceeding their needs or their entitlement. We are a nation building weapons systems that can target a person from space and kill him from half way around the world. A nation of Greens would use power and technology in the service of peace. As a Green I have my own idea of where we need to go:

We need a dozen progressive efforts exceeding the scale and commitment of the Manhattan Project. Instead we’re getting a bolder corporate agenda and more military intervention. The best reform policies we can hope for are timid little centrist half-steps that won’t threaten the sweet system that the super wealthy have built for themselves at the expense of our homes, our jobs, our pensions, and the blood of our troops; policies that won’t stop the ice caps from melting; that won’t provide an alternative source of energy to the planet’s rapidly dwindling oil supplies; that won’t reign in our imperialism; that won’t cut military spending; that won’t end wars. I don’t want a tax cut, I want new priorities. I want social programs and services back for the taxes I pay; free healthcare and free college education; a sound infrastructure, schools, hospitals, and a green mass transit system that will take me anywhere in the country for less than a day’s pay. I want the government to subsidize alternative energy development for homeowners the way it has subsidized the needs of private defense contractors. I want to stop giving my money to avaricious “free market” ideologues and their trickle down philosophers. I want to stop protecting banks and start protecting our retirement, our employment, and our investment in our homes. I want fair tax reform that puts the burden on the obscenely rich until there aren’t any more obscenely rich. I want my vote to count and I want it on a verifiable paper ballot. I want the public airwaves back and media conglomerates broken up. I want legislation mandating public funding of campaigns and I want legislators thrown in prison if they accept one dime in contributions from anyone. I want free media coverage of open debates and campaign forums that includes all candidates on the ballot. I want a free and open internet and freedom of speech and assembly in the streets without surveillance or interference by the government. I want an end to offshore prisons, torture, and rendition and I want those at the highest level who implement these policies to be prosecuted. I want the Bill of Rights restored. I want an end to privatized wars and corporate armies. I want a job. I want the government to employ me to build my nation if the private sector can’t offer me work. That is one Green’s vision.

What is your vision? Bring it to the convention. This year we will move from the status of a PAC to a political party. We are growing, we are moving forward. We will welcome new members. We will build a platform. We will enact new bylaws. We will elect party officers across the state at all levels. We will run candidates for state and local public office. Can you move forward? Can you move beyond the comfortable meaningless rhetoric and familiar tweedle dum/tweedle dee choices offered by the two major parties? Can you commit to making your vision real? Can you be a Green?

The future is Green. Become an active party member. A successful convention is one more rung upward on the ladder out of the social and economic abyss that has been decades in the making. For more information contact Tim Kettler at tmkettler@aol.com or call him at 740 502 6453.
—————————————————————————-
The Ohio Green Party State Convention Venue

Saturday
January 23
10 AM – 4PM
Gallery Room 100
2231 N. High Street,
Columbus, Ohio
43201
Registration Begins 9:30 AM. Parking behind the building.
The last day to join the Green Party in order to have voting rights
at the 2010 State Convention is Friday, January 22, by 10 AM.
If you need to join or have questions about your membership status contact Secretary Tim Kettler at tmkettler@aol.com or call him at 740 502 6453
————————————————————————————-
Lunch at the convention

A pot luck lunch is being organized for the convention. The committee would like to invite those who are so inclined to share your favorite dish or dessert with your fellow Greens. There is a sink but no kitchen or cooking facilities so casseroles, covered dishes, soups, salads, crackers, snacks, light breakfast items, baked goods, desserts, beverages, and meat, cheese, and vegetable trays, are appropriate. There are outlets for crock pots and electric skillets. There will be a tea/coffee bar. Please, no Styrofoam, paper, disposable dishes or utensils. Dishes and utensils will be provided. If you are able to bring cups or bowls we could use a few more.
__________________________________________________
Campaign News

Seeking candidates for party officers

The Green Party is recruiting new candidates for the expanding State Coordinating Committee. If you are interested in representing your area and building the Green Party at the county or district level contact Logan Martinez at loganmartinez@hotmail.com or Tim Kettler at tmkettler@aol.com or call Tim at 740 502 6453.
——————————————————————————
Filing deadline approaching for candidates

Those wishing to run for public office as a Green or for a position as a Green Party official must submit their intentions along with any required petitions to the Secretary of State by February 18. The 2010 elections are offering Green progressives a great opportunity to access the ballot with minimal requirements for gathering petition signatures. For example, the office of governor formerly required a candidate who ran as an independent or as a member of a third party to gather 5,000 signatures. Today because of the Federal Court decision that same candidate only needs to collect 500 signatures. A third party candidate for the Ohio House, the Ohio Senate, or County Commissioner only needs 25.

So what does it take to be a candidate? The legal requirements for every office are spelled out at the
Ohio Secretary of State’s website. Beyond those rudimentary requirements a Green candidate must demonstrate two special qualities. Integrity and commitment.

As a Green you will not accept corporate or special interest money so, unlike your major party counterparts, you will begin your candidacy with your integrity intact. Your fellow Greens will expect you to keep it. Our recent candidate for State Senator, Tim Kettler, was offered money from the Sierra Club, an organization whose goals we support. He returned the contribution with a gracious acknowledgement. There is no compromise on this principle. If you run as a Green you are not for sale.

Power in the Green Party flows from the bottom up. A commitment to the needs and interests of the people you will represent is a fundamental. The positions and issues that you will champion as a Green candidate will be based in no small part on consensus and agreements reached at local Green meetings. A commitment to democratic principles in pursuit of Green values is basic to our whole party structure.

If you see the need for change please consider running as a candidate for the Green Party. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist or a millionaire. We need people to step forward to offer an alternative to corporate funded politics if we want to see change. If you don’t, who will?

For more information contact Logan Martinez at loganmartinez@hotmail.com or Tim Kettler at tmkettler@aol.com or call Tim at 740 502 6453.
—————————————————————————
Candidates need petitions circulated

Dennis Spisak, is seeking the Green Party nomination as a candidate for the Governor’s race along with Anita Rios as candidate for Lt. Governor. They need 500 signatures. If you wish help to circulate petitions please contact spikespisak@aol.com or call 330 503 1407 to get petition forms sent to you and to check changes in the way we must gather signatures that are different from guidelines that we followed in previous elections. If you want to download petition forms click here. This will take you to the RapidShare file sharing site. Click the FREE USER button to start downloading the files. You will need to print these forms on legal size paper.

Tags: Ohio

This entry was posted on Monday, January 18th, 2010 at 12:46 am and is filed under State Party News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.