A Toss Up for Durston in CA-03

Written by: Bill Lackemacher on Oct 8, 2008 1:10 AM EDT

Linked to groups: Sacramento For Democracy, DFA Blog Network, California for Democracy, Take Back Red California, Northern California Trained Activists, DFA-CFD of Mariposa and Tuolumne Counties , Blog For America, Sierra Foothills Democratic Club, DFA Campaign Academy Alumni, DFA-Link Organizers, Training Academy Alumni, Class of 2007, Capitol Area Progressives (CAP) , What are Progressive Values? Study Group

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Video: Obama-McCain - DFA Debate Watch Party - Sept 26 2008 in Berkeley CA

Written by: Edwin Rutsch on Sep 27, 2008 5:46 PM EDT

Linked to groups: East Bay for Democracy, Oakland DFA Meetup, Lake Park, San Francisco for Democracy, Alameda for Democracy, California for Democracy, Courage Campaign, Take Back Red California, Capitol Area Progressives (CAP) , What are Progressive Values? Study Group, DFA-Link Organizers, Walnut Creek DFA, Blog For America, Blogs United, DFA Film Club, DFA-Marin, DFA Night School, Silicon Valley DFA, brought to you by Dean Democratic Club of Silicon Valley, Framing Committee, Florida DFA, NJ for Democracy, Democracy for Florida, Democracy for New York, Democracy for Texas, Democracy for NYC, PA for Democracy, Democracy for Washington, Sacramento For Democracy, Democracy for Illinois, Democracy for Maryland, Philly for Change, Democracy for Ohio (DFO), Democracy for America Miami-Dade (DFAM), Washington Fair Elections, Michigan Democracy for America, DFALA, DFA at Netroots Nation (formerly YearlyKos) July 17-20, blog for America Test and Poll Group

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

The Oakland DFA held a very successful debate watch party in Berkeley, CA with it's greatest meeting  turnout yet. Community members came out to support Barack Obama and Progressive Values.

You can see the video below to get a flavor of the event along with participant expectations and their evaluations of the debate.

Video: Obama-McCain - DFA Debate Watch Party - Sept 26 2008 in Berkeley CA

Edwin Rutsch
 What Are Progressive Values? Documentary Project
 ProgressiveSpirit.com 
 and Study Group

 

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Progressives Blast Failed Conservative Values! Part 2

Written by: Edwin Rutsch on Sep 22, 2008 7:49 PM EDT

Linked to groups: East Bay for Democracy, Oakland DFA Meetup, Lake Park, San Francisco for Democracy, Alameda for Democracy, California for Democracy, Courage Campaign, Take Back Red California, Capitol Area Progressives (CAP) , What are Progressive Values? Study Group, DFA-Link Organizers, Walnut Creek DFA, Blog For America, Blogs United, DFA Film Club, DFA-Marin, DFA Night School, Silicon Valley DFA, brought to you by Dean Democratic Club of Silicon Valley, Framing Committee, Florida DFA, NJ for Democracy, Democracy for Florida, Democracy for New York, Democracy for Texas, Democracy for NYC, PA for Democracy, Democracy for Washington, Sacramento For Democracy, Democracy for Illinois, Democracy for Maryland, Philly for Change, Democracy for Ohio (DFO), Democracy for America Miami-Dade (DFAM), Washington Fair Elections, Michigan Democracy for America, DFALA, DFA at Netroots Nation (formerly YearlyKos) July 17-20, blog for America Test and Poll Group

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

 All the links didn't fit in the last post so here is part 2:

I've been asking people about the the failure of conservative values. Here are links to the latest batch of interviews that I just placed on Youtube.  The failed values that come up are quite varied, but those sighted most often are fear, hypocrisy, conservative family values, division, rigidity, hyper individualism, self-delusion, etc. I also ask people to create a  metaphor of what the Failed Conservative Values are like. These metaphors are often quite revealing.

In our Progressive Values Youtube group, we now have over 600 video clips of progressives talking about their values and telling how they feel conservative values have failed.

Here's the list of newly added interviews related to the failure of conservative values. Most of these were done at Netroots Nation 2008.

PArt 2: Progressives Blast Failed Conservative Values!

  Failed Conservative Values: Wolf Man Spike - Mind Control


  Failed Conservative Values - Jeremy Koulish - Hyper Individualism

  Failed Conservative Values - Al - Polarization Bulldozer

  Failed Conservative Values: Kimberly Yaman - Everyone has Values

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Progressives Blast Failed Conservative Values! Part 1

Written by: Edwin Rutsch on Sep 22, 2008 7:22 PM EDT

Linked to groups: East Bay for Democracy, Oakland DFA Meetup, Lake Park, San Francisco for Democracy, Alameda for Democracy, California for Democracy, Courage Campaign, Take Back Red California, Capitol Area Progressives (CAP) , What are Progressive Values? Study Group, DFA-Link Organizers, Walnut Creek DFA, Blog For America, Blogs United, DFA Film Club, DFA-Marin, DFA Night School, Silicon Valley DFA, brought to you by Dean Democratic Club of Silicon Valley, Framing Committee, Florida DFA, NJ for Democracy, Democracy for Florida, Democracy for New York, Democracy for Texas, Democracy for NYC, PA for Democracy, Democracy for Washington, Sacramento For Democracy, Democracy for Illinois, Democracy for Maryland, Philly for Change, Democracy for Ohio (DFO), Democracy for America Miami-Dade (DFAM), Washington Fair Elections, Michigan Democracy for America, DFALA, DFA at Netroots Nation (formerly YearlyKos) July 17-20, blog for America Test and Poll Group

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

I've been asking people about the the failure of conservative values. Here are links to the latest batch of interviews that I just placed on Youtube.  The failed values that come up are quite varied, but those sighted most often are fear, hypocrisy, conservative familyvalues, division, rigidity, hyper individualism, self-delusion, etc. I also ask people to create a  metaphor of what Conservative Values are like. These metaphors are often quite revealing.

In our Progressive Values Youtube group, we now have over 600 video clips of progressives talking about their own values and telling how they feel conservative values have failed.

Here's the list of newly added interviews related to the failure of conservative values. Most of these were done at Netroots Nation 2008.

Part 1: Progressives Blast Failed Conservative Values!

  Failed Conservative Values: Markos Moulitsas - Self-Delusion

Failed Conservative Values Metaphor: Markos Moulitsas - Dodo Birds  

  Failed Conservative Values Metaphor: Thomas Tucker - Dodo Bird

  Failed Conservatives Values: Johanna Olson - Rigidity

  Failed Conservatives Values Metaphor: Johanna Olson - Tank v Seed

   Failed Conservative Values: Katherine Forrest - Rigidity

Failed Conservative Values Metaphor: Katherine Forrest - Ridged Structure

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Lipsticked Hydra at the Failed Conservative 'Value Voters Summit 2008'

Written by: Edwin Rutsch on Sep 13, 2008 5:13 PM EDT

Linked to groups: East Bay for Democracy, Oakland DFA Meetup, Lake Park, San Francisco for Democracy, Alameda for Democracy, California for Democracy, Courage Campaign, Take Back Red California, Capitol Area Progressives (CAP) , What are Progressive Values? Study Group, DFA-Link Organizers, Walnut Creek DFA, Blog For America, Blogs United, DFA Film Club, DFA-Marin, DFA Night School, Silicon Valley DFA, brought to you by Dean Democratic Club of Silicon Valley, Framing Committee, Florida DFA, NJ for Democracy, Democracy for Florida, Democracy for New York, Democracy for Texas, Democracy for NYC, PA for Democracy, Democracy for Washington, Sacramento For Democracy, Democracy for Illinois, Democracy for Maryland, Philly for Change, Democracy for Ohio (DFO), Democracy for America Miami-Dade (DFAM), Washington Fair Elections, Michigan Democracy for America, DFALA, DFA at Netroots Nation (formerly YearlyKos) July 17-20, blog for America Test and Poll Group

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

This weekend conservatives are holding their annual Conservative Value Voters Summit 2008 in Washington DC.  Last year I wrote an article about the Summit and called for counter rallies to challenge this conference as part of a progressive effort to Take Back the Values Debate.  There didn't seem to be much interest or support of the idea among progressives.   Progressives still miss the point by spending most of their energy attacking Bush, Cheney, McCain, Palin, etc, instead of clearly connecting them to the underlying Failed Conservative Values of authoritarianism, fear, secrecy, deception, self-righteousness, hypocrisy, indifference, dogmatism, violence, etc. and offering the progressive alternative values.

While  critiques of the leadership of the conservative movement is important, these leaders are merely the latest heads of the Conservative Hydra. If you cut off one head, two more will grow in it's place. To kill the Hydra, you need to stab it in the heart from which the blood of failed values flow.  Yes, there needs to be a critique of failed conservative policies, leaders, institutions, principles, etc, but all of these flow from a corrupted spiritual values essence. A stab at each of these should be followed by a stab at the heart. All of these need to be tied back to the original toxics polluted spiritual spring from where they originate.  The critiques need to be directed at the source with the goal of putting the beast out of it's misery.  When the Hydra dies, then all the heads wither and fade on their own. It's a fools exercise to just attack the heads.

Conservative Hydra with Lipstick

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Failed Conservatives Values: Jim Hightower on Grasping Greed

Written by: Edwin Rutsch on Sep 9, 2008 1:44 AM EDT

Linked to groups: East Bay for Democracy, Oakland DFA Meetup, Lake Park, San Francisco for Democracy, Alameda for Democracy, California for Democracy, Courage Campaign, Take Back Red California, Capitol Area Progressives (CAP) , What are Progressive Values? Study Group, DFA-Link Organizers, Walnut Creek DFA, Blog For America, Blogs United, DFA Film Club, DFA-Marin, DFA Night School, Silicon Valley DFA, brought to you by Dean Democratic Club of Silicon Valley, Framing Committee, Florida DFA, NJ for Democracy, Democracy for Florida, Democracy for New York, Democracy for Texas, Democracy for NYC, PA for Democracy, Democracy for Washington, Sacramento For Democracy, Democracy for Illinois, Democracy for Maryland, Philly for Change, Democracy for Ohio (DFO), Democracy for America Miami-Dade (DFAM), Washington Fair Elections, Michigan Democracy for America, DFALA, DFA at Netroots Nation (formerly YearlyKos) July 17-20, blog for America Test and Poll Group

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

Every morning I can't get out of bed until I've heard Jim Hightower on my local NPR radio station. It's my inspiration to face another day. So, it was a real treat to meet him at the Netroots Nation Conference in his home town of Austin, Texas. I asked Jim about the failure of  conservative values.  He said the failure is the ethic of greed and the alternative to this are the progressive values of fairness, social justice and equal opportunity for all people.

Failed Conservatives Values: Jim Hightower on Greed

Edwin:  Have conservative values failed?

Jim:   Yeah, because conservative values are essentially being expressed as an ethic of greed.  I got mine, you get yours.  You want education, go to a private school.  You want health care – buy it.  You want retirement – you make enough money during your life and retire in the South of France, or something.  What’s wrong with you. 

Rather than recognize that there will be no America if we don’t all share in the advantages that America does offer.  And I’m not talking about people on the dole, people trying to ride the coattails of successful people.  Folks are out there working their butts off.  They’ve been productive.  They have created wealth.  Enormous wealth.

In just these last eight years, the Bushites, for example.  But over the last 30, 40 years, we have been the ones creating the wealth, but we have not been the ones benefiting from that.  For example, most people’s income has gone down in real terms over that period.  Democratic administrations as well as Republicans. 

So that’s why there’s such a rebellion in the countryside these days.  Not just political, but in all aspects of life.  People are demanding change, and they  are making change.

Edwin:  Are they are fed up with greed?

Jim:   Oh, of course.  They don’t benefit from greed, and nobody really benefits, even those who are profiting from it.  Henry Travis, the hostile takeover king in New York City, who makes his money  by buying corporations with borrowed money from rich people to buy other people’s corporations, then selling off the assets of those corporations, firing thousands of people from jobs in that corporation – and then he pockets the money.   And he was making $51,000 an hour in 2006.

So the people who are fired didn’t benefit from that.  The people who founded the corporation didn’t benefit from that.  The people who maybe enjoyed the products of that corporation didn’t benefit from that.  That’s just raw greed, and it’s not serving America’s interests at all. 

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RNC GOP Conservatives Failed to Remember Small Town Values

Written by: Edwin Rutsch on Sep 7, 2008 12:46 PM EDT

Linked to groups: East Bay for Democracy, Oakland DFA Meetup, Lake Park, San Francisco for Democracy, Alameda for Democracy, California for Democracy, Courage Campaign, Take Back Red California, Capitol Area Progressives (CAP) , What are Progressive Values? Study Group, DFA-Link Organizers, Walnut Creek DFA, Blog For America, Blogs United, DFA Film Club, DFA-Marin, DFA Night School, Silicon Valley DFA, brought to you by Dean Democratic Club of Silicon Valley, Framing Committee, Florida DFA, NJ for Democracy, Democracy for Florida, Democracy for New York, Democracy for Texas, Democracy for NYC, PA for Democracy, Democracy for Washington, Sacramento For Democracy, Democracy for Illinois, Democracy for Maryland, Philly for Change, Democracy for Ohio (DFO), Democracy for America Miami-Dade (DFAM), Washington Fair Elections, Michigan Democracy for America, DFALA, DFA at Netroots Nation (formerly YearlyKos) July 17-20, blog for America Test and Poll Group

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

Daily Show with Jon Stewart

Here's a funny clip from the Daily Show's coverage of the Republican National Convention.  In their various speeches, conservatives made a big point of trying to connect their Failed Conservative Values to Small Town Values.  Yes, they never give up on the values debate and always try to add a new wrinkle to their rhetorical values debate arsenal.   However, this time the Daily Show's best darn news team on the planet went out to investigate.   As you'll see,  the problem is that conservatives just  can't remember what those values are.

Hopefully conservatives will stop insulting people from small towns by trying to project their Failed Conservative Values onto them.

Here are some suggestions from progressives about the values conservatives just couldn't remember. It's not hard they see why they are having a memory block.

 Fatally Flawed Conservative Value of  Hypocrisy

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Sarah Palin and the Same Failed Conservative Values

Written by: Edwin Rutsch on Sep 4, 2008 3:47 AM EDT

Linked to groups: East Bay for Democracy, Oakland DFA Meetup, Lake Park, San Francisco for Democracy, Alameda for Democracy, California for Democracy, Courage Campaign, Take Back Red California, Capitol Area Progressives (CAP) , What are Progressive Values? Study Group, DFA-Link Organizers, Walnut Creek DFA, Blog For America, Blogs United, DFA Film Club, DFA-Marin, DFA Night School, Silicon Valley DFA, brought to you by Dean Democratic Club of Silicon Valley, Framing Committee, Florida DFA, NJ for Democracy, Democracy for Florida, Democracy for New York, Democracy for Texas, Democracy for NYC, PA for Democracy, Democracy for Washington, Sacramento For Democracy, Democracy for Illinois, Democracy for Maryland, Philly for Change, Democracy for Ohio (DFO), Democracy for America Miami-Dade (DFAM), Washington Fair Elections, Michigan Democracy for America, DFALA, DFA at Netroots Nation (formerly YearlyKos) July 17-20, blog for America Test and Poll Group

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

 Like at past Republican National Conventions, there has been a lot of talk about conservative values. Nothing new there, but this time the convention has the feeling of a sinking ship.  The conservatives are doing a lot of  talking about the exact same Failed Conservative Values that they have been talking about for the past 30 years. It's the same Failed Conservative Values of indifference, incompetence, compassionate conservativism and corruption that brought us the disaster of Katrina. It's the same Failed Conservative Values of authoritarianism, secrecy, deception and violence that brought us the failed invasion and occupation of  Iraq. It's the same Failed Conservative Values of selfishness, greed and arrogance that brought us Abramoff and a conservative congress mired in a culture of corruption. 

Sara Palin 
 
It's the same Conservative Family Values and Traditional Conservative Values of 'you are on your own', that have lifted the national misery index. It's the same fundamentalism, self-righteousness and hypocrisy that brought the sex scandals of Mark Foley, Ted Haggard, Larry Craig, etc. etc

The problem is that progressives, liberals and democrats are not directly taking on the Failed Conservative Values. Progressives need to call conservative values what they are. Failed!  It's not just failed policies, it's failed values.  Even conservatives shout from the rooftops that they base their policies on their values. Take them at their word. I see progressives repeatedly attack the failed conservative policies, but they will not directly attack the Failed Conservative Values.

I've interviewed over 100 people and asked them if Conservative Values have Failed?  They all had no problem coming up with example after example after example of  the failures. People know in their heart, in their guts, in their bodies, how conservative values have failed the country. It's time for progressives to stand up and confront conservatives directly at the values level. Start off by telling them directly and with the conviction you feel in your guts that their values have failed.

Here are just a few of the stories people have shared with me.

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Video: Rallies & Protests in SF as McCain and Obama Rake in the $$

Written by: Edwin Rutsch on Aug 18, 2008 9:15 PM EDT

Linked to groups: East Bay for Democracy, Oakland DFA Meetup, Lake Park, San Francisco for Democracy, Alameda for Democracy, California for Democracy, Courage Campaign, Take Back Red California, Capitol Area Progressives (CAP) , What are Progressive Values? Study Group, DFA-Link Organizers, Walnut Creek DFA, Blog For America, Blogs United, DFA Film Club, DFA-Marin, DFA Night School, Silicon Valley DFA, brought to you by Dean Democratic Club of Silicon Valley, Framing Committee, Florida DFA, NJ for Democracy, Democracy for Florida, Democracy for New York, Democracy for Texas, Democracy for NYC, PA for Democracy, Democracy for Washington, Sacramento For Democracy, Democracy for Illinois, Democracy for Maryland, Philly for Change, Democracy for Ohio (DFO), Democracy for America Miami-Dade (DFAM), Washington Fair Elections, Michigan Democracy for America, DFALA, DFA at Netroots Nation (formerly YearlyKos) July 17-20, blog for America Test and Poll Group

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

 "The more I see of the moneyed classes, the more I understand the guillotine."
George Bernard Shaw

 Barack Obama came to the San Francisco Fairmont Hotel for a fundraiser yesterday on Sunday, August 17. He raised 7.5 million dollars. Just 3 weeks earlier John McCain had braved being corrupted by the dreaded 'San Francisco Values' at a fund raiser in the same hotel. His campaign declined to state how much their haul was.

Here are videos I made of both Rallies.

Barack Obama at San Francisco Fairmont Hotel Rally, Aug 17, 2008
 

Anti McCain SF Rally - Alec Bash - 07-28-08 at Fairmont Hotel

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Progressive Values Stories: Gavin Newsom on Inclusivity and Noah’s Ark

Written by: Edwin Rutsch on Aug 16, 2008 5:08 PM EDT

Linked to groups: East Bay for Democracy, Oakland DFA Meetup, Lake Park, San Francisco for Democracy, Alameda for Democracy, California for Democracy, Courage Campaign, Take Back Red California, Capitol Area Progressives (CAP) , What are Progressive Values? Study Group, DFA-Link Organizers, Walnut Creek DFA, Blog For America, Blogs United, DFA Film Club, DFA-Marin, DFA Night School, Silicon Valley DFA, brought to you by Dean Democratic Club of Silicon Valley, Framing Committee, Florida DFA, NJ for Democracy, Democracy for Florida, Democracy for New York, Democracy for Texas, Democracy for NYC, PA for Democracy, Democracy for Washington, Sacramento For Democracy, Democracy for Illinois, Democracy for Maryland, Philly for Change, Democracy for Ohio (DFO), Democracy for America Miami-Dade (DFAM), Washington Fair Elections, Michigan Democracy for America, DFALA, DFA at Netroots Nation (formerly YearlyKos) July 17-20, blog for America Test and Poll Group

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

We are trying to construct a more inclusive society. We are going to make a country in which no one is left out.  Franklin D. Roosevelt

I interviewed San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom about what he personally feels are the most important progressive values. He mentioned  several progressive values, such as, Interdependence, Stewardship, Empathy and Tolerance, but focused on Inclusivity as the most important.  He cautions progressives not to 'eat their young' and implode internally from all their differences. When asked to create a metaphor for inclusivity, he came up with the image of  Noah's Ark. 

Progressive Values: Gavin Newsom on Inclusivity and Interdependence

Gavin Newsom:  Well, I’m thinking inclusivity, the notion that we’re all in this together, and interdependence, that celebrate our differences, but unite around our common humanity.  And the opportunity to live their lives out loud and to be fully expressive is a core value, it’s a value that provides an opportunity to create wealth and opportunity and keeps us competitive, a spirit of pride and entrepreneurialism that transcends the movement, the willingness to agree to disagree without being disagreeable. 

The willingness to come together and try new things, and innovate and focus on a precautionary principle, that is decisions we make today have an impact tomorrow, and being thoughtful about making an investment not only in terms of solving today’s problems, but in the long term. 

And I think these values are uniting values and transcending values from one generation to the next, and I think they are truly American values.  And they’re family values, as we’re talking today about family values – if you believe in family values, you need to value the family with a living wage and sick leave or family medical leave. 

You need to create jobs and opportunity, create opportunities for health care and get your kids into college, to be able to afford college, or work-training programs.  Be prepared for the new evolution in terms of green-collar jobs and realities of global interdependence, and the fact that we can’t put a wall up, and that we have to deal with the changing economy and climate, literally and figuratively in the global climate itself. 

So I think it’s a much more impactful and impassioned stewardship, and certainly one that is in stark contrast to a decade of conservatism that has been thrust upon us. 

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