Granite Staters from every walk-of-life and of every political stripe encourage your active participation in Democracy for New Hampshire, a nonpartisan political action committee.

We will recruit and raise funds for socially progressive, fiscally responsible candidates who speak honestly about policy choices; coordinate activities with other socially progressive organizations, initiatives, and individuals; and harness the power of the Internet and the grassroots to promote community involvement and build democratic institutions in our state.

Explore these pages and get involved today with our committees, events, and discussions. Then send us your questions, comments, and suggestions.

Impeachment Defends our Constitution - There in lies our hope, Ninety-five strong.

Late in the afternoon of April 16, 2008 the Constitution of the United States and the citizens of NH were struck a serious blow. An 87 year old grandmother from Brookline, who's eyes sparkle with the fire of life, brought to the floor of the NH House a bill, H. R. 24, which would restore the dignity and blessings of the Constitution to it's rightful place as the law of the land.

Rep. Betty Hall along with ninety-four other brave Citizen-Representative members of the House stood up to defend the Constitution and the citizens of NH and voted for further debate on HR 24. The remaining members of the House, some 300 strong dropped their weapons to defend the Constitution and headed for the doors.

HR 24 is not about the request for impeachment of President Bush and Vice President Cheney. The crux of the Resolution/Petition is to force Congress to weigh the damage inflicted on the Constitution by the totalitarian regime in Washington.

I have built a website that is designed to allow people to do their own research on the subject of SB-2. My reason for building it, was that I found it very difficult to educate myself on the subject when I wanted to cast an informed vote. I decided that if there was a site where people could go and get unbiased information from both sides of the issue that it would be a good thing for everyone concerned.

I am not posting here to "promote" the site. I just want to let people know about it in case they need it. I also want to urge people to comment on it and to submitt other resources that I can put on the site to help other people. My Goal? To have one central location where people can go and become informed about both sides of the issue so they can easily get the information they need to cast an informed vote when they are asked to do so.

Thanks for reading this, and I look forward to your input.

Don Chase, Pittsfield, NH

sb2now.wordpress.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MANCHESTER – The Friends of Patrick Arnold PAC has launched a campaign website at Democracy for America’s DFA-Link.

Patrick Arnold, a resident of Manchester’s Ward 12, is running for State Representative to represent citizens of Manchester’s west side (Hillsborough Co., Dist. 17) in the State Legislature.

A few weeks ago, the Lebanon City Council formed an Energy Advisory Committee. City Councilor James Dean and I worked together to propose the idea. The City Council is non-partisan, but it just so happens that James Dean is a Republican and I am a Democrat.

Two things I notice about this: Energy is an issue that provides opportunities for Democrats and Republican to work together. And local government seems to lend itself to non-partisanship.

There are a lot of great things happening with energy committees around the state - and nation. It gives me hope for the future.

Some groups to know about...

US Conference of Mayors Climate Protection Agreement

The Carbon Coalition

Sustainable Energy Resource Group

EPA New England's Community Energy Challeng

Worries about resurrecting the draft have been discounted for some time, on both sides of the aisle. And then comes the new War Czar, Army Lt. Gen. Douglas Lute. Read this AP report about an "All Things Considered" segment:

WASHINGTON (AP) - Frequent tours for U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan have stressed the all-volunteer force and made it worth considering a return to a military draft, President Bush's new war adviser said Friday. "I think it makes sense to certainly consider it," Army Lt. Gen. Douglas Lute said in an interview with National Public Radio's "All Things Considered." "And I can tell you, this has always been an option on the table. But ultimately, this is a policy matter between meeting the demands for the nation's security by one means or another," Lute added in his first interview since he was confirmed by the Senate in June.

This could be a trial balloon to gaugue public willingness, but it could also be another front in the scare tactics crusade the Bushies have seemed to perfect. In essence, they're saying "if you keep messing with us, we'll send your sons and daughters to Iraq -- whether they want to go or not!"

Success! Today, over a thousand miles away from each other, marchers in Iowa and New Hampshire converged on the capitols of each state. Here in New Hampshire, there was a great turnout. But more than the numbers, it was the spirit: hopeful yet determined, loud and joyful, united in our vision and our call - we are the leaders we've been waiting for to create a clean energy economy here in this country and around the world. There'll be more reflections to come, but for now, check out our videos from the New Hampshire march - and thank you to all who made this journey possible!

View the March at YouTube, and click for more info

"Welcome to Litchfield, walkers. Folks are talking amongst themselves. Come back next year and see the fruits of your labor - you got all the local farmers to participate. Hoorah!"
- Liana Eastman, farmer, Nesenkeag Coop Farm

Liana Eastman and her husband, Eero Ruutila, welcomed us last evening to their organic farm, tucked between Nesenkeag Brook and the Merrimack. This morning we awoke to sweet breads and strawberries from the farm stand down the road, and Liana spoke of how the March had started the farmers talking – she said the participation of the farms in this event had helped forge at tighter community. "Think of the amount of work we could get done if we had this many community members coming by like this all the time," she said.

When the heat neared 90, we set off, already sweaty but powered on by a good morning swim and early press coverage on NPR, international radio, and the front page of The Nashua Telegraph. As the temperature broke 100 degrees and our voices cracked from singing "Ooo, it's hot out here" perhaps too many times, Stonyfield came to the rescue with a donation of ice cream for lunch.

Yesterday, over a hundred people crowded before Nashua’s City Hall to kick off the March to Re-Energize New Hampshire, a walk from Nashua to Concord calling for national leadership on real global warming solutions and a clean energy economy. After today, only 3 days to go until masses of Granite Staters converge on the State House lawn to send this message.

After walking from Nashua to Litchfield yesterday, the marchers will finish today’s (Thursday’s) journey at Bronstein Park in Manchester at 7pm, to music by the Powerkegs and speeches by business and community leaders.

Join us at Bronstein Park tonight (Thursday) at 7pm! Directions are at:

http://www.climatesummer.org/nhschedule

For info on the the march or the culminating rally on Sunday, Aug. 5 at noon at the State House in Concord, click here:

http://www.climatesummer.org/march

All of us, organizers and volunteers, are in the campaign office. Laptops, phone lists, signups on the walls, folded chairs, empty juice bottles strewn everywhere. There’s a nervous excitement in the air.

This evening – Tuesday, July 31 at 6:30pm – the March to Re-Energize New Hampshire is celebrating its kickoff in Greeley Park, at 105 Concord St. in Nashua. Granny D, no stranger to long journeys for a cause, will talk to us about the power of walking, and give her blessings as we prepare to go.

Join us for the March to Re-Energize NH! July 31, 6:30pm: kickoff celebration in Greeley Park; August 1-5: Nashua 6:30pm; Aug. 1-5, or the rally on Sunday, Aug. 5:

http://www.climatesummer.org/march

6 days, thousands of Granite Staters from all walks of life will
gather on the State House lawn, calling for national action on global warming.

You can sign up at:
http://www.climatesummer.org/march

You should see our office: coffee donations stacked high, green flags and green shirts, maps and laptops, the lavender walls barely showing beneath lists of our endorsers and newspaper clippings. It's not that we're messy (well, that could be true); people just keep showing at our door, asking to help – friends, neighbors, and the guy from the bagel shop downstairs.

And it's not just the office that's swelling with activity – it's the whole Granite State. Now we have a bus coming from Portsmouth and carpools from Hanover. Newspapers are publishing letters from natives of Hooksett, Amherst, and Nashua daily. A woman we met at the Canterbury Fair yesterday remarked, "You guys are everywhere."

It certainly feels like it – one second I'm on the phone with the Governor's secretary, and the next I'm wondering if I bought enough pancake batter for Saturday night's celebration of New Hampshire maple syrup. Amidst the hype and excitement growing all across the state, it's easy to forget why exactly Granite Staters are set on walking five full days in the first place.

The wireless connection to the internet at the Wayfarer Convention Center, where this year's DFNH-sponsored DemocracyFest is being held is rather spotty (some lap tops at the next table refused to connect), so I spent most of the day in the Pavilion Room where we dined and heard the major speakers.

Should also note that "wireless" does not mean without electricity. When batteries run down it's necessary to connect to an outlet. While there were plenty available at the Wayfarer, it did mean sitting up against a wall until the charge was done (can take several hours).

Needless to say, this version of the blogging isn't live because it's not possible to "simulcast" to two web sites at once.
Should also add that I considered leaving off the time stamps but decided that knowing when things happened might be interesting to some. Besides that, one browser doesn't let me leave them out and the other doesn't copy sequential posts at all.

________________________
61.

Monica Smith

The wireless connection to the internet at the Wayfarer Convention Center, where this year's DFNH-sponsored DemocracyFest is being held is rather spotty (some lap tops at the next table refused to connect), so I spent most of the day in the Pavilion Room where we dined and heard the major speakers.
Should also note that "wireless" does not mean without electricity. When batteries run down it's necessary to connect to an outlet. While there were plenty available at the Wayfarer, it did mean sitting up against a wall until the charge was done (can take several hours).
Needless to say, this version of the blogging isn't live because it's not possible to "simulcast" to two web sites at once.
Should also add that I considered leaving off the time stamps but decided that knowing when things happened might be interesting to some. Besides that, one browser doesn't let me leave them out and the other doesn't copy sequential posts at all.

________________________
61.

Monica Smith
Sat, 06/09/07

DFNH members,

Your board of directors would like your assistance in an exciting project. DFNH is the Presenting Sponsor for the 4th annual DemocracyFest. For those of you who haven’t heard about it before, DemocracyFest is a 3 day conference and training experience for progressive activists – people just like us! In the past, it has been held in places like San Diego and Austin, TX, but this year it will be in Manchester. We expect as many as 1000 people to attend this exciting event. It will be held at the Wayfarer Inn June 8-10, 2007. (Friday, June 8th is an unofficial day, but we expect to have some activities that afternoon and evening.)

Every major presidential candidate will be invited, as well as authors, journalists, and many other interesting characters. Howard Dean is planned to be the closing keynote speaker on Sunday. We expect to enlist many other speakers, as well as musicians, comedians, and others. It should be a really exciting time!

DFNH endorsed NH's rejection of the Real ID last year, and we stand firm on our position this year as well.

SOURCE: Boston.com

N.H. considers rejecting REAL ID, By Norma Love, Associated Press Writer | March 15, 2007

CONCORD, N.H. --A year after a bill that would have barred New Hampshire from complying with the federal REAL ID Act was defeated, opponents are trying again, arguing the act's requirements for driver's licenses amount to the creation of a national ID card.

Witnesses urged lawmakers at a hearing Thursday to bar New Hampshire from complying with the act that was enacted as a national security measure. About 75 people crowded into a hearing room to support a bill to enact the ban.

No one testified against the bill and House Transportation Chairman Jim Ryan predicted the committee would vote next week to recommend its passage.

According to the Education Commission of the States, "Educators and policymakers are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of the first five years of life in the development of children's brains and the cognitive, social, emotional and physical foundations of later success. Research has demonstrated that quality early learning programs can have significant and lasting benefits throughout childhood and into early adulthood. As a result, states and districts are investing more money than ever before into early learning programs, increasing the need for policymakers to make difficult policy and funding choices."

Read the entire article here.

Investing in early education childcare strikes me as a very fiscally responsible thing to do.