Apropos of nothing, our state constitution has a peculiar obsession with things that are good for the public, community, etc:

That private property ought to be subservient to public uses when necessity requires it…

That government is, or ought to be, instituted for the common benefit, protection, and security of the people, nation, or community, and not for the particular emolument or advantage of any single person, family, or set of persons, who are a part only of that community; and that the community hath an indubitable, unalienable, and indefeasible right, to reform or alter government, in such manner as shall be, by that community, judged most conducive to the public weal….

[N]or are the people bound by any law but such as they have in like manner assented to, for their common good: and previous to any law being made to raise a tax, the purpose for which it is to be raised ought to appear evident to the Legislature to be of more service to community than the money would be if not collected…

[T]he people have a right to assemble together to consult for their common good…

The Declaration of the political Rights and privileges of the inhabitants of this State, is hereby declared to be a part of the Constitution of this Commonwealth…

Universal healthcare fits in rather nicely…

ntodd

Yes, this is true:

The massacre in Tucson is, in a sense, irrelevant to the important point. Whatever drove Jared Lee Loughner, America's political frequencies are full of violent static.

But the point is larger than that:

[Y]ou may find yourself as the vast majority of Americans do, as a passive observer with little sense beyond your ability to vote — without having an avenue to express your beliefs and ideas when it comes to the national conversation.

Both the power class and the passive class are experiencing this sense of frustration and unfairness to one degree or another…For the passive class, have you chosen to deal with your knowledge of this unfairness either through denial of its existence, or through a logical apathy founded upon the belief that nothing you do will matter?
…
[S]etting a path to resolve the unfairness that plagues this country will originate not by looking outward at those whom we believe are perpetrating a given unfairness, but through a period of brutally honest inward reflection into the values that each of us apply to the ways we make the decisions in our days, from one minute to the next.

It is through investment in internal reflection that we can open the door to the knowledge that only our own happiness and fulfillment can manifest a peaceful path to resolving the problems that we face as a nation.
…

Through that reflection, the passive class can muster the strength to shed the protections of denial and apathy.

While your voice may feel hollow by itself, the possibility of becoming part of a national chorus of awakened can serve as a deeper foundation for the compassion and wisdom to accept our own shortfalls and those of our leadership as we continue the national trip toward a more fair and free America.

I have to believe that we can still effect change despite the current political climate and all obstacles in our way.  No era has been charmed, no electoral system has been perfect, no movement has been instantly victorious, but the arc of history does indeed bend toward justice.

The key is for the People to rediscover their individual and collective power, and to exercise it instead of giving in to disenfranchisement, cynicism and hopelessness.  There will be no one thing or person that will save us, so I encourage everybody to try something new, something outside your comfort zone just a little bit, something that used to be unimaginable to you.

It's not practical for most human beings to drop everything they're doing and fight totally for a cause, no matter how noble.  Even the most dedicated activists cannot be all places at once, nor can they be expected to maintain constant vigilance 24x7x365.  Maybe some can pull that off, but movements are made of Ordinary People, not superheroes.

And again practically, we none of us can be expected to defeat evil, either singly or collectively, or even have the will to do so.  It's not even really necessary to try, when you get down to it: survival is really our prime directive as animals, and when you're trying to feed and shelter your family and whatnot, how can you really find the energy to fight for some larger moral issue?

There are a lot of folks online who stay informed, donate to candidates like Representative Giffords, and vote. That's all great, especially going to the polls when so many people think it won't change anything, but voting “correctly” isn't enough.  As Thoreau said:

All voting is a sort of gaming, like checkers or backgammon, with a slight moral tinge to it, a playing with right and wrong, with moral questions; and betting naturally accompanies it. The character of the voters is not staked. I cast my vote, perchance, as I think right; but I am not vitally concerned that that right should prevail. I am willing to leave it to the majority. Its obligation, therefore, never exceeds that of expediency. Even voting for the right is doing nothing for it. It is only expressing to men feebly your desire that it should prevail. A wise man will not leave the right to the mercy of chance…

There are many ways to effect political and social change.  Being informed can be a part of it.  Casting a ballot can be a part of it.  Working for a good candidate so elections aren't left to the mercy of chance and well-funded hatemongers can be a part of it. 

What isn't a part of it: passivity, impotent outrage, throwing up your hands and blaming politicians or other voters.  Do something, then do it again, then do something else.  Rinse.  Repeat.

We all are busy.  We all have lives.  And all our busy lives are directly impacted by the system, including campaign rhetoric and political violence.  Thus it's in our best interest to try mitigating the dangers of

Perhaps boycott the media who not only refuse to denounce the vitriol Sheriff Dupnik identified, but actively market it.  Perhaps go a little further and destroy support for hate as my friend and hero, Spocko, does.  Whatever, we all could afford to spend a little time in the wake of yesterday's violence focusing less on how other people have failed and more on how we can be a part of the solution.

Benjamin Franklin replied when asked what the Framers had created for themselves and their posterity, “A Republic, if you can keep it.”  That means we all must be actively involved in the process, rather than passively allowing our elected proxies to do all the heavy lifting, and blaming them when things go wrong.  We cannot guarantee we'll keep the Republic through engagement, but with passivity we're guaranteed to lose it.

ntodd

(Another perspective. – promoted by odum)

As Krugman says, “there is a case for the tax cut deal, as the best of a very bad situation.”

I understand that a lot of people are pissed about breaks for the wealthy, as well as the smoke-filled room way of cutting the deal, and the administration's pattern of failing to fight for what's right, then lashing out at us–I'm right there with ya.  I understand Obama's frustration, too, as he has accomplished some good things but seems unable to sell them.

Perhaps all of us should consider our own roles in the problem and how we can best regroup to be more effective going forward.

Regardless, out of the sausage making, which is never pretty, we're getting a better deal than I'd ever hoped for (75% of the benefits go to regular Americans).  Ezra notes:

The GOP got around $95 billion in tax cuts for wealthy Americans and $30 billion in estate tax cuts. Democrats got $120 billion in payroll-tax cuts, $40 billion in refundable tax credits (Earned Income Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit and education tax credits), $56 billion in unemployment insurance, and, depending on how you count it, about $180 billion (two-year cost) or $30 billion (10-year cost) in new tax incentives for businesses to invest…If you're worried about stimulus, joblessness and the working poor, this is probably a better deal than you thought you were going to get.

And that's where I sit, fundamentally concurring with the CBPP.  It's a shit sandwich, but we really need to look at the good things in the deal and build on those foundations.

I don't agree with my Congressional delegation on this, but I get where they're coming from and applaud their sticking to principle and promising to fight this in both the House and Senate.  I'm just a bit more concerned about the millions of unemployed and working class folks who will benefit from the UI extension and the payroll tax holiday, both of which also happen to be quite stimulative.

For most of the last year as the Catfood Commission has been screaming about the deficit, we on the left have been suggesting that it doesn't matter right now, that jobs and the economy are more important, and the vast majority of Americans agree with us.  So the handwringing about the budget busting extension of Bush's tax cuts strikes me as a bit disingenuous.

So many people, right and left, are acting as though this is a complete GOP win and complete Obama capitulation.  If we go along with that frame, yup, we totally lose.

Alternately, we can celebrate the important components that are inherently beneficial to people we're trying to help and to the economy overall, frame that as a victory when it looked like nothing good was going to happen before the GOP takes over the House, and work hard to improve the deal (e.g., eliminating the FICA cap, extending UI for the 99ers).  Oh, when ostensible allies make observations about the deal and suggestions about action, perhaps we can also not cast aspersions on them when they have a different take?

ntodd

( – promoted by odum)

I have always been an Independent for myriad reasons.  As a voter and an activist, I could afford to be, and even as a candidate it offered a great deal of freedom to reach out to people across the political spectrum.  During the campaign I had success–admittedly to varying degree–with Republicans, Libertarians, Progressives, Democrats and Independents, and I was very happy with how well we performed without any party support.

That said, of course I would have enjoyed greater success at the ballot box if I’d had a different label next to my name.  There’s an inherent premium just having a party affiliation which is completely understandable.  As humans we are wired to make quick decisions based on categories as part of our survival skills–not rational, but completely natural.

So I have to consider the overall political climate as I shift gears in how I’m trying to effect change.  When I was solely working outside the system, I could get away with being “pure” and focused entirely on my particular peace and justice agenda.  Once I became a candidate for elected office, I had to put my constituents’ concerns at the top of the list, even if I think what I hope to accomplish will help them.

My philosophy of action is generally tempered with pragmatism, although it might not seem like it to people who decry some of the “extreme” tactics I’ve been involved with over the years.  I try to place all the things I’ve done into a strategic arc, designed to register dissent, raise awareness, interrupt status quo behavior, and so on.  It’s not always successful, but what human endeavor is?

When I approached major issues on the trail, my positions were motivated by my own sense of morals and yet I framed them in more practical terms.  Healthcare is a human right as I see it, and it just so happens that delivering it through single-payer is fiscally conservative.  War is evil, and a budget buster.  We need renewable energy, and investing in it will create more jobs than keeping Vermont Yankee operating.  Etc, etc.

Looking, then, at how I can improve my odds of becoming the vote I wish to see in the Legislature, I have to question my non-partisan status.  Again, I’m pleased with and even proud of what we accomplished this year, and think it was really the only way I could’ve tried breaking into the electoral system.  Now it’s just time to step up my game so I have more opportunity to do good.

Losing my first race in the manner I did was probably one of the best things I could have ever done.  More opportunities have arisen just from our hard work during the election cycle than I’d anticipated.  I built a bigger base and better network than I really thought possible, not to mention making so many new friends and discovering a wellspring of inspiration coming from likeminded people whom I never knew existed right in my own community.

During the campaign I met a lot of wonderful people who just so happen to be Democrats.  They were very welcoming as I crashed their events and chatted them up.  A number of them became enthusiastic boosters of my candidacy despite my outsider status.

Talking with some of these folks in the weeks leading up to, and after, E-day, it became clear that I had to make a change.  Where to go?

I’m more aligned with the Progressives than Democrats, it seems to me, but I live in Franklin County, not Chittenden.  Becoming a Democrat offers what I think is the greatest potential for me to succeed electorally, though I obviously want to keep working with people in other parties like the Progressives and Working Families.  Because I’ll still be, I promise, an independent person who reaches out to everybody I can.

Consider this an official announcement: I will be running as a candidate for State Representative in 2012, and on the ballot next to my name you will see ‘Democrat’.

This was a hard choice.  It’s hard to change.  It’s hard to buck the apparent trend (or meme) that people are abandoning mainstream parties.  It’s hard to join a party that, at least nationally, seems ineffective and faces serious challenges in 2012.

I talked about it with my family and a lot of friends.  I thought about what I’m trying to accomplish when I stand for election.  I saw the big tent that was open to me and in the end had to walk in.

It does feel a bit like I’m losing my religion, but it really isn’t.  It’s just a continuation of what I’ve been doing all along, and once the newness wears off I’m pretty sure it will feel just as natural as every other bit of evolution in my work.

Peace,

Todd – newly minted Democrat

(x-posted at Todd for VT House)

( – promoted by Sue Prent)

It's getting to the time when I should be quick and succinct, which is a bit unnatural for me.  We've seen that on the trail, where I will stand there chatting with voters for however long it takes, seriously cutting into the number of doors we can knock.  Hey, I'm a professor sometimes and talk for a living, plus spending most of my day with a baby makes me starved for adult conversation!

Anyway, we're now in the critical final few days of this campaign.  No more filibustering on the front porch, even though we're having a great time.  No more blogging about policy solutions, even though I have lots more to say.  I mean, after this post.

I must note that the last couple days have pushed us over the fundraising goal, with $1025 raised since the September finance report.  That's astonishing.  I originally hoped to get 400 bucks, saw that threshold shattered quickly, then upped the ante to a very aggressive thousand.  You all came through on that, literally fueling the campaign as we drive around our very rural, dispersed district.  You paid for postcards and postage, card stock and printer cartridges, cell phone minutes and blog hosting.

Almost 100 contributions averaging about 36 dollars made this campaign possible.  Sam, Ericka and I thank you humbly for that amazing amount of faith and support.

Not only did we have scores of donors, we also had dozens of volunteers hit the phones and doorsteps.  Mostly friends and family, and also people who up until recently were really complete strangers and now we consider friends.  Between them, we've been able to canvass hundreds and hundreds of homes, call hundreds and hundreds of voters and send hundreds and hundreds of cards and letters.

Thank you so much for the investment of time and energy.  It has put us into a great position to perhaps surprise some people on Tuesday.

I'm not sanguine about our electoral prospects.  The odds are stacked against an obscure stay-at-home-dad who jumps into a race without any party support.  Obviously we need to catch a few breaks in a 5-way race for two seats when there are essentially 3 incumbents on the ballot.

Yet failure is only guaranteed when you don't try.  We all have worked wicked hard had to make success possible.  So we've already won a huge victory, whatever the vote count is next week.

Seriously, I want to win, and we've campaigned to win.  No matter what, though, we're going to party like it's 1999 after the polls close because this was just such a wonderful experience and awesome team effort.  Whether Todd Pritsky is in Montpelier or Fletcher, there's a lot of stuff that needs to be done over the next couple of years, and we will keep plugging away at it all.

All that said, let's remember there a still 4 days left to campaign.  You have time to volunteer and/or donate to help get additional votes.  I appreciate the support we've already gotten so much and would like to ask you to do just one more thing before it's over.  Then we can crash knowing we did all we could and sleep soundly with no regrets.

todd

A delightful comment in response to the candidate forum discussion about Vermont Yankee:

Having Todd answer last – after these bigger named, partied candidates – is a riot. They wander through variously vague statements, and then Todd churns out a ton of genuinely substantive information, showing he’s researched all of this, talked to people involved, thought about it, has plans in mind, and can communicate it all to us in plain terms.

I take it ambitaz was unimpressed with Lynn’s trenchant observation that tritium goes with nuclear power…

todd

PS–A weird SQL error seems to be caused by some additional text in the quote?

asd

Having Todd answer last – after these bigger named, partied candidates – is a riot. They wander through variously vague statements, and then Todd churns out a ton of genuinely substantive information, showing he’s researched all of this, talked to people involved, thought about it, has plans in mind, and can communicate it all to us in plain terms.

asd

asd

Having Todd answer last – after these bigger named, partied candidates – is a riot. They wander through variously vague statements, and then Todd churns out a ton of genuinely substantive information, showing he’s researched all of this, talked to people involved, thought about it, has plans in mind, and can communicate it all to us in plain terms.

Why is my post not posting?  SQL error?  PC LOAD LETTER?!

todd

As Ericka said the other day, it's GO time!  That means we need to:

• Make lots of phone calls (from anywhere) to get out the vote
• Drop off literature at many, many doors in St Albans Town
• Wave signs and hand out literature at the polls on election day

This is really make-or-break time.  Please consider doing ONE MORE THING to help the cause in the final days.  Drop us an email or call 802.238.3436 and we'll work with you on whatever you think you can do.

Thank you.

todd