Gerry Mander in Alaska

It has been an insanely busy month, and more excitement is coming down the pike.

The big news is from ol' Gerry Mander hisself, from a recent triumphant presentation in Alaska of How to Screw the Voters. Here's what will happen to the districts in which Goldstream and Ester lie, according to the News-Miner:

One notable shift at home: Ester, Fox and much of the Goldstream Valley would join a giant rural House district that includes scores of communities from across the state. It would straddle the Fairbanks area and stretch completely across Alaska — from the southwestern village of Holy Cross north to Arctic Village and southeast again to Chitina.:

Does this make sense at ALL? There was some of this before, too, almost as ridiculous: Coghill's district stretches from North Pole to Valdez.



Here's what Wikipedia says about gerrymandering:

In the process of setting electoral districts, rather than using uniform geographic standards, Gerrymandering is a practice of political corruption that attempts to establish a political advantage for a particular party or group by manipulating geographic boundaries to create partisan, incumbent-protected, and neutral districts. The resulting district is known as a gerrymander.…

The two aims of gerrymandering are to maximize the effect of supporters' votes and to minimize the effect of opponents' votes. One strategy, packing, is to concentrate as many voters of one type into a single electoral district to reduce their influence in other districts. In some cases this may be done to obtain representation for a community of common interest, rather than to dilute that interest over several districts to a point of ineffectiveness. A second strategy, cracking, involves spreading out voters of a particular type among many districts in order to deny them a sufficiently large voting bloc in any particular district. The strategies are typically combined, creating a few "forfeit" seats for packed voters of one type in order to secure even greater representation for voters of another type.

Gerrymandering is effective because of the wasted vote effect. By packing opposition voters into districts they will already win (increasing excess votes for winners) and by cracking the remainder among districts where they are moved into the minority (increasing votes for eventual losers), the number of wasted votes among the opposition can be maximized. Similarly, with supporters holding narrow margins in the unpacked districts, the number of wasted votes among supporters is minimized.

While the wasted vote effect is strongest when a party wins by narrow margins across multiple districts, gerrymandering narrow margins can be risky when voters are less predictable. To minimize the risk of demographic or political shifts swinging a district to the opposition, politicians can instead create more packed districts, leading to more comfortable margins in unpacked ones.

There is a public hearing in Fairbanks April 19, Tuesday, 2 to 6 pm at the Fairbanks City Hall, City Council Chamber on the 2nd floor: If you would like to comment on the utter monstrosity of a jerrymandered redistricting, please come to this hearing! If you are in another city, other hearings are taking place also and you can find out more from the Alaska Redistricting Board's website. PLEASE NOTE that I have also heard that these hearings will end at 4 pm, not 6, so I don't know if they've been curtailed, expanded, or if this is just a rumor. Getting there early if you can will be important. I will be taking time off work to get there.

Interesting how they timed it for most people's working hours, hmm?

At any rate, you might consider whether it is equitable or reasonable for Ester's Senate district to include--and no, I am NOT kidding--Sitka, or for us to be in the same district as, say, Arctic Village. This won't help the Bush and it sure won't help Ester or Fairbanks or Goldstream (or Sitka or Holy Cross) to be properly represented. This is sheer stupidity. There are two official options, both of which are clearly attempts to split voting blocks, with no regard for whether the residents of these areas have any commonalities of need or location. This won't serve anybody well. There are a few privately-suggested plans, also shown on the Board's website. There are several organizations proposing options.

Aftermath of wackery, sort of

Wackery is gushing forth from a veritable cornucopia of nuttiness this season. I love Jamie's cartoon on the political tenor of the US Senate race; it captures the childishness and simplistic viewpoints of the Republican candidates' approach to the election campaign.

Marathons and fun runs

Hoo boy.

Today, for the first time perhaps ever, I ran in a race, Readers on the Run, for the John Trigg Ester Library. Sort of. I more or less jogged and walked. Mostly walked, especially by the last loop. Readers on the Run is a five-kilometer fun run, a benefit for the library, and I helped start it (2008) and publicize it for the library (2009), but this is the first time I've ever entered it. It was fun! We had some GREAT silly costumes this year, especially the two pink fairies (Brook and Shiway) and the green-faced stick guy (Darwin). Oh, yes, and the poodle out walking her dog (Lisa). I came dressed as Her Editorship the Green Queen, and managed, through skill and clever strategy, to come in last. I did not, alas, receive a prize for Red Lantern finisher. Oh, well, you can't have everything. I did get a big rousing cheer from the crowd.

I got interviewed by Channel 11, which apparently knows a fun feature when they see it (it's supposed to be on during the 6 o'clock news tonight). I don't think the News-Miner came out this year, although Molly Rettig, who is a reporter for them, was in it, so maybe they'll have something too. The Republic, of course, plans a major tale of terror on it.

Nancy and Ed and Jeff and Stanley worked hard on the event, and Amy Cameron made some beautiful posters and t-shirts. Here's the basic graphic:



Monique took photos of the poems and racers, as did Trey and Hans, who also helped out during the race. We had 42 people enter the race this year! That means we're adding about 10 people a year, although next year's increase may be bigger, because Running Club North says they'll put the event on their calendar next year.

Now on to the marathon:

the library board (Monique, Nancy, and me, especially) have been working our buns off and our eyeballs out on library stuff. Monique has been plowing through the Nolo Press book on setting up a nonprofit, How to Form a Nonprofit Corporation, to write up our proposed revised bylaws. They're very thorough, and very good, although (as I told Monique) I squawked when I first saw them, because it makes 22 pages' worth. But they cover what they need to cover, and they're clear, and they provide a good solid operating manual for the corporation. She's also working on the usual minutes and a business plan for the library. Oh, and trying to work a full-time job in her spare time, so to speak.

Nancy has been meticulously going through the receipts, invoices, donations, t-shirt sales, bookshelf sponsorships, memberships, et al., making sure that not only are we on the dot for this year, but for previous years. I was not a very good treasurer, and Margaret was much better, but Nancy's cleaning up and backtracking, which is a time-consuming job that requires a strong orientation to detail, and I don't envy her! She definitely has my gratitude.

I've been working on grantwriting and the annual meeting packet. We have five positions up for election on the JTEL board this year, so we've all been soliciting potential board members. We're preparing for the annual meeting on October 24th (only two weeks away! gadzooks!). I spent better than ten hours yesterday working on the website, writing up a timeline and a task list for the next four years (organizational structure tasks, design and construction tasks, and program tasks and ideas), working a little on the President's Report, . Greta and I also did a teleconference with a couple of the people at the Alaska Community Foundation to discuss the possibility of setting up a foundation for the library.

Greta's been working on the board biographies, duties, officer positions, etc., along with the endowment. Eric's been working on the insurance and the power pole, and Melinda is working on the community revenue sharing program and the Fundraiser Report for the annual meeting.

It's a marathon, to be sure. And we've still got two weeks to go!

Ye Olde Independence Day Celebration and Hoo-Roar

Yes,it's that time of year again. The annual 4th of July parade & picnic is about to deluge Ester with gazillions of people who aren't into the militaristic display at Pioneer Park or the (now not-happening) Fairbanks parade. Folks who like a bit of political and social satire (well, okay, a LOT of satire) with their floats come out to Our Fair Republic for a lot of beverage-through-the-nose-snorting fun on Independence Day here where Progress Is Our Least Important Product. For those unsuspecting innocents who don't realize that off-color and politically incorrect silliness is the usual fare at this event, consider yourselves forewarned.

After the parade comes the Park Picnic, put on by the Ester Community Association. A large roast beast (usually a pig) is served up to the public, purchased and cooked by the Ester Volunteer Firefighters' Auxiliary, along with the usual hot dogs, potato salad, watermelon, et cetera, from the ECA. Be prepared to bring a large side dish full o' your most succulent potluck food, and to shell out a donation. The money raised at this event (also known as Organized Eating and Fun & Games) is used to help Ester firefighters in the aftermath of a fire, keep the park ship-shape, and pay for all that food and beverage and flatware provided to the public.

Details: parade check-in (for participants) 11 am, Main Street & Ester Loop. Kids on bikes should wear a (preferably wildly decorated) helmet. Getcher paper plate when you sign in so the judges can tell who you are so's to give you a Fabulous Award. Don't forget to bribe the judges early, well, and often.

The parade starts at noon for all you Designated Spectators, and the picnic starts after the parade reaches the park. Be prepared for Silly Games and Water Sports (willing or non).

Rumor has it that the Red Hackle Bagpipe Band will be back and in surprising costume. The Banana Girls will return but may not be as organized as last year. There is also a rumor that actual Republican candidates will walk this year. Let's hope they're not as serious as the Democrats have been. Other than that, the Publisher has no word of the contents of aforementioned parade.

See you there!

2009 in review

Once again it is that time of year: resolutions and reflections to gird oneself for adventure and mud-slogging for the days of the coming year. In some ways, this was a pretty rough year. So, here's how it looked last year:

January
The Stones' house caught fire.

A letter from Emmonak was published, and all hell broke loose. Sarah didn't notice, though.

I began my descent into ukulele madness, with the purchase of a brand-new baritone uke. Little did I know that this was the start of serious musical obsession. Woo-hoo!

Obama was sworn in to the presidency, and Service was Restored.

I received notice of my 30-year high school reunion. O gads.

February
Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir assumed the post of Iceland's prime minister. This is notable because she is Iceland's first female prime minister and she is openly lesbian.

The Fairbanks North Star Borough School Board decided that bullying on the basis of gender identity was every bit as nasty as discrimination or harrasment on some other basis.

Dave Lacey died of cancer.

March
The Republic's publisher and contributors and fans celebrated ten years of crazed publishing in a MAJOR party with live music (Back Cu'ntry Bruthers and the Slippin' Mickeys) and the Publisher's Picks.

I joined Facebook and set up a page for the Republic. Now it's become a major time drain…WAY too much fun.

I helped organize the first of a series of CSA roundtables at my university job. The group that has arisen from this, the Alaska Community Agriculture Association, gives me a little hope that Alaska may yet feed itself and with good, wholesome food.

I was invited to speak at the Alaska Press Club annual meeting as part of a panel of bloggers. It was quite entertaining, but I got stuck in Anchorage (flight cancellation on account of belching volcano). One of the big topics was Mike Doogan's outing of Mudflats, the resultant fracas, and whether it was appropriate for bloggers to be anonymous. Hans drove down to fetch me, o noble spouse that he is.

April
The Ester Republic got a new office! Photos here and here. Here too.

John Reeves decided to shake things up in Ester a bit with a nuclear power plant proposal. Ester may or may not be a nuke-free zone.

May
Lee Shauer, Dwight Deely, and Linda Patrick committed suicide, all in one week. Ester was reeling.

The Banana Girls Ukulele Marching Band started practicing for the 4th of July. I started taking strum classes with Jean McDermott.

June
The Ester Community Market began its second season.

Emma Creek West reared its ugly head again. Or rather, Land Management did, with an old, previously rejected development plan. They just don't get it.

July
The Ester Fourth of July parade was GREAT. And the Banana Girls were there.

Sarah Palin's resignation speech got edited by Vanity Fair. More hilarity I haven't had in a LONG time.

August
The Onion once again published prophecy, this time on how Congress works not to provide health care.

Our cat Archie died of throat cancer.

September
I found a great song to learn.

Adam and Kelly Hullin of Wasilla embarrassed themselves publicly in an interview in the Frontiersman. Sadly, they probably have no clue just how stupid they made themselves appear. Sigh. Another blow to the Alaskan reputation.

October
Marjorie Kowalski Cole, scheduled to be the first speaker for the Ester library lecture series, was unable to make it but sent in her talk in written form anyway.

Mike Musick ran for borough assembly again and won, but Luke Hopkins and Tammie Wilson had to go through a runoff.

November
I got serious about Facebook.

Monique Musick gave the first lecture for the John Trigg Ester Library, a slide show and talk on her trip to China in 2008.

December
Marjorie Kowalski Cole died of cancer. I sent her book of poetry to the printer.

Addendum 1/5/10: (I never did a 2008 in review post), 2007 in review, 2006 in review

Luke vs. Tammie?

Hoo, boy. The Fairbanks North Star Borough voters strike again. It's a runoff between Tammie Wilson and Luke Hopkins.

Yet another reason to institute IRV or something similar.

Fairbanks about to learn an expensive lesson once again, probably

Here's a little prediction: Luke Hopkins will win the plurality of the vote, but he won't get 40%, because of the thoroughly split conservative vote. So the borough will have to pay for a runoff. Election turnout has been pretty pathetic over the last several years, averaging less than 20% of eligible voters, but runoffs are always worse. Much worse.

So once again, because we don't do Instant Runoff Voting in this state (rather stupidly, in my opinion), we're going to have to spend a ton of money so a proportionately very few dedicated voters can determine for us who our next mayor will be. As I said in my editorial about the 2007 Fairbanks city election, this is really not a very sensible way to go about running elections. Aside from being an expensive way to do things, plurality voting -- the first-past-the-post "horse race" method of election -- is not necessarily representative of what the voters prefer—it's just representative of what they're forced to gamble on.

Instant Runoff Voting, on the other hand, improves voter turnout, is a better reflection of the electorate's actual desires, is cheaper (primary and runoff elections aren't needed), and tends to encourage civil campaigning.

It's not a perfect system, of course, but it's a damn sight better than what we're stuck with now, and it's one of the best alternatives available. I endorsed it in 2007, and I still endorse it. (Personally, however, I'd like to see proportional representation used where feasible.)

Here's a video explaining how IRV works:

Ester fire department meeting

Just got back from the annual meeting of the Ester fire department/district. It was pretty good turnout this year. Kate Billington is the newest EVFD, Inc., board member; Bill Kopplin stepped down and Margaret Rogers and Nancy Burnham got re-elected. George Riley spoke on the fire commission. Mark Simpson invited the assembled to the upcoming Ester Community Association meeting (Oct. 11, 4 pm at Hartung Hall), and recommended that the two boards (ECA and EVFD) get together and look at ways for the two groups to work together better. It was a pretty interesting meeting. Good door prizes, too. I'll have more on this later, when I get my notes organized.

More Musick

So I'm back, after snarfing a few munchies (some excellent black bean salsa and chips). The band is great. If you want to hear some good music, come on down. I talked with Pete Bowers about Into the Woods, and met Jack Hebert, who looked terribly familiar but I couldn't place him until Mike introduced him by last name. He's one of those people I know by two names, sort of like Jacques Cousteau, Mike Musick, etc. Must have both names or the name doesn't stick in my mind.

At any rate, other interesting folks include James Pagell, Scott Johnson, amy Taylor, Shannan Turner, Amy Cameron, Jenny Schlofeldt (not sure I have the spelling of her name correctly), Jeanne Laurencelle, several regulars at the bar, and more unusual folks of various sorts. Mike stood at the mike (ho ho ho, yes yes, I know) for a few minutes and spoke on the importance of using less: less energy meaning less cost to the borough, rebates from the state of several tens of millions reserved for retrofitting houses and public buildings.

This is one of the things I think is an appropriate use of public money: if we save fuel, we save a LOT in terms of money, and we make ourselves much more secure with regard to fuel dependence. But I've gone on about this before.

Bob Siftar was feeling feisty and asked Mike about his old wood stove, which, as he said, "worked fine!" Mike had been talking about how the emissions standards for wood stoves didn't necessarily have to be an onerous thing, and in fact, if one improved one's efficiency (i.e., establish the baseline and then improve the efficiency of the heater--oil furnace, wood stove, whathaveyou), one could actually get a lot of money back on the proposition. So if your stove works fine, GOOD.

Jack Hebert does a lot of this for a living: evaluating houses for their heat loss and fuel efficiency. He works with the Cold Climate Housing Research Center and, he said, "for some reason people think my opinion is worth something." I'll say. The guy's only been working with green building for what, ten, fifteen years or more?

Hans just walked in, with his usual insane grin. Lori Neufeld, with her magnet attraction toward good music, has been here for a while. Time to mingle again, I think.

A most pleasant evening. We'll see if I can provide more substantive info on Musick's stance later.

So long, Uncle Ted

The end of an era. An increasingly more arrogant era, it's true (not to mention an increasingly more unconstitutional one), but also one in which science and infrastructure in Alaska were well-funded. Hopefully Begich will continue to work for us in this regard, and Sarah Palin's ignorance of how little things like fruit flies, for instance, can yield large results in medical treatments and other applications of pure research.

One thing that Stevens excelled at was knowledge of the Senate rules. It wasn't just a pushy personality, longevity, and good connections that got Stevens the dough, it was a thorough understanding of the rules by which the Senate conducts business. Understand parliamentary procedure, and you can clock your opponents cold and smile winningly at them while they wobble in the aftermath. (Sorry, getting carried away with a slightly extended metaphor, there.)

I think Begich will be good for us.

Dang! Begich may make it yet!

According to Alaska Dispatch, Begich is actually in the lead—by a measley three votes, mind you.

Talk about close!

Addendum Check out the ADN story on it, too. Young still seems to have his seat, alas.

Don Young AGAIN

Well, it looks pretty definitive. Alaska went for the blowhard, rather than the man who might have been able to do something for us in the changed political landscape: Berkowitz. What a bunch of doofuses in the electorate...

The Stevens/Begich race, however, isn't quite there yet:

Stevens, 84 and a 40-year incumbent, led his Democratic challenger, Mayor Mark Begich of Anchorage, by fewer than 3,400 votes, with more than 55,000 absentee, early and questioned ballots remaining to be counted. If he wins, Stevens would be the first felon elected to the U.S. Senate.
Even if Stevens wins, he could still be forced from office.

Many top Republican leaders in the Senate have called on him to resign, and some Senate leaders have threatened to expel him.

(San Jose Mercury News, 11/05/08)

Falling behind

Okay, Ester precinct, we did decently in terms of turnout: 51.17%, according to the unofficial results for district 8 (PDF) as of early this morning.

However, Goldstream #2 beat us AGAIN, with 55.24%. But that's not what really smarts--Cantwell precinct ALSO beat us, with 51.5% turnout!

Tsk. Our pre-eminence in the performance of this important civic duty is slipping: we're in third place.

Best speech ever

And here's the text as prepared beforehand. The man can write.

Remarks of President-Elect Barack Obama

(as prepared for delivery)

Election Night

Tuesday, November 4th, 2008

Chicago, Illinois

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.

It’s the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen; by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the very first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different; that their voice could be that difference.

It’s the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled – Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America.

It’s the answer that led those who have been told for so long by so many to be cynical, and fearful, and doubtful of what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.

It’s been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America.

I just received a very gracious call from Senator McCain. He fought long and hard in this campaign, and he’s fought even longer and harder for the country he loves. He has endured sacrifices for America that most of us cannot begin to imagine, and we are better off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader. I congratulate him and Governor Palin for all they have achieved, and I look forward to working with them to renew this nation’s promise in the months ahead.

I want to thank my partner in this journey, a man who campaigned from his heart and spoke for the men and women he grew up with on the streets of Scranton and rode with on that train home to Delaware, the Vice President-elect of the United States, Joe Biden.

I would not be standing here tonight without the unyielding support of my best friend for the last sixteen years, the rock of our family and the love of my life, our nation’s next First Lady, Michelle Obama. Sasha and Malia, I love you both so much, and you have earned the new puppy that’s coming with us to the White House. And while she’s no longer with us, I know my grandmother is watching, along with the family that made me who I am. I miss them tonight, and know that my debt to them is beyond measure.

To my campaign manager David Plouffe, my chief strategist David Axelrod, and the best campaign team ever assembled in the history of politics – you made this happen, and I am forever grateful for what you’ve sacrificed to get it done.

But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to – it belongs to you.

I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didn’t start with much money or many endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington – it began in the backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston.

It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give five dollars and ten dollars and twenty dollars to this cause. It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation’s apathy; who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep; from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on the doors of perfect strangers; from the millions of Americans who volunteered, and organized, and proved that more than two centuries later, a government of the people, by the people and for the people has not perished from this Earth. This is your victory.

I know you didn’t do this just to win an election and I know you didn’t do it for me. You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime – two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century. Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us. There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after their children fall asleep and wonder how they’ll make the mortgage, or pay their doctor’s bills, or save enough for college. There is new energy to harness and new jobs to be created; new schools to build and threats to meet and alliances to repair.

The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America – I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you – we as a people will get there.

There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won’t agree with every decision or policy I make as President, and we know that government can’t solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And above all, I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation the only way it’s been done in America for two-hundred and twenty-one years – block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.

What began twenty-one months ago in the depths of winter must not end on this autumn night. This victory alone is not the change we seek – it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It cannot happen without you.

So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other. Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us anything, it’s that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers – in this country, we rise or fall as one nation; as one people.

Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House – a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty, and national unity. Those are values we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, “We are not enemies, but friends…though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection.” And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn – I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President too.

And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of our world – our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world down – we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security – we support you. And to all those who have wondered if America’s beacon still burns as bright – tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.

For that is the true genius of America – that America can change. Our union can be perfected. And what we have already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.

This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one that’s on my mind tonight is about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. She’s a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for one thing – Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.

She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn’t vote for two reasons – because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.

And tonight, I think about all that she’s seen throughout her century in America – the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can’t, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.

At a time when women’s voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can.

When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs and a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.

When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.

She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that “We Shall Overcome.” Yes we can.

A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination. And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change. Yes we can.

America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves – if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?

This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time – to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth – that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can’t, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people:

Yes We Can. Thank you, God bless you, and may God Bless the United States of America.

Alaska's strategic voters

Hans and I went to the Blue Loon because we wanted to be in the company of the like-minded when the election results came in. And it was a wonderful thing. Both McCain's concession speech and Obama's victory speech were moving. And I was intensely relieved that Obama won.

It was frustrating, however, to sit there watching the election returns and not hear about the Alaska races. We went to the Eagle, in case they had news, but no, still the national stuff. At this point, it appears that both Stevens and Young have been re-elected, thereby proving that Alaska voters aren't thinking too clearly, yet again.

As one local Republican down at the Eagle put it (at top volume), "I'd rather vote for a felon than a Democrat!" But, of course, now both of those Republicans are going to be in the minority party and Stevens won't be able to be on any committee positions, due to the Senate rules. Said Republican shouted that it wouldn't matter if Bush pardoned him. Of course, it will still be up to the Democrats as to whether Stevens is accepted. He's not going to be the powerhouse he was.

So Alaska will be relegated to backwater status, politically speaking.

But somehow it doesn't it matter to me right now. Obama won, and for the right reasons. This country has a chance to redeem itself now--has already begun to do so.

Whew.

Obama raised twice as much as McCain in Alaska

This is a peculiar little tidbit, from CNN's Politics Tracker: as of October 20th, McCain earned $261,715 while Obama earned $580,019 in the 49th state. Interesting, no?

First district reporting

The first district of the election has reported. How could they do this? well, they had 100% voter turnout. According to the Telegraph, Obama took it by almost 3 to 1:

The day's first round of votes went in favour of Mr Obama, who defeated Mr McCain by 15 votes to six - on a 100 per cent turnout - in the town of Dixville Notch, New Hampshire.

That's my kind of district: small, and taking its civic duty seriously. Here's to New England!

Git out and VOTE!

Well, it was a little busier than usual at the Ester precinct polling place this morning, about 8 or so people waiting in line down at the fire station. The line moved pretty quickly. We actually had a poll watcher there this time, which is unusual (our poll workers have been doing it for years, and know their stuff). He didn't look very happy (bored, maybe?).

All you Esterites, get out there and vote. We've got to trump Goldstream precinct's turnout!

Skulduggery by Nenana Creative Arts

that, or ineptitude. Alaskans for Clean Elections just sent out a press release regarding some dirty tricks perpetrated by the Don Young campaign via an Anchorage sign vendor, Nenana Creative Arts, owned by Joseph Law. It seems that canvassers hired by the company were given flyers bashing Ethan Berkowitz (Young's Democratic contender) that had a disclaimer on it that said "Paid for by Alaskans for Clean Elections." Well, er, actually, the flyers were paid for by the Young campaign. Nenana Creative Arts, which apparently has been involved in dodgy shenanigans before, was paid $6,403 for signs and sign placement by Young's campaign.

Alaskans for Clean Elections is NOT pleased: they are nonpartisan, and state categorically that "AFCE had no part in, nor does the group participate in partisan campaign activities." They are quite probably going to file an FEC complaint (the flyer was not only fraudulent in claiming who paid for it, it had no contact address on it, as required by federal law).

It really would make no sense for Alaskans for Clean Elections to support any given candidate, as it would hurt their credibility as a nonpartisan campaign finance reform group. But it would certainly give a veneer of credibility to be endorsed by them. Briefly. Until anybody with half a brain figured it out that a partisan hit piece would most certainly not be instigated or paid for by a group working to clean up campaigns.

Progressive Alaska has a bit more information on this. The best bit is that the flyer, which talks about how Berkowitz received some money from VECO, naturally does not say that Don Young received 116 times as much from them as did Mr. B.

Stevens can still vote

I stand corrected: Stevens does get to vote for himself. Or anybody else, for that matter. But it took a special decision by the state legal department. From the Anchorage Daily News:

Sen. Ted Stevens gets to vote in next Tuesday's election despite being found guilty of seven federal felonies because his conviction won't be final until he's sentenced, the state Department of Law decided late Wednesday.

Personally, I don't think he should lose his right to vote at all.