1-30-2023

 

"A more perfect union is one that will require unending toil. Instability, inequality, and intransigence easily take root without constant attention." -- Dan Rather, Steady newsletter, January 28, 2023 We encourage you to read the rest of Rather's comments about the horror of Tyre Nichols's murder in Memphis.

WHAT HAPPENS IN SALEM DOESN'T STAY IN SALEM State Senator Suzanne Weber and state Representative Cyrus JavadI will be voting on many pieces of consequential legislation this year. How will that legislation affect you? Kudos to about a dozen COIN volunteers, including INCO leader Cheryl Conway, who are tracking bills in this legislative session. Details in future INCO newsletters. Learn more about how ideas become legislation here and about the Legislative Team. Sign up to be part of this key COIN team here. Subscribe to the COIN newsletter.

KEEPING UP, KEEPING HOPEFUL, BEING REAL Searching for hope and clarity? Knowledge and perspective? INCO suggests these views about current affairs and more.  Please send your suggestions for newsletters, podcasts, and other resources to incoregon@gmail.com. Newsletters Robert Hubbell, Today's Edition, on Substack Heather Cox Richardson, Letters from an American, on Substack Dan Rather & Elliot Kirschner, Steady, on Substack Joyce Vance, Civil Discourse, on Substack Chop Wood, Carry Water, on Substack Democracy Docket, headed by Marc Elias The Bulwark  Timothy Snyder, Thinking About...., on Substack Podcasts Al Franken Pod Save America - also on YouTube Others America at a Crossroads - weekly webinars, Wednesdays at 5; posted on YouTube afterwards The Lincoln Project -an array of programs

CONFRONTING INEQUALITY Clatsop County residents feel the impact of the wealth and income inequality that are distorting Oregon's housing market. We recommend this guest column in The Astorian by Tyler Mac Innis. "Like a house built atop a faulty foundation, a housing market operating in a society marked by extreme economic inequality seems bound to run into trouble." -- Tyler Mac Innis, policy analyst for the Oregon Center for Public Policy “We can have democracy in this country, or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can’t have both” — Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis

RIGHT? WRONG! Want to know more about 6 things people believe about politics that are totally wrong? Paul Waldman explains how these common beliefs lead us astray in his Washington Post column.

1-23-2023 Newsletter

 

GOOD IDEAS FOR OREGON Indivisibles want to identify how COIN can be most effective in 2023. Here are some of the ideas culled from the dozens of Indivisible groups in Oregon.   Recruit candidates in our local areas for the special district elections this May Develop and expand our progressive messaging through the Oregon Better Together campaign and otherwise Renew our We Care program Improve COIN's messaging and its reach across Oregon. How can we best get information out to all Indivisibles in Oregon, not just leaders? Podcast? Newsletter? Blog? Other?  INCO members are welcome at COIN meetings. Here's how to register for COIN meetings and sign up for our COIN Newsletters.

ONCE AGAIN GUNS = GRIEF Our hearts go out to the families, friends, and communities directly affected by the most recent gun homicides and suicides.  Decades of thoughts and prayers. Decades of obstruction by Republican lawmakers and judges to fulfill widespread popular demand for gun control in America. Thanks to these and other organizations working to achieve gun control in America.  They groups welcome your activism and financial support. Moms Demand Action Everytown for Gun Safety Giffords.org The Brady Campaign To Prevent Gun Violence

KUDOS INCO salutes the companies who have kept their promise to not donate to Members of Congress who supported the January 6 insurrection or who refused to vote to certify President Biden's election. Many companies broke their promise to not donate to those traitors. Thanks to The Lincoln Project for this information.

PARTISAN GOALS AND FREE AND FAIR ELECTIONS "There is nothing stopping Republican candidates and Republican voters and Republican leaders from pursuing their partisan and ideological goals while keeping their commitment to free and fair elections. There is nothing stopping them from rejecting antidemocracy extremists in their midst and affirming the vital principles of popular sovereignty, rule of law and political equality. There is nothing stopping them, in other words, from making a different set of choices about the kind of political party they wish to be part of. "It’s not Democrats who left the voting public with only one choice if they want to protect democracy as they know it. The reason the stakes are so high is that the Republican Party has made them this high." —Jamelle Bouie, New York Times, November 5, 2022

HAPPENINGS Thursday, February 9 - INCO Community Meeting, via Zoom. Social time at 6 pm; meeting is 6:30-7:30 pm. All INCO members are invited to attend. We meet the 2nd Thursday of each month. Link to join Zoom meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87835618044  Meeting ID: 878 3561 8044 One tap mobile +12532050468,,87835618044# US +12532158782,,87835618044# US (Tacoma)

INSIGHTS "Sometimes citizenship requires overtime and double shifts."   -- Rachel Maddow

Comments, news, and photos to INCO at incoregon@gmail.com.  Resources and other information at www.incoregon.org and www.indivisible.org. Encourage others to sign up for the INCO newsletter at our website or here. Look for the INCO column in Hipfish Monthly. We're on Facebook, too. INCO Weekly Newsletter       January 23, 2023

1-16-2023 Newsletter

 

Mahalia Jackson sings a soul-stirring "I've Been Buked and I've Been Scorned."  Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici and her husband, US District Judge Michael Simon, are recuperating after being struck by a car while walking in Portland Friday night. INCO has sent a get well message, and you can, too, via her Beaverton District Office: 12725 Southwest Millikan Way, Suite 220 Beaverton, OR  97005 Phone: (503) 469-6010 Fax: (503) 469-6018 Email to her office

DECODING MAGA MESSAGING Congressional Republicans continue to lie about their agenda, just as they've done for years. They continue to push legislation that sounds reasonable on its face but actually seeks to undermine the rights and freedoms of Americans and cement their hold on power. They continue to sow division and animosity in social media, in public speeches, and in legislation. They continue to remain silent about the treachery of the insurrection and ongoing deception from Trump. Fortunately, Indivisible and INCO continue our work, too. We encourage you to check out Indivisible's MAGA Messaging Decoder Resource.

CIVIL DISCOURSE Attorney Joyce Vance explains the legal actions and implications of all kinds of political issues, including the insurrection, the DOJ, the Supreme Court, and voting laws. You can sign up for her Substack newsletter, Civil Discourse, here.

HAPPENINGS Thursday, February 9 - INCO Community Meeting, via Zoom. Social time at 6 pm; meeting is 6:30-7:30 pm. All INCO members are invited to attend. We meet the 2nd Thursday of each month. Link to join Zoom meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87835618044  Meeting ID: 878 3561 8044 One tap mobile +12532050468,,87835618044# US +12532158782,,87835618044# US (Tacoma)

INSIGHTS "Precisely because the need for action against the scourge is manifest, the need for vigilance against excess is great. The first, and worst, casualty will be the precious liberties of our citizens.”        — Justice Thurgood Marshall

Comments, news, and photos to INCO at incoregon@gmail.com.  Resources and other information at www.incoregon.org and www.indivisible.org. Encourage others to sign up for the INCO newsletter at our website or here. Look for the INCO column in Hipfish Monthly. We're on Facebook, too. INCO Weekly Newsletter       January 16, 2023

1-9-2023 Newsletter

 

PRESIDENTIAL CITIZENS MEDAL: IDEALS INTO ACTION

President Biden honored 15 Americans with the Presidential Citizens Medal at a White House ceremony on Friday for their roles protecting democracy with their lives and honor during the January 6, 2021 insurrection. Watch the PBS video of the ceremony here. The Lincoln Project has a lovely brief video showing each of the honorees. The honorees are law enforcement officers who held back the mob even at the cost of their health and even their lives, people like Daniel Hodges, Michael Fanone, Harry Dunn, Caroline Edwards, Aquilino Gonell, Eugene Goodman, Howard Liebengood, Jeffrey Smith, Billy Evans, and Brian D. Sicknick. Those defending democracy were the election workers who protected our system even at the cost of their jobs, their safety, and their peace of mind, people like Ruby Freeman, Shaye Moss, and Albert Schmidt. They were elected officials who refused to cave to pressure to throw the election, people like Jocelyn Benson and Rusty Bowers. "It is fitting that we remember the heroes of January 6, including the many people who weren’t at the White House that day but who stayed at their posts and did their jobs as election officials, volunteers, observers, and many other of the tasks that allow the millions of citizens of a giant federal democracy to govern themselves. But the events today on Capitol Hill and the ceremony at the White House are reminders that the threats to our constitutional order have not vanished, and that we cannot magically wish them away." -- Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, January 6, 2023 Names and descriptions of honorees from Heather Cox Richardson. Top photo from Pete Marovich, New York Times. From left in the bottom photos: President Biden presents the medal to Ruby Freeman, a Georgia election worker targeted by Rudy Giuliani, and then to the parents of Office Brian Sicknick, a Capitol Police officer who died of injuries sustained defending the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

INCO COMMUNITY MEETS THURSDAY You are invited to our first INCO Community Meeting this Thursday, January 12, via Zoom. After that, we'll meet on the 2nd Thursday of each month via Zoom. These monthly get-togethers will fold in the Astoria, Warrenton, and South County Community Group meetings. We’d love ALL INCO Indivisibles to join in.   Thursday, January 12, via Zoom 6 pm - Social time  6:30 - 7:30  INCO Community Meeting    What will we talk about?  •    We’ll check-in with each other about what’s happening in our municipalities - Cannon Beach, Seaside, Gearhart, Warrenton, and Astoria.  •    We’ll have a COIN (Consolidated Oregon Indivisible Network) update. INCO is one of dozens of Indivisible groups in Oregon.  •    We’ll talk about relevant county, state and national issues that need our attention.   Use the same Zoom link to attend each monthly meeting. It will be in every INCO newsletter. Not getting the weekly INCO newsletter on Monday mornings? Sign up here.  You can save this evergreen Zoom link:    INCO Community Meeting 2nd Thursday of each month: 6pm social; 6:30pm - 7:30pm meeting Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87835618044  Meeting ID: 878 3561 8044 One tap mobile +12532050468,,87835618044# US +12532158782,,87835618044# US (Tacoma)  If you have questions, contact Bebe Michel at littlebylittle4change@gmail.com   We look forward to talking with you Thursday.  Your INCO Leadership Team, Mary Beth Cottle, Ken Potter, Laurie Caplan, Eric Halperin, Carmen Hammersmith, Cheryl Conway, Beeb Ashcroft, and Bebe Michel

STAY ENGAGED IN 2023: THE THREAT CONTINUES THERE ARE NO OFF YEARS Friday was the 2nd anniversary of the insurrection at the US Capitol. The insurrection continues, with  promoters, funders, and leaders of the insurrection serving in the US Congress. They promote their anti-democratic white Christian nationalist agenda and seek to degrade and destroy the institutions, policies, and ideals of good governance. "As 2023 begins, we see the next phase of Republican chaos before our eyes. The spectacle of 20 MAGA-aligned Republicans blocking the election of a House Speaker is just the beginning. Kevin McCarthy, if he survives, will give up everything to the most extreme elements of his conference (more than 50% of which voted against certifying the 2020 election.) Congressional Republicans, the MAGA media bubble, “America First” front groups and their allies will not slow down as we approach the 2024 election."  -- Reed Galen, The Lincoln Project With your help, INCO will continue to defend democracy by opposing authoritarianism, bigotry, and corruption.

It's not just the Oath Keepers getting prison terms. Check out this report in the New York Times about prosecutions and prison time for insurrectionists. Helpful graphics, too.

Kudos to Indivisibles and other activists around the country! As Indivisible says,  Democrats and other liberals expanded "our majority in the Senate, passed definitive legislation like the Respect for Marriage and Inflation Reduction Acts, and showed MAGA extremists that we will not sit idly by and allow their brand of repugnant fanaticism to become the norm." The work continues, and we will persist! Check out the 2023 Practical Guide to Defeating MAGA. It highlights what's at stake - responsible and accountable governance vs. absurd "investigations" and definite threats from  insurrectionists, election deniers, and other Congressional Republicans.  "[The GOP] is controlled by incompetent liars and power-hungry sycophants. They have forced out anyone in their ranks who would stand up for our democracy. They played with fire, and now we're all getting burned." -- Senator Ron Wyden We encourage you to check out Indivisible's goals and strategies.

"There are no small matters in war." People are comparing the New Year speech by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to the greatest of Winston Churchill's World War 2 speeches. If you missed it in last week's newsletter, click this link to watch the New Year greetings of President Zelensky. Robert Hubbell says about this speech, "But this speech is truly extraordinary. It is so extraordinary, it will make you a better person for having listened to it. I guarantee it!"

HAPPENINGS Thursday, January 12 - INCO Community Meeting, via Zoom. Social time at 6 pm; meeting is 6:30-7:30 pm. All INCO members are invited to attend. We meet the 2nd Thursday of each month. Link to join Zoom meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87835618044  Meeting ID: 878 3561 8044 One tap mobile +12532050468,,87835618044# US +12532158782,,87835618044# US (Tacoma)

INSIGHTS Hope has two lovely daughters, anger and courage. Anger so that what must not be will not be and courage so that what can be will be.   --St. Augustine

Comments, news, and photos to INCO at incoregon@gmail.com.  Resources and other information at www.incoregon.org and www.indivisible.org. Encourage others to sign up for the INCO newsletter at our website or here. Look for the INCO column in Hipfish Monthly. We're on Facebook, too. INCO Weekly Newsletter       January 9, 2023