April 20, 2011 uaprogressiveaction.com

SB5 repeal is under way. Grab a petition!

Join us for the drive to repeal SB5. We are collecting signatures to ensure the repeal is put on the November ballot statewide. If you are unable to walk door to door there are many other ways you can be a part of this effort. Please contact Carolyn Casper at CarolynTC3@yahoo.com for more information.

Thinking of giving this a pass? Let's review:

SB5 is introduced by a group of extremists in the Ohio Legislature to limit the bargaining power of public employees including teachers, police officers and fire fighters. The legislation would change the way public sector workers negotiate their pay, benefits, and working conditions.

In the case of safety forces, this could mean the elimination of safety equipment that might save your life. Safety forces not only need to protect the general public, they must always protect each other and need equipment such as bullet proof vests, medical equipment and other items. The folks who make the decision should be the forces that use the items, not the budget office.

Government is not like the public sector and cannot be administered in the same manner.

Teachers, fire fighters and police officers must be free to perform their duties without fear of their wages or promotions being impacted over something like stopping the governor for speeding. It is bad legislation and not in the best interest of the citizens of the State of Ohio.

Ain't my fracking problem? Think again

Votes on Ohio HB 133 and SB 108 are coming up soon. These bills would allow drilling in state parks, wilderness areas, nature preserves. John Kasich has said that drilling in the Marcellus Shale will be a "godsend" for Ohio -- a source of revenue and jobs. But what natural treasure will we lose to pay for that so-called "godsend"?

An equally compelling issue is the big push by oil companies to lease mineral rights on private property, especially along the Marcellus shale formation of eastern Ohio.

A proposal calls for a state-wide moratorium on the granting of new well permits by Ohio Department of Natural Resources until the drilling practices are proved safe. Slick-water fracking technologies are virtually unproven. They are unregulated. Oh...and ODNR Director David Mustine led a United Arab Emirates oil and gas company before becoming the protector of Ohio's natural resources.

Environmentalists/progressives face a steep uphill battle on both issues: close to home example of disaster capitalism seizing state assets in a weak economy, a clear conflict of interest on the part of both leaders.,and so much more. Contact your representatives and senators, and tell them to vote NO!

UAPA on Facebook is your place. Join us to learn, and teach!

Have you visited the UAPA Facebook page yet? Visit to find links to interesting news, essays and analysis of Ohio and national issues, upcoming local events and lively discussion. Recent posts include a Vanity Fair article about income inequality and a video that describes this week’s student activism on The Ohio State University campus.

And our social network gives you the chance to be in the center of the action, whether volunteering to fight SB 5 or adding your thoughtful comments on current affairs!

If you are on Facebook, please join us by searching for us and clicking on our page. You can also link to our Facebook page from our website. This is a great opportunity to tell us what you think and talk directly with your progressive neighbors.

Coffee & Conversation, new location!

Mark your calendars for the monthly Coffee & Conversation in a roomier location:

First Community Village Chelsea House
1800 Riverside Drive
Directions: enter at Waltham Road and follow the signs to Chelsea House
Saturday, May 7, 2011
9-10:30 a.m.
Plenty of parking! Private meeting room!

Special guest: Dennis Willard
Media and public relations consultant for the Ohio Democratic Party

Do you feel conservatives always control the narrative? Are you hoping and progressives develop a clear message for the 2012 election? Meet Dennis Willard, who will tell us how Democrats are already taking charge of the dialogue.

Please RSVP on the UAPA home page so we have enough coffee, tea and light refreshments.

www.uaprogressiveaction.com

October 6, 2010

Signs are going up everywhere

We've been planting free candidate yard signs all over UA --- at over 125 locations so far. To the right is the map for just the signs that UAPA has placed over the last two weeks.

Now we need your help to cover this map completely with push pins.

There are two ways to get candidate yard signs:

1. Pick them up at our debate party this Thursday, October 6. RSVP and get details here.
2. Or order your free yard signs online here and we'll deliver and plant them at your location!

Click here to order your yard signs now!

Democratic Candidate Sign Theft

Thefts of Democratic yard signs began last weekend with one or two incidents and increased quite a bit this past weekend. In each of the incidents reported to us, there were Republican yard signs one or two yards away that were not taken. In some cases, there were several incidents in a single neighborhood.

We are taking the only effective course of action – replace them as soon as possible after the theft is reported.

If your sign is stolen, submit your sign replacement request here.

Jon Stewart Rally

Both Big Os — Oprah and Obama — have endorsed Jon Stewart's Rally to Restore Sanity, so you know he's on to something big. Since Sept. 16, when Stewart announced his Oct. 30 rally, along with Stephen Colbert’s satirical March to Keep Fear Alive, 190,000 people on Facebook have said they plan to attend the event, while another 100,000 have said they might.

UAPA is getting requests for buses going to the Rally in DC and for info on a satellite event here in Columbus. If you have info on either of these or are interested in volunteering, please send to

UAPAnewsletter@uaprogressiveaction.com

UAPA Debate Party with U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown

Join UAPA as Governor Strickland delivers

THE KNOCKOUT PUNCH

at the final gubernatorial debate

with special guest

U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown

Click here to RSVP

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 7:00 pm

ARLINGTON BANQUETS

1973 West Henderson Road next to Kroger in the Kroger shopping

May We Suggest...

1. Obama's speech to Gen44 tonight knocked our socks off. It's on CSPAN here. If you've forgotten why many of you worked so hard for this guy, and felt hope for the first time in many years, watch it.

2. USA Today Op-Ed: How to fight Tea Party's faux populism by Sherrod Brown. Money quote: "Bring back pre-existing conditions. Vote Republican."

2. From President Obama's Rolling Stone interview:

"It is inexcusable for any Democrat or progressive right now to stand on the sidelines in this midterm election. There may be complaints about us not having gotten certain things done, not fast enough, making certain legislative compromises. But right now, we've got a choice between a Republican Party that has moved to the right of George Bush and is looking to lock in the same policies that got us into these disasters in the first place, versus an administration that, with some admitted warts, has been the most successful administration in a generation in moving progressive agendas forward.

....If we want the kind of country that respects civil rights and civil liberties, we'd better fight in this election. And right now, we are getting outspent eight to one by these 527s that the Roberts court says can spend with impunity without disclosing where their money's coming from. In every single one of these congressional districts, you are seeing these independent organizations outspend political parties and the candidates by, as I said, factors of four to one, five to one, eight to one, 10 to one.

We have to get folks off the sidelines. People need to shake off this lethargy, people need to buck up. Bringing about change is hard — that's what I said during the campaign. It has been hard, and we've got some lumps to show for it. But if people now want to take their ball and go home, that tells me folks weren't serious in the first place.

If you're serious, now's exactly the time that people have to step up."