Massachusetts likes to call itself the Birthplace of Democracy. But if giving voters a choice on election day is a measure of the health of a Democracy, we’re not doing very well. Massachusetts has become a one-party state in which possession of the vote is often rendered meaningless because there is only one candidate in the race.
According to a recent tally by State House News Service, the 2010 elections are suffering from a dearth of candidates.
Continue reading Slim Pickings for VotersOctober 4, 2012 update: I reiterate my standing policy on debates, which is that I will accept all public debate invitations that are made in good faith by an identified sponsor to all ballot-qualified candidates. This pledge applies both when I am a challenger and when I am an incumbent seeking re-election.
My debate policy was also reiterated when the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance included a question about my willingness to debate on its 2012 candidate questionnaire, which I answered and made public. Question #4 noted that many incumbents avoid or seek to limit the number of forums they participate in with opponents. It asked if I would pledge to continue a practice of public debate after election. The answer, of course, was YES.
The following was originally written in August of 2010.
Continue reading Candidate DebatesLaugenour would legalize marijuana
By David Scribner
LENOX – Scott Laugenour, the Green-Rainbow Party candidate running for state representative against Democratic incumbent William F. Pignatelli in the fourth Berkshire district that includes all of South County, has called for the legalization of marijuana, both as a way of undermining covert drug trafficking and as a way of providing a taxable income stream for the area’s farmers.
‘It’s time for marijuana to be legalized and removed from the black market,” he declared. “Let’s allow our communities’ entrepreneurs to apply for licenses so that they may expand their business and profit from the sale of marijuana and related paraphernalia. And let’s collect fair and reasonable excise taxes on it.”
Continue reading “Laugenour Would Legalize Marijuana” : Berkshire RecordWelll … ya do.
Fascinating times in that we’re witnessing, in both the GOP and the Democratic Party, ominous fissures that go more than skin deep. There are already signs of potential mass defection by folks who identify themselves now as “Tea Partiers” first and “Republicans” second. And now, Robert Gibbs makes it clear that the WH officially acknowledges an equally ominous fracturing taking place within the ranks of Democrats in damning “the professional left” (pretty sure he’s talking about you there, kiddo).
It’s possible that we’re living on a cusp of a power vacuum.
Continue reading “May You Live in Interesting Times”{Cross-posted at Blue Mass Group and Red Mass Group}
It’s Democracy Day today, and Massachusetts voters have a clear choice before them. They can support the one candidate who refuses to take corporate money to fuel her campaign, or the 3 candidates who swim through lobbyist-fueled campaign coffers like Scrooge McDuck. They can support the one candidate who unequivocally stands up for justice and sustainability, or the 3 candidates who treat ill-fated and harmful get-rich-quick schemes as though they were sensible, thoughtful, and helpful policy. They can support the one candidate who is standing up for real democracy — clean elections, open meeting and public records laws that apply to the legislature, and meaningful transparency and oversight of government spending — or the 3 candidates who laugh at real democracy as though it were a joke.
With the Green-Rainbow Party putting 3 candidates for statewide office on the ballot November 2nd — Jill Stein for Governor, Rick Purcell for Lt. Governor, and Nat Fortune for Auditor — Massachusetts voters have some real choices. These candidates will unwaveringly support, and fight for, government of, by, and for the people. They have great ideas to strengthen the Commonwealth and a compelling vision of our common future. While Bill McKibben laments the shameful collapse of the mainstream environmental movement’s ability to push climate legislation, the Green-Rainbow Party’s leadership never held out hope that our government — nearly entirely beholden to corporate interests — would have the answers.
Continue reading 4-way race for governor, and one clear choice for democracyWelcome! I’m Nat Fortune, and I’m the Massachusetts Green- Rainbow Party candidate for state auditor. I teach physics and environmental science and policy at Smith College in Northampton, and I’m chair of the school committee for my town of Whately. I’ve been on the committee for the past 7 years. My wife Joyce serves on the town select board, and our two children, having graduated from Whately Elementary, now attend Frontier Regional High School.
I understand how hard it is for our towns to pay for the schools and services we need and deserve. I want ensure that we have a government worth paying for, at a price we can afford to pay.
So why auditor?
Because the state auditor’s job is to make sure that you are getting your money’s worth from your taxes, and that those taxes are being spent where they’re needed most. The state auditor’s job is to be your fiscal watchdog.
I think it’s time we have a watchdog that barks.
Continue reading Why I’m runningNext Democracy Day is TUESDAY, AUGUST 10. Please spead the word far and wide! Visit Democracy Days and post YOUR reasons for supporting this campaign!
When’s the last time someone asked you,”yo–wanna make history?”
Been a while? Well, I’m inviting you to do just that right now.
You can whine about all politicians being corrupt. You can pretend nothing outside your front door matters. You can accept impotence as a fundamental condition of your being. You can compromise to no end, selling your soul piece by piece on the obscene premise that life is all about settling for the lesser of two evils.
I dunno. Sounds like a pretty crappy deal to me. If that’s the best we can do, hell, I’d just as soon not have been born.
But I’m damn glad I was, and I’m not settling, and I’m not taking a blade to my whatsits, and neither are you. Because we have an opportunity to redeem ourselves, to redeem our commonwealth, to redeem our future. And all you gotta do is contribute ten bucks. Between now and August 10. That–and spread the word.
Go here and check it out:
Continue reading Democracy Day 2: The Countdown ContinuesJill is as friendly, dynamic, and well-spoken as I could have hoped for. Her campaign team is as organized, determined, and thirsty for victory as any political machine could ever build itself to be. Her core group of supporters are intelligent, dedicated, and ready to put in the hours to make this campaign happen. And, ladies and gentlemen, let’s not forget that JILL IS ON THE BALLOT.
In her remarks yesterday on the steps of the State House and on a conference call Tuesday night, Jill and her campaign organizers made it clear that this is not just a victory for her campaign; this is confirmation of a job well done for the volunteers who made it all possible, a step forward for the Green-Rainbow Party of Massachusetts, and the beginning of a massive grassroots movement to bring power back to the people of Massachusetts.
I am increasingly disheartened by the Boston Globe’s apparent dismissal of Jill Stein’s gubernatorial campaign, in the opinion pages and news coverage alike. The Op-Eds ignoring her are mounting. Whether Adrian Walker’s glaring omission was mindful or mindless, and whether Joan Vennochi’s dismissal was ignorant or spiteful, these biased actions deserve to be countered. I submitted a letter to the editor in response to Walker’s column, but the Letters editor called me to ask whether I was a paid staffer for Jill’s campaign. I told him that I’ve been working on a grassroots fundraising campaign that is poised to turn into a paid job, but that it’s message is an important one for Globe readers to learn about.
The following is an Op-Ed I submitted as a counterweight to their bias, but I didn’t hear back from them and wanted to get this out before August 10th. I think I’ll create a section on Green Mass Group called “What the Globe won’t print” and just start collecting people’s Op-Eds and LTEs that don’t make the paper. What do you think?
Cross-posted at DemocracyDays.com.
Continue reading Democracy’s Dawn in Massachusetts?Something unique is happening in Massachusetts. A dedicated group of supporters of Jill Stein, the Green-Rainbow Party candidate for governor, have started a movement to introduce clean, voter-based funding to the only candidate not taking corporate donations. They’re sending the message, $10 at a time, that it isn’t necessary to be entrenched in corporate interests to fund a political campaign. On these days of action, called “Democacy Days,” they’re asking for donations of $10 (…or more!) to drive this message home.
As Democracy Days’ Eli Beckerman just posted, if every one of the 75,000 citizens who voted for Stein in the 2002 gubernatorial race gave $10, she would not only have a substantial amount of money to get her message out there, but she’d also receive matching funds from the state. As the only candidate who has agreed to abide by Massachusetts clean election laws, this is the perfect opportunity to let lawmakers know that we will no longer support politicians who are beholden to corporations who threaten our economy, environment and the health of our communities.
Please join me on Tuesday, August 10th, for the third Democracy Day, and please spread the word far and wide so that we can get the message out there that democracy doesn’t have to go to the highest corporate bidder and that people themselves can still make a real difference in the political landscape.
Visit DemocracyDays to find out how you can make a difference on August tenth, and for help in spreading the word.
Continue reading A grassroots fundraising effort is dawning in Massachusetts