October 2008 HHHDC Newsletter

Volume 9 Issue 10 October 2008

News ‘n’ Views Of, By and For Members of the Hubert H. Humphrey Democratic Club

HHHDC October 2008 Meeting

Monday, October 20 , 2008

Coco’s Restaurant

11510 South Street, Cerritos, CA (¼ mile east of the 605 freeway)

Dinner (optional) at 6:00 p.m. - Meeting begins at 7:00 pm

Program: State Senator Alan Lowenthal (note: Sen. Lowenthal will

arrive at 6:30 p.m. to meet and informally talk with club members)

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

Announcements .......................Page 1

Meeting Protocol ….…….…………Page 2

More Announcements……………Page 2

Cartoon .……………..…….…..….……Page 3

CDP Ballot Propositions ………….Page 4

Going Green……………………….…..Page 5

Internet Pipeline ………………..….…Page 6

Notes from Joe’s Desk …………...Page 7

Why the Bailout is a Crock ……..Page 8

Last Refuge of a Scoundrel …….Page 9

Advertisements …………………….Page 10

Membership Form……….………..Page 12

Announcements I

Newsletter submissions are due 10 days before the next scheduled

club meeting. You may email them to [email protected].

The Hubert H. Humphrey Democratic Club will be sponsoring a booth

at the Halloween Carnival sponsored by the City of Cerritos. Come by

and say “hi” to all the club members who will be manning the booth

on the evening of Friday, October 31, 5-9 p.m. at Cerritos Regional

Park.

The Hubert H. Humphrey Democratic Club now has its calendar of

events available online:

1. Go to: http://hhhdemocrats.org/

2. At the top of the page click “Community Calendar”

3. Once you are on the calendar page, go to the date of the

event .

4. Click the event and you will get a pop-up window with all the

details, such as date, time, location and description.

October 2008 News ‘n’ Views

Protocol for MeetingsProtocol for MeetingsProtocol for MeetingsProtocol for Meetings 1. Turn your cell phone off or place it on “vibrate”.

2. During meeting please do not engage in side conversations.

3. If ordering food, please do so before start of meeting.

4. If you wish to speak, please raise your hand for recognition by the chair. Do not interrupt speakers.

5. Please keep your remarks short and concise.

6. Photographs should be taken only without interrupting the meeting.

Announcements II

BOOK SIGNING – CONGRESSWOMEN LINDA AND LORETTA SANCHEZ WHEN: Tuesday, October 21, from 7:00 to 8:30pm

WHERE: Whittier Public Library, 7344 S. Washington Ave., Whittier

Hello Friends of Linda Sanchez:

I am writing today in my personal capacity to invite you to a local book signing of Linda and Loretta's new

book, "Dream In Color." Many of you have asked me to update you when they would have a local book

signing. The details are below. I've also included a nice review of the book done recently by the Los Angeles

Times. With the holiday season just around the corner, the book may be just the present for a few folks on

your list---and it's very affordable at $12.99. (I bought three for my daughter and two sisters...don't tell

them....). At the book signing you can also ask questions and catch up with Linda and Loretta. Linda can tell

you about her recent and future trips to the battleground states of Nevada, Colorado, and New Mexico to

help Sen. Obama. I know she'd love to hear what you're working on too. Hope to see you there.

Regards,

Bill Grady

Rally for Change/Sponsored by DemsUnited for Obama & CA Democratic

Party Region 15

Saturday October 18, 2008 at 1:00pm - Pico Rivera Centre for the Arts

9200 Mines Ave., Pico Rivera, California 90660

Website: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/gshlsh

Bring your family and friends to help raise energy on getting out the vote. Motivate the undecideds to vote for

Obama/Biden. Register voters, get involved. Help us mobilize to help win the election. Celebrate this time in

history with us in a celebration of unity with speakers, music, food, voter registration and Obama/Biden gear.

For more information e-mail: [email protected]


Got an Ad?

We’ve got the space!

Check out details on Page 10

New advertisers are needed for the newsletter. If you are interested, or know of a person or

business who would like to advertise in our publication, please contact President Nikki Noushkam,

for details and instructions. As a no-cost bonus, all ads will also appear on the club’s new website.

Katie Couric: Why isn't it better, Gov. Palin, to spend $700 billion helping middle-class families who are

struggling with health care, housing, gas and groceries; allow them to spend more and put more money

into the economy instead of helping these big financial institutions that played a role in creating this

mess?

Gov. Sarah Palin: That's why I say I, like every American I'm speaking with, we're ill about this position

that we have been put in where it is the taxpayers looking to bail out. But ultimately, what the bailout

does is help those who are concerned about the health-care reform that is needed to help shore up our

economy, helping the -- it's got to be all about job creation, too, shoring up our economy and putting it

back on the right track. So health-care reform and reducing taxes and reining in spending has got to

accompany tax reductions and tax relief for Americans. And trade, we've got to see trade as opportunity,

not as a competitive, scary thing. But one in five jobs being created in the trade sector today, we've got to

look at that as more opportunity. All those things under the umbrella of job creation. This bailout is a

part of that.


CDP Recommendations - November 4, 2008 General Election

Number / Title Recommendation

Prop. 1A Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Act for the 21st Century.

YES

Prop. 2

Treatment of Farm Animals. Statute.

YES

Prop. 3 Children’s Hospital Bond Act. Grant Program. Statute.

YES

Prop. 4

Waiting Period and Parental Notification Before Termination of Minor’s Pregnancy. Constitutional Amendment.

NO

Prop. 5 Nonviolent Offenders. Sentencing, Parole and Rehabilitation.

Statute.

YES

Prop. 6 Criminal Penalties and Laws. Public Safety Funding. Statute.

NO

Prop. 7 Renewable Energy. Statute.

NO

Prop. 8

Limit on Marriage. Constitutional Amendment.

NO

Prop. 9 Criminal Justice System. Victims’ Rights. Parole. Constitutional Amendment and Statute.

NO

Prop. 10

Bonds. Alternative Fuel Vehicles and Renewable Energy. Statute.

NEUTRAL

Prop. 11 Redistricting. Constitutional Amendment and Statute.

NO

Prop. 12

Veterans' Bond Act of 2008.

YES

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED Get out the Vote! Come phone bank, go door-to-door, enter data, plan events and be a part of our Neighborhood

Leader Program. Student Interns: Looks great on college applications.

Location:

California Democratic Party

7340 Firestone Blvd, #133

Contact:

Robert at 562-928-3732 ([email protected])


Going Green with Norma and Alan

October, Energy Awareness Month

By Norma and Alan Williamson, HHHDC Members

We’re sure that most of our readers are already aware of a very disturbing fact: Americans contribute 25% of the

world’s greenhouse gases, even though we make up only 5% of the world’s population! Greenhouse gases (GHG)

consist of over 30 different types, but the main heat trapping chemicals are carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous

oxide, and chlorofluorocarbons. These GHG are generated by burning fossil fuels and are contributing to global

warming or, in other words, catastrophic global climate change. It’s a common fact that our economy and lifestyle

are based on coal, oil and natural gas for the lighting, heating and cooling of our homes and the fuels needed for

our modes of transportation.

According to the 2030 Architecture website at http://www.architecture2030.org/#, “Data from the U.S. Energy

Information Administration illustrates that buildings are responsible for almost half (48%) of all GHG emissions

annually. Seventy-six percent of all electricity generated by US power plants goes to supply the Building Sector”.

Some of you might be thinking: “One person can’t solve this global crisis!” Well there’s a lot one person can do

since we all live and work inside buildings. Just four simple personal actions can help slow down global warming

(as recommended by the Alliance for Saving Energy http://www.ase.org/content/article/detail/933 ):

• Buying Energy Star room air conditioners and central air conditioning systems, windows, and appliances.

(visit www.energystar.gov for product information and store locators)

• Getting professional service (trained in Building Science/Home Performance- ask Alan for recommendations)

on existing air conditioning systems and cleaning or changing system air filters every month to make sure they

run at peak efficiency.

• Using programmable thermostats to adjust temperature settings according to daily and weekend patterns.

• Running clothes washers, dishwashers, other electric appliances outside of peak hours.

Usually the first eco-step taken by most consumers is to change incandescent light bulbs to compact fluorescent

lights, which are 75% more efficient and last from seven to ten years longer than a regular bulb. To help you

choose the correct CFL for your needs (color of white), visit:

http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=cfls.pr_cfls_color.

While you’re at it, sign a simple, quick pledge “Change a Light and Change the World” and help a local high school,

La Mirada High School (where Norma teaches and coordinates eco-events) reach their Energy Star goal:

http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=cal.showpledgedriverdetails&cpd_id=14785

NEW STOCK MARKET TERMS

CEO --Chief Embezzlement Officer.

CFO-- Corporate Fraud Officer.

BULL MARKET -- A random market movement causing an investor to mistake himself for a financial genius.

BEAR MARKET -- A 6 to 18 month period when the kids get no allowance, the wife gets no jewelry, and the husband gets

no sex.

VALUE INVESTING -- The art of buying low and selling lower.

P/E RATIO -- The percentage of investors wetting their pants as the market keeps crashing.

BROKER -- What my broker has made me.

STANDARD & POOR -- Your life in a nutshell.

STOCK ANALYST -- Idiot who just downgraded your stock.

STOCK SPLIT -- When your ex-wife and her lawyer split your assets equally between themselves.

FINANCIAL PLANNER -- A guy whose phone has been disconnected.

MARKET CORRECTION -- The day after you buy stocks.

CASH FLOW -- The movement your money makes as it disappears down the toilet.

YAHOO -- What you yell after selling it to some poor sucker for $240 per share.

WINDOWS -- What you jump out of when you're the sucker who bought Yahoo @ $240 per share.

INSTITUTIONAL INVESTOR -- Past year investor who's now locked up in a nuthouse.

PROFIT -- An archaic word no longer in use.

(Source: http://bigpicture.typepad.com/comments/2008/10/new-stock-marke.html)


Internet Pipeline by Mike Stabile

This month’s first noteworthy internet site: http://www.sacbee.com/1098/story/738462.html. The

Sacramento Bee supports the best website for information about current California state politics. This

web page in particular will allow you:

• To perform an official search for a state government job title and salary range

• To see government worker salary databases in other states hosted by newspapers, private groups

or government entities

• To see official nationwide statistics comparing pay in the public and private sectors

A second website of interest is the award-winning MAPLight.org, a “groundbreaking public database,

which illuminates the connection between campaign donations and legislative votes in unprecedented

ways. Elected officials collect large sums of money to run their campaigns, and they often pay back

campaign contributors with special access and favorable laws. This common practice is contrary to the

public interest, yet legal. MAPLight.org makes money/vote connections transparent, to help citizens hold

their legislators accountable.”


Notes from Joe’s Desk

Over the past few weeks we have had the example of a desperate presidential campaign. It's a campaign that

has failed to silence within its own camp outright lies about the opposition. When you are involved in

electoral politics you become accustomed to the rough and tumble nature of those politics. But the

unwillingness of Senator McCain to fight the forces of ignorance in his party, many of the same forces that

derailed his 2000 presidential campaign, exemplify that he is not the right person to be the President of the

United States of America.

When you have a presidential campaign appealing to the lowest common denominator by leveling personal

attacks instead of putting forth visionary policies that will move America forward in these tough economic

times, it is clear that the campaign of the maverick has become the campaign of the Hail Mary Pass. It is a

campaign that is willing to give in to the “anything goes” format that threatens to further destroy the fabric of

civility amongst Americans. As citizens of this great country we should expect vision and promise from our

candidates instead of lowering expectations to survive debates. That a campaign would seek to lower

expectations for the individuals who would become the next leaders of the free world is deplorable.

It is with this knowledge that we must come together to refute these negative tactics and communicate the

vision that Barack Obama and the Democratic Party have for America. It is a vision in which every

American will have the equal opportunity to reach his or her full potential. This vision is one that speaks to

what is best about our country, which is the belief that America is a place where each of us would have the

opportunity to pursue life, liberty and happiness.

With less than four weeks remaining in this Presidential campaign, is it incumbent upon us as Democratic

Activists to continue phone banking, canvassing and mobilizing our communities to support the Democratic

ticket. Our fervor and belief that this election is already decided is not enough. I look forward to working with

you in the next few weeks to bring change to America.

Very Respectfully,

Joseph Legaspi

California Democratic Party, Region 15 Director

[email protected]


Why the Bailout is a Crock

By Bill Steigerwald

It’s not your fault you don’t know that the percentage of American home mortgages in foreclosure today is about 2.75

percent.

That shocking but true figure hasn’t been emphasized nearly enough by our favorite politicians and media

sensationalists, who, as they usually do when real and imagined “national” crises appear, have managed to create the

misleading impression that the current foreclosure mess affects every second or third American household.

Yes, the financial crisis is real. Yes, some homeowners and Main Street folk have behaved badly. Yes, the greedy,

corrupt corporate and political rats on Wall Street and in Washington are largely responsible for the meltdown that will

cost us and our grandtaxpayers untold hundreds of billions if not trillions of inflated dollars.

And yes, the near-quadrupling since 2005 of our annual mortgage foreclosure rate (historically about 0.7 percent) has

ignited a banking and credit crisis that looks to be dragging the whole world into recession.

But there are two truths about the foreclosure mess that our beloved media -- especially the TV branch -- have done a

lousy job of revealing to the masses.

One is that 97 percent of America's home mortgage loans are not in the process of being foreclosed.

The other is that the mortgage crisis is not spread evenly across America. It is concentrated in some very specific -- and

some very predictable -- geographic and demographic places.

Perfect national statistics are hard to come by. But according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, as of Aug. 1, most

new foreclosures were occurring disproportionately in eight states.

Four are the usual suspects -- Nevada, Florida, California and Arizona, boom states where regional housing bubbles

were fueled by an irresponsible alliance of house-flippers, predatory lenders, fraudulent borrowers and notoriously

politicized federal laws like the Community Reinvestment Act, which forces banks to give mortgages to poor people

and even illegal immigrants who can’t afford or qualify for them.

Four other states -- Michigan, Rhode Island, Indiana and Ohio -- can blame tough economic slumps for their higher

rates of new foreclosures. The remaining 42 states are actually below the average national foreclosure rate, which the

MBA says is higher than at any time in the last 36 years.

The good folks at Foreclosure.com provide a current state-by-state listing of houses in various stages of financial

doom. As of Thursday, its national count of homes already in foreclosure was 496,000. California’s number alone was

about 175,000. Florida’s was 51,000, Nevada’s 22,000 and Ohio’s 10,037. Pennsylvania’s was a distant 2,879, West

Virginia’s a humble 576 (no jokes, please) and Vermont’s was a saintly 97.

Those wildly divergent numbers are no surprise to Foreclosure.com’s spokesman Stephen Chip, who blames the media

-- specifically the cable channels -- for making it seem our foreclosure spike is a result not of a relatively few bad

actors but of the collective irresponsibility of American homeowners.

But maybe the average American is not such a dupe. Maybe, despite the East Coast media and political spin, most

Americans know full well that they and their good neighbors are not the perpetrators of our scary financial meltdown.

Maybe that's why so many Americans believe Washington's zillion-dollar bailout bill is such a crock.


Alaskan Independence Party: The Last Refuge of a Scoundrel by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

In 2004, America's malleable mainstream media allowed itself to be manipulated by artful Republican operatives into

devoting weeks of broadcast attention and drums of ink to unfairly desecrating John Kerry's genuine Vietnam heroics

while obligingly muzzling serious discussion of George W. Bush's shameful wartime record of evasion and cowardice.

Last week found the American media once again boarding Republican swift boats against this season's Democratic

candidate armed with unfair and hypocritical attacks artfully designed by GOP strategists to distract attention from the

cataclysmic outcomes of Republican governance. Vice Presidential hopeful Sarah Palin has taken to faulting Senator

Barack Obama for his casual acquaintance with a respected Illinois educator Bill Ayers, who forty years ago was a

member of the Weathermen, a movement active when Obama was eight and which he has denounced as

"detestable." Palin argues that the relationship proves that Obama sees "America as being so imperfect that he is

palling around with terrorists who would target their own country."

The Times dedicated a page one article to Obama's relations with Ayers and CNN's Anderson Cooper obliged Palin by

rewarding her reckless accusations about Obama's patriotism with a major investigative report. Fox, meanwhile, is still

riveting its audience with wall to wall coverage of this pressing irrelevancy.

But if McCarthy-era guilt-by-association is once again a valid political consideration, Palin, it would seem, has more to

lose than Obama. Palin, it could be argued, following her own logic, thinks so little of America's perfection that she

continues to "pal around" with a man - her husband, actually - who only recently terminated his seven-year

membership in the Alaskan Independence Party. Putting plunder above patriotism, the members of this treasonous

cabal aim to break our country into pieces and walk away with Alaska's rich federal oil fields and one-fifth of America's

land base - an area three-fourths the size of the Civil War Confederacy.

AIP's charter commits the party "to the ultimate independence of Alaska," from the United States which it refers to as

"the colonial bureaucracy in Washington." It proclaims Alaska's 1959 induction as a state "as illegal and in violation of

the United Nations charter and international law."

AIP's creation was inspired by the rabidly violent anti-Americanism of its founding father Joe Vogler, "I'm an Alaskan,

not an American," reads a favorite Vogler quote on AIP's current website, "I've got no use for America or her damned

institutions." According to Vogler AIP's central purpose was to drive Alaska's secession from the United States. Alaska,

says current Chairwoman Lynette Clark, "should be an independent nation."

Vogler was murdered in 1993 during an illegal sale of plastic explosives that went bad. The prior year, he had

renounced his allegiance to the United States explaining that, "The fires of hell are frozen glaciers compared to my

hatred for the American government." He cursed the stars and stripes, promising, "I won't be buried under their

damned flag...when Alaska is an independent nation they can bring my bones home." Palin has never denounced

Vogler or his detestable anti-Americanism.

Palin's husband Todd remained an AIP party member from 1995 to 2002. Sarah can be described in McCarthy-era

palaver as a "fellow traveler." While retaining her Republican registration, she attended the AIP's 1994 convention

where the party called for a draft constitution to secede from the United States and create an independent nation of

Alaska. The McCain Campaign has reluctantly acknowledged that she also attended AIP's 2000 Convention. She

apparently found the experience so inspiring that she agreed to give a keynote address at the AIP's 2006 convention

and she recorded a video greeting for this year's 2008 convention. In other words, this is not something that happened

when she was eight!

So when Palin accuses Barack of "not seeing the same America as you and me," maybe she is referring to an America

without Alaska. In any case, isn't it time the media start giving equal time to Palin's buddy list of anti-American

bombers and other radical associates?

Our HHHDC Newsletter is available on your computer!

Please send your email address to: Mike Stabile at

[email protected]

We also are prepared to accept advertisements

for publication according to the following rates:

Monthly Rate

1/8 page $6.00

1/4 page $9.00

1/2 page $12.00

Full page $15.00

Six Month Rate Yearly Rate

1/8 page $30.00 $50.00

1/4 page $45.00 $75.00

1/2 page $60 .00 $100.00

Full page $75.00 $150.00

2008 HHHDC OFFICERS

AND COMMITTEE CHAIRS

2008 Executive Board

President Nikki Noushkam 562-712-4072

Vice-President Marisela Cervantes 213-445-1152

Treasurer Denise Stabile

Rec. Secretary Mike Stabile 562-505-5807

Committees

Legislative Anal. Maureen Allen 562-746-7569

Newsletter Editor Mike Stabile 562-505-5807

Membership Beverly Porter

Historian Charlie Ara 562-865-4075

Parliamentarian Marisela Cervantes 213-445-1152


Joseph Cho, Ph.D.

Tel: (562) 547-4434

P.O. Box 4115

Cerritos, CA 90703

[email protected]

The Lucy and Joseph Cho Foundation

Foundation

THIS PAGE IS INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK (other than this comment about it being left blank)

PLEASE JOIN US!

Please fill out the information below and return it with your annual dues to:

HHHDC Membership * 11245 183rd Street #136 * Cerritos, CA 90703

Make your check payable to: Hubert H. Humphrey Democratic Club (or HHHDC).

YEAR 2009 MEMBERSHIP REGISTRATION

*NAME___________________________________________ *SPOUSE (if also joining)__________________________________

*ADDRESS_______________________________________________ *CITY____________________________ZIP_____________

E-MAIL_________________________________________ PHONE____________________ ALT. PHONE_____________________

*OCCUPATION__________________________________ *EMPLOYER___________________________ _________

*SPOUSE: OCCUPATION________________________________ *EMPLOYER_______________ ________________

(*Required by Federal Elections Commission) *TODAY’S DATE____________________________________

I agree to allow the release of my name, address, e-mail and phone numbers indicated above to other club members.

Annual Dues (not tax deductible), please check one:

Single $20.00 Member and spouse $30.00 Students $10.00 Senior (65 or older) $10.00

Lifetime Dues (not tax deductible), please check one:

Lifetime Single $150.00 Lifetime Couple $250.00

October 2008 HHHDC Newsletter

Documents

Transcript of October 2008 HHHDC Newsletter