Local Blue

Local Democratic Candidates you should look at..
(many have websites to visit to learn more)

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United States Senate – Chuck Hagel’s open seat.

Larry Marvin, Fremont, NE

Scott Kleeb, Hastings, NE http://www.scottkleeb.com/

James Bryan Wilson, Lincoln, NE

Tony Raimondo, Columbus, NE
http://www.raimondo2008.com/splash.php

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United States Representative in Congress, 1st District
(Running against Jeff Fortenberry GOP incumbent)

Max Yashirin, Lincoln, NE http://www.maxcongress.com/

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United States Representative in Congress, 2nd District
(Running against Lee Terry GOP incumbent)

Jim Esch Omaha, NE http://www.jimesch.org/comingsoon/

Richard Carter, Omaha, NE http://www.richardcarter2008.com/

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State Legislature, District 21

Vern Barrett, Ceresco, NE

Tami Soper, Lincoln, NE http://www.tamisoper.com/index.htm

Ken Haar, Malcolm, NE

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State Legislature, District 25

Travis A. Wagner, Lincoln, NE http://www.wagnerforlegislature.com/

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State Legislature, District 27

Dan Marvin, Lincoln, NE http://marvinforlegislature.com/

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State Legislature, District 29

Susan Scott, Lincoln, NE http://susanscottruns.org/

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Board of Regents, District 1

Donald F. Costello, Lincoln, NE
Earl Scudder, Lincoln, NE

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County Commissioner, District 2
Barbara Baier, Lincoln, NE

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County Commissioner, District 4

Nancy L. Intermill, Lincoln, NE http://www.nancyintermill.com/

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The New Nebraska Network has more info up for Douglas County races
here - http://newnebraska.net/showDiary.do?diaryId=712

Lancaster County Official info here - http://www.lincoln.ne.gov/CNTY/election/cand08.htm#cong

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Many of these fine people running to represent you have been attending local functions.
Including the gatherings after the Caucuses, and Drinking Liberally gatherings.
And also some have been in attendance at Obama supporter events.

So the opportunity to meet them has been there, and should continue.

Some candidates will be having fund raisers or kick off events for
their campiagns very soon, please check their websites for more info, and support them if you can.

We need strong Democratic leadership at the State amd local level too!!!

The Chicken Coop in Grand Island is a cool place, all brick and high ceilings, good food and attentive service. But they do have a problem.

I have been going there on occasion for the last few years when I am in town.
And I always really liked their beer, until about 6 months ago when the quality just dropped into the basement.

I don’t know if they are brewing their beer in Grand Island locally, or they import it in from the main brewery in Kearney, but something has gone very wrong with their brewing and handlng process.

Their Beers tastes like cardboard or even worse, each time I have given them a chance to serve me lately.

I don’t know if it is an old beer problem, or an issue of how they handle or brew the beer, but it really doesn’t matter, their beer’s have begun to universally suck.

And the sad part is, they used to be very good!

I wish they would fix it, I miss having a good glass of locally brewed beer from them.
But as they are right now, I cannot order their stuff because it is terrible.

This is the same problem a local micro brewery in Lincoln went thru before they ended
up selling out, and closing up their name.
(Crane River in Lincoln).

Paul

Here in Lancaster County the Caucus seemed to go very well, at least from my own view and the reports of most people I know, which should cover more than half the sites in Lancaster County.

Yes there were some people upset that they couldn’t just come in vote and leave.
Althought in the end many of them got to sign in for their candidate and left early anyway.

For the most part people were excited, and understanding of the lines and extra time a Caucus took.

Douglas County and Sarpy County were the exception it seems in Nebraska, they did not have adequate sites (Sarpy County County used only one site) Douglas COunty used far too few sites and they were overrun badly by far too many people to handle.

Both of those counties lost voters due to the mess they had at their Caucus sites…
This has been documented by numersous people in feedback in the media and online.
People got stuck in long lines of traffic (in Sarpy Co) or at the doors (In Douglas Co)
and simply went home instead. They still had a good turn out, but with better planning and more sites their numbers would have been higher.

In most of the Western and Central counties it seemed to go smoothly, with the exception of one Grand Island Caucus held at a Bar called the Road House. In that place the arguements for each candidate got quite a bit nasty and people had to be separated physically before what had become an ugly shouting match came to blows.

Ok so pretty much everyone else was cooler headed…..

Thank you for everyone that came out and spent your time to make a difference…

Chelsea Clinton will be in LINCOLN to speak at the UNL student union.

From 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Then she will move to the Coffee house in the old market to speak there.

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Barack Obama will be at the Omaha Civic Auditorium TODAY..

The doors will open at 3:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. Those who wish to attend are encouraged to RSVP at the Obama for America website. http://my.barackobama.com/page/s/omaha

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Michelle Obama will be in Lincoln to speak on behalf of Barack on Friday, look to the local news / NDP website for details.

Rumor also has it that Former President Bill Clinton will be in either Omaha or Lincoln or both on Saturday.

So if you want to see some of the leaders from the national stage
here locally, you now have your chance….

All in all an exciting time to be in Nebraska.

Obama is on the ground in Nebraska and his supporters are FIRED UP!

There will be an Obama rally on O street between 12th and 14th Street in Lincoln

FRIDAY the 8th, Between 6 and 8 pm. Come on down or honk and wave as you drive by…!!!!

YES WE CAN!!!!!!!!!!!

http://www.superfattuesday.blogspot.com/

There are 2 other Super Fat Tuesday parties going on in Nebraska…
Tuesday Feb 5th…

- Hastings, NE
– Murphy’s Wagon Wheel
– 107 North Lincoln Avenue
– “Show Us Your Vote” Mardi Gras beads
– and lots of fun with fellow Nebraskans.
– Questions? Email sretzleed at yahoo.com
– Hosted by: Scott Kleeb (www.scottkleeb.com)

- Kearney, NE
– Cunningham’s Journal
– 15 W 23rd Street

We are glad to see people getting into the spirit of this election year!

And remembering New orleans!!!

Paul

UPDATED… Since Super Tuesday falls on FAT Tuesday, the familiar New Orleans
Mardi Gras revelry day…
we are changing the name of our get together to “Super FAT Tuesday"…

In honor of New Orleans and it’s heritage.

See you there…..

Drinking Liberally-Lincoln and the Lancaster County Democratic Party
are co-hosting a Super Tuesday returns watch at Libations downtown.

Come join your fellow Liberals and share the returns as they roll in.

We start at 6:30 pm until when ever. Gathering will be in the game room to the LEFT
of the main bar - look for the DL signs.

Libations is located at 317 South 11th Street.
(Between L and M street on 11th).

Parking is available on both sides of 11th street, and in a parking garage on the corner
at 11th and L st.

We will have free snacks available in the gathering room.

There is NO CHARGE to come join in, just remember to tip your hardworking Liberal bartenders accordingly..

LOTS of people involved in YOUR local politics will be there….. come rub elbows and lift a glass with them as we all watch history in the making…

See you there….

Paul and Troy

Here is a really good post about DL, explaining it better than I could…

(http://www.alternet.org/story/46614)

Drinking Liberally: A New Strategy for Progressive Politics

By Nick Pinto, AlterNet. Posted January 18, 2007.

If you want to know what the future of the American Left looks like, the answer may be no further away than your local dive bar.

Every week, in cities and towns all over the country, thousands of the nation’s progressives are coming together to drink beer. But far from drowning their despair in drink, these progressives are building networks that could form the underpinning of a new renaissance for the American Left. What do they call this movement? Drinking Liberally, naturally.

Three years after it was founded in a Hell’s Kitchen dive bar, the Drinking Liberally organization has grown to include 174 chapters. And they’re not just in predictable cities like New York, Washington D.C., and San Francisco, but also scattered in seemingly unlikely places like Salt Lake City, Utah; Moscow, Idaho; Amarillo, Texas; and South Bend, Indiana.

In September, the Drinking Liberally regulars gathered in Denver for their second annual national convention, and under the umbrella name of “Living Liberally,” the organization is developing a national comedy tour, networks of reading groups and movie clubs, and perhaps even a dating service.

The organization’s central leadership spends more of its time supporting local chapters than planning a national agenda. Local chapters don’t make political endorsements, tend not to engage in issue activism, don’t take attendance and don’t have meeting agendas.

By and large, they just get together for some drinks once a week. But through some sort of social jujitsu, Drinking Liberally’s decentralized, open-ended structure – the fact that it doesn’t require its members to do anything – has proven to be its greatest strength. The result: Its members are doing more than anyone expected.

Drinking Liberally had its origins in 2002, when its two founders Justin Krebs and Matt O’Neill were working together on a non-partisan project called Speak-Up New York. With some funding from PBS, Krebs and O’Neill drove around the state trying to get young people engaged in politics by helping them ask questions of the gubernatorial candidates. The project was a relative success, registering a lot of young voters. But the two men, both in their mid-20s, found themselves talking about their shared frustrations with their effort.

“We found that it’s really hard to connect to people by talking about non-partisan issues,” O’Neill says. “When you’re not taking a point of view and you’re not giving people a chance to express their point of view – especially in a partisan way – it’s difficult to get them really excited. Especially young people.”

Krebs and O’Neill agreed that part of the problem was that there wasn’t really any space where people could discuss politics and the issues of the day in a relaxed atmosphere that was as much about social life and fun as it was about politics.

READ THE REST HERE - http://www.alternet.org/story/46614

This excellent local band is at it again…

They are playing the Alley, Zoo bar, Duffy’s and the State Theatre during the next month

You should go see them… http://www.myspace.com/lucaskellison

Dates are posted on the link above.

Here’s some background on the Lincoln food bank and the great work that they do.

(which is why we here at NE Blue support them, and the local chapter of Drinking Liberally supports them also).

The Lincoln Food Bank provides food for multiple agencies in Lincoln and 15 surrounding counties, including the Open Door Mission, the Matt Talbot Kitchen, and food pantries in
Ashland, Auburn, Blue Valley, Concordia, Saline and Wymore.

Read more! »