Nancy's News Network

The Mortgage/Foreclosure Debacle and What You Can Do About It

2011-04-07T12:35:00.004-04:00

As you may be aware, there is a mortgage/foreclosure crisis in the United States, caused by the greed of the Too-Big-to-Fail (tbtf) Banks and greedy Wall Street firms, who, at best, convinced average people they could afford to purchase homes that were really beyond their means, and, at worst, suckered innocent people with predatory lending schemes.

In the last 2 - 3 years, we've seen more and more of these loans go bad, resulting in people being foreclosed upon in numbers as extreme as the loans are toxic. And, although this problem has reached pandemic proportions in the last two years, the mainstream media has all but ignored it.

Those of us who have followed the story have read many of the thousands of online posts, written by desperate home-owners—some un- or under-employed, some who find themselves in homes worth much less than when they bought them (also due to the greed of the banks); the stories involve troubling circumstances in a lousy economy. These home owners are in dire need of relief in the form of loan modifications.

These are people who were told by the banks they couldn't be helped unless their mortgage payments were at least 3 months in arrears. So they stopped paying their loans, which had been current, later to find they were being strung along by the mortgage servicers, who, contrary to what they promised, were assessing them late fees and other undisclosed bank charges and reporting them delinquent to credit agencies. Some people (not many) were given trial loan modifications, only to be denied permanent loans, without stated reasons, months later. Those denied then discovered the lower monthly payments they made during the months they were kept in limbo weren't counted as payment in full. Their payments were always first applied to fees and penalties from past months, never toward the current cycle, so each month brought the accrual of more charges. Late fees and interest and penalties assessed on late fees and interest and penalties—every month they fell further behind, always adding to the total debt. Some might have been able to eventually save themselves and cut short their losses if they hadn't gone late in the first place; once they went late, as they were told was necessary to get relief, they got in deeper and deeper trouble. This, while the servicers of the loans got richer and greedier.

But wait, there's more!

The other, more insidious, and way, way more complicated and difficult-to-tell side of the story, is what happens to those loans as they get securitized and sold over and over and over again. I'm only going to get into a tiny bit of that. (Go get a drink. I'll wait.)

At the height of the housing bubble—mostly caused by low interest rates from the Fed and, by mortgage brokers who, like pushers selling drugs, hyped loans for which they required no documentation from the buyer or verification by the broker. These loans, which were even written by local banks and immediately (often the same day) sold to larger banks, were bundled, 2 - 5 thousand at a time. The bundle of mortgages and the set of rules governing them (400 pg. +/-) were placed into a trust governed by a Pooling and Servicing Agreement (PSA). The trusts were assigned to the Mortgage Electronic Registration System, MERS, a company formed by the big banks, where they were, according to the very stringent rules in that 400pg. document, converted into Mortgage-backed securities. MERS would track them as they were bought and sold. And bought and sold. And bought and sold. Oh, and each sale was being tracked by MERS, instead of being recorded with the Registry of Deeds. More on that later. (With me so far? Read it again. I'll wait.

The other important thing to know about the trust is its status with the IRS (no definition necessary). It is organized as a Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduit (REMIC). The rules of a REMIC are very specific: the day the trust is formed is the "start date" (also called the closing date, as in when you buy a house you have a “closing”—how’s that for confusing? Took me a year and a half to figure that out!). There is then a period of three months during which documentation of the assets can be finalized. Ninety (90) days later is the "end date" after which (Are you paying attention? This is important!) the instrument is closed. It's a done deal. Not one more document. Nothing else. Finis!

Oh yeah, one more thing. These trusts were organized as REMICs, because a REMIC is not subject to federal taxes. That is, it isn’t taxed as long as the PSA rules are followed, the most important of which for our story being that 90 day rule.

OK. The stage is set. Remember what happens during the 90 days? Paperwork. The meticulous filing and transferring of paperwork.

The banks were peddling shitty mortgages by the truckload, but they didn't want to actually deal with them. So they hired servicers to manage them. Servicing companies do the billing and collecting and calling and accounting and, well, everything. Servicers don't make a lot on each mortgage—the money is in the volume. Specifically, they make money on each transaction; the more transactions, the more they make. When someone doesn't pay his mortgage, suddenly there are many, many more transactions. First there are the late fees and the phone calls, then the extra bills and the phone calls, then the penalties and the phone calls, mounting up over those three months the owner has been told he must be in arrears. During that time, the owner is calling, talking to a different person every time, trying to understand how to apply for a modification. Paperwork is sent in and lost. And sent and lost again. The servicer is raking in the bucks, nickle-by-nickle, dime-by-dime.

Oh, I forgot to mention double tracking (sorry, no acronym). Say the servicer has finally agreed to a temporary modification for 3 months or more. The owner believes he is finally working toward a solution, unaware that every month he pays an agreed upon modified amount, he goes deeper into debt. The servicers claim that debt is an automatic trigger (they can't control it) that starts foreclosure proceedings, which, they say, originates in another department. When the servicer offers you a trial modification while they're simultaneously preparing to foreclose, you're getting ... (oops, sorry—got a little angry) double tracked.

Occasionally, the owner will get a foreclosure notice the week they're approved for the loan mod. This has really happened. Way more than once. Many more times than not, the permanent modification will be denied, even though the owner has kept up with the new payments and followed all the instructions that they were told would prove them worthy of one. Double tracking instantly turns the "hope now" dream into a "get out now" nightmare.

The servicer prepares the foreclosure on behalf of whoever holds the mortgage at that point. You'll recall it is no longer owned by the originator; it's been sold and resold God knows how many times, each transaction tracked by MERS. But (here it comes), there's a teeny, tiny problem: remember that 90 days? The servicer was oh-so-busy closing on all those thousands of mortgages being fed to them by all those insatiable brokers... We've got time. Mañana. Later, ‘gator. OOPS! 90 days to clean up the paperwork? Gone in a flash. What are the consequences when the servicer has forgotten that little detail? The investor/bank/supposed current holder of the note for whom the servicer is foreclosing doesn't really own the note, because it was never assigned to the trust.

We're going to recap a little here. The original mortgage should have been assigned to the trust, which was placed under the umbrella of MERS, the entity tracking it as it was sold and sold and sold again. In order to foreclose, the owner must be in possession of the note (which follows the mortgage, supposedly with an endorsement each time it's sold). But there was a break in the chain of title, because the assignment into the trust was never made.

Time for dinner...

Back. OK. So the servicer, who, btw is probably owned by one of the tbtf banks that own MERS, is about to foreclose on the mortgagee on behalf of the supposed note holder, who has no idea there's a problem (even though whoever it is has been the servicer's my-boss-won't-let-me-do-mods excuse since day one). The original note holder, who was paid long ago and may even have gone out of business, is still the note holder of record, according to the unendorsed, never-left-the-servicer note. Uh, oh. The REMIC is closed. Nothing can be done. The servicer blew it, right? Right?

Sit back and think about this for a minute. The mortgagee has been making monthly payments for God-knows-how-long (and may still be if you remember our double-track tale) to an entity that doesn't own the note, while the still-owner of record was long ago paid in full and may no longer exist!

This gets better and better, doesn't it? Well, the story gets better and better. The situation gets oh-so-very-much-worse. And convoluted. And criminal.

This is where the robo-signers, about whom you've probably heard, appear in this story.

Remember that MERS is a corporation formed by the banks. MERS appoints an employee of the servicer a temporary officer of MERS (nice promotion). That now-officer of MERS, signs and backdates an endorsement, so the note appears to have been deposited into the trust within the REMIC's 90 day window all those years ago. Another servicer employee, not necessarily a notary, notarizes that signature. Then, the officer and the notary go back to their old jobs and put on their servicer employee hats, having never left their desks.

Or...

The servicers just shred the original notes and make new ones. That's when they need lots and lots of robo-signers with lots of easy-to-change hats to sign lots and lots of documents, every one of which is fraudulent.

Over the last six months, the shit has finally started to hit the fan. Honestly, I can think of no better way to say it.

In Florida and other states really hard-hit by the economic downturn, foreclosure "mills" were processing robo-signed documents in huge numbers. More and more lawyers began to understand the fraudulent underpinnings of these mortgages. The banks stopped doing foreclosures and claimed to be tidying up their act. And the mainstream media finally began to take notice.

Dawn is breaking over Marblehead.

***

Now for what has recently transpired in MA, all of which is precedent setting with national impact.

In the fall, when stories about robo-signing were finally being reported, Register of Deeds for Southern Essex County, John O'Brien, took notice and started to get really angry. He realized just how many assignments taking place under the MERS umbrella should have been recorded at the Registry of Deeds—and how much money that represented, given that for each assignment a fee should be charged.

In November, he wrote to MA A.G. Martha Coakley and asked her to investigate MERS for not paying the recording fees due each time a mortgage is re-assigned. In February, he announced he is seeking $22 million, which he believes is the bare minimum owed in fees for the 148,663 mortgages that had been recorded by MERS since 1998 (2 fees each).

Then, on April 4th, after watching a 60 Minutes exposé the evening before, John O'Brien announced something extraordinary: he was asking MA Treasurer Steve Grossman to pull all the funds the Registry deposits annually, $25 million, from Bank of America and transfer the money to a local, non-MERS bank.

You can go HERE to read copies of letters, press releases and articles published about John's efforts.

Honestly, I consider the man a hero. And so do others who, for so long, have hoped someone would do something!

Also recently, in a landmark decision, the MA SJC ruled two foreclosures invalid because the foreclosing banks couldn't prove chain of title and did not hold the note.

And now, continuing the trend to expose and correct the egregious fraud perpetrated by the big MERS banks and servicers on MA homeowners, there has been legislation introduced in the MA Legislature by State Rep. Tim Madden. Among the proposed amendments and new statutory sections are requirements that would order the servicer to provide all documents associated with the underlying loan to the borrower within 60 days of a written request, and obligate recordation of each mortgage assignment at the time of the transaction with the appropriate fee paid to the Registry of Deeds. Just those changes to MA law will revolutionize the way foreclosures are executed and challenged and level the playing field, giving homeowners the rights they deserve. You can find a summary of that legislation HERE. H2766 as proposed is HERE. [The number has been changed from HR 64, as originally published here]

Your help is needed to make sure this legislation gets out of committee.

Please email your support for H2766 [NOT HR62] to the Chairmen of the House and Senate Financial Services Committees:

Senator Anthony Petrucelli, Chairman, anthony.petrucelli@masenate.gov and

Representative Michael A. Costello, Chairman, michael.costello@mahouse.gov.

(LOCALS PLEASE TAKE NOTE AND CONTACT MIKE COSTELLO! He’ll be at the 3T&2C breakfast this weekend!)

Please CC your letter of support to Representative Timothy R. Madden, timothy.madden@mahouse.gov

Thank you!

THE END

(for now)

Solidarity Rally at the State House in Boston

2011-02-27T17:41:00.001-05:00

Hundreds of people attended a rally to show solidarity for those in WI fighting to maintain the right for collective bargaining. Great crowd!

LOTS more pictures HERE!

Newbury Democratic Town Committee

2011-02-23T15:04:00.000-05:00

The Newbury DTC had a change of command last month, when Chair LuAnn Kuder passed the gavel to Jim Stanton. LuAnn, who was chair for 10 YEARS, organized the committee after it had been defuct for years. We're grateful for her service and leadership! Now, those big shoes are passed to Jim!

More photos of the meeting HERE.

Last Saturday, Jim led our caucus in choosing delegates to the state convention in June.

And click HERE for more photos of the caucus.

Deval Patrick and John Tierney Thank Their Supporters

2010-12-19T21:54:00.001-05:00

Governor Patrick and Congressman Tierney came to Michael's Harborside Saturday afternoon to meet with and thank their supporters for the hard work that made their campaigns successful!

Lots more pictures HERE!

Governor Patrick at Newburyport Farmers' Market

2010-07-19T11:41:00.001-04:00

Governor Patrick took a stroll through the Newburyport Farmers' Market at the Tannery on Sunday morning.

Vendors and shoppers alike were delighted by his visit.

And, I'm delighted that the Daily News of Newburyport published one of my pictures from the event in this morning's paper!

Governor Patrick and Sam Piseth

Sam and his wife, Ratha, were among the first charter members of the CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) at Arrowhead Family Farm, according to Dick Chase. (Dick kindly provided caption info to me late Sunday evening so the photo could be published in today's Daily News. Thank you, Dick!)

Take a look at the rest of the pictures HERE.

Brunch with Congressman Tierney

2010-06-16T00:15:00.001-04:00

I'm so proud to be a constituent of John Tierney and to know I'm represented by someone whose work and voting record reflect my progressive beliefs.

So, gathering with fellow progressives at Plum Island Grill in Newbury to have brunch with our Congressman made for a pretty nice Sunday morning!

John Tierney with Lou Masiello

John and Patrice Tierney

Marc Sarkady

John Tierney and Barry Connell

Charlie Cullen and Congressman Tierney

State Representative Mike Costello

Kathy Pasquina, Ed Cameron,
Patrice and John Tierney, Hailey Klein

The rest of the pictures are HERE.

Another great breakfast!

2010-04-16T04:01:00.000-04:00

The 5th annual 3Ts & 2Cs (three cities and two towns) Breakfast was held in Newburyport. Many of the candidates running for statewide and district office came to speak, and Governor Patrick's Campaign Kickoff Bus made a stop on the way to Boston for a rally.

Great turnout! Great breakfast! Great democrats!

See the rest of the photos HERE.

My photos on Massachusetts Democratic Party website!

2010-04-16T02:42:00.002-04:00

The Massachusetts Democratic Party website has linked to my photos of the Democratic Campaign Institute!

I hope there will soon be a permanent link to an ongoing photo album of pictures, but for now, there's a link from the entry about the DCI in the middle column of the Mass Dems home page.

Here's a direct link to the photo album.

Congressman Ed Markey

Governor Deval Patrick

Please pass the word to anyone you know who was at the DCI to let people know the pictures have been posted. And, if you recognize yourself or anyone you know in a photo, please label the photo in the comment. Thanks!

Here's a few more photos:

Jimmy Tingle

Al Boynton

Michael Sullivan

State Rep. Jim Cantwell

Roger Lau

Governor Patrick in Newburyport

2010-02-18T22:45:00.001-05:00

Governor Deval Patrick stopped by Cafe Di Siena in Newburyport one evening a couple of weeks ago to have a conversation with a few local supporters.

Here are a few pictures.

Lt. Gov. Tim Murray at Salt Marsh Antiques in Rowley

2010-02-14T02:50:00.005-05:00

The Rowley DTC and Salt Marsh Antiques hosted a fund-raiser for LG Tim Murray Thursday night and it was a great success! Rowley, Newbury and West Newbury town committees sponsored the event and invited Dems from all over the North Shore to gather in support of LG Murray.

Special thanks to Bobby Cianfrocca, Caryn Carangelo, Kathy Pasquina, Matt Patton, Robin Bergman for all the hours (OK, days) devoted to making this a very special evening!

Joining us were Congressman John Tierney and State Rep. Mike Costello.

Lt. Gov. Tim Murray

Elizabeth Kilcoyne, Dick Purinton, State Rep. Mike Costello

Rep. Mike Costello, Dick Purinton,

Congressman John Tierney, LG Tim Murray

Bobby Cianfrocca and Tim Murray

Look HERE

for the rest of the photos

Oh, by the way, Robin and I did the food!

Governor Patrick in Danvers

2010-02-07T13:30:00.000-05:00

Governor Patrick held a series of meetings with supporters yesterday, one of which was in Danvers at the Peabody Institute Library.

The mural in the room made for a great backdrop for pictures. I did a quick search and didn't find anything written about the artist or subject. If anyone knows about it, please let me know.

More photos HERE.

Barn Dance!

2010-02-02T03:04:00.004-05:00

The Boxford DTC sponsored a Barn Dance last Saturday night at historic Gould Barn in Topsfield. The fabulous blues band, 2120 South Michigan Avenue with Sweet Willie "D" and special guest, Pat Herlihy, on sax, had the old barn rocking on its foundation! What fun!

Here's the 300 year old barn* looking benign from the outside:

And here's the band rockin' on the inside!

Charlie Sawyer

Pat Herlihy

Sweet Willie "D"

More pictures HERE!

*barn picture from Topsfieldhistory.org/gould_barn.shtml

Steve Grossman in Newburyport

2010-01-29T05:02:00.001-05:00

Steve Grossman spent almost two hours with local Dems at Caffe Di Siena last evening, discussing his candidacy for MA State Treasurer.

Great turnout. Good conversation!

More pictures HERE!

Breakfast with the Ipswich DTC

2010-01-24T13:40:00.001-05:00

Saturday morning, the Ipswich Democratic Town Committee held their annual breakfast, at which a Citizens Action Award was given to Ipswich Caring, a volunteer organization that has been helping seniors, families and children for thirty-six years.

Among the speakers was our Congressman John Tierney, who not only gave us an update on congressional goings-on, but also presented the award of Ipswich Democrat of the Year to Ed Traverso.

Also speaking were Suzanne Bump, candidate for State Auditor, Governor's Council candidate, Jason Panos, Damian Anketell, candidate for Essex County Sheriff, and representatives of the Lt. Governor Tim Murray and Steve Grossman for State Treasurer campaigns.

Congressman John Tierney

Congressman Tierney

congratulating Ed Traverso

Lots more pictures HERE!

House Party for Governor Patrick's State of the Commonwealth Address

2010-01-23T01:29:00.001-05:00

On Thursday night, over 20 local Dems gathered in Newbury to watch the Governor give his State of the Commonwealth address. Dinner, great conversation, and engagement over the administration's accomplishments and shortcomings.

After the speech, we participated in a conference with Governor Patrick and activists at house parties across the state.

I didn't notice the donkey on the mantle until I started editing the photos--I love it!

More pictures HERE.

Newburyport press conference for Coakley

2010-01-18T17:48:00.001-05:00

Earlier this afternoon, local officials gathered at a press conference on Inn St. in Newburyport (really cold, gross weather) to show support for Martha Coakley.

Everyone's for Coakley!

More pictures HERE!

(Some of you may recognize the dog!)

Martha Coakley rally in Newburyport

2010-01-17T03:17:00.002-05:00

Martha Coakley, Massachusetts Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate, toured the North Shore today and stopped for an energetic and well-attended rally.

When you take a break from making phone calls for Martha (you are doing that, right?) in the next couple of days, take a look at the photos!

Martha Coakley

Martha Coakley and
Newburyport Mayor Donna Holaday

The rest of the photos are HERE.

I'm voting for Mike Capuano!

2009-12-08T00:10:00.004-05:00

A letter to friends and readers:

I'm writing to you on the eve of the Massachusetts primary to voice my support for Congressman Mike Capuano.

As many of you know, I am a constituent, supporter and great admirer of Congressman John Tierney. After Senator Kennedy passed away, Congressman Tierney considered running for his seat. Along with many fellow North Shore democrats, I was very excited at the prospect of working on his campaign and was extremely disappointed when he decided not to run.

My first instinct was to support Martha Coakley. I've met her several times and like her, think she's very smart (and street-smart) and savvy, and consider her an outstanding Attorney General for our state. I decided to wait, observe and see who else might enter the race.

Mike Capuano declared his candidacy and John Tierney endorsed him, saying,

"Mike joined me in opposing the Iraq War and the excesses in the originally proposed PATRIOT Act," said Congressman Tierney. "I am supporting Mike in his campaign for Senate because I know how hard he works to stand up for middle-class families, to achieve affordable, universal health care, and to create jobs here in Massachusetts. There is no other candidate in this race who can match his work ethic, his years of legislative experience, and his steadfast commitment to his principles and progressive beliefs. We need Mike to continue his fight for progress in the United States Senate."

Considering their nearly identical voting records, my strong support of Tierney and his unequivocal endorsement of his colleague, I began to pay attention to the Capuano campaign.

The more I saw, the more I liked. Capuano is a true progressive whose votes are aligned with my beliefs--from voting against the Iraq War and the Patriot Act to his support of the repeal of DOMA (defense of marriage act) and his co-founding the Congressional Caucus on Sudan, he proves himself a passionate, committed progressive.

He has held seventy "open mike" forums throughout the Commonwealth, always engaging in conversation, answering any questions, asking questions. He holds "open mike" town hall conference calls when he's in Washington in order to keep in touch with his constituents--something he said he will continue to do as U.S. Senator when he was asked about it tonight in an "open mike" conference call.

Please feel free to call me tonight (you all know I'm up late!) or any time tomorrow on my cell (I'll be at the polls by 7am) and I'll be happy to talk to you about my decision. If you are a supporter and want to help with GOTV (Get Out The Vote) calls on Tuesday, call me!

I hope you will consider casting your vote for Mike Capuano to become the next Senator from Massachusetts!

And, no matter whom you are supporting in this race, VOTE, damn it!

Fondly,
Nancy

Here are links to more information about Mike:

Unions and organizations
Elected officials
Publications and bloggers
Video of Dukakis' endorsement
My photos of Mike Dukakis endorsing Mike Capuano
Video of Mike taking on Bank CEOs at congressional hearing (imagine adding his voice to the Senate!)
Capuano's "resume" on Project Vote Smart

Remembering Senator Ted Kennedy

2009-10-14T12:27:00.013-04:00

I'm finally getting around to editing photos from past events that had been backlogged for one reason or another.

Not getting to this first set had a lot to do with my being rather overwhelmed by Kennedy's death. I was nearly done editing a couple of days after I took the pictures, but each time I went back to wrap it up and post them, I was recaptured and moved by the faces in the photos, and drawn back to have another look at them.

Each and every one of the people captured in these photos, whether you see them individually or in a crowd, was there because he or she was touched in some way by Ted Kennedy--as senator, friend, uncle, husband, mentor or myth. I've never been among a more diverse group of people and yet they all came together with the single purpose of honoring this exceptional human being.

The first group of pictures were taken of the motorcade passing between Government Center and Faneuil Hall on Thursday, August 27, 2009.

Slideshow HERE.

The second group of pictures was taken the next day, Friday, August 28, 2009, at the JFK Library.

Slideshow HERE.

A break from the usual post

2009-10-13T12:05:00.008-04:00

In a break from the usual political posts, I'd like to share my pictures taken last week on a day trip to Franconia Notch and Sugar Hill.

The weather was wild: from bright sun and brisk wind to dark, ominous clouds that one minute unleashed hail (not cold, wet sleet, but actual, car-denting balls of solid ice) and the next spilled multi-layered rainbows.

These pictures could only have been taken in New England!

More pictures HERE.

Governor Patrick in Haverhill

2009-10-04T02:25:00.005-04:00

Last Wednesday, Governor Patrick was greeted by a couple of hundred people when he came to Haverhill to speak at the grand opening of Hamel Mill Lofts, a project developed with federal, state and private funds.

More pictures are HERE.

Urgent upcoming vote in MA legislature!

2009-09-16T16:12:00.004-04:00

As early as tomorrow, the MA legislature will vote on allowing the governor to appoint an interim senator to serve MA constituents for the next 4 1/2 months.

Not only will that person represent us by casting critical votes regarding health care (think 60!) and economic legislation, but that appointment will ensure us continuous vital constituent services, now provided by Senator Kennedy's staff. Without an interim senator, hundreds of MA families currently being served by his dedicated staff will be without help, and the continuing work of Kennedy's office will be curtailed as the staff packs up and leaves.

When the current legislation was passed, the republicans in the legislature tried to pass an amendment "...to allow the Governor to fill a Senate or Representative vacancy in Congress until a special election is held," with a "Yea" vote "ensuring MA representation in Congress in the event of a vacancy." Republicans and a few Democrats voted "Yea." Now they've changed their minds.

Both sides have played politics. Now they can all set it right. Massachusetts residents need the continuity of representation. WE NEED TWO U.S. senators.

Please find your legislators' telephone numbers here, call them TODAY and ask them to vote to send an interim senator to Washington!

I've called Rep. Harriett Stanley's office and was told she would be voting NO. She voted with the Republicans on the original legislation, as well. To those in her district: Let's change her mind! Call her NOW! Bruce Tarr is also voting NO. Barbara L'Italien is on the fence, but Phil in her office said she is leaning toward voting YES. Please call her office and encourage her to do so!

I've posted this on my facebook page and sent it out as an email blast. Thanks to Ed Cameron for offering to send it on to the members of the Newburyport Democratic City Committee. Please feel free to forward this link to Massachusetts residents who want to make a difference by calling their legislators. Let's win this one!

Lt. Gov. Tim Murray at the North Reading DTC BBQ!

2009-08-16T23:31:00.006-04:00

Matt Patton introduced Lt. Governor Tim Murray, who was a special guest at the North Reading DTC Summer BBQ, held earlier today.

More pictures from a delightful afternoon HERE.

Great turnout for Congressman Tierney!

2009-08-13T19:20:00.004-04:00

The Republican running for Congress in the 6th District tried to use the health care reform debate for his own political gain this afternoon by holding a rally outside Congressman Tierney's office in Peabody Square. The candidate, who said earlier this week that he was "inspired by all the Americans at the anti-healthcare rally in Portsmouth," planned the rally to take place during Congressman Tierney's vacation, while claiming Tierney is avoiding facing his constituents. On the contrary, Tierney held this forum in Lynn in June of this year, and plans to hold an open conference call about health care before heading back to Washington--one that can accommodate as many as 30,000 people.

There were many times more of Congressman Tierney's constituents on the sidewalks of Peabody Square today than there were "health care opponents." Tierney is an outstanding progressive and is a proponent of singe payer health care.

By the way, how can someone be against health care?

More pictures HERE.

President Obama's health care Town Hall in Portsmouth

2009-08-13T00:20:00.008-04:00

President Obama came to Portsmouth High School on Tuesday to conduct a Town Hall forum on health care. Had he come in the front door, he would have been flanked on his left and right by those representing the left and right, as citizens from both sides of the political spectrum were awaiting his arrival. Had he not used the back door, he would have landed center stage among those playing out the frenzied, tense drama with escalated rhetoric directed, ultimately, not at him, and not at each other, but at the national audience brought by the media who swarmed the site from well before I got there at 6:45 a.m., until sometime after I left at 4:30 p.m.

I'm frustrated by the photos I took outside. You can see the crowds, read the signs. But what they don't convey is how damn loud it was--loud in an ugly way. In a scary way. In a pessimistic, hopeless this-can't-possibly-be-a-good-way-to-do-anything way.

Inside the gymnasium, the mood was celebratory: the President of the United States was about to arrive. I'd venture to guess many of those present had seen Obama before as candidate Obama--I had several times--but a presidential visit seemed different. People felt honored to be there. There was a point at which someone came out to talk to the crowd and said something about health care (I can't remember what exactly) that sent Obama supporters to their feet. That was when I saw how many people who opposed him were in the room. I was startled enough by their numbers to imagine things could get unpleasant. But the atmosphere in the room wasn't foreboding. And, after having spent the morning among the crowd outside, it felt like a love fest.

If you missed watching it on TV, it's available to watch any time on c-span. (Oh, and don't skip over the National Anthem. It was sung by high school senior, Natalie Hazzard, whose voice was sweet and clear and on pitch--no mean feat for that piece! Ordinarily, when I hear our anthem sung, I'm further convinced This Land is Your Land would be a far better choice for the country. I still think it is, but this time that wasn't my first thought!)

Enjoy the pictures!

Governor Patrick in Newburyport

2009-07-21T22:30:00.008-04:00

Governor Deval Patrick held a town hall forum in Newburyport this evening, answering questions and engaging participants in conversation for two hours.

Thanks, Governor Patrick, for posing for a picture with Toby!

More pictures from this evening here.

George McGovern appeared in Gloucester on Sunday

2009-07-20T01:59:00.000-04:00

On a book tour for his recently published book, Abraham Lincoln, Senator George McGovern spoke to 300+ people Sunday in Gloucester. The Senator, celebrating his 87th birthday yesterday, got a hardy laugh from the audience when he began his remarks with, "Four score and seven years ago..."
I was able to chat with him for a few minutes after his appearance. What a wonderful human being! How different the world would be if the rest of the nation had voted as wisely as those of us in Massachusetts did in 1972!

Thanks to the photographer who used my camera to take the photos of me. I wish I had her name!

More photos can be found here.

This Land Belongs to You and Me

2009-07-04T15:30:00.015-04:00

This song really does merit being our national anthem!
(Please send me links to other versions you find and I'll post them!)

Celebrate this 4th of July by spending time appreciating the beauty of where you live. I'm taking a 7 mile walk down the byways and marshes of Newbury!

revolutionBoston - progressive talk radio

2009-05-08T12:33:00.007-04:00

Supporters of revolutionBoston, WWZN 1510AM, celebrated finally being ON THE AIR(!) in Boston at a party last night at the Revolution Rock Bar. Jeff Santos, who broadcast his show live from 6 to 7, was joined by those of us who were there to savor the moment. And, of course, I took pictures!

This morning's issue of the Democratic Dispatch, Kate Donaghue's weekly newsletter that's distributed to subscribers state-wide (subscribe here: DDemDispatch-subscribe@yahoogroups.com) included a wonderful mention of the event:

Dear Democrats,
Kate is once again relying on her cadre of loyal lieutenants to publish this week's edition of the Dispatch so that she can take a weekend for family. But she wanted to make sure that you all know about the Patrick administration's community forums across the state this month on choices and priorities for the Commonwealth. See info immediately below.
I've just gotten back from tonight's celebration at Revolution Rock Bar of the return of Progressive Talk Radio to Boston on WWZN 1510AM. It's been a long time since we last heard a full day's lineup of progressive voices over the Boston airwaves, and it's long overdue. Congratulations to Jeff Santos and Robin, Alan, Nancy, George, and Samantha from "Save Progressive Radio Boston" for seeing this process to fruition. It was great to meet other enthusiastic supporters, and there's a lot to celebrate.
The revival of Prog Talk in Boston comes not a moment too soon. Thomas Jefferson wrote, "Our people, merely for want of intelligence which they may rely on, are become lethargic and insensible of the state they are in." I believe that right now Media is the battleground in advance of the 2010 bielection. The prize is domination of the terms of debate as we go forward. We need media outlets like AM1510 to give our Democratic message a level playing field on which the strength of our ideas will surely triumph.
Democratically yours,
Matt Shear

For those of you who like to put a face with the name, here's Matt--he's the one in the background who's giving Alan Frankel his contact information):

For the rest of the pictures, look HERE.

100 Days Visibility in Newburyport

2009-05-02T16:16:00.005-04:00

On a morning that was supposed to be rainy and miserable, bright skies prevailed over a happy reunion of Obama supporters who gathered in Market Square to show their enthusiasm for the new administration's accomplishments.

Cars honked in a show of support and smiling demonstrators waved back in solidarity.

It was altogether a lovely way to start the day!

You can see the rest of the pictures HERE.

Progressive Talk Radio On the Air in Boston!

2009-05-01T16:29:00.007-04:00

Starting Monday, May 4, progressive talk radio will once again have a home on the radio dial in Boston.

For the first time in almost two and a half years, progressive programming will be aired from 6 in the morning until 7 in the evening, Monday through Friday.

As many of you know, for the last two years I've been involved with a group whose goal has been to secure a station to air those voices who provide the counter balance to the right-wing screaming heard on station after station up and down the AM dial. Starting Monday, we will all be able to start enjoying the fruit of those efforts.

The station being leased is WWZN, 1510AM, 50k watts strong, with a range that includes greater Newburyport and southern NH. If you grew up in this area, and are as old as I am, you'll remember that signal carried WMEX, the home of Arnie Woo-Woo Ginsburg and Adventure Carhop commercials!

The program lineup Monday through Friday will be:

6 to 10 a.m. Jeff Santos

Jeff has actually been on the air since election day; his company, Santos Media, has brought this project to fruition. Jeff hosted the only locally produced show when progressive talk was last being aired in Boston--then on a frustratingly weak signal on a station owned by the behemoth, Clear Channel. With the help of Governor Dukakis and others, he has labored long and hard and deserves to celebrate a sweet on-the-air victory.

Jeff will be followed by nationally syndicated hosts:

10 a.m. to Noon Stephanie Miller
Noon to 3 p.m. Ed Schultz
3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Thom Hartmann

and

6 p.m. to 7 p.m. Locally-produced progamming, to be announced

All the shows will be accessible on the web at revolutionBOSTON for streaming live or podcasting.

This week's lineup on Jeff's show will include Ed Schultz and Thom Hartmann, and Governor Patrick as guests on Monday, and remote, live broadcasts from Northeastern University on Tuesday and South Station on Friday.

On Thursday evening, May 7th, from 6 to 9 p.m. there will be a celebration at
Revolution Rock Bar
200 High St
Boston, MA 02110
(across from Rowes Wharf, just off Atlantic Ave. and the Greenway)
All are welcome to attend! (RSVP to bostonprogressivetalk AT gmail.com)

Check out my friend, Alan's diary on Daily Kos or BlueMassGroup. (If you do, please consider joining, if you're not a member, and recommending the diary. the more people recommend them, the longer they'll stay current. Thanks!)

Jeff Santos and Governor Dukakis at the breakfast honoring Kate Donaghue last weekend.

Dems honor Kate Donaghue

2009-04-27T14:32:00.009-04:00

Hundreds of Massachusetts Democrats gathered in Hudson Sunday morning to honor Democratic State Committee member Kate Donaghue.

The room was filled with many who first became activists thanks to Kate's prodding and some who hold office due in large part to her efforts.

Included among those in attendance were:
Congressman James McGovern;
Lt. Governor Tim Murray;
Former Governor Michael Dukakis and his wife, Kitty;
Attorney General Martha Coakley;
Secretary of State Bill Galvin;
Former Elder Affairs Sec. Mike Festa;
Massachusetts Democratic Committee Chair John Walsh;
State Senator Jamie Eldridge;
Progressive Talk Radio host, Jeff Santos;
Many state committee members, including our own Kathy Pasquina, West Newbury.

I showed up with my camera to capture the morning's festivities. Take a look HERE.

You can read more about Kate and the event on BlueMassGroup.

Congratulations, Kate!

Thank you, Newburyport Current!

2009-04-10T21:42:00.003-04:00

Wow! Great piece by Barbara Taermina in this week's Newburyport Current about last week's 3T & 2C breakfast and the local Democratic political scene. Thank you, Barbara, for the plug for this blog and for the Newburyport Dems blog.

I hope those of you who live locally and are visiting this blog for the first time will scroll down and check out the photos I've posted in the past year or so. Be sure to follow the link to the photos of the Yankee Homecoming Parade.

A RIDDLE

2009-04-05T12:51:00.037-04:00

What do Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray, Congressman John Tierney, MA Democratic Party Chair John Walsh, Essex County DA John Blodgett, MA State Rep. Harriett Stanley, Governor's Council member Mary-Ellen Manning, and Democratic State Committee members from as far as Worcester County all have in common with 150 local Democrats? They were all in Newburyport Saturday morning at the 3Ts and 2Cs Breakfast! (Three towns--Newbury, Salisbury and West Newbury--and two cities--Newburyport and Amesbury.)

Know what happens when you google "3t 2c breakfast"?

You get the Newburyport blog and 17,600 breakfast recipes using 3 tablespoons (or teaspoons) and 2 cups!

Check out the rest of the pictures HERE!

2009-03-29T02:50:00.014-04:00

Congressman John Tierney held a community meeting at City Hall in Newburyport on Saturday during which he answered questions posed by audience members about subjects ranging from the occupation of Iraq and the commitment of more troops in Afghanistan, to help for Eastern Massachusetts farmers, to the restoration of the beach on PI by dredging the Merrimac with help from the Army Corp of Engineers.

There was a group organized by Newburyport Republicans (and some of their kids) who demonstrated in the park across the street before the event.

Charlie Tontar has written a piece about event on the Newburyport Dems Blog. And, there are more of my pictures HERE .

By the way, there was someone who accused the Congressman of taking campaign contributions from the financial industry. Congressman Tierney is one of the cleanest members of congress. Here's a link to see where the money comes from. Whenever you're curious about who's contributed to any campaign--be it the president's, or any member of the senate or the house--just go to Open Secrets.

"We Are One" Inaugural Concert

2009-01-28T22:44:00.023-05:00

As I mentioned in my last post, I was able to obtain press credentials for the Inaugural Concert held at the Lincoln Memorial on Sunday, January 18, 2009. Thank you to Dave Johnson from SeeingtheForest who applied for the credentials on my behalf! Here are a few of the photos from that glorious day. The rest can be found here (still adding and tweaking).

Bruce Springsteen

Wrapped in a warm flag

Bettye LaVette and Bon Jovi

Sheryl Crow and will.i.am

Stevie Wonder

Bono and Edge

Pete Seeger, Bruce Springsteen and will.i.am

FIRED UP! (but where do I go?)

2009-01-22T10:52:00.027-05:00

Been a while since my last post... I'm in Washington for the inauguration of President Obama. (I love the way that sounds and how it looks on the page!) This post is one I did for a blog called Seeing the Forest. I'm working on editing pictures I took at Sunday's concert at Lincoln Memorial for which I was lucky enough to have press credentials! (I promise to be more timely than I was last time I promised more soon...)

I had a silver ticket from my congressman that guaranteed me a place to stand in the section behind the reflecting pool on the Mall. It would possibly be close enough to distinguish one person from another on the podium through my binoculars; at the least, it would offer me a view of the proceedings on one of the Jumbotrons, and allow those of us lucky enough to be in that section to bear witness to history being made.

I left my hotel at 7 a.m. to walk the 3 miles to the “silver” gate. (And, yes, the word “pearly” came to mind.) The route took me under the National Mall, through the closed-to-traffic 3rd Street tunnel.

Entering the tunnel:

Under the Mall:

Emerging:

As I neared the gate I saw the line snaking east and I followed it, past one corner, then west to the next, block after block to the end. When I first saw it, it was moving along, but it stopped to a crawl soon after I joined it, midway down a block lined with tour buses, most with engines running, empty save a driver. The fumes were horrible, although one could forgive the smell and feel grateful for a moment or two of heat as the line inched by a running engine. For over an hour, I watched people stream passed me to the end of the line, now stretched out of sight, around many corners. Around 10, the line started to move and as we rounded the last block, it seemed as though people were joining the line from different directions. Rumors that the gate was closed shot through the crowd, which had changed from an orderly 11 block-long (at least) line into a sea of anxious, freezing, weary wanna-bes crushed into a block-long and wide space. Someone started shouting, “Let us in!” and it became a chant with the crowd punching the air with each word with their embossed silver-edged invitations. LET! US! IN! These people—all of them—privileged to be honored by their congressmen and women with what they thought was a guaranteed place at the party, had been shut out by an anonymous ogre at the gate. I recalled Pete Seeger and Bruce Springsteen singing the words of Woody Guthrie on Sunday:

A great high wall there tried to stop me
A great big sign there said private property
But on the other side it didn’t say nothing
That side was made for you and me.

Yeah, right. I got a text message from a friend who had a purple ticket. She, too, was reporting gates were closed in front of her, and was headed to the Dirksen Senate Office Building where Senators Kerry and Kennedy had promised a place to watch the proceedings and stay warm to those who couldn’t attend outdoors. It was 10:40. I fought the crowd, which was beginning to feel like the crush on New Year’s Eve in Times Square—something I experienced once long ago and vowed never to do again—for a block and escaped, heading to Capital Hill. I had to go behind the Capitol and down the other side, which took about half an hour (someday I’ll walk it at a normal pace to see how long it really takes) and get through security at the entrance. I couldn’t remember where I was supposed to go and asked if anyone knew where there was a TV. I was directed to a small cafeteria in the basement corridor between the Dirksen and Rayburn Buildings. Gathered there were about 20 people who, for one reason or another, had happened upon the place. All eyes on a small TV that the owner proudly announced she had installed the day before so her customers would be able to watch the ceremony.

Cups and Company:

'Tis a Gift:

Proprietors:

Swearing-In:

Done!

Everyone, including me, was happy to be there. We instantly became a community, devoted to sharing this moment in history. We cheered, clapped, prayed, amen’d, and shared smiles and tears. We stood when Obama took the oath of office. When I said, “Bye-bye Bush!” as his helicopter took him away, someone said Alleluiah!

I'd have driven to Washington from Boston just to be with those people at that time, and I can’t think of anywhere I’d have rather been. It was worth a ticket edged in gold to be among the people in that room.

New Friends:

VICTORY!

Sayin' It With Pictures!

2008-09-03T20:21:00.014-04:00

A few pictures to start. The first group was taken during events held by the Stonewall Dems. I really wish I'd had my camera with me at a late-night party at the nightclub, Tracks. Although this is probably not what Lerner and Lowe had in mind when they wrote about dancing all night, the driving beat got me going on the dance floor for quite a while.

Saturday night and Sunday morning with the Stonewall Dems

Kathleen Sebelius, Governor of Kansas, spoke at dinner Saturday evening.

Sunday morning band and parade

Governor Deval Patrick and David O'Brien, DNC

The governor spoke at the Stonewall Dems breakfast on Sunday morning.

Donna Edwards, MD and Keith Ellison, Minnesota introduce John Conyers at From Fannie Lou Hamer to Barack Obama, a forum sponsored by the Colorado Public Library, Colorado PBS and The Nation magazine.

John Conyers, Ohio and John Nichols, The Nation

More to come...

Amy Goodman has been arrested!

2008-09-01T22:16:00.002-04:00

(Also posted on Blue Mass Group.)

This afternoon, I watched today's edition of Democracy Now!, which included a piece about the St. Paul police conducting preemptive raids in advance of the Republican convention, targeting groups of protesters, journalists and videographers, including videographer, Elizabeth Press, who works for Democracy Now!.

I just received the following email announcing Amy Goodman has just been arrested.

I spent time volunteering for Democracy Now! last week in Denver, where I distributed information about the show at events around the city. Amy produced a 2 hour show daily during the convention in Denver, and planned to do the same this week during the Republican convention.

I hope you will consider placing the suggested call.

Amy Goodman and Two Democracy Now! Producers Unlawfully Arrested At the RNC

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 1, 2008

Contact:
Denis Moynihan 917-549-5000
Mike Burke 646-552-5107, mike@democracynow.org

ST. PAUL, MN—Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman was unlawfully arrested in downtown St. Paul, Minnesota at approximately 5 p.m. local time. Police violently manhandled Goodman, yanking her arm, as they arrested her. Video of her arrest can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYjyvkR0bGQ

Goodman was arrested while attempting to free two Democracy Now! producers who were being unlawfully detained. They are Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar. Kouddous and Salazar were arrested while they carried out their journalistic duties in covering street demonstrations at the Republican National Convention. Goodman's crime appears to have been defending her colleagues and the freedom of the press.

Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher told Democracy Now! that Kouddous and Salazar were being arrested on suspicion of rioting. They are currently being held at the Ramsey County jail in St. Paul.

Democracy Now! is calling on all journalists and concerned citizens to call the office of Mayor Chris Coleman and the Ramsey County Jail and demand the immediate release of Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar. These calls can be directed to: Chris Rider from Mayor Coleman's office at 651-266-8535 and the Ramsey County Jail at 651-266-9350 (press extension 0).

Democracy Now! stands by Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar and condemns this action by Twin Cities law enforcement as a clear violation of the freedom of the press and the First Amendment rights of these journalists.

During the demonstration in which they were arrested law enforcement officers used pepper spray, rubber bullets, concussion grenades and excessive force. Several dozen others were also arrested during this action.

Amy Goodman is one of the most well-known and well-respected journalists in the United States. She has received journalism's top honors for her reporting and has a distinguished reputation of bravery and courage. The arrest of Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar is a transparent attempt to intimidate journalists from the nation's leading independent news outlet.

Democracy Now! is a nationally syndicated public TV and radio program that airs on over 700 radio and TV stations across the US and the globe.

Video of Amy Goodman's Arrest: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYjyvkR0bGQ

##
= = = = = = = = =
ABOUT DEMOCRACY NOW!
Democracy Now! airs on over 650 radio and TV stations, including
Pacifica, NPR, community, and college radio stations; on public
access, PBS, satellite TV stations (DISH network: Free Speech TV
ch. 9415 and Link TV ch. 9410; DIRECTV: Link TV ch. 375); on the World
Radio Network's European Service and on the Community Broacasting
Association of Australia service; as a "podcast", automatically
downloaded to your computer or portable audio player; and streams live
M-F at 8am EST at www.democracynow.org
= = = = = = = = =
Now real-time CLOSED CAPTIONED on TV!
You can also view/listen/read all Democracy Now! shows online:
http://www.democracynow.org
To bring Democracy Now! to your community, go to:
http://www.democracynow.org/get_involved/bring_to_station
= = = = = = = = =

OK, OK...

2008-09-01T13:36:00.005-04:00

....I'm back. And I'm sorting through hundreds of photos.

Two reasons I didn't post from Denver. First, I was out, mostly taking pictures, from 7 in the morning until 1 or 2 a.m. every day. That leaves just enough time to download pictures to the computer and sleep a little (not enough!). I'd planned some time to post on Tuesday, but had a computer disaster to deal with.

So I'm spending the next few days editing and posting, and if you check back, you'll see what I saw!

In the meantime, check out Marianne Rutter's blog. Marianne was a delegate, and my roommate, and, is evidently really good at writing in her sleep! ;-)

OK. Back later.

Oh, by the way, check out the Newburyport Daily News from last Saturday. More on what I think of the piece and the fact they ran the photo on the front page later...

I'm going to Denver!

2008-08-17T14:42:00.004-04:00

As many of you know, I'm going out to Denver as a Convention volunteer and plan to take advantage of as many offerings as possible.

I just posted this schedule on Blue Mass Group, where there's a discussion started by Charlie, who has asked for suggestions about what he should focus on and cover in Denver. Please visit there to read the discussion and add your imput.

I'm taking my computer and camera (with 2 batteries and three memory cards=8GB) and am ready to be involved to the max and totally sleep-deprived!

I'm signed up to attend the following workshops:

Sunday: From Fannie Lou Hamer to Barack Obama and PDA's Progressive Welcome to Denver
Monday: Rocky Mountain Roundtable Unconventional Women
Tuesday: Rocky Mountain Roundtable Energy and Climate Crisis and the National Women's Political Caucus reception
Wednesday: Rocky Mountain Roundtable International Relations
Thursday: PDA's Constitutional Law and Congress

That doesn't include the volunteering time, convention or parties, all of which is up in the air.

Lot's more about the convention soon!

This may be moot by morning

2008-08-13T23:19:00.004-04:00

I just finished watching Countdown, in which Keith Olbermann predicted Obama's pick for VP will be Joe Biden. He narrowed down the widely-reported short list of three by eliminating:

Virginia's Governor Tim Kaine, because of the announcement that former VA Governor and current US Senate nominee, Mark Warner, will deliver the keynote address to the convention, therefore negating the possibility of featuring another Virginian in the same venue the next night; and,

Indiana Senator Evan Bayh, because if elected there's a high probability his democratic senate seat would become republican. His replacement would be appointed by Indiana's governor, who is currently republican Mitch Daniels. Daniels is running for re-election; he has a democratic opponent, but he holds a substantial lead and the power and money of an incumbent, so in all likelihood, the appointment would be his to make. The person appointed would remain senator until a special election, which, if I understand this correctly, would be during the next election cycle, two years from now. (This is different from the House, which requires members to run every two years, and for which a replacement of a member is not done by appointment, but rather is the winning candidate of a special election held as soon as possible.)

Olbermann concludes that the choice must be Biden and says of that choice, "it certainly would make the covering of campaign speeches a lot more interesting."

You can watch the segment from Olbermann here.

Oh, and if you have a couple of minutes, check out the "Bushed" segment and be sure to listen to the rant for #1 about the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Unit (ICE). Chilling.

Candidate for WORST PERSON (company) IN THE WORLD: CLEAR

2008-08-11T00:39:00.010-04:00

First, let me say that I’m a card-carrying member of the ACLU and take my right to privacy very seriously.

Sometime this past spring, I accepted an invitation through my Marriott membership for a free, one-year membership to Clear, a company offering pre-authorized airport security. After a lengthy internal debate about whether I wanted to be in their system, I decided, what the hell, and filled out an online application. I knew I wouldn’t be traveling more than once or twice over the year, but wanted to experience “fly[ing] through airport security" before my privileges expired.

There are a handful of airports currently operational (my home port, Boston, is not among them), and in order to activate the account, I have to present myself at one of the participating airports to supply my biometrics—consisting of fingerprints and an iris scan. Denver is one of the airports in which Clear is up and running, and since I’m signed up to volunteer at the Democratic convention, I thought I’d complete the process in August.

Last Wed, August 7th, I received an email from Clear. I assumed it was going to be information about my enrollment: there were more airports online where I could report to complete the process; or they’d decided I wasn’t qualified to be among the elite to whom they cater; or too much time had passed between my internet application and showing up at the airport. I don't have a good enough imagination to have come up with the actual reason for their email.

This, from a company dedicated to helping keep our airports secure:

From: Clearsupport@flyclear.com
Subject: Information About Your Clear Enrollment
Date: August 6, 2008 4:47:28 PM EDT
To: (ME)
Reply-To: Clearsupport@flyclear.com

ABOUT YOUR CLEAR ACCOUNT

Dear (ME),

We take the protection of your privacy extremely seriously at Clear. That's why we announced yesterday that a laptop from our office at the San Francisco Airport containing a small portion of your pre-enrollment information (but not your Social Security number or credit card information) recently went missing. And we were prepared to send you the appropriate notice yesterday morning detailing that situation.

However, the laptop was recovered yesterday just before that email went out. And, we have determined from a preliminary investigation that no one logged into the computer from the time it went missing in the office until the time it was found. Therefore no unauthorized person has obtained any personal information.

We are sorry that this theft of a computer containing a limited amount of your personal information occurred, and we apologize for the concern that the publicity surrounding our public announcement might have caused. But in an abundance of caution, both we and the Transportation Security Administration treated this unaccounted-for laptop as a serious potential breach. We have learned from this incident and we have suspended enrollment processes temporarily until all pre-enrollment information is encrypted for further protection, which means you cannot complete in-person enrollment at this time. We will let you know as soon as you can. The personal information on the enrollment system was protected by two levels of password protection, but Clear is in the process of completing a software fix - and other security enhancements - to encrypt the data, which is what we should have done all along, just the way we encrypt all of your other data. Clear now expects that the fix will be in place within days. Meantime, all airport Clear lane operations continue as normal.

The data in question included a limited amount of your personal information, but did not include any credit information, including credit card numbers. And it did not include your Social Security number. And of course, it did not include any biometric information, such as your fingerprint or iris images which are only supplied during the second, in-person enrollment process that takes place at the airport. All of that data is already encrypted and not stored locally at any enrollment center or Clear lane.

As you may know, our Privacy Policy states that we will notify you of any compromise of your personal information regardless of whether any state statute requires it. This letter is a good example of our policy: no law requires that we notify you of this incident because our investigation of the recovered laptop revealed no breach. But we think it's good practice to err on the side of good communication, especially when, in this case, we did make a mistake by not making sure that limited portion of information was encrypted.

Please call us toll-free with any questions at 866-398-8151. Again, we apologize for the confusion. We look forward to welcoming you to a Clear enrollment center just as soon as we've reopened enrollment.

Sincerely,  Steven Brill Clear CEO

P.S. A reminder: One of Clear's unique privacy features is that all members and applicants are given an identity theft protection warranty which provides that, in the unlikely event you become a victim of identity theft as a result of any unauthorized dissemination of your private information by - or theft from - Clear or its subcontractors, we will reimburse you for any otherwise unreimbursable monetary costs directly resulting from the identity theft. In addition, Clear will, at its own expense, offer you assistance in restoring the integrity of your financial or other accounts. So had there been any actual compromise of your personal information, you would have been additionally protected.

I felt compelled to visit the CLEAR website for more wise words from the CEO.

This is the second of three points in a mission statement on a page-long venue for the CEO to espouse his altruistic reasons for starting his company. (The same person who wrote, or at least, signed, the email. Nah, what am I saying? Of course he wrote it! That email certainly was not the product of a PR firm!)

Second, we think we have a special responsibility to protect your privacy. Yes, we are using biometric identifiers such as fingerprints and iris images. Yes, your enrollment application will be submitted to the government for a basic security threat assessment before we can issue you a Clear card. But we do not believe the process and the questions stop there. We know that this kind of new idea and new process is bound to make many people uneasy about what we are doing with their personal information, especially at a time when every day seems to bring new headlines about identity theft. I started this company because I thought there was a right way to do something like this - a way that confronted privacy issues head on and embraced uncompromising dedication to privacy protection.

So, there you have it. I suppose by broadcasting this on the web, I can probably kiss my clearance goodbye.

Of course, when it comes to protecting my right to write about this, there’s always the ACLU!

Five hundred, thirty-eight

2008-08-08T20:47:00.006-04:00

Five hundred, thirty-eight. That's the number of electors in the electoral college.

And, FiveThirtyEight.com is the name of a website, whose creator, Nate Silver, appeared on Countdown with Keith Olbermann tonight.

Earn the admiration and gratitude of the number-crunchers, political junkies and geeks in your life by passing on this link to them.

It all about the numbers and the polls that capture their moment in time. And, wow, is it impressive.

A New Tag

2008-08-08T19:42:00.007-04:00

For about six months, I have been using tags instead of bookmarks; instead of drilling down through files and folders, I just assign key words to what I want to save. It's really changed the way I organize everything. Actually, "organize" is the wrong word. That was the problem with the old way--it depended on me filing things where I could find them again. (Not!) Now, I can search for it by whatever obvious words come to mind when I save it. And I can save something in as many different catagories as there are words to describe it. I could tag what I've written so far in this piece with: files; folders; bookmarking; organize; tags; reference....whatever. And whichever word comes to mind when I search for it, will point me in the right direction.

I have about 500 tags in my cache, and it isn't all that uncommon that I tag something with a word I haven't used previously. But I gotta tell ya, when I went to tag this piece, I was blown away that I'd never used the word before.

So, now I've added two new tags: liberal and The"L"word. I'll try to put them to good use. In this piece posted on Politico though, the word has a bit of a right wing edge to it.

Liberals to warn potential GOP third-party organizers

Greg Palast

2008-08-07T03:15:00.007-04:00

I don't know if any of you have had a chance to visit any of the links I've provided to websites and blogs over to your right, but let me direct you now to Greg Palast's blog. His new entry is about the evils of nuke plants and how McCain's and Obama's proposed nuclear energy policies differ.

Once you've read that, click on Greg's home page and look around. He's an investigative reporter who is passionate about election protection, knows a great deal about election fraud and writes about it for the BBC. Note: he's an American, but writes for the BBC, because the American MSM won't hire such a blatant truth-teller.

If you read my post from July 28 (the link from Common Dreams) about the role of the DOJ in the firing of U.S. Attorneys, you'll be interested to know that it was largely due to the investigative work of Palast that the practice of caging voters came to light, an issue on which he collaborates with Robert Kennedy, Jr. They are currently investigating why thousands of democrats have found their names missing from the voter rolls during this year's primary.

FACT: On Super-Tuesday, the number of Democrats missing from voter rolls in New Mexico exceeded George Bush’s 2004 ‘victory’ total by 300%. No wonder McCain’s campaign says, New Mexico is “in play.” The question is who’s playing with it?

I hope you will comment about what you read there.

Btw, I've had a request from a friend that I remove the restriction that requires one to sign up on blogger before making a comment, and I've done that. So, let the conversation begin! (You can go back to any of the previous posts on this blog and comment. It's never too late!)

Paris (not France) and the (not Hanoi) Hilton

2008-08-06T14:02:00.007-04:00

h/t to Conrad...
OK. I got sucked in. These are links to the videos you've likely already seen.
First, the ad about Paris Hilton:
here's the ad the created the uproar (posted on the McCain campaign site);
here's Paris Hilton's response;
and this fantastic commentary from Seth Grahame-Smith of Huffington Post.

Now, the video around the Sturgis "beauty contest" speech. In case you're not aware, Sturgis is the town in South Dakota that once a year is overtaken by bikers from all over the US. My guess is McCain is trying to claim the title of candidate-you'd-most-like-to-have-a -beer-with from GW by speaking there. Unfortunately, it comes off (no pun intended) more as, "Let's have a beer and humiliate my wife."
Here's the video of the speech;
And here's a link to the video of the beauty contest, known as Buffalo Chip, via the TPM website, which will allow you to read a bit more before deciding whether or not to venture on.

Yankee Homecoming Parade with Congressman JohnTierney

2008-08-05T00:19:00.020-04:00

The 2008 Yankee Homecoming Parade will be remembered as "wet!" It started to sprinkle about half way through, followed a few minutes later by vivid lightning and booming thunder, accompanied by rain that can only be called a deluge.
You can find pictures taken along the route here. (Try watching it as a slideshow.)

These pictures demonstrate the progression.

DRY

WET

SOAKED

2008-08-02T13:23:00.005-04:00

Happy Saturday, everyone!

Here are links to some weekend reading:

Glenn Greenwald on this week's news with an excellent chronology and updates about the anthrax scare.

There is a move to promote the idea of Wes Clark for VP here and here.

China parks 1.5 million cars, closes factories and spends 18 billion dollars (yup, that's B for billion and $ for dollars) to turn dirty gray skies to blue in time for the Olympic games.

Have you noticed McCain's recently-flipped stance on squeaky clean campaigning? It's because there's been a change of personnel. Here's a piece about the nasty campaign tactics being used against Obama by Steve Schmidt, who ran "Karl Rove's war room" against Kerry in 2004.

What Schmidt and his associates have apparently concluded is that McCain’s weaknesses—on the election’s most salient issues and as a candidate—are so pronounced and Obama’s vulnerabilities so glaring that the low road is their guy’s best, and maybe only, route to the White House.

More later (maybe)...

Kerry v. Lieberman on this Sunday's Meet the Press

2008-08-01T19:01:00.007-04:00

This Sunday on Meet the Press (10:30 a.m. ET), Tom Brokaw will moderate as John Kerry, for Obama, goes head to head with Joe Lieberman, for McCain. (How odd to feel compelled to remind readers who is advocating for whom.)

If you're as angry with Lieberman as most Dems, and if you have a propensity for throwing things, you might want to watch it on an old TV.

We in Newbury/Newburyport had hoped that Senator Kerry might find time to march in the Yankee Homecoming parade this Sunday. I guess this news establishes his alibi! ;-)

UPDATE: For a preview of what we might expect from Kerry on Sunday, take a look at his appearance on Friday evening's Race for the White House, in a segment called "Face Off," in which he blew Arizona Senator John Kyl out of the water.

Speaking of Sunday, after you kill your TV, you'll have just enough time to get to Newburyport to support Congressman John Tierney by marching with him in the Yankee Homecoming parade! (Details to the right.)

Please endorse Clint Curtis for congress in FL-24

2008-07-31T19:06:00.009-04:00

UPDATE: A debate between Clint Curtis and Suzanne Kosmas was held by WMFE, the PBS affiliate in Orlando, last Friday, August 8th. Watch it here.

Congratulations, Clint, on a terrific performance. There's no doubt who is the better, and more progressive, candidate!

UPDATE #2: The FEC has filed charges against Kosmas:

This has caused the state party to step up campaign activity for her and has resulted in Federal Election Commission charges being filed against the Kosmas campaign for deliberately misrepresenting themselves to the primary election voters. Paid campaign staffers were using state party offices and phones to place calls to registered Democratic primary voters, identifying themselves as representatives of the Florida State Democratic Party, and urging them to vote for Kosmas. This is a violation of FEC rules and a charge has been filed.

Check it out here and here.

* * *

I got an email from the Clint Curtis campaign a couple of days ago. Clint's running for congress in FL-24 against incumbent republican, Tom Feeney (tied to Abramoff) and he has an opponent--Suzanne Kosmas--for the primary.

I met Clint Curtis in Washington, DC, just after the 2004 election, when people gathered to protest the the acceptance of the electoral college vote, and again at a DFA conference in NH in June of 2007. He is smart, dedicated and committed to serving his district in Congress. He knows more about election integrity and electronic voting machine issues than most members of congress. He is a former computer programmer and whistle blower, who testified at a 2006 congressional hearing (see video below) held to investigate election fraud in Ohio in 2004. He came very close to winning the 2006 general election against Feeney, despite being outspent 26 to 1!

From Clint Curtis for Congress blog

In 2006, Curtis launched his first congressional bid — as a Democrat — taking on Feeney himself for his FL-24 seat. A pre-election Zogby poll showed Curtis in a statistical dead heat with Feeney — despite Feeney’s big-money smear campaign against Curtis (‘CrazyClintCurtis.com’ featured doctored photos of Curtis wearing a tin foil hat.) But on election night, Curtis took a double-digit drubbing. Problem is, those election results didn’t make much sense based on the Zogby poll, exit polling or Curtis’ own internal polling. So Curtis did something remarkable. He filed a Congressional election challenge.

His team went door to door collecting signed affidavits from FL-24 voters testifying as to how they voted. The results were shocking. The official results were wildly off, by double digits in places. Despite this evidence, the Democratically controlled House committee summarily dismissed his election challenges (along with several others.)

But I digress...

Suzanne Kosmas, wealthy real estate developer and owner of Prestige Properties of New Smyrna Beach, served in the Florida state legislature from 1996 to 2004, where she co-sponsored a resolution to support GW's invasion of Iraq. She announced her candidacy for US Congress on January 31st of this year. This is Kosmas' opening statement on her website:

Welcome

I am running for Congress to change the priorities in Washington and bring a moderate, common sense, and fiscally responsible approach to government.

During my time in the state legislature, I worked hard to focus on people over politics. I frequently voted across party lines, because it was my job to represent Florida families - not a political party.

Suzanne Kosmas

Wow.

So, guess who the DCCC has endorsed?

Now, in order to tell this tale, I need to add US Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, FL-20, to the cast of characters. Considered one of the "brightest stars" of the current Democratically-controlled house, Wasserman Schultz has mightily angered the left, as demonstrated by the following quote which was taken from the popular blog, Down with Tyranny:

Wasserman Schultz, the sorry chairperson of the DCCC's very compromised Red to Blue program, virtually endorsed 3 extreme right South Florida Republican incumbents-- Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Lincoln Diaz-Balart and Mario Diaz-Balart-- with the clear intention of sabotaging the campaigns of the three Democrats running against them-- Annette Taddeo, Raul Martinez, and Joe Garcia-- and making it impossible for them to get serious institutional money in Florida. She angered enough people, who pressured the DCCC, so that she finally made nice with Raul Martinez and Joe Garcia. She is still doing everything in her power to undercut Annette Taddeo, the challenger in the least Republican-leaning of the 3 districts.

So, the congresswoman refused to endorse the Democratic challengers to Republican-held congressional seats in south Florida, and the DCCC made her the chairwoman of the Red to Blue program. What am I missing here?

One of the candidates Wasserman Schultz has endorsed for Red to Blue is Suzanne Kosmas. Her PAC, DWSPAC (Democrats Win Seats/Debbie Wasserman Schultz) has given Kosmas $4,378. The main tactic Wasserman Schultz and Kosmas have used against Curtis, a viable candidate who came close to beating Feeney in the last election and who announced his candidacy long before Kosmas thought of running, is to ignore him. Kosmas runs against Feeney. Period. Curtis has asked for debates; she hasn't responded. No one ever mentions Clint Curtis. And, because Curtis doesn't have the machine backing him up, he struggles to stay in the public spotlight.

(More about Wasserman Schultz from the Huffington Post here and here.)

This is from Curtis' email:

My opponent has received lots of media attention and money – most of it from out-of-district donors who can write big checks – but for what? She can’t win. The polls prove it. Even a poll by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and Emily’s List puts her far behind the Republican incumbent: http://www.usaelectionpolls.com/2008/congress/florida.html

Here are a number of posts about Clint at Brad Blog.

Here's Clint's website. And, while you're there, don't miss his blog.

Help Clint Curtis by going to DFA and add your vote urging them to endorse him!

And, if you are able, please contribute to his campaign.

Concert to benefit Obama campaign Sept. 12

2008-07-31T02:39:00.013-04:00

There's a wonderful event coming up on September 12th: a concert to benefit Obama will take place at Jordan Hall (not a bad seat in the place). Tickets start at only $20.

Many well-known Boston area musicians are coming together to perform a concert to benefit the campaign. And to entertain us!

Here is the announcement on BlueMassGroup as well as a post from Wednesday requesting we buy our tickets by the end of the month. Hey, that's today!

Who's going to carpool down with me?

BREAKING NEWS

2008-07-30T12:18:00.004-04:00

TWO stories in the category of NEWS YOU NEVER BELIEVED YOU'D HEAR:

From TPM:

The House Judiciary Committee has just voted to hold Karl Rove in contempt for failing to respond to a subpoena to face questioning from the Committee on the prosecution of former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman.

AND
from Federal Times
IG: Justice illegally weighed political leanings of job applicants

Senior aides to former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales violated federal law and Justice Department policy by using political affiliation as a factor in hiring decisions — a process that slowed the hiring process and left key positions unfilled, according to a new report from the department’s inspector general.

In one case, an experienced prosecutor, with more than 15 years in criminal law, was turned down for a job on a counterterrorism detail because his wife was an elected Democratic official. The job went to a Republican prosecutor with less than three years’ experience. Another candidate was recommended for a job because she was “pro-God in public life” and “pro-marriage, anti-civil union.”

Watch the video of the Inspector General testifying in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee on c-span (link in the blogroll on the right). Since it happened this morning, there's no permanent link to post yet, but the video is available on the front page of the c-span site.

Oh, one more irresistible quote from the Federal Times:

Goodling also used the Internet to search for information about candidates’ political and ideological beliefs, running searches for terms like “sex,” “NAFTA,” “Iran-Contra” and “spotted owl.”

What an amazing day!

TAKE ACTION! Election day registration in MA

2008-07-30T11:39:00.008-04:00

UPDATE: Check out this post at BlueMassGroup.

This was in my in box this morning. I called my state rep, Harriet Stanley's office. (Had to leave a message on her office voice mail. I left a message asking for her vote and asked for a call back.)

If you live in MA, please take action today! Thanks!

URGENT: Election Day Registration will pass or fail by Thursday. Please call right now!

We've never been this close.

Yesterday, the Massachusetts Senate passed the state's most important voting bill since 18 year-olds were given the right to vote — a bill for Election Day Registration.

Hundreds of you called your senators, and we heard directly from their staff members that those calls made a difference. Now, we must do the same in the House.

Unfortunately, we are fighting against time. We have enough votes to pass Election Day Registration. But the 2008 House session ends on Thursday. To pass this historic bill, a critical mass of representatives needs to bring Election Day Registration to the top of the agenda.

If you want to help pass this historic bill, call the Massachusetts State House at (617) 722-2000 and ask to speak to your representative. Ask him or her to bring Election Day Registration to the floor for a vote.

If you don't know your representative's name, simply tell the operator where you live and you will be connected to the correct office.

The nine states with Election Day Registration have turnout rates that are 10 to 12 points higher than states without. Election Day Registration is of particular benefit to young voters, first time voters, voters of color, and new citizens. The bill passed the Senate 33 to 5.

Election Day Registration in Massachusetts could bring over 200,000 new voters to the polls. The enthusiasm surrounding the 2008 elections is tremendous. Election Day Registration would ensure no eligible citizen need be turned away from voting.

Please call (617) 722-2000 now and urge your representative to support Election Day Registration.

Thank You for working to build a better world.

Leah Donahey, Campaign Manager
CREDO Action from Working Assets

Matters of the media and FCC

2008-07-29T16:45:00.005-04:00

A few things of note going on re. the FCC today:

Re. the XM/Sirius merger...they merged today--look here and here;
Republican Chairman Martin joined the 2 Democratic commissioners to demand Comcast stop restricting internet P2P (peer to peer) file sharing reported here;
and, AT&T bans same (P2P) from wireless phone service.

Oh, Chairman Martin's notoriety expands exponentially with this.

And, speaking of oversight,

Oversight Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif., on Monday sent letters to 24 companies that receive large subsidies asking a host of questions, including whether they take that money into account when building out their networks or during merger talks with other companies.

Don't breathe in the kitchen!

2008-07-29T13:39:00.003-04:00

Last Saturday, I went on the Newburyport kitchen tour. Less than 10 miles of driving, including backtracking (about $2 in gas), and 14 kitchens later, I'm still liking mine! (It'll be even better when it's finished, whenever that happens. Lucky I like it the way it is.)

Most of the kitchens on the tour had granite counter tops. I've never liked granite, and chose not to use it. Guess I got lucky. Boy, how often does that happen?

Take a look at this piece from last Thursday's NYTimes.

BTW, more on what I did use deserves its own post, but the story can't be written until the kitchen's done. Don't hold your breath!

h/t to Melissa for telling me about it and Robin for reminding me!

2008-07-29T11:59:00.001-04:00

Folks, grab a soda and a box of popcorn or M&Ms, turn up the air conditioning and put on a sweater, turn off the light and take a minute and 41 seconds to watch this trailer of the new Oliver Stone movie. It's called, "W."

BTW, some of the comments on the Guardian site are pretty good. I especially like the one by dholliday, who wrote, "Yay, all the bad guys are in it."

Hat tip to Robin for the link!

Is it early today or late yesterday?

2008-07-28T04:45:00.001-04:00

From Politico via Common Dreams:

“Today’s report describes ‘systematic’ violations of federal law by several former leaders of the Department of Justice,” Conyers said in a statement released by his office. “Apparently, the political screening was so pervasive that even qualified Republican applicants were rejected from Department positions because they were ‘not Republican enough’ for Monica Goodling and others. ...... The Report also indicates that Monica Goodling, Kyle Sampson, and Alberto Gonzales may have lied to the Congress about these matters. I have directed my staff to closely review this matter and to consider whether a criminal referral for perjury is needed.”

***

Every week I download the podcast, The Campaign Trail, from the New Yorker, and either listen to it online or on my ipod. In this week's podcast, David Remnick, Hendrik Hertzberg, Ryan Lizza, and George Packer discuss Obama’s visit to Germany and the future of the war in Iraq.

***

From The Independent:

With $33m (£16.5m) in venture capital funds, Anne Patterson and two other Google alumni – Russell Power and Louis Monier – yesterday took the wraps off [a new search engine,] Cuil.com. ... If it's out there, Cuil will find it for you. ... Cuil (pronounced "cool") will be easier and nicer to use and will have a longer reach.

Then check it out yourself! cuil.com

(Not to be confused with my friend, Sheila's website, kkooll !)

***

ABC reports Homeland Security is instituting a POHA (period of heightened alert) from now until July, 2009.

The reasons: There are no specifics indicating an attack on the U.S. is imminent, and U.S. officials do not want to be accused of trying to inject themselves into the presidential campaign.
"That's a balancing act," said Jerry Hauer, former Homeland Security official and ABC News consultant. "They really have to focus on these events and this critical time we're going through as a nation, but they have to be very careful about the public message to not make it look political or like they're fearmongering."

Right.

In pointing to the piece, Talking Points Memo titled the link, "US to be place on 'heightened terror alert' in response to Republican efforts to maintain hold on presidency."

***

Sunday morning

2008-07-27T22:01:00.000-04:00

This morning, when I remembered Obama was going to be on Meet the Press, I flipped on the TV and found myself watching c-span, the channel I was watching last night before going to bed. The congressional hearing exploring the horrible policy of Don't Ask, Don't Tell was being aired, and I ended up watching the entire thing. (You can find the link under the Congressional Hearings heading in the column on the right.)

When it was over, I watched Senator Obama here.

I spent most of the day learning bits of html and exploring the layout and posting options of this blog. It's a little overwhelming, but lots of fun. (It would be lots more fun if someone would pay me to do it!)

Now, I'm going to stop this. I've been waiting all day for a few moments to read the latest post on Dick Cavett's blog, What's So Funny About Nebraska If you didn't know about Cavett's blog, but remember his TV show, you'll be pleased to discover his writing entertains with the same unique and refreshing style. I envy those of you who have yet to discover the posts in the archives of his blog!

1st post: Al Gore's 10 year challange to make electricity production 100% carbon-free!

2008-07-23T22:41:00.001-04:00

It seems appropriate that the 1st post on this blog links to what I believe will be the speech that finally sets the course for a dramatic and holistic change in the world's political, industrial, economic and social landscape.

On Thursday, July 17, 2008, Al Gore gave a speech in Washington, DC in which he said: "It is only a truly dysfunctional system that would buy into the perverse logic that the short-term answer to high gasoline prices is drilling for more oil ten years from now."

Bluntly truthful. Refreshingly open.

Did you know scientists are warning there's a 75% chance that in 5 years from now, the Arctic polar ice cap will totally disappear during the summer? (Note to self: write piece speculating on where Santa will spend the summer, whether he'll move the workshop or shut down for the season, and implications for on-time holiday deliveries...)

Watch the speech. And then, as Robert Greenwald says, "Psssst--DO SOMETHING!"