By this time you should have already received your 2009 Primary Election Official Local Voters’ Pamphlet: Thurston County Local Voters’ Pamphlet in the mail.

There will be a number of items for you to vote affecting voters in Thurston County.

*  Elections for Thurston County commissioner, Port of Olympia commissioner, City of Olympia City Council, and City of Tumwater Mayor.

*  Measures include propositions on various fire districts throughout the county.

Arrival of Ballots

Ballots should begin arriving on Saturday, August 1.  If  you haven’t received a ballot by Wednesday, August 5, please be sure to call the Thurston County Courthouse at:

*  Phone:  360.786.5408
TTY:     360.754.2993

You can also call this number if you have lost or destroyed the ballot you received.

Of course, you can stop by the Auditor’s Office located at Building One of the Thurston County Courthouse at 2000 Lakeridge Dr. SW to get a replacement ballot

Accessibility Voting Location

Voters with a disability can go to the Thurston County Auditor’s Office located at the Thurston County Courthouse, 2000 Lakeridge Dr. SW, Builiding One from:

*  July 29 – August 17:         Monday – Friday, 8 am – 5 p m
*  Election Day (August 18):         Tuesday, 7 am – 8 pm

to make use of the AUTOMARK.

The AUTOMARK is a voting assistance machine who cannot read or mark their ballot to vote independently and secretly.  Voters with visual impairments, cognitive or learning disabilities, who have literacy issues, or mobility impairments can use the machine to have their ballots read to them, magnify the print on the ballots, display the ballots in high contrast, and mark their ballots.

Drop Boxes
http://www.co.thurston.wa.us/auditor/Elections/Dropsites/dropboxesMAIN.htm

Olympia Area Drop Boxes are located at:

*  Olympia Fire Station 1 (Downtown), 100 Eastside St. NE

*  Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, 1515 Harrison Ave. NW

*  Church of the Good Shepherd, 1601 North St. SE

*  Thurston County Courthouse, 2000 Lakeridge Dr. SW, Building One
(only location where you can get replacement balltos)

*  Westside Top Foods, 1313 Cooper Point Road (at the far end of the parking lot)

Click on the link above for drop boxes throughout the county.

Drop boxes will close precisely at 8 p.m. on Election Day.

Registered to Vote in WA State?

Have you recently moved to WA State?  If you have never registered to vote in WA State, you can fill out a voter registration form and register in person to the Thurston County Courthouse, Auditor’s Office to vote in the August 18 primary.  Deadline for new registrations is:  Monday, August 10.

More information on whether you can vote on this election or not:

http://www.co.thurston.wa.us/auditor/Elections/voter_reg/late_reg.htm

Information for college students:

http://www.co.thurston.wa.us/auditor/Elections/outreach/fact_sheet_college.pdf

Check and see if you are registered to vote:

http://wei.secstate.wa.gov/OSOS/VoterVault/Pages/MyVote.aspx

Voter Registration Forms are available at the GovDocs/Maps Office in the 3rd Floor of the Library.  Pick one up soon.

Lots more information can be found at:

Washington Voter Information
http://www.vote.wa.gov

Thurston County Voter Information
http://www.thurstonvotes.org/

Voter Registration Information
http://govdocs.evergreen.edu/voting-info.html

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ National Center for Health Statistics the life expectancy at birth for men born in 1950 is 65.6 years as opposed to women’s 71.1 years; for those born in 1960 it is 66.6 years as opposed to women’s 73.1 years; and men born in 2005 will live 75.2 years as opposed to women’s 80.4 years (Health, United States 2008, Table 26 ).

Top 10 Leading Causes of Death for Men

Source: Leading Causes of Death in Males, United States, 2004

For more resources on Men’s Health and health disparities, go to our hot topics webpage for further information.

Adbusters has, obviously, for a while been opposed to the universal ad campaign that has come to pollute much of our world since advertising became the modern Bible and consumerism became moral in the post-WWII period.  Well, it turns out that if the Old and New Testaments, and all those documents that are accepted or denied as “Bible,” make up the greatest story ever told, advertising is a giant pornographic picture book whose lessons for humanity tell us more about how to get into debt than how to live a noble or pious life.

I’m not trying to pass judgment here, really.  If you like advertising, in its current repetitive, mind-numbing form, then you’re the last of a dying breed according to Douglas Haddow, (former adman and) contributing freelance writer in the July/Aug ‘09 Adbusters.  Word under the street is that all those artist friends you left for lost to fill our public (and yet heavily privatized) spaces with their renditions of the newest Nikes are destroying advertising as we know it and hopefully forever.

Now how is this possible?  All you artists and analysts and admirers out there already know the answer!  What makes art avant garde?  When it identifies and seeks to destroy its own medium!  Now when all those artsy folks who have been getting sucked into advertising really start to take over the industry (like they are now), what kinds of ads will we end up with?  Well, Haddow cites “Whopper Sacrifice” as one such example: “Facebook users were rewarded a free Whopper for deleting ten friends from their account, [this] has been the most precise incidence of ‘pop nihilism’ to date.”  Get it yet?

With the economic crisis came people’s return to the only public we know to entertain us, and in our beloved internet we can slash our way through the jungle of ads with a click of our machete mouses, meaning that advertising has to step up its game to more complex campaigns if it wants us to even give them a second look.  In addition, these artists don’t want to be soul-stomped by the ancient adages that annoy and are evaded by consumers; they want to intrigue and innovate with their art and engage post-modern audiences with interactive and edgy campaigns.

With print media already under attack, and advertising (even on the cover, tsk tsk) as a last ditch effort, we are left questioning what else this wacky world that we’re creating will become.  Will journalism become a purely nonprofit effort?  Is this prediction wrong, and we’ll all continue gobbling up these intelligence-insulting images that have sold us out for our increasing credit limits?

We’re already discovering there’s no money for text-based publications; many magazines (like Vogue for example) already only print pictures of pretty bodies and products.  And content, if you still want some, is becoming a web exclusive.  If the values of the ad industry are changing (like it or not), then I sure hope all us anxious writers, political economists, and aspiring journalists are gearing up for a full-blown return to real, grassroots media that sells because it’s worth buying.  (Ironically worthwhile products and fewer ads trying to convince us to buy the crappy ones might actually make capitalism work a little better.  See Gary S. Becker’s Microeconomics and Economic Sociology.)

And while I have your minds on images, advertising, and grass, what do you think of the new roundabout?  When I think of Evergreen, which I do on a daily basis, I’d really like to think of the beautiful native plants and flowers of Western Washington, not sod.  This is just a sign of the “complexity” creeping into our consumer minds that’s leaving some people in the compacted soil.

http://pblks.com/2009/06/pop-nihilism-advertising-eats-itself/

Check out the original article at the above link or by clicking on Spongebob.  Douglas Haddow’s blog can be found at http://pblks.com/

I could go on about this most recent issue of Adbusters, including the emphasis on rebuilding economics education (replacing Neoclassical economics with behavioral and other more empirical forms of economic theory) in the universities of the world and the need for student activism in this respect.  I’ll let you pick it up yourself and support some printed word, ad-free.

Cheers to my last day of the year,

Robyn Adair
Gov Docs/Maps Assistant

In the 1990s, the political party Fanmi Lavalas was founded with the leadership of then-president Jean-Bertrand Aristide of Haiti and a firm anti-privatization platform as its base.  The IFIs as well as the imperial influences in Haiti (US, France and Canada) did not like this and suspended humanitarian aid, and by 2004, a coup had been orchestrated to overthrow Aristide, who had been re-elected in 2000 with an overwhelming 91.6% of the vote.

The Haitian election was cause for concern, according to Bush, who faced a similar scandal in his own election,  but it was no surprise to much of the international community, including the international group Global Women’s Strike, that such a large constituency supported the president.  Haiti has a history of strong, decisive action; it was the first in the hemisphere to abolish slavery and achieve independence in 1804.

In 2007 President Chavez visited Haiti for the first time since his election in 1998.  In front of a large crowd of Haitian, Venezuelan and Cuban spectators, Chavez spoke about the duty of his nation and the others in Latin America to the Haitian people for their leadership and support: “Bolivar came here and received the support of the people and of President Pétion, and was supplied with the weapons and soldiers that built the force that would go to Venezuela to liberate it once for all in 1817. All of this has to do with why I am here today. There is much history behind it. Today I feel I am paying part of our historic debt to Haiti. And I say this, after more than 8 years in government, this is the first time I visit Haiti. I should have come here earlier,” he said.

Cuba and Venezuela sponsored the construction of health centers as well as supplying doctors to staff them, and Venezuela also began to supply subsidized food and oil to the impoverished Haitian people. In 2009, despite the effects of the economic crisis, Venezuela will be giving $9 million to support the development of the rice industry in Haiti.

Haiti: in the Middle

As of right now, the U.S. and other countries, including France, Brazil and Bolivia, supply troops to the UN military forces MINUSTAH that act as the national police of Haiti.  The U.S. has also been heavily influencing politics and culture in Haiti through “civil society” organizations, funded through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the International Republican Institute.  These groups have been criticized abroad for supporting U.S. economic interests and repressing local popular movements through the media, military presence, and corporate investment.  They have also paid proportionately very high salaries to organization employees, creating an odd dynamic as the wealthy are loyal to the US and identify with their standard of living rather than their own nation’s struggle.

In January 2009, however, a California Representative and 16 co-sponsors brought a bill, H. R. 417, to the House to supply a new form of aid to Haiti.  The plan proposes an Exchange Program similar to the Peace Corps that would “assign qualified Haitian Americans and others to provide technical assistance to help Haiti improve in areas vital to its growth and development, which may include education, energy, environment, healthcare, infrastructure, security, transportation, and disaster preparedness.”

I’m as skeptical of this as many of you probably are, but there are several aspects that give me the slightest glimmer of hope: 1. “Individuals may participate in the Exchange Program for not longer than 27 months.”  This to me eliminates the chances of corruption, as program participants don’t really have time to become embedded imperial bureacrats.  And 2. “COMPENSATION- An individual who participates in the Exchange Program shall receive monthly compensation equal to the average monthly salary of such individual’s professional Haitian counterpart.”  This stipulation is nice because often such employees receive the salary equal to the US counterpart in a country with a very different (in this case less expensive) cost of living, contradictory to their function in that country, as I mentioned earlier.

I’m particularly skeptical of this part: “Consultation With Haitian Civil Society Organizations- The democratically elected Government of Haiti should consult with Haitian civil society organizations to identify the needs and priorities of Haiti to outline the sectors or professional fields to which Exchange Program participants may provide technical assistance and the objectives to be achieved, including specific projects or programs.”  These groups are also responsible for nominating individuals to hold these positions.  As I mentioned earlier, the civil society groups that the U.S. tends to communicate with over these sorts of matters are usually of its own creation, US-funded and loyal to US interests.

Here are a few resources should you want to investigate Haiti and this further.

Letter from Global Women’s Strike to Bolivian President Evo Morales asking that he support Haiti, but not with military occupation
http://www.globalwomenstrike.net/Haiti/lettertoEvoMoralesMarch09.htm

The International Community and Haiti: Testing the Water or Sinking the Ship?
http://www.haitianalysis.com/international-relations

Chávez and Venezuela: Duty, not Charity, to Haiti
http://www.haitianalysis.com/2007/3/19/ch%C3%A1vez-and-venezuela-duty-not-charity-to-haiti

NY TImes: Venezuela’s Hope of More Sway Dims as Riches Dip
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/20/world/americas/20venez.html?_r=1

Full Text of Hr 417: Next Steps for Haiti Act of 2009
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h111-417

Leave us a comment letting us know if you think this signals a change in US policy toward our neighbors to the south or more of the same.

Que siga la lucha

Robyn
Gov Docs/Maps Assistant

• Congressional Research Service Internships and Special Hiring Programs

• Gallup.com’s State of the States
includes information such as consumer confidence and job market status

• Fire Management and Invasive Plants, A Handbook
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

• GeoTube
Is a collection of geography videos from YouTube & other online sites.

• Nursery Manual for Native Plants: A Guide for Tribal Nurseries,
v.1: Nursery Management

• American Artist and Water Reclamation
Library holdings

• GovDocs/Maps Blog

• Historical Electronic Videos

• Maps of the 50 States

• Maps and Atlases (USGS)

• Invasive Species

• Climate Change

• USGS Science Resources for K-6

• USGS Science Resources for 7-12

• USGS Science Resources for Undergrads

• GIS Lab

• Schoolyard Geology

• USGS Multimedia Gallery

In Remembrance

• Memorial Day, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

• History of Memorial Day

• Veterans National Cemeteries

• State Veterans Cemeteries: Washington State

• Iraq & Afghanistan Wars Casualties

• National Moment of Remembrance, 3 pm

• Experiencing War:  The Unhealed Wounds, Stories from the Veterans History Project

• Flag Rules and Regulations (Etiquette)

• emorial Day Proclamation by Governor Gregoire

• Air Force Art Archive (images)

• Air Force Posters (TESC Library)

• Army Posters (TESC Library)

• Navy Posters (TESC Library)

• Coast Guard Posters (TESC Library)

In Flanders Fields
By John McCrae

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly.
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Recreation:

• Barbecue and Food Safety

• Recipes

• Memorial Day Cooking

• Memorial Day BBQ

• Memorial Day Menus

• Boating Safety

• Soldier’s Memorial Day, May 30^th

an online exhibit from the Library of Congress

• City of Olympia Community Calendar

• Memorial Day Driving in WA State
  

• Northwest Folklife Festival

]]> http://blogs.evergreen.edu/diazc/2009/05/22/memorial-day-in-remembrance/feed/ 0 http://blogs.evergreen.edu/diazc/2009/05/07/wa-joins-the-popular-states/ http://blogs.evergreen.edu/diazc/2009/05/07/wa-joins-the-popular-states/#comments Thu, 07 May 2009 19:01:41 +0000 diazc http://blogs.evergreen.edu/diazc/?p=33 Everyone still remembers the 2000 election between former Vice President Al Gore and George W. Bush, right?

Of course.  Well, I don’t mean to bring up painful memories, but as of April 28, 2009 Washington state has joined Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, and New Jersey by passing the National Popular Vote bill which would guarantee the Presidency to the candidate who receives the most popular votes in all 50 states (and the District of Columbia) (NationalPopularVote.com).

If you all remember, the results were in:

(Source: http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0876793.html)

Yet somehow, we ended up with the Bush/Cheney duo.  How did this happen?  The electoral college voting system allocates all of a state’s electoral college votes to the popular vote winner in that state.  This makes swing states, that is states that are pretty close in terms of red and blue voters, popular campaign spots for candidates since states that have a strong majority of D or R are likely to continue to vote D or R. 

Washington is traditionally a blue state, but we do have a significant population that might be inclined to vote GOP.  Even if the majority vote blue, let’s say, 3 million votes, and 1 million go red, WA would go to the democratic candidate, and the 1 million would go essentially without a vote.  With the National Popular Vote Act, WA would color itself blue, allocate 3 million to the blue national popular vote, 1 million to the red national popular vote, and await the official end count.  If, at the end, the national popular vote of the republican candidate was larger than that of the democrat, WA would give its electoral college votes to the republican candidate and concede to that candidate as winner. 

This, as of right now, is not in effect.  The voting plan for presidential elections is a State responsibility, not a federal one.  So is this just a nice gesture by a few states who believe in direct democracy?  No, it will hopefully be more than that.  So far, 23% (61) of the 270 Electoral Votes that are needed to activate the law have been collected.  There are 538 total electoral college votes, therefore, 270 would represent a majority of the votes.  When several more states enact the identical bill, whose electoral votes total the remaining 209 (or more), the majority of the votes will be held by states who agree to concede to the popular vote winner.  Thus, we may what happened in 2000 again, but as soon as we have a popular vote, these states will, according to the commitment they have signed in this act, allocate all of their electoral college votes to the popular vote winner, thus making her the president. 

The bill is currently endorsed by 1,659 state legislators — 763 sponsors (in 48 states) and an additional 896 legislators who have cast recorded votes in favor of the bill.

Additional information is available at www.NationalPopularVote.com.

Thanks Chris Gregoire + WA legislature!  We may not have banned the Patriot Act, but at least we’ve got CA on this one!

…but will they get us with legalizing marijuana??

Robyn Adair
Gov Docs ‘n Maps

The release of the memos caused quite a furor among Republicans who stated that theh release of those documents endangered national security.  Former Vice President Dick Cheney, on the other hand, wanted for the Obama administration to release the papers that detailed how well the technique worked.  Of course, Cheney misses the point all together…it doesn’t matter what the results were, the technique shouldn’t be used at all towards anybody!!

Well, I hope you find the reading enlightening.  What would you have done if you were President?

Carlos A. Diaz

Government Documents/Maps

One of my former student workers, Guy Maguire, has been doing just that.  He left my employ so he could work as the gardener for Evergreen’s Longhouse.  If you like his work, be sure to tell him as he does put in a lot of effort and work into maintaining that beautiful garden.  He has also been taking groups of students into the Evergeen forest and areas close to the college to clean up those areas and make it much more ecological maintainable.

On April 24, he will take a group of students right behind the Library building on the northeast corner from 1 pm – 4pm to plant some native plants and shrubs and to remove some ivy.  Be sure to contact Guy at magguy05@evergreen.edu if you are interested in participating.  The more the merrier.

Guy grew up with a desire to take care of his environment.  It has always been part of his life and he has encouraged others to do the same.  You can find a picture of Guy on the April 9, 2009 issue of the CPJ on the edible forest on page 5.

Let’s take a look around our city and see what we can do for Olympia’s environment?  What things are there that we can do to help it?  Know of any locations?  Let us know.

Carlos A. Diaz, Head

Government Documents/Maps

Van Jones was named Special Advisor to the President on Green Jobs. Enterprise, and Innovation at the Council for Environmental Quality (CEQ).  Take a look at the Earth Day activities the White House will be participating in today including President Obama’s Earth Day proclamation.

Also, take a look at GovDocs/Maps Hot Topics: Earth Day webpage for more information on enviroment related materials.

NASA has created a wonderful poster for Earth Day that you might enjoy downloading and printing.  The poster measures 12″ x 18″ and should make a great addition to your wall.

Take a look at President Obama’s Earth Day Speech encouraging wind power.