Democracy in Action

If our mission as a nation is to spread Democracy, we need to be prepared to accept the officials who are elected in fledgling Democracies. The presidential election in Iran is garnering a lot of American media attention.

Democracy is not an ironclad guarantee that the best person—or who we think is the best person—is going to get elected. We have Adolf Hitler and a couple of our own presidents as proof of that. What is more important than liking whomever the Iranian people elect is taking pleasure from the fact that they are using that process and appear to be as excited about it as we were in November.

Be The Change!

Americans heard a lot about change during the months leading up to the November election. And since even before President Obama was sworn in, we've watched with curiosity, hope, and sometimes even anxiety as we searched for clues as to exactly what form his promised changes would take. Already in just over six weeks, we've seen sweeping changes in the way the White House interacts with the populace; the role of science in this new administration; in children's health insurance; and of course, government's role in stabilizing our economy.

The enormity of the task is staggering. Our new president faces unprecedented challenges as he and his team roll up their sleeves and get to work dealing with our economic crisis, two wars in the Middle East along with other potential and emerging threats worldwide, and other serious problems too familiar and numerous to bear repeating. That's why, from the beginning, he has called for "volunteers, grassroots leaders, and ordinary citizens" to continue to work to bring about the change we need in our own communities.

Thus, Organizing for America was born out of the same massive grassroots network that blossomed during the campaign. If we thought our jobs were done on November 5th, we stand corrected -- in some ways, we were just getting started!

On March 17th, St. Patrick's Day, we will be gathering not only to relax, celebrate the occasion, and perhaps meet a few new faces, but also to explore how we might each become agents of change in our own communities. Jeremy Walker, a field organizer during the campaign in Washington, will be attending our "O'Bama-RAMA" to talk with supporters about what's going on with Organizing for America in Washington State and how people can get involved to bring change to our communities and to the country! If you haven't been connected yet with the movement that brought Obama to the White House, this is an excellent opportunity to learn how you can play a part.

Please RSVP and make plans to attend. We're aiming for a fun, informal, and instructive evening, so bring a friend if you can, and let's Be The Change!