Get Out The Vote - Final Countdown

Wait for it...    Wait for it...



Okay, so you stopped the video at the one minute mark. I understand.
But really, there is a great ending !

Speaking of anticipating a Great Finish... Here is the Chris Murphy Get-Out-The-Vote schedule for Milford (which includes re-electing Rosa DeLauro and President Barack Obama) :

• Launch! Thursday, November 1st  - 5pm – 8:30 pm -  we will be phoning voters.
• Rinse and Repeat! Friday, November 2nd   - 5pm – 8:30 pm -  we will be phoning voters.
• Walk and Talk! Saturday, November 3rd   - we will be phoning voters and/or walking door-to-door to remind them about the election. Three launch times for volunteers:  10 am, 2 pm, and 6 pm 
• Walk and Talk Part 2! Sunday, November 4th   - Same three start times for volunteering: 10 am, 2 pm, and 6 pm -  phoning voters and/or walking door-to-door to remind them to stop watching the commercials and put us on their calendars.
• The Big Push! Monday November 5th   - This is our opportunity to tell people they need to Go Vote Tomorrow. (Same Start Times)  10 am, 2 pm, and 6 pm -  we will be phoning voters and/or walking door-to-door to tell 'em ONE MORE DAY!!
• Push comes to Shove! Tuesday November 6th is ELECTION DAY!!! The calling and canvassing shifts are different from previous days:
             9 am                       12 noon                 4 pm                 6 pm
  

Launch Pad is
Milford Democratic Party Headquarters
321 Boston Post Rd. Milford CT 06460

Polls close at 8pm on Tuesday. There will also be opportunities to drive some people to the polls. There will be an All-Ages Election Watch at Milford Democratic Party Headquarters from that point on. When the results come in from the polling places, totals will be shared and we will get the results.

To sign up for a shift, volunteer to help out, or get other info, contactMike Johnson  203-917-5582   mikej@chrismurphy.com

To sign up for a shift, volunteer to help out, or get information on GOTV in other towns in the Valley, New Haven, and surrounding areas, contact   Emily Smith   202-491-3224   emily@chrismurphy.com
There are also opportunities to volunteer for State Senator Gayle Slossberg, State Representatives Paul Davis and Kim Rose, and the election of Milford SuperCandidate James Maroney!

 

Our Pro-Choice Friends at Women for Himes

Jacquie Carlsen! I met her while we were organizing the "Unite Women!" Hartford Rally in the Spring. Then she volunteered with NARAL Pro-Choice Connecticut for our Carnival this month, honoring Teresa Younger of PCSW.




And Click here for Patti Russo!

Alert: Positive Advertising by Candidate

When I go door-to-door or make phone calls this election season, I keep hearing from "Unaffiliated" or "Independent voters that they are sick of the negative ads. I always point out the positive ones from my chosen candidates. Here is one:




Chris Murphy for US Senate!
PS Donate at link on the right to get this ad on Television!

Christine Stuart - CT Women's Hall of Fame

There is an important event tomorrow night in Hartford. To be truthful, there are 5 or 6 important events tomorrow night in Hartford.  But this one is particularly cool. 

The Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame has an event scheduled which salutes some very important and interesting members of our community.

19th Annual Induction Ceremony & Celebration
Women's Perspectives:
Celebrating Voice and Vision
Thursday, October 18, 2012    6:00-9:00 P.M.
Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford, CT

Christine Stuart

I don't know them all (and "Annie Lou" Leibovitz certainly wouldn't remember me from 1971 in San Francisco) but, among the honorees is Christine Stuart, a hero of mine.

It is a rah-thah pricey event tomorrow night, so instead of attending (and CHEERING) I am sending a donation (last button on the link page) to the online news outlet CT News Junkie, owned and edited by Christine Stuart.

A coupla Cute Mugs

All donations and subscriptions assist in keeping this site active and able to cover politcial news in our state, along with the fun and cool site CT Tech Junkie ("Covering the Future. Today").

CT News Junkie is also a terrific place to advertise your company or organization. A lot of eyeballs see those ads every day.

2012 Inductees

Anne Garrels - Ground-breaking journalist and 23-year NPR Senior Foreign Correspondent best known for her coverage of conflicts around the world  
Annie Leibovitz - Internationally renowned photographer whose large and distinguished body of work includes some of the most well-known portraits of our time
Faith Middleton - Thought-provoking Connecticut radio broadcaster and celebrated host of The Faith Middleton Show, now in its thirtieth anniversary year on WNPR

2012 Voice and Vision Honorees (in alphabetical order)

Dr. Regina Barreca - Celebrated humorist, academic and author Professor of English literature and feminist theory, University of Connecticut
Jolie Rocke Brown - Award-winning and acclaimed soprano  Performance artist and music educator
Judy Dworin - Choreographer and creative force giving voice to women and human rights through dance/theater  Artistic Director, Judy Dworin Performance Project and Professor of Theater & Dance, Trinity College
Ed Johnetta Miller - Recipient of the prestigious Connecticut Governor's Art Award  Fiber artist, quilter, teacher, curator, lecturer, author
Dr. Marilyn Nelson - Recipient of the 2012 Frost Medal, former Connecticut Poet Laureate Professor Emerita of English, University of Connecticut
Annie Keefe - Theatrical visionary and award-winning stage manager  Artistic Advisor, Westport Country Playhouse
Bessy Reyna - Recipient of the Library of Congress CT Lifetime Achievement Award for Service to the Literary Community  Bilingual poet, opinion columnist and activist
Diane Smith - Emmy-award winning TV journalist, radio broadcaster, author  CT-N producer and host, former on-air personality at WTNH, WTIC-AM, and CPTV
Christine Stuart - Editor and reporter who pioneered online capitol news coverage 
Editor-in-Chief, CTNewsJunkie.com

Katharine Weber - Award-winning author  Teacher of fiction writing at Yale University, Columbia University and Kenyon College

_________________________________________________

"Original journalism is expensive to produce. That's why you don't see as much of it in newspapers these days, because cutting reporters is the easiest way to improve the bottom line."

For individual annual membership donations of at least $60, CT News Junkie will send you a gorgeous CTNewsJunkie coffee mug.

A $99 dual membership for you and yours gets you two mugs  --  and continued coverage of Connecticut politics.

Click here.   NOW

Steve Fontana's Plan to help Seniors - State Senate Candidate for Wallingford • East Haven • North Haven • Durham

Steve Fontana Releases Plan to Ensure
A More Secure Retirement For Seniors

“As I’ve gone door-to-door throughout the district, families nearing retirement, and senior citizens already in retirement, have shared with me the same belief: that being part of the middle class means being able to save enough money to retire, and then being able to afford their property taxes, energy costs, and prescription drugs once they’ve retired,” Fontana said. “They’re right, and we can improve their economic security if we’re willing to challenge the status quo and make some changes that will make their lives a little easier.”

“We don’t have to rely simply on our own ingenuity – other states and organizations have worked to find similar ways to help people save and enjoy a secure retirement with dignity, and my plan involves emulating some of their ideas here in Connecticut,” Fontana said. “If the voters of Wallingford, East Haven, North Haven, and Durham elect me to represent them as their next State Senator, I will pursue four specific goals that will ensure a more secure retirement for Connecticut seniors.”

Fontana outlined his four-point plan

1. Protect current safety-net programs that sustain seniors
As the cost of basic necessities continues to rise, we must honor our existing commitments to seniors. We also should help seniors further reduce their expenses by saving them money on their prescription drugs and making their homes more energy-efficient. Finally, when state revenues begin to recover, we must prioritize increasing senior property tax relief and winter heat assistance.

2. Reduce electricity and other utility costs for seniors
To help reduce the burden of high electricity prices on seniors, we can do three things:

• Ensure the state implements a discounted electricity rate for seniors to save them roughly ten percent;
• Establish a statewide purchasing pool that may offer seniors an even lower electric rate; and
• Require utilities to offer customers an optional “prompt payment” discount if they pay their bill within a short timeframe.

3. Promote senior-friendly affordable housing development
We need to refocus some of our existing housing development funds on creating more units, and more diverse housing options, for seniors who no longer want the responsibility of maintaining a home, but can’t find another suitable place to live in their own community.

4. Develop portable retirement accounts
Defined-contribution, or 401(k), plans, frequently don’t provide the range of options that many families want, or the ease of use and convenience that their busy lives demand. We should explore the idea of sponsoring or coordinating a cost-efficient and completely portable retirement account that people can take with them from employer to employer, or manage on their own, without some of the difficulties that come with converting and transferring existing 401(k) accounts.

Fontana is running for State Senator for the 34th District, which includes all or part of the towns of Wallingford, East Haven, North Haven, and Durham. He served as North Haven’s State Representative from 1997 to 2011.

Call Steve Fontana at (203) 234-2240 for further information or email him at  steve@stevefontana.com Check out his website: SteveFontana.com

Compassionate Care for Rape Victims - McMahon would Turn back the Clock

Linda McMahon Would Block Timely Access to Care
for Rape Survivors

McMahon Called Out for Insensitive Statements

 

NEW HAVEN, CT— Christian Miron, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Connecticut, condemned Linda McMahon for her disregard for certain survivors of rape.  In an interview with the Hartford Courant’s editorial board last week, McMahon said she would side with hospitals over women.  McMahon would allow hospitals that oppose emergency contraception to turn away a rape survivor for the care she requests. 

“It couldn’t make things more clear: Linda McMahon is bad for Connecticut women.  She thinks it okay to send rape survivors seeking emergency care to another hospital in the middle of the night rather than give them the prompt medical attention and compassion they deserve,” Miron said.

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In Case You Missed It

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In 2007, Connecticut passed legislation requiring licensed health-care facilities, like hospital emergency rooms, to provide emergency contraception (EC) to survivors of sexual assault upon request.  “This bill passed overwhelmingly with bi-partisan support and was signed into law by then-Gov. Jodi Rell,” Miron said.  “In Connecticut, there is widespread support for this law and the values it reflects. 

Studies show EC is 95 percent effective in preventing pregnancy when taken within the first 24 hours after an assault.  “Linda McMahon clearly doesn’t appreciate that time is of the essence and sending a woman to another hospital to obtain EC reduces the efficacy of the medication,” Miron said.

Miron noted this is the latest in a growing trend of anti-women positions articulated by Linda McMahon.

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NARAL Pro-Choice Connecticut is the leading grassroots pro‑choice advocacy organization in Connecticut. NARAL Pro‑Choice Connecticut works to protect every woman’s right to access the full range of reproductive health options, including preventing unintended pregnancy, bearing healthy children, and choosing legal abortion.

HPV vaccination not associated with increased sexual activity among girls

Kaiser Permanente study first to examine clinical markers of sexual activity after HPV vaccine

ATLANTA, October 15, 2012 – The human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine known as Gardasil is not associated with an increase in pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections, or contraceptive counseling, according to a Kaiser Permanente study published online today in the journal Pediatrics.

Since 2006, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended that girls ages 11 receive three doses of the vaccine to protect them from HPV, which is transmitted through sexual activity and can cause genital warts and cervical, penile, vaginal, and head and neck cancers. The vaccine is also recommended for females ages 13 who did not receive the vaccine when they were younger, and for males ages 11.

But the vaccine has been slow to catch on. By 2010, fewer than half of girls eligible for Gardasil had received even one dose. Since the introduction of Gardasil, there have been concerns—raised both in peer-reviewed literature and the popular media—that use of the vaccine might lead to increased sexual activity, due in part to the mistaken belief that Gardasil protects against pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases other than HPV. This new study, which was an independent research project funded by Kaiser Permanente and Emory University, shows there is no evidence to support these concerns.

"Our study found a very similar rate of testing, diagnosis and counseling among girls who received the vaccine and girls who did not," said Robert Bednarczyk, PhD, an epidemiologist and the study's lead author. "We saw no increase in pregnancies, sexually transmitted infections or birth control counseling – all of which suggest the HPV vaccine does not have an impact on increased sexual activity."

Bednarczyk is a clinical investigator with the Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research–Southeast in Atlanta, and an epidemiologist with the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University.

"This is reassuring news for teenagers, parents, and members of the public. Our study adds to growing evidence that the HPV vaccine is a safe and effective way to prevent these rare but sometimes deadly cancers," added Robert Davis, MD, MPH, a co-author and senior investigator with the Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research–Southeast.

The study included 1,398 girls ages 11 who were members of the Kaiser Permanente health plan in Georgia in 2006 and 2007, during the first 18 months after the Gardasil vaccine became available. Of this group, 493 girls received at least one dose of the HPV vaccine during the study period. The comparison group included 905 girls who received other recommended vaccines but not the HPV vaccine. Researchers followed both groups of girls for up to three years to assess whether they had been tested for or diagnosed with a sexually transmitted infection (STI), had taken a pregnancy test, and had been counseled about contraceptives.

About 10 percent of the girls in the study, both those who received the vaccine and those who did not, had one or more of these outcomes. The average age of testing, diagnosis, or counseling was about 14.5. Only eight girls, or less than 1 percent, were diagnosed with an STI or had a positive pregnancy test. Girls who received the HPV vaccine did not have a statistically higher rate of testing, diagnosis, or counseling compared to those who did not receive the vaccine.

This study is part of Kaiser Permanente's ongoing research to understand the safety and efficacy of Gardasil. In another study, published earlier this month in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, Kaiser Permanente researchers confirmed the safety of the vaccine among nearly 200,000 young girls. Earlier this year in the Journal of Women's Health, Kaiser Permanente researchers reported that younger girls are more likely than women to report pain and other non-serious side effects after receiving Gardasil vaccine.

Do you know about Dante Bartolomeo?

Check out the parts I put into other colors. Dante' Bartolomeo is running for State Senate as an advocate for Education and Families. Danté is the Democratic nominee for State Senate in Connecticut's 13th District, which includes Meriden, Cheshire, Middlefield, Middletown and Rockfall. 

About Dante´ Bartolomeo

Dante´ Bartolomeo has served on the Meriden City Council since 2008 and is currently Deputy Majority Leader. She is also Chair of the Public Works and Parks & Recreation Committee, Vice-Chair of the Finance Committee and Liaison to the Board of Education. Under her watch, Meriden has reduced its operating expenses three out of the last four years, fully funded its pension obligations and increased its bond rating by three notches to AA-. Prior to her role as a City Councilwoman, Bartolomeo served her community as an advocate for universal health care and enhanced educational opportunities for Meriden students. She and her husband, Doug, have two sons: Riley, 16 and Cameron, 10.

Public School Teachers Back Bartolomeo in Race for 13^th Senate District

Endorsements Cite Candidate’s Longstanding Leadership and Support for Education

MERIDEN – City Councilwoman and 13^th Senate District candidate Dante´ Bartolomeo today announced that her campaign has received endorsements from the American Federation of Teachers Connecticut affiliate, as well as the Meriden and Middletown Federation of Teachers.  All three organizations cited Bartolomeo’s advocacy on behalf of Meriden’s schools.  

“We know that Dante´ will fight for working families at the capitol,” said Melodie Peters, Vice-President of AFT Connecticut. “She understands that public education is necessary for an effective democracy and a vibrant education. Dante´ Bartolomeo supports health care benefits and pensions because they are part of the pay earned by workers.”

During her tenure on the City Council, Bartolomeo has served as Liaison to the Board of Education and negotiated responsible education budgets on behalf of Meriden’s public schools each of the last four years. Prior to holding elected office, Bartolomeo was a member of the Board of Education’s Full Day Kindergarten Committee and a former President of Nathan Hale Elementary School’s Parent Teacher Organization.

“As a City Councilwoman and Liaison to the Board of Education, Dante´ has proven she understands what a school system needs to sustain itself and improve,” said Erin Benham, President of the Meriden Federation of Teachers. “She has been a great asset to the Meriden Federation of Teachers, and I have no doubt that the expertise Dante´ has demonstrated at the local level will serve her well at the state level.”

“Dante´ has shown through her work in Meriden that education is one of her top priorities,” added Steve McKeever, President of the Middletown Federation of Teachers. “She brings fresh ideas and a great work ethic to the plate. She will be an outstanding leader and representative for the people of her District.”

Bartolomeo’s life in public service first began when she successfully challenged the City’s public school system to ensure her oldest son, Riley, received access to special education necessary for his future development. Today, Riley is an honors student and was recently reelected as Class President for his junior year at Maloney High School. The complexities of navigating the system motivated Bartolomeo to then support other Meriden families whose children had special education needs.

“Giving our students the best chance to succeed should never be a partisan issue, and as a mother of two sons, I recognize the need to provide quality education to our children,” Bartolomeo said. “We must invest intelligently in our public schools so that we can close the achievement gap throughout Connecticut. The only way to provide the highest quality of education is through enhanced cooperation at all levels, accurate student assessment, and the hiring and retention of effective teachers.”

Dante´’s support of strong public schools stands in sharp contrast to her opponent, Senator Len Suzio. Last year, Suzio voted to cut $165 million from the State’s public education budget, which would have dramatically decreased the quality of education by increasing class sizes and eliminating programs dedicated to school readiness and other vital student resources.