Why "Any Blue" Won't Do

 

A recent "Dine with the 99" Potluck for Bernie in Maumee, Ohio. Berners know why they're voting for Bernie Sanders. Don't say we haven't done our research. We have.

This week we look at the human being called Bernie Sanders, the only choice for a moral and prosperous America. We look at a government that we tentatively call a democracy and the primary election process we wish we could call fair. We look at the establishment candidate the oligarchs want to inflict upon us and learn why any blue won't do.

Bernie became involved in the political process while still at college. He developed a strong conviction that the segregation of schools in Chicago needed to be protested against vigorously. This short trailer for  the upcoming documentary Bern shows the lengths he was willing to suffer to help bring about a better world for all Americans.

Here's the press release for Bern with links to where you can help them out  and befriend them on social media.

FILMMAKERS RELEASE SNEAK PEEK OF “Bern” – The Bernie Sanders Documentary Film Includes Rare Footage and Interviews of Bernie Sanders from 1960's to 1990's

AUSTIN, Texas / April 29, 2016 – Featuring rarely-seen archival footage of Bernie Sanders, The Bernie Sanders Documentary "Bern" examines the people, places and events that shaped the man who has inspired such widespread grassroots support in the 2016 presidential election.  The film traces Sanders' personal and political evolution from a student activist at the University of Chicago to his four terms as mayor of Burlington, VT and on through his careers in the U.S. House and Senate, and gives viewers a chance to get to know Bernie Sanders the man, so they can learn about Bernie Sanders, the candidate.  The website for the film is: https://www.bernthemovie.com.

 

"We started this project simply as voters wanting to learn more about a candidate, but it quickly became something much larger.  The more we investigated, the more we realized a very interesting story was taking shape and that the only way to tell it right was to take a closer look at Bernie's history and figure out why he has connected so strongly with so many people,” says Executive Producer Jay Matthew.

The project was created by Matthew along with Executive Producer Chris Blankenship and Director/Producer Miriam Paredes to capture what they see as a pivotal time in this country's history, one that touches on issues of economic disenfranchisement, class conflict, social inequity and the shifting value we place on community and individual freedom.

In keeping with the project's mission to highlight the power of community, the film will be distributed free online.  The first installment will premiere on May 27, 2016, ten days before the California, Montana, North Dakota, New Jersey, New Mexico, South Dakota and Washington DC primaries.  The second installment, which will document the run-up to the election in November and its aftermath, is scheduled to premiere February 27, 2017, regardless of the outcome of the election because, as EP Matthew explained, “We believe that what Bernie Sanders is doing for the political and social landscape of America will go far beyond the 2016 race.”

The sneak peek is available at https://www.BernTHEMOVIE.com ; Find more information on these social media sites:  http://www.facebook.com/BernTHEMOVIE ; http://www.twitter.com/BernTHEMOVIE ; http://www.instagram.com/BernTHEMOVIE

You can see a 14 minute sneak peak of Bern The Movie here: 
https://youtu.be/ESBsC6LwW_4

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Surprise! The System is Still Rigged!

by Suki Liebow

Okay, all you Berners out there. We didn’t win New York. Guess what? Obama didn’t win New York, either! 

Reports of voter suppression and voting machine issues in yesterday’s primary are, not surprisingly but remarkably, similar to the voting issues in the 2008 primaries between Obama and Hillary. 

There are huge (yuge!) numbers of people involved in this year’s primary for the first time and while the harsh reality of our failing democracy is new to many, it is not new at all.

Don’t get me wrong; I’m pissed off, too! 

The whole point of this political revolution is to change the very system we are trying to use to reclaim our democracy. It’s true, the system is rigged, but that didn’t happen overnight. It’s been happening for decades while we’ve been too preoccupied with American Idol and reality TV to care. Changing an established corrupt system from within the system when the people in power are benefiting from the corruption is going to take time, and grit. The establishment is pulling out all the stops and using every trick in the book to maintain control because they benefit from the system the way it is. 

Mainstream media this morning, in a surprise to absolutely no one, blasted the victories of Hillary over the airwaves as if this were the end game and she has unequivocally won the nomination. Don’t we know by now that mainstream media is promoting their own agenda without regard to integrity or, God forbid, factual information?

Let them play their games and tout their lies. The people are paying attention now. The curtains have been pulled back to reveal the reality of our flawed system. The establishment wants us to think there is no point in showing up, that we have already lost, but it has never been more important to get back up and brush the figurative dirt from our pant legs.

This game isn’t even close to over. 

Bio:  Suki Liebow has been writing on the topic of emotional processing for over 20 years, and is preparing the release of her first full length book. Suki founded a unique method of emotional processing that facilitates productive communication leading to more successful relationships.  Suki lives in San Francisco.

Dennis and fellow Bernie Light Brigade members in Toledo.

 From the Field in New York...

And now a field report from Dennis Slotnick, an Ohioan who went to upstate New York recently to canvass. Dennis earlier in the primary season canvassed in Iowa and has been a great help in NW Ohio. Thanks to Dennis for all his hard work for Team Bernie!

News from New York that you won't see on TV.

Journal of an organizer at the staging location in Niagara Falls.

My first turf in New York was to canvass next to Love Canal, Niagara Falls, New York, a middle class suburban community with a high percent of people over age sixty. The response to Bernie Sanders was very positive. Residents and passersby lit up when they see the Bernie T shirt, engage in conversation and were generous with their time. Many undecideds agreed to vote for Bernie once they clearly heard his message from a live human being. By the end of the day, I felt more enthusiastic about Bernie than the beginning of the day because of the rapport and widespread support for Bernie's ideas. 

In setting up the staging location in Niagara Falls, two restaurant owners were more than gracious about having us use their facility for sending out canvassers. They gave the canvassers food and stayed open for us after hours.
We had 15-20 canvassers each day, many are new to the processes, even first time voters! In every case, they had good conversations with residents, most strong Bernie supporters who lit up and got excited to see canvassers at their house. The resonance with fellow Bernie supporters kept my canvassers so enthusiastic that they signed up for more canvassing the next day. 

The support staff in Buffalo were absolutely great. All supplies, instructions and assistance I could ask for, with a marvelous attitude and trust.
This is what we call support of nature. In the right place doing the right thing at the right time day long (and into the evening hours, too).

The media would suggest that New York went to Clinton. The truth is that New York City went for the other candidate, but nearly all of upstate New York went for Bernie almost exclusively. See for yourself. Go to this map http://www.nytimes.com/elections/results/new-york and scroll down to the county map. Hover over each county to realize how Bernie simply dominated upstate New York taking every county except three which have heavy urban centers. Even in those cities, the difference was less than 5%. In Buffalo, for example, there was only a 0.5% difference. There is no doubt that this upstate New York success is due to the dedicated workers in the field offices, the millions of phone calls and thousands of door knocks made in the last week of the campaign. (Over 20,000 doors in Buffalo in one weekend!) 

More remarkable than the widespread excitement for Bernie among upstate New Yorkers is the power of the team. The dedication of the Bernie staff, the brilliance and persistence through the challenges is beyond commendable. This campaign has proven to me again and again it is not about Bernie Sanders; it is about us revitalizing our democracy. 

In my view the momentum continues. So now is the time to pile it on for Maryland, Pennsylvania, Delaware and others. Do all you can to phone bank, talk to those you know in the critical states that are yet to hold primaries and be an even more active part of this great campaign. 

Oh yeah.
Dennis Slotnick, Feelin' the Bern.

Ohioans and others--we need to step up and canvass this week in Pennsylvania, Kentucky and Indiana. My husband and I are heading to Fort Wayne this coming weekend to canvass before their May 3 primary... See you there?

<==Bernie's campaign headquarters at 1137 N. Wells St., Fort Wayne, Indiana, located in the old Jack and Johnny's Pub. (It's a really cool place!)

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This week's "This Woman is Bernie Strong" features Rachel Chevat, an amazing singer/songwriter. Watch her Bernie Sanders Song video and then watch the video below, which gives background into her motivations for creating the song. The talent of Bernie's supporters--wow!

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Why “Any Blue” Won’t Do

by Cindy A. Matthews

This isn’t a piece I wanted to write, but I feel the time has come to say something definitive on the subject. I am the editor of The Bernie Blog after all, so this is a safe place to share these feelings with others of like minds. Perhaps you hold similar beliefs and need reassurance as well. I hope I can provide some.

This is a blog where we don’t make any pretense that we’re not aligned with the ideals of the best candidate running for the presidency--Senator Bernie Sanders. We’re not interested in “second best.” We won’t even consider voting for “the lesser of two evils” because we see a human being before us who isn’t evil, but one who is moral and compassionate and wise and understanding. Bernie has a positive view of what America could be and tells us how we all can take an active part in bringing about this idealistic vision.  

There's none of this "No, we can't!" attitude on Team Bernie. We are The Intelligent Electorate. We're determined to save our beloved country from the corruption of the oligarchs and their paid-off stooges in Congress. Why should we cooperate with those who consume our natural resources and workers' energy and then expect us to live off their crumbs as they ship our jobs overseas? It's time to clean house and return sanity and charity to the hallowed halls of government. Cooperating with evil because it's easier than fighting for what is right and moral simply doesn't appeal to us.

When we’re confronted with the mindless “any blue will do” rhetoric, we of course say, “No, thanks.” When you’re on the winning team, why would you feel obligated to change your loyalty mid-game? But some trolls will continue to berate, accuse and try to intimidate us with all sorts of statements that are, frankly, false and plain annoying.  So, in the interest of returning sanity to the Internet and our personal conversations with friends and family members, here are a few helps to deal with these well-intentioned, yet misguided, folks who insist you back another candidate because “Bernie can’t possibly win.” I guess they haven’t seen the recent polls, but we can rectify that, can’t we? After all, we've done our research, right?
 
Because the list of researched article links is so long, I've placed it on its own page. You can click on this link, or go to the right sidebar and click on the "Why Any Blue Won't Do for Bernie Supporters" page listing. Feel free to share the page link and any and all of the links on the page with others. If you have any links to articles, videos, etc., that you feel could be of help in this ongoing battle of the "any blue will do" trolling, please email them to us at thebernieblog2016@gmail.com and we'll list them on the page. Thank you

To end on a lighter note...

Get out and vote this Tuesday, Pennsylvanians! Voters in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland and Rhode Island--get to your polls! Feel the Bern.