A Future to Believe In

A Future to Believe In

by Cindy A. Matthews

'Tis the season to enjoy caroling...

 

Happy #Bernie 2016 New Year!

Bernie meet up in Lakewood, Ohio.

I can hardly believe it... We've made it to the end of 2015 and Bernie Sanders is set to take on his Democratic challengers in the Iowa caucuses in just a few weeks. Who would have guessed so many millions would flock to Bernie when he first announced he was running for the White House in late April? I know I'm awestruck by the overwhelming enthusiasm expressed by Bernie supporters throughout the country and abroad. Everyone is looking for "a future to believe in" and Bernie Sanders gives us all a solid chance at obtaining that future.

Light up the night for Bernie!

When I came across Barb and others on Facebook back in the spring, I felt relieved to learn that I wasn't the only person in Northwest Ohio who admired Bernie Sanders. I wasn't the only one who thought, "If Bernie ever runs for president, I'm voting for him!" But little did we realize how many others in this mostly rural portion of the Buckeye State were also interested in learning more about the progressive senator from Vermont. We have held meet-ups and debate watch parties. We have phone-banked (I'm told this is a verb) and brightened the night with Bernie's Light Brigade. We have collected signatures to put Bernie on the ballot in Ohio and some of us (lucky me!) have volunteered to become Bernie delegates at the Ohio Democratic caucus on January 5. We have become involved in bringing about that "future to believe in" because we believe in it wholeheartedly, and it's all because of Bernie Sanders' leadership.

New Year's celebrations often revolve around making resolutions or goals to meet for the year to come. Have you made any detailing how you're going to help Bernie Sanders' campaign? Are you going to pass out flyers? Participate in a phone bank? Help people get to the polls on the primary day? Don't be shy. Tell us in the comments below what goals you've set to help bring a truly progressive agenda before your fellow voters.

Debate Watch Parties can be fun.

Do you have any predictions for 2016? Corporate media broadcasts at this time of year love to do "the best of" shows and make predictions of how events will unfold in the coming year. What predictions will you make regarding Bernie's run for the White House? What predictions do you have on how Bernie's run will affect your life in the coming years? Please feel free to share them with us in the comments section.

And as we close out the first seven months of The Bernie Blog and plunge madly forward into the new year--the election year, no less!--let's reflect back on some of those "best of" moments from our early efforts to support Bernie's campaign. Great rallies, great speeches, great debate moments, great promo events, great photos, great graphics, great memes, great articles, great haikus, great writers, great blogs, great instructional videos, great filks, great music videos... Oh, there are so many wonderful and original Bernie-inspired songs! Wouldn't it be great if there was an award called the "Bernie" (sort of like the Grammy, Emmy or Oscar) to bestow upon all the creative Bernie supporters who have enriched our year?

If you're interested in helping get an "awards program" together, please contact The Bernie Blog at thebernieblog2016@gmail.com We could ask for nominees in various categories and set up an online poll to allow the people to vote for their favorite song, photo, meme, blog, etc. Also, what would a "Bernie Award" look like? Should it be patterned after an Oscar statuette? Your suggestions are needed.

Keep feelin' the Bern, folks. It will be a happy 2016 for us all because we truly have a future to believe in once Bernie Sanders is in the White House.

Here are some possible nominees for the "Bernies". Can you think of others? Tell us! Email us or put them in the comments below. Thank you.

The second 100 days of Bernie's campaign in photos--awesome and inspirational! https://medium.com/@BernieSanders/photo-gallery-the-second-100-days-of-the-bernie-sanders-presidential-campaign-64ae88cf3121#.7hqk72qxn

Best original artwork?
www.jaeilchoart.bigcartel.com

A fantastic live streaming network for the 99%: http://live.bernie2016.tv

A info-packed article about how well Bernie's doing:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/brian-hanley/10-ways-bernie-sanders-do_b_8850824.html

A respected pro-Bernie reporter, H.A. Goodman:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/h-a-goodman/bernie-sanders-won-the-debate-defeated-the-dnc_b_8851816.html

More catchy songs about Bernie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzgBkpY-6mE&list=RDdzgBkpY-6mE





 
Here's a potent short video that would make a great TV commercial:

Happy New Year from all of us at The Bernie Blog! 

The Amazing Creativity of Bernie Supporters

 

Bernie Haiku by Erica Williams

One thing we learned from the recent Bernie Sanders get-togethers is that supporters of Bernie Sanders are an extremely creative and enthusiastic people. (Our new site banner above was created by Bernie supporter Jane Jefferies, for instance.) It’s refreshing in this day and age of “snarky” commentary and negativity in the media to come across folks full of such great joy, eager to share the good news of Bernie’s White House bid with others. They’re generally an optimistic bunch. They feel that our country will become a better place for all under Bernie’s leadership—and it will happen very, very soon!

An online “contest” to create haikus about Bernie Sanders yielded some excellent examples of their creativity. Here’s a sampling for your enjoyment:

Bernie Haikus by Charlotte Bierman

Blue moon, our moon, EARTH
Climate change, pollution CHANGE
BERNIE, help us CHANGE !

Schools, healthcare, labor
Rebuild infrastructure too
Bernie President

Enough is enough
We the people say enough
Bernie Sanders yeah !

Bernie Haikus by Katarina Stenstedt

A fair living wage
and health insurance for all
—what's crazy 'bout that?

Super PACs aren't fair
And money can't buy justice.
Come back down to earth!
 

Haikus by Jane Stackowicz Ganser

All that Bernie is
And what our country should be
Are one and the same

Enough is enough
The wise leader proclaimed
Let’s change history

You really like Bernie
But don’t know if he can win
He will if you vote

Greed is the disease
America has fallen
We need Bernie Now
 
Bernie Haiku by L. Graykin

He who stands for us
Deserves our full support
Vote #BernieSanders!

Bernie Haikus by Verena Hodge

fresh air fresh water
all future generations
should have these things

Bernie tells it straight
with wild hair and forceful words
working with us all

rock the boat
the ripples in the water
will become a tidal wave

Bernie Haiku by Frank Binda

Ninety Nine Per Cent
Will be smiling ear to ear
In fifteen short months

Bernie Haiku by Christina Nespoux

Bernie's message ignites our hearts and minds
A modern day Robin Hood
Greed and corruption will see its end

Bernie Haiku by b8akaratn

I want a country
I can be proud of again
Please fix it, Bernie
 

Bernie Haikus by Brainstorming for Bernie ( brainstorm4bernie.com)

 

check Bernie's record
he is sincere, and listens
he will work for us

climate action
income equality
right to health care

serious debate
problems to fix, not ignore
Bernie fights for us

millions of people
a political movement
to break corruption

From the traditional haiku, to the modern stage musical, another Bernie supporter turns his talents to “filking” new lyrics to a classic from Les Mis. (I can’t stop singing it!)

Do You Hear America Sing?

(Sung to the tune of Do You Hear The People Sing? from Les Misérables)

New words by A. J. Matthews

Do you hear America sing?

We’re gonna see a good man win!

It is the music of a people

Who will not be duped again!

When the beating of your heart

Echoes the beat of Bernie’s drums

There is a life about to start

When November comes!

Will you join in our crusade?

Who will be strong and stand with me?

Somewhere beyond the Facebook page

Is there a world you long to see?

Then join in the fight

That will give the White House to Bernie!

[All:]

Do you hear America sing?

We’re gonna see a good man win!

It is the music of a people

Who will not be duped again!

When the beating of your heart

Echoes the beat of Bernie’s drums

There is a life about to start

When November comes!

Will you give all you can give

So Bernie Sanders may succeed?

A better way to live

Will you stand up and state your need?

Reform this great nation and terminate corporate greed!

[All:]

Do you hear America sing?

We’re gonna see a good man win!

It is the music of a people

Who will not be duped again!

When the beating of your heart

Echoes the beat of Bernie’s drums

There is a life about to start

When November comes!

When the counting’s done! 

From poetry to songwriting to performing, Schmaltz and Schlepper in their Weekends For Bernie video sing and rap their fantastically funky tune, Whatta Mensch. Click on the link and get ready to start dancing: http://www.weekendsforbernie.com/whatta-mensch.html

You said it, ladies!

Have you created something unique that expresses your support for Bernie Sanders' presidential candidacy? Tell us about it in the comments below (share a link to it if you can) or email it to us at The Bernie Blog. We plan to post more haikus, short poems, song lyrics, graphics, and whatever else you care to submit throughout the campaign. After all, Bernie supporters are creative people, and we shouldn’t keep Bernie to ourselves—we need to share him with the world!

Got an upcoming Bernie Sanders-related event you'd like to share? Let us know. Here are a couple events coming up in the Northwest Ohio area:

Wood County Bernie Meet-up: Sunday, August 16 at 6 PM at Grounds for Thought, 174 S. Main St., Bowling Green, OH. See you there!

"Books for Bernie" (book sale) Event: August 25-26 in Perrysburg, Ohio. Go to the event page for more info on how to donate and/or purchase books. All proceeds will go to Bernie's campaign.

Bowling Green Pride Picnic: September 5 in Bowling Green City Park. We're planning to set up a "Bernie table" there to share info and fun stuff with voters. See you there!