Comments on: This Election’s 4 Deepest Democracy Victories You Missed

By: Shannon Biggs

Shannon Biggs — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 22:50:22 +0000

Hi Evan, Thanks for your thoughtful post. Thought I’d update this post. Have a look at the OPED written by Thomas Linzey on the Longmont initiative (to read in full can be found here: http://www.facebook.com/grassrootsenergynet/posts/313361032107740) :
Longmont: Opportunities Lost: When the Law is on the Other Side. Lee Einer interviews Thomas Linzey, senior legal counsel of the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund, CELDF, on the regulatory system, corporate personhood, and Community Rights and response to the Longmont Folks Regarding Their Fight Against Drilling and Fracking.

By: Evan Ravitz

Evan Ravitz — Sat, 15 Dec 2012 22:54:57 +0000

Another big victory was the ballot initiative to ban fracking in Longmont, Colorado, which passed 60-40% in spite of the oil & gas people outspending the proponents over 10-1. And the 3 ballot initiatives legalizing gay marriage in Maine, Maryland and Washington.

Here’s what you SHOULD say about the citizen initiative process: it’s the origin of MOST progress, from women’s suffrage to sunshine laws to medical (and now recreational) marijuana. The media, subservient to “respresentatives,” dwells on the few problem initiatives.
See the national story at http://vote.org/initiatives and see Colorado’s stellar record at http://spryeye.blogspot.com/2012/01/case-for-ballot-initiatives-and.html

The solutions to real problems with ballot initiatives are very well known, and a solution to the big one (ad campaigns misleading uninformed voters) has been working for 3 elections cycles in Oregon: http://HealthyDemocracyOregon.org

By: Shannon Biggs

Shannon Biggs — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 18:16:45 +0000

Dear Kenny, Thank you so much for the comment, I’m so glad it was useful. Thank you even more for your on the ground work in Portland! Let me know if I can be of assistance!

By: Kenny Jones

Kenny Jones — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 19:51:33 +0000

Thank you so very much Shannon Biggs for one of the best Community Rights Movement articles I’ve read. Portland’s on the cusp of launching our own community bill of rights campaign.