In keeping with the 50 State Strategy, focus is not solely on helping Barack Obama, but on building a strong volunteer base to help elect all Democratic candidates.

Join Obama for America Vermont staff and local Obama supporters as we
discuss how to help elect Barack Obama and the rest of the Democratic
ticket. Learn how to get involved, pick up Obama gear, and become a part of
our historic movement and campaign for change! If you have any questions,
feel free to contact Morganne at 802-651-7151 or mpollie@barackobama.com

Monday, July 14th
Windsor County Democrats Meeting
Damon Hall
1 Queechee Rd, Hartland
7PM
Online signup: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4gr4k

Wednesday, July 16th
Rutland County for Obama Organizational Meeting
Fox Room of the Rutland Free Library
10 Court St, Rutland
7PM
Online signup: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4gr27

Thursday, July 17th
Chittenden County for Obama Organizational Meeting
Fletcher Free Library
235 College St, Burlington
7PM
Online signup: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4grh7

Monday, July 21st
Addison County for Obama Organizational Meeting
Carol’s Hungry Mind Café
24 Merchants Row, Middlebury
7PM
Online Signup: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4gr3l

Monday, July 21st
Lamoille County Democrats Meeting
Hyde Park Clerk’s Office
344 VT Rte 15 W, Hyde Park
7PM
Online Signup: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4gr54

Wednesday, July 23rd
Washington County for Obama Organizational Meeting
Kellogg-Hubbard Free Library
135 Main St, Montpelier
7PM
Online Signup: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4gvvz

Monday, July 28th
Bennington County for Obama Organizational Meeting
Bennington Free Library
101 Silver St, Bennington
7PM
Online Signup: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/4gr5r

“I don’t like words that hide the truth. I don’t like words that conceal reality. I don’t like euphemisms, or euphemistic language. And American English is loaded with euphemisms. Cause Americans have a lot of trouble dealing with reality. Americans have trouble facing the truth, so they invent the kind of a soft language to protect themselves from it, and it gets worse with every generation. For some reason, it just keeps getting worse. I’ll give you an example of that.

There’s a condition in combat. Most people know about it. It’s when a fighting person’s nervous system has been stressed to it’s absolute peak and maximum. Can’t take anymore input. The nervous system has either (click) snapped or is about to snap. In the first world war, that condition was called shell shock. Simple, honest, direct language. Two syllables, shell shock. Almost sounds like the guns themselves. That was seventy years ago.

Then a whole generation went by and the second world war came along and very same combat condition was called battle fatigue. Four syllables now. Takes a little longer to say. Doesn’t seem to hurt as much. Fatigue is a nicer word than shock. Shell shock! Battle fatigue.

Then we had the war in Korea, 1950. Madison avenue was riding high by that time, and the very same combat condition was called operational exhaustion. Hey, were up to eight syllables now! And the humanity has been squeezed completely out of the phrase. It’s totally sterile now. Operational exhaustion. Sounds like something that might happen to your car.

Then of course, came the war in Viet Nam, which has only been over for about sixteen or seventeen years, and thanks to the lies and deceits surrounding that war, I guess it’s no surprise that the very same condition was called post-traumatic stress disorder. Still eight syllables, but we’ve added a hyphen! And the pain is completely buried under jargon. Post-traumatic stress disorder. I’ll bet you if we’d of still been calling it shell shock, some of those Viet Nam veterans might have gotten the attention they needed at the time. I’ll betcha. I’ll betcha.”

– George Carlin, ~ 1990

Is it over yet?

Shamms and his merry band of Science Fixion fusion compadres taught me a lot about music. Just watching the excellent musicianship and arrangement up close — all infused with the freak-spirituality of Sun Ra and Frank Zappa — had a deep impact on how I thought about music.

Awodey provides a recent note from Shamms. I post it here, too…

How honored I have been in these last three-plus decades to be in the sacred classroom with you. You have given me more, taught me more, than you will ever know. All narratives must eventually reach their final chapter, and this is true for all of us as well. Would that it were not so, I would elect to keep teaching and learning forever; and perhaps that is what happens anyway in the great and enduring mystery to come. I would ask all of you to keep focused upon three things. First, be creative! That means risking doing things that are just out of reach. Push yourself to climb mountains. Second, or maybe first, be compassionate. Realize that extending a helping hand is the heart of humanity, and without heart, no blood flows. Third, be conscious! Wake up! Be aware of your world and your life. I send you much love.

— Shamms… April 21, 2008

Over the past 17 months — aside from family and work — I’ve had little time or energy for anything other than helping Barack Obama become the Democratic nominee and the 44th President of the United States.

It has truly been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. And I am deeply proud to have had the opportunity to assist the Obama campaign in any way that I could.

I would be deeply honored if you would consider casting your vote for me to represent Vermont as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention.

Throughout the last year and a half, I’ve tried to keep focused on the central idea of the Obama campaign — that there is far more that unites us than divides us.

And to this end, I’ve worked to try to break down barriers, actively attempting to bring together young and old, on-line and off-line organizing, top-down Chicago HQ and state-based bottom-up structures, field volunteers and fundraisers, the politically connected and the newly energized…

Some of you may already be familiar with aspects of the work that I’ve been involved with. But, I’d like to try your patience just a bit if I could, to help demonstrate why I believe I played an important role in building and maintaining the citizen-based Obama campaign in Vermont…

• In late 2006, I was one of the lead Vermont participants in the national Draft Obama movement, organized the first Obama supporters meeting in December, and launched http://vermontersforobama.org. I designed the Vermonters For Obama logo, now on many T-shirts throughout the state. And, much to my amazement, a modified version of the logo — along with the Vermonters For Obama web address — appeared on the side of Ben & Jerry’s vans (see below).
• On February 10, 2007 — the day the Obama campaign officially launched — I created the Vermonters For Obama group (540+ members) on BarackObama.com, which along with the companion website mentioned above has served as a central clearing house for Vermont’s Obama volunteer community.
• For the majority of 2007, I took the lead in organizing monthly Burlington area meetings, highlighted by the widely covered endorsement event at Club Metronome on September 12th, 2007, featuring Bill Sorrell, Jeb Spaulding, and Peter Clavelle.
• I’ve fielded questions from the local press, assisted with press releases, and exchanged thousands of emails and phone calls with supporters and Obama campaign staff to ensure that useful information got to the people that needed it. I spent five days volunteering on the ground in January for the New Hampshire primary — and led the canvassing effort in Bristol for Vermont’s March 4th primary.
• In February, I had the privilege of representing Obama supporters in an online debate with Former Gov. Madeleine Kunin, hosted by Vermont Public Television.
• I’m a member of the Obama campaign’s Grassroots Fundraising Committee Leadership Circle having helped channel over $3,600 through the Vermonters For Obama group fundraising page.
• I’ve continued to try to facilitate democratic communication among Obama supporters by helping to promote Damian Sedney’s amazing work in hosting the delegate candidate forums — and providing delegate candidates the opportunity to post candidate statements at: http://vermontersforobama.org/delegates
• In addition to my work here in Vermont, I’m an active organizer in the BarackObama.com online community — creating and moderating three of the longest-running and most active groups, Obama Rapid Response (920+ members), Citizen Strategy Think Tank (560+ members) and Website Feedback (280+ members). All three have helped build community and communication among supporters and the Obama HQ Web Team. And I’ve worked with online activists from across the country since 2006 to help ensure that Barack’s message was heard as widely and clearly as possible, including assisting with the creation and editing of One Million Strong, a nationally-focused Obama supporter website.

OK, well, there you have it… There’s probably not much more I should add except to say that I’d really, really love to go to Denver.

It would be an experience of a lifetime for me — after such a long journey — to be in that convention hall, representing Vermont and the ideals of this historic campaign, and to hear Barack Obama accept the nomination on August 28th, 2008, the 45th anniversary of Martin Luther King’s "I Have a Dream" speech.

If you’ve made it this far, thanks so much for taking the time to allow me the opportunity to make my case.

However, there are certainly many other dedicated people who’ve put in days, weeks, and months and months of hard work for Barack Obama. And we Vermonters should be proud to have so many deserving candidates to choose from.

See you all on Saturday!

Neil Jensen
Monkton, VT

P.S. I think the following excerpts help provide some further context…

From a March 6th, 2008 article on Barack’s victory in Vermont, by Dan Barlow of the Vermont Press Bureau…

http://www.timesargus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080306/NEWS01/803060357/1002/NEWS01

Obama may have Neil Jensen of Monkton to thank for his win here Tuesday night. Jensen, a web designer, began talking to friends about the Illinois senator in the fall of 2006 — long before he was even a declared candidate.

A meet-up of Obama supporters at a restaurant in Burlington in December 2006 attracted about 30 people, Jensen said. Soon, the monthly meetings began drawing more and more interested Vermonters — a base that the campaign easily tapped into when it began its groundwork this year in the state.

“Our goal at first was to help out in New Hampshire,” Jensen said. “But once it became clear that Vermont might actually be important in this, we shifted focus.”

Thankfully, Obama’s campaign did not take a top-down approach to generating support in Vermont, he added, and instead facilitated the efforts and outreach brainstormed by supporters on the grass-roots-level, Jensen said…

A statement of support from Obama volunteer, Mark Wiznitzer…

Neil Jensen (Monkton) is well known as the creator of Vermonters for Obama on My.BarackObama.com and www.vermontersforobama.org. As such he has been an unofficial spokesman for all Obama supporters in Vermont, as well as the lead organizer of many of our grass roots activities. However, most of you probably did not realize that Neil is also the creator of the Obama Rapid Response group (in addition to the Citizen Strategy Think Tank), an informal media watchdog effort that is probably the most active and successful of all barackobama.com groups. And he has administered that group with unbelievable tact and patience. Neil also speaks eloquently to the substantive issues that have dominated the campaign and embodies the civil tone that Barack has asked us to maintain in this heated contest.

And finally: The Ben & Jerry ObamaMobile (my kids certainly thought it was cool) …