league of women voters of northwest maricopa county p a g...
TRANSCRIPT
P A G E 1
Elected:
Dear League Members, As I write this, it is the day before Thanksgiving. So, let me start with a few thank yous: to both Sharon Forbes and Pamela Gunyuz for opening their homes for unit meetings this fall; to Bonnie Boyce-Wilson for arranging the speaker on transportation in the West Valley; to Jan Lundstrom who as-sisted with the concurrence on Charter Schools and who is organizing our annual gifts to the Dysart High Schools; and to Roberta Davidson who puts out such an excellent Newsletter each month. We had an excellent turnout when 21 members took part in the lively dis-cussion that led to concurrence on Charter Schools at the Unit Meeting on November 12th. It was heartening to hear Marc Pearsall talk, among other topics, about possible rail transportation in the West Valley in the not-so-distant fu-ture. After that meeting, eight of us went out to lunch and had excellent food and more lively discussion. We decided that we would try to do the same after as many of our Thursday meetings as possible. Come to the Holiday Party on December 13th. Have excellent holi-days. Be ready for more interesting meetings in 2013. Put our January meetings on your calendar right now: Unit Meeting on January 14th (program planning) and Membership Meeting on January 24th at 6:30 p.m. (immigration) -- more specifics on these in the January Newsletter. .
BONNIE SAUNDERS
President’s Message
League of Women Voters of Northwest Maricopa County
The Voter
http://nwmc.az.lwvnet.org/ December 2012
Annual Holiday Party
Page 2
Holiday Book Drive
Page 3
Where to Get Information Online about your Lawmaker
Page 4 Your New Legislators
Page 5
Calendar of Events
Page 6
INSIDE THIS
EDITION
T H E V O T E R
P A G E 2
T H E V O T E R
It’s December—time to spread good cheer, and get ready for the League’s Annual Holiday Potluck Party!
This year’s festivities are to be held at the Home of Jeana
Petersen on Thursday, December 13, from 4:00 pm un-til 8:00 pm.
What to bring? Let’s divide the party elements, using the alphabet and last names:
Guests/Prospects: They do not need to bring anything! Three of our Board Members are working on a bawdy, political (hopefully nonparti-san) Jeopardy game, which we will play before dinner! The last time we did a simi-lar Jeopardy game, it was a hoot!! Read Jan Lundstrom's article elsewhere in the Newsletter about our Holiday Book Drive for the Dysart Schools. This year, it will be in the form of DVDs and CDs on music and art. As soon as you can, please e-mail Bonnie Saunders at [email protected] with your reservation for the Holiday Party. We need to know how many to plan for.
We look forward to seeing you!
Annual Holiday Party
Your Last Name Begins With
What to Bring
A – D Salads or Breads
E—I Hot Casserole or Vegetable Dish
J– N Appetizers (if you are going to be late, switch with someone)
M – R Salad
0– Z Desserts
D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 2 P A G E 3
This year’s target school is Desert Moon Ele-mentary. Specifically the beneficiary is the newly begun fine arts program. Check the wish lists on our web site at http://goo.gl/ffFF9. It is fun to shop for new types of items. At our November board meeting we decided to
do away with la-bels for CD’s and DVD’s although I will still put the labels in books. For privacy rea-sons it seems better to not put our names in the donated items.
That decision makes it very important that you
give me a sheet of paper with what you are donating and your name or if you prefer a re-ceipt with your name on it. This way I can e-mail a record of the total of your donation and also notify you of the total donated by our League. Please display your usual generosity so that the fine arts program has a good supply of teaching/learning material. If you prefer I will gladly accept a check and shop for you. As always I will collect the items at the Holiday
party December 13, 2012. Hope to see all of
you there.
Jan Lundstrom, Education Director
Annual Holiday Book Drive
The Federal Communications Commission's is again deciding to allows a single company to acquire a greater share of the media market. The proposal could also keep women and minori-ties out of the media market, according to civil rights groups. The details are not yet public, but according to reports, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski circulated a proposal last week among his fellow commissioners that would end a longstanding ban on owning the major daily newspaper and radio outlets in the same market, and would al-low one company to jointly own a daily newspaper and TV stations in the nation's top 20 mar-kets.
Restrictions on media "cross ownership" were put in place to prevent media owners from mo-nopolizing the news and information available in a single area, especially major media mar-kets. The FCC could vote on the proposal as early as December. For more information check out the website, FreePress.net.
Under the Radar…...
T H E V O T E R
P A G E 4
It doesn’t take a trip to Washington to get to know your lawmaker. Here are 10 things you can learn online: 1. Who is your representative? Using your zip code, you can check Project Vote Smart’s Web site (www.vote-smart.org) for the names of your lawmakers. 2. What is your lawmaker’s background? Web sites for the Senate (www.sentate.gov) and House of Representatives (www.house.gov) have links to lawmakers’ official biographies, the committees they serve on, phone numbers and mailing addresses. Many also have their own Facebook pages and Twitter accounts.
3. Where does your lawmaker get his or her campaign money?
The Center for Responsive Politics (www.opensecrets.org) analyzes where candi-dates get their campaign money and how they spend it. Click on “Politicians & Elections” and follow menu options.
4. How much is your lawmaker worth? The clerk of the House and secretary of the Senate compile annual personal financial-disclosure documents that give a sense of a lawmaker’s Assets and income in broad ranges. The information is available at the Center for Responsive Politics. Click on “Politicians & Elections and then “Personal Finances.”
5. What is your lawmaker’s voting record? Project Vote Smart compiles lawmakers’ votes by year and issue. To see all votes, go to www.senate.gov and www.house.gov or to www.opencongress.org.
6. Who pays for your lawmaker’s trips? Go to www.legistorm.com/trip.html, then follow menu options.
7. What bills has your lawmaker spon-sored?
Check the Library of Congress (http://thomas.loc.gov)
8. How is your lawmaker spending his or her office budget?
The House posts its quarterly expense reports at (http://disbursements.house.gov/.) The Sen-ate information is not yet online.
9. How do interest groups rate your law-maker?
Go to Project Vote Smart and click on “Interest Group Ratings” on the left, then select your state. Once you see the list of offices, click on “Congress” and then select your lawmaker. 10. How often does your lawmaker talk on
the House or Senate floor? C-SPAN ranks lawmakers by the number of days they spoke on the floor and links to each appearance. www.c-spanarchives.org/congress/.
Contributed by Bonnie Boyce Wilson
Where to Get Information Online about your Lawmaker
By Maureen Groppe, Gannett Washington Bureau
D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 2 P A G E 5
Your New Legislators
The Secretary of State will not certify the No-vember 6 General Election until December 3. Below are the new legislators who will repre-sent our League members. In January, The Voter will publish a Directory-friendly insert of the new legislators with office phone numbers and email addresses. U.S. Senate Jeff Flake Congressional District 8 Trent Franks AZ District 13 (Goodyear, Buckeye) State Senate: Don Shooter State Representatives Steve Montenegro Darin Mitchell AZ District 15 (Peoria) State Senator: Nancy Barto State Representatives John Allen Heather Carter AZ District 20 (Glendale) State Senator: Kimberly Yee State Representatives Paul Boyer Carl Seel AZ District 21 (Sun City) State Senate: Rick Murphy State Representatives Rick Gray Debbie Lesko
AZ District 22 (Sun City West, Surprise) State Senate: Judy Burges State Representative David Livingston Phil Lovas . WHY DON’T I JUST QUIT?
It seems to me this year I’m busier than before I’m tempted to resign from the League, Instead I take on more! Now why is that? I ask myself, (For surely there’s a reason) I’ll have more time, I tell myself, Right after the rush season. Besides, League members are my good friends I couldn’t turn them down. Those reasons surface, I advance- (The real one’s further down). I think the answer lies somewhere Deep within myself. I want to see my talents used, Not rusted on the shelf. I want America to be A better place to live. Just talking won’t improve it- We also have to give. I want to find myself Among the workers, not the floaters- And that’s why I am neck-deep In the League of Women Voters.
Contributed by Bonnie Boyce Wilson.
UPCOMING MEETINGS & EVENTS
Thursday, December 13 4:00 PM
Annual Holiday Party Home of Jeana Petersen
Monday, January 14 12:00 Noon Brown Bag/1:00 PM Program
Unit Meeting State and Local Program Planning Home of Lois Brechner
Thursday, January 24, 2013 Time: TBD
General Meeting: Immigration Issues Unitarian Universalist Church, 17540 N. Avenue of the Arts, Surprise
Monday, February 11, 2013 12:00 Noon Brown Bag/1:00 PM Program
Unit Meeting: Book Discussion. Book discussion on Drift: The Unmooring of American Military Power written by Ra-chel Maddow. Bonnie Saunders Discussion Leader Home of Roberta Davidson
For future activity information, check the calendar on http://nwmc.az.lwvnet.org/
NEED A RIDE
It is important to our League that all members attend as often as they are able. We understand that sometimes driving can be difficult, especially for
evening events. Or maybe the car is in the shop. Or maybe you are just not driving any more. Please allow us to assist you. We would welcome the opportunity to pick you up for a meeting. Please let us know! Call Bon-nie Saunders at 623-825-7105 and she will arrange transportation for you.
Roberta Davidson, Editor
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Elected: President Bonnie Saunders, Ph.D., 2011-2013 1st Vice President (and Membership) Joye Kohl, Ed. D, 2011-2013 2nd Vice President (and Event Organizer) Diane Smith , 2011-2012 Secretary (and Instant Run-off Voting) Lois Brechner, 2010-2012 Treasurer Birdie Bussell, 2011-2013 Director, Communications (Newsletter, Webmaster) Roberta Davidson, 2011-2013 Director, Education Jan Lundstrom, 2011-2013 Director, Voter Service Jean Darnell, 2010-2012
Appointed: Director, Voter Service Dana Johnston, 2011-2012 Director, Health Care Valerie Ellien, Ph.D., 2011-2012 Director, Immigration Issues Judy Reed. 2011-2012 Director, Civics Education Barbara Knutson, 2011-2012 Director, Ex Officio Bonnie Boyce-Wilson, 2011-2013 Off Board: Nominating Chair Liz Rielly, 2012-2013 Nominating Committee Kay Smith, 2012-2013
LWV/NWMC OFFICERS & DIRECTORS 2012 - 2013