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DEMOCRATS ABROAD, BERLIN - www.demsinberlin.de
Berlin Chair: Michael Steltzer
e-mail: chair@demsinberlin.de; phone: 0172 394 0432
Membership Information: Eva Adams, Secretary, 030-395 4832
e-mail: Jazzineva@aol.com
Germany-wide Chair: Mitch Wolfson
e-mail: mitchwo@gmx.net
DEMOCRATS ABROAD INTERNATIONAL - www.democratsabroad.org/
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Our next meeting: Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2006, 7:30 p.m.
Doors open at 7:00 p.m.
Restaurant "Max and Moritz"
Upstairs
Oranienstr. 162, Berlin-Kreuzberg,
between Oranien Platz and Moritzplatz
It is easily reached from U-Bahnhof Kottbusser Tor (Linie 1, 15 and 8)
or U-Bahnhof Moritzplatz (Linie 8).
Please feel free to come early at 7 pm to eat and socialize.
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Dear Berlin Democrats!
I wish you all a healthy and successful New Year 2006! I also hope we will be able to meet the demands we have to face and the goals we have put upon on ourselves. As we begin the New Year and approach our first monthly meeting of Democrats Abroad Berlin next week, it is helpful to reflect on the developments of the past year and what the past and present leaders of Democrats Abroad are telling us. The continuing war in Iraq and the upcoming mid-term congressional elections at the end of the year will most likely be dominating our discussion and our involvement. The present chair of Democrats Abroad Michael Cuervorst made the following statement in October of 2005:
"In my view, the issues of war and torture are turning point issues for all Americans. They need resolution. Their resolution - or lack thereof - will determine whether we have viable candidates and whether we advance American values noble in practice as well as rhetoric or we wallow in ambivalence."
Tom Fina, who was Chair of Democrats Abroad for a number of years wrote the following for the new year:
"... Thus, while the Democratic base wants its congressional representatives to lead the charge to get out of Iraq, the greater part of the congressional delegation still believes that the American electorate is not ready to reject the core of the Administration policy of staying in Iraq until an elected government can survive without our troops.
The main task for Democratic leaders in the year ahead will be to avoid a split over Iraq to distract public attention from the succession of predictable problems that will bedevil the Republican Administration as both parties struggle to prevail in the November Congressional elections."
We should talk about these differing views of our leadership and try to find some common ground, that gives us the credibility, energy and leadership to show the way to a viable peace. For sure, our common ground will oppose torture and war crimes, but how will it also show a positive direction.
It was reported to me that John McQueen gave a detailed optimistic presentation at our last meeting of many key races which could return more power back to the Democratic party. We're thankful for the many hours he puts in every day to inform us of all the main themes that will dominate the 2006 elections. Health care, education, the economy, civil liberties, integrity and credibility are among the positive issues Democratic candidates will have to offer in contrast to a long list of GOP scandals which continue to plague their chances. We will be watching these main races closely and appreciate your input and ideas on how you think we can best be winners again.
I am looking forward to a good discussion with you all.
Michael Steltzer
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All Germany Meeting of Democrats Abroad
on February 18th, 2006
We will meet in Frankfurt at the Nizza Restaurant ( http://www.nizzamain.de/index_en.html)
, where we met last February. We will again have an afternoon meeting and
dinner.
An official announcement will be sent out soon, but you should take this into
account and make your plans to come and get together with the grass roots
activists of Democrats Abroad in Germany. Let us make sure that our delegation
from Berlin is up front and well prepared.
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Countdown for Voter Registration
for the US-American Mid-term Elections
It is time to take our Congress back! Midterm elections are coming up fast.
Primaries already begin in March for Illinois, Mississippi and Texas. We do
have a good chance to take back the majority of both houses of Congress. Let's
do our share to get out the vote and kick out the pro-war politicians. Let`s
make sure that all the Americans in Berlin and Brandenburg get registered
to vote, so that they can make a stand for that extremely important Democratic
change.
We will have a "kick off" voter registration evening on Tuesday, the 7th of February at Max and Moritz, where we will plan and present our activities.
In order to be more effective as an organization we need to know what your voting state, county and zip code is. That way we can inform you better and get you in contact with the issues in your home State. This information also helps us network better and pool our connections within Democrats Abroad internationally where official members are statistically tracking where our votes are counting. (Note this must be and is done completely separately from your personal data.) At present we have voter location information from only a third of our members. So send us an email so we can be sure our data is updated!
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War Crimes and Torture Committee
Don Tuckwiller and Elsa Rassbach have been working very hard in keeping their page updated at our web site with the latest news on a number of issues related to war crimes and torture including civil liberties, justice and rendition. Please view their reports at:
http://www.demsinberlin.de/berlin/wctc.html
Note that many links are much more recent than the meeting agendas where the topics were originally discussed.