Agenda for National Summit to Save Our Elections, Portland, 9-30 to 10-2

[Amaryllis]

This is the draft agenda. It is still being tweaked as we get speaker feedback and updates, but you can get the idea of how many great presenters and workshops are scheduled!

http://summit.oregonvrc.org/agenda
See http://www.summit.oregonvrc.org/ for info on registration, lodging, etc.

Agenda & Speakers
National Summit to Save Our Elections: A Call to Rescue Our Democracy
Portland, Oregon * September 30 � October 2, 2005
DRAFT AGENDA
Friday, September 30, 2005

First Unitarian Church
1011 SW 12th Ave
Portland, OR 97205

Noon � 7:00 PM Registration Opens

Oregon Election System Poster Session: Learn how Oregon�s Vote-by-Mail system works through poster presentations and videos and have your questions answered by Oregon election officials and citizen experts.

1:00 � 5:00 PM Concurrent Workshops and Panel Presentations

1A. Engage, Educate, Elect
Jefferson Smith, Chair of The Bus Project

1B. Making Electronic Elections Transparent and Accurate
Open Voting Consortium, Open Source Software
Oregon Voter Rights Coalition, Election Audits

2A. Working with the Media
Blair Bobier, Media Director, Green Party 2004 Presidential Campaign
Penny Little, People to People TV, Producer of �Electile Dysfunction�
Lara Shaffer, Development Director, Open Voting Consortium

2B. Democracy is Not a Spectator Sport
Rady Ananda, J30 Coalition, �Democracy is Something You Do�
Alliance for Democracy � Portland, �Using Ballot Initiatives to achieve Campaign Finance Reform Initiative�

3A. How Can I Make A Difference?
Kat L�Estrange, We Do Not Concede and Producer of the Brad Show
Warren Linney, Author of �The Patriot Test�

3B. What is IRV, PR and CVRD?
Steve Chessin, President, Californians for Electoral Reform
Matthew Pascarella, investigative researcher for journalist Greg Palast, working on Centralized Voter Registration Database issues, mandated by HAVA for Jan. 2006.

5:00 � 7:00 PM Dinner on your own

7:00 � 9:00 PM Opening Plenary Session * Welcome Remarks
Native American Cultural Performance

Panel Discussion: What�s Wrong with Electronic Elections?
Brad Friedman, moderator * Ellen Thiesen, Voters Unite * Clint Curtis, software programmer and whistleblower * Matthew Pascarella, investigative researcher for journalist Greg Palast, working on Centralized Voter Registration Database issues, mandated by HAVA for Jan. 2006.

Feature Presentation: Brad Friedman, Cliff Arnebeck and Bob Koehler Discuss Election Fraud, Legal Strategies for Election Reform and the Media�s Role

Bob Koehler, nationally syndicated journalist, Tribune Media Services * Cliff Arnebeck, Ohio Honest Election Campaign and National Co-Chair, Alliance for Democracy * Brad Friedman, host of The Brad Show and BradBlog.com

9:00 PM Adjourn
Saturday, October 1, 2005

First Unitarian Church
1011 SW 12th Ave
Portland, OR 97205

7:30 AM � 5:00 PM Registration Open

Oregon Election System Poster Session: Learn how Oregon�s Vote-by-Mail system works through poster presentations and videos and have your questions answered by Oregon election officials and citizen experts.

8:30 AM � 12:15 PM

Corporate Ownership of Our Elections: The Threat to Democracy
Thom Hartmann, radio talk show host and author

Panel Discussion: Corporate Ownership of Our Elections � Current Developments
Thom Hartmann, moderator
John Gideon, Voters Unite
Nancy Price, National Co-Chair, Alliance for Democracy
Paul Lehto, Attorney and Plaintiff in lawsuit against Sequoia Voting Systems

Concurrent Workshops and Presentations:

1A. Digital for Dummies: The Perils of Electronic Elections
Kip Humphrey, Systems Integration Consultant
Clint Curtis, software programmer and whistleblower

1B. From Good Intentions to Powerful Action: How to Make a Difference
Emily Levy, United for Secure Elections, http://www.juiceforjustice.com/

12:15 � 1:30 PM Lunch on your own (box lunch may be ordered at registration)

1:30 � 5:30 PM Plenary Sessions

Keynote Speaker:
The Honorable Jesse Jackson Jr., U.S. Representative, D-IL

Featured Speakers:
Bill Bradbury, Oregon Secretary of State (Invited)

David Cobb, 2004 Green Party Presidential Candidate

Ronnie Dugger, Founder of Alliance for Democracy and
author of �How They Could Steal the Election This Time.�

JoAnne Bowman, Former Oregon House Representative

Panel Discussion: Verifying Election Results
Election Audits, Oregon Voter Rights Coalition
Parallel Elections, Judy Alter, UCLA retired Emeritus professor
Exit Polls, TBD

5:30 � 7:30 PM Dinner on your own

7:30 � 8:30 PM Democracy Revival
Paul Lehto and Thom Hartmann


Portland State University
724 SW Harrison
Portland, OR

7:30 AM Registration Open

Oregon Election System Poster Session: Learn how Oregon�s Vote-by-Mail system works through poster presentations and videos and have your questions answered by Oregon election officials and citizen experts.

8:30 AM � 9:00 AM Dealing with Diebold in Georgia
Brad Friedman interview with Representative Cynthia McKinney (invited)

9:00 AM � 11:00 AM Concurrent Workshops and Presentations

1A. Local Strategies for Election Reform
David Berman, Co-Founder, Voter Confidence Committee of Humboldt County, CA

1B. Citizen Audit Parallel Election Project
Judy Alter, retired Emeritus professor from UCLA

2A. Thinking Patriotically, Acting Locally (and NOW)
Bernie Ellis Jr., MA, MPH, Organizer, Gathering To Save Our Democracy (Tennessee)

2B. Protecting Our Elections
John Washburn, Certified Software Quality Engineer, �How to Test Voting Machinery Software�
Mary Beth Kuznik, VotePA, �THE POLLWORKER � Eyes on the Poll�

11:00 � 12:30 Closing Panel: Where do we go from here?
Paul Lehto, moderator
Rady Ananda
Brad Friedman
Ellen Thiesen

12:30 Adjourn

[autorank]

1. Sept 24th to Oct 2nd -- DC protest/DU Meet up and Election Conf.

I've watched this develop. It's an amazing program. I'm making every effort to go!

;)

[MelissaB]

2. That's a heck of an agenda and speakers!

Wow!

:kick:

[Amaryllis]

3. should I cross post this? Please advise; which forums and do

I link to this or just start a new one? If I link to this, what title do
I use on the other forums? Mostly I just hang out here!

[MelissaB]

8. I'd wait until tomorrow to post it in GD

because this will roll off the "greatest" tomorrow just as the other one flies onto it. :evilgrin:

:hi:

[Amaryllis]

13. Brilliant strategy! so then do I just post the it under the same name

as a new forum?

[MelissaB]

15. I defer to more creative people.

You could do it either way. Anybody else?

[autorank]

4. We interrupt our normal programming for this SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

8/22/05

Bush

Approve 36%
Disapprove 58%
Undecided 6%

http://americanresearchgroup.com/

You know what this means, the "f" word as in election FRAUD is now accepteable for use by CM (Ccorporate Media)

[Fly by night]

6. I think it's 58% disapprove. (You might want to edit that.)

[autorank]

7. You're right for $800.00...corrected, thanks (and thanks CHI)

[GuvWurld]

5. Kicked and Nominated

Thanks for all your great work, Amaryllis :yourock:

[bleever]

9. Nominated and kicked, with gusto. n/t

[FogerRox]

10. yeah ditto

Amaryllis, you have concocted a great event-- I remember when you PMed me about speakers-- and -- well you certainly have a well rounded list of speakers--

Thats what I call kickin ass & takin names--

[rosesaylavee]

11. Kicked/nominated - Go Unitarian/Universalists!

[Carolab]

12. Kicked and recommended. n/t

[Melissa G]

14. Kick and recommended! n/t

[bleever]

16. Kicking because I forgot to say what a great collection of speakers

are on the program! Fabulous panel.

:thumbsup:

[Amaryllis]

18. Which panel are you referring to? there are a number of cool panels!

[bleever]

20. The whole kit and kaboodle. What kind of arrangements for sharing

the proceedings are in the works?

:thumbsup:

[Amaryllis]

24. Videotaping. Is that what you mean?

[bleever]

26. Mass distribution for us who can't be there. Video is my first choice,

viewable via the web, then transcripts, then people's media-ready articles for print and web media, and finally gushing personal accounts of how great it went and how inspiring and energizing it was.

:)

:yourock:

[Amaryllis]

28. Promise lots of gushing personal accounts! But also videotaping.

[Fly by night]

17. Excited to be going -- proud that my name is on the program ...

... with lots of folks I have gotten to know, in person and in our virtual reality. And lots of patriotic people who I've always wanted to meet.

I do hope folks have energy and interest enough on Sunday morning to be there for my presentation: "Thinking Patriotically, Acting Locally (and NOW)". The program is still fluid and I do hope Marybeth and I have the chance to speak together about state actions and strategies, and not so much opposite each other. Here's a BIG taste of what my speech outline looked like a few weeks ago. I'm obviously going to have to edit it to include constitutional challenges in court (our Memphis lawsuit will be filed this week.)
--------------
Thinking Patriotically, Acting Locally (and NOW)
Bernard H. Ellis, Jr., MA, MPH, Organizer
Gathering To Save Our Democracy (Tennessee)

For election reform to be successful (particularly at this point in our
history), it must be done "in your own backyards". This is both because
the conduct of elections is essentially a local or state decision and
because the current political party in power is blocking all efforts to
reform our voting process through amendments to the Help America Vote
Act (HAVA).

There are many useful models of local and state-level reform movements
to protect our votes and rescue our democracy. In Tennessee, our
nine-month organization (Gathering To Save Our Democracy) is one such
example. Created as a response to the 51 Capitals March grassroots
effort to bring attention to the 2004 election theft, the Gathering
focused its early attention on educating the public and increasing media
attention to the evidence for the multi-state election fraud that
characterized the last election. This early activity resulted in 33
public Gatherings across the state, considerable media attention and
direct actions at the offices of our Congressional representatives and
our Federal courthouses across the state. This early activity helped us
build an email database including hundreds of Tennesseans (representing
six different political parties) who were concerned about the integrity
of our election process. It also allowed us to host the (first) National
Election Reform Conference in Nashville in April, which brought voting
rights activists from 30 states to review the evidence for the stolen
election and to share strategies for protecting our votes in the future.

With this groundwork and a host of early successes and momentum-building
activities, the Gathering has now launched itself fully into election
reform here in Tennessee and is recognized as the major player in
supporting voter-verified paper ballots and mandatory random manual
recounts. The timing in Tennessee (and in all states) is critical
because decisions on how to spend our $56 million in HAVA funds to
"upgrade" our voting systems are being made now. My presentation will
review some of the critical steps that we believe have been important in
building a successful and respected voice for election reform in the
Orange State, including the following:

1) Establishing a nonpartisan platform for action - Everyone who
believes in the "consent of the governed" has a stake in free, fair and
verifiable elections. In Tennessee, that has meant visible support from
members of six political parties.

2) Coalition building - We forged alliances with Common Cause, NAACP,
Urban League, Tennessee Disabled Voters and a host of progressive
organizations. Rather than re-inventing the wheel, we have grounded our
activity in the proud history of voting rights activism for which our
state is known.

3) Making friends with the disabled voter community - Many states have
experienced an uneasy tension between the accessibility concerns of
disabled voters and the accountability concerns of election reformers.
Here, we have worked to educate ourselves and to support both issues, as
do our allies within the disabled voter community.

4) Education for action - We continuously provide both issue-oriented
educational updates and opportunities for activism to our membership on
the local, state and national levels. We are known as rational and
informed advocates.

5) Learning the process - We have delved deeply into the different
voting systems in place in our 95 counties and learned the process
whereby changes in those systems would occur. In the process, we have
found natural allies.

6) Legislative action - Through a series of lobbying activities with our
legislature, we have made friends and cultivated supporters on both
sides of the aisle, resulting in growing bipartisan support for VVPB/MRMR.

7) Framing "election reform" as part of "ethics reform" - Our
legislature has received national attention for its lax ethical
behavior. We are working to make election reform the foundation from
which all other ethics reform springs.

8) Befriending county/state election commissioners and administrators -
This has included making our presence known at local/state election
commission meetings and playing a visible role at the statewide election
officials convention.

9) Staying on top of the issue - There are many online election reform
communities with which we are familiar and within which we are
recognized as competent "players" in this newest generation of the
voting rights movement.

10) Being a "trusted servant" - We are now used regularly as a model by
activists across the country in their own efforts to build similar
grassroots movements. We are also considered an informational "ready
response" team

My presentation will flesh out these Gathering activities within the
constraints of the available time-frame and format. We trust that our
experiences will be informative to other states which are launching or
refining their own reform approaches.

Bernard H. Ellis, Jr., MA, MPH: Mr. Ellis is the organizer for the
Tennessee grassroots organization, Gathering To Save Our Democracy. This
ad-hoc, nonpartisan group has worked to educate Tennesseans about the
evidence for voter intimidation and disenfranchisement -- and other
elements of election fraud -- that occurred in the 2004 election (and
before), and to inform and mobilize Tennesseans to support the reforms
necessary to prevent such abuses of our franchise in the future. Mr.
Ellis is a public health epidemiologist (and a farmer and community
leader) with over 30 years of research and program management experience
at the tribal, state, national and international levels. He did his
undergraduate study at Vanderbilt, and his graduate work at Vanderbilt,
Texas, Stanford and UC-Berkeley.
-----------

So guys, let's all meet in Portland and chew the salmon in person. Now to get back to kicking ass and taking names, here in the Orange State.

Fly by night

[Amaryllis]

19. I'm proud yer name is on the program too!

[demodonkey]

21. I'm Very Honored to Be On The List with so many great people...

...and gee, I would love to speak together with you Bernie, too -- ANY TIME!

OK, here's mine, with a bit about what I'll be doing...


-----------

Be a Pollworker, Our Eyes On The Poll
Marybeth Kuznik
Vote PA


Hey Election Integrity Activist!

Wouldn't YOU like to be in a great observation spot on Election Day 2006 or 2008, with complete access to watch the whole process (and even help handle the voting machines), -- helping to gather data galore and protecting our elections??

Yes?

Then come to the National Summit to Save Our Elections in Portland -- AND LEARN HOW TO BE A POLLWORKER!

Pollworkers have incredible access to the voting process and to data. Trained, honest pollworkers who are on OUR side will be able to keep their eyes on our polling places, report problems, and after the polls close can gather data from their precincts for projects such as the National Election Data Archive.

Help our movement get as many of us as we can into the polls as pollworkers for 2006 and beyond.. we need YOU to be our eyes on the poll!

In this workshop we will learn how to become a Pollworker:
--what does the job require
--where do you apply (or how do you run) for the job
--what is the training like
--what is the difference between a pollworker and a pollwatcher
--tips for making your polling place run more smoothly (and keeping your voters happy)

And how you, as a Pollworker or Pollwatcher can help ensure Election Integrity:
--what to watch for in your poll
--how to gather data

Come and learn how to be a Pollworker -- be our eyes on the poll!

-----------

Marybeth Kuznik has served as a precinct pollworker for over fifteen years in her native Pennsylvania, and is running for re-election in November 2005 as a Majority Inspector of Elections in her township. She was one of the nine Regional Coordinators for the 2004 Green Party Ohio Recount, where she worked with election directors and volunteer observers in counties in the Eastern Ohio / Pennsylvania Border Area. Ms. Kuznik served as a Panel member at the Election Assessment Hearing in Houston TX, and was a speaker at the National Conference on Election Reform in Nashville TN. She has twice addressed the PA Governor’s Task Force on Election Reform and has helped to organize VotePA (www.votePA.us), which is working to bring together an alliance committed to fair elections and voting rights in Pennsylvania. Ms. Kuznik holds degrees from Seton Hill College and the University of Pittsburgh, and comes from a prior career background in education and non-profit arts management with nearly two decades of writing, producing, and performing educational theatre arts programs for young audiences.

[tommcintyre]

32. Nice to see 2004erd is spawning some speakers

Hopefully. you all will do some more gigs across the country!

[GuvWurld]

22. Details on Local Strategies Workshop

I intend for this to be a "train the trainers" workshop where everyone can go back to their communities and lead others through this same exercise. Below is the proposal I submitted.


The Voter Confidence Resolution: Coordinating Local Strategy For National Election Reform

It would be very helpful to read the Voter Confidence Resolution (VCR) template before evaluating this proposal: http://tinyurl.com/amryg

The following summarizes the three key frames presented in the VCR:

1. Current election conditions ensure inconclusive outcomes and thus there is no basis for confidence in the results reported from U.S. federal elections.

2. The VCR contains a comprehensive election reform platform designed to ensure conclusive outcomes and create a new basis for confidence in the results reported from U.S. federal elections.

3. Since the Consent of the Governed is not being sought, we ask: Has the Consent of the Governed been withdrawn, YET?

As workshop leader I will facilitate development of two bullet point lists: known election problems, and necessary reforms. These two lists enable creation of a VCR patterned after the template in the GuvWurld blog. The three key frames above introduce the context and strategy for promoting this message to City Councils across America.

This exercise serves two purposes:

1. To show how any group can be led through a consensus building process of compiling a statement similar to the existing VCR.

2. To present a paradigm in which election reform can catalyze peaceful revolution.

The VCR template is meant to be customized in communities across the country while still maintaining the three key frames above. Pursuit on the local level will require teach-ins and other bridge-building outreach that will cause healing of partisan divides. United communities are in a strong position to approach their City Council. Since members of local government are typically more accessible than those on a state or national level, and since local leaders are most easily held accountable, the City Council is the lowest hanging fruit, the easiest target to approach for support of the VCR.

Each Council that passes the VCR is strengthening the backbone of the movement to restore the people’s right to own and oversee elections. Each Council would also be promoting a new national dialog focused on creating a new basis for confidence in U.S. federal elections. Part of that will be reconciling slightly different versions of the VCR's comprehensive election reform platform. The future shape of elections, if not the country, will emerge from the communication among this network of communities.

With key frame #3, we have built a mechanism for cumulative impact. This comes from an attitude of “not if, but when”; it is an assumption that after some number of resolutions have passed, the answer to the question switches from NO, to YES, the Consent of the Governed HAS been withdrawn. This represents a tipping point at which we have a tangible shift in the balance of power between the government and We The People. This is revolutionary.

This workshop is ideal for leaders of small election reform groups, especially those whose identities are not tied to a single reform. It is also well-suited for local politicians and unaffiliated individuals.

<BIO>

Dave Berman is a speaker, workshop facilitator and the author of the Voter Confidence Resolution, born on his GuvWurld blog and adopted by Arcata, CA on 7/20/05. Dave's knack for being the media has landed his opinions in the Eureka Times-Standard, Humboldt Advocate and Arcata Eye, while radio and TV stations in Northern California and Portland, Oregon have also broadcast his message about Voter Confidence. Dave co-founded the Voter Confidence Committee of Humboldt County, CA.

[Yellow Horse]

23. Horse Kick to the top... trot on out to Portland!

:kick:

[bleever]

25. Kicking, because I wish I could be there and want lots of DUers

providing reports.

[tommcintyre]

27. Nice line-up!

You'all are putting together a very formidable conference!

[GuvWurld]

29. Kick (for our kids' sake)

[tommcintyre]

30. Kick for a very important conference nt

[tommcintyre]

31. Join the "SaveOurElections" mailing list"

Sign up at: [e-mail]

"Welcome to the SaveOurElection mailing list! Welcome to
our Summit Supporters list. You've previously signed up at an Oregon
Voter Rights Coalition event, so we have added your address to this
important list. The list will operate for the next two months for the
purpose of promoting our Nat'l Summit to Save Our Elections on 9/30 to
10/2. Once the summit is over, we'll convert this list to a general
announcement list for our ongoing election reform events. We hope you
will join us in presenting a world class, cutting-edge election reform
conference in Portland in October. If you can assist as a volunteer,
please let us know at: [e-mail]. If you would like to
attend the event, please register online as soon as possible at:
http://www.Summit.OregonVRC.org."

Thank you, Oregon Voter Rights Coalition

To post to this list, send your email to:

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General information about the mailing list is at:
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