"If It Is To Be, It's Up To Me...& My Family"

Well Brothers & Sisters, since my last posting (August 20th), the Democratic and Republican National Conventions have taken place. As of this posting, there is less than two (2) months to the Presidential Election on November 4, 2008. Each Convention, I think, re-enforced to their party members, as well as the millions of viewers around the world, just what it is their parties and respective Presidential hopefuls think is important to country. Ultimately, it will you (and your family) and me (and my family) who will make the final decision on the Presidential Candidate that has our best interests at heart. Even though we (LIUNA, AFL-CIO, NPMHU) have endorsed Senator Barack Obama as the candidate that we feel best addresses the issues that concern us, there STILL will be those of you who will STILL vote for Senator McCain. This is a given that the Obama Campaign organizers has conceded. The "game plan" has been announced and the only thing left is for us to execute it. The key to our success depends on our ability to register new voters and making sure these newly registered voters vote. Incredibly, young people (18-25) are making the biggest impact on the newly registered voters total. With this in mind, I thought about my own family and what it meant. I have at least six (6) family members who fit in that age group. If I had to guess, because I do not know definitely, I would say that none of them have ever voted before in any election. That's a plus 6 that will be added to the final total. What's more, when you hear the various poll results, they are distorted because the + or - error number cited in those surveys does not include persons who do not use land lines (most young people only use cell phones). It also seems that for whatever reason, young people have been "awakened" by the message of Barack Obama and what he stands for and are "excited" about the potential impact his Presidency would have on this country and the world. I watched how the world reacted to Obama on his overseas tour. I watched as PEOPLE of ALL RACES cheered and even shed tears at the DNC. Since I made the decision to continue this blog, I have been pondering just what my next step would be and then it hit me. I have come up with a voter registration campaign that I have named "Man In The Mirror Vote". This title is taken from the song by Michael Jackson. You all have heard it before haven't you? It goes in part, "I'm startin' with the man in the mirror. I'm askin' him to change his ways. And no message, could have been any clearer, if you wanna make (our country and) the world a better place, take a look at yourself, and make a change". To me, within the context of this election, NOW IS OUR MOMENT, NOW IS OUR TIME! I am asking each mailhandler, each clerk, each carrier, whomever reads this blog, to take the responsibility of making sure that everyone in your immediate family that is of voting age votes in this election. I am asking you to follow this simple plan:

1. Make a list of everyone in your household, immediate family, or even extended family that you vow to take responsibility for.
2. Next, make sure that each of these family members are currently registered to vote. If they are not, get them registered immediately. (For the state I live in, Texas, for instance, the deadline to be registered to vote in the 2008 Presidential Election is Monday, October 6, 2008. Written Voter Registration Applications must be submitted by Tuesday, October 28, 2008.)
3. The next thing do is find out the early voting period for your state and let everyone agree on a date within this period that YOU CAN ALL TOGETHER GO AND VOTE as a group. Remember, during the early voting period, you can vote at any of the designated early voting locations. You do not have to vote at your individually designated precincts. That's the beauty of voting early! You can avoid the much anticipated long lines due to the historical nature of this election by voting early and not waiting until Tuesday, November 4, 2008. Additionally, if any discrepancies come up, you will have ample time to get them resolved and still be able to have your vote(s) counted.
4. And finally, again with respect to the historical aspects of this election, if you make a family outing of this occasion and take pictures, you can always treasure the fact that when history was made, and it will be made, your family was together and you'll always remember the specific details of your outing.

Here's a recap of important dates as they relate to voters in Texas:

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• September 5, 2008 First Day to Apply for a Ballot by Mail

• October 6, 2008 Last Day to Register to Vote

• October 20, 2008 First Day of Early Voting

• October 28, 2008 Last Day to Apply for a Ballot by Mail

• October 31, 2008 Last Day of Early Voting

• November 4, 2008 General Election

For your convenience I am including the following link http://www.longdistancevoter.org/voter_registration_deadlines? to assist you in your planning. To see if your state even allows early voting go to http://www.earlyvoting.net/states/abslaws.php. If your state does not allow early voting, please follow Steps 1 & 2 and do whatever it takes to make sure that everyone on your list votes when the time come. This plan does not require a tremendous amount of time and effort and it is the least that each of us can do besides making sure that WE vote ourselves.

This is just one example of how many "small efforts" can add up to one "large accomplishment". If anyone can think of any way to improve upon this idea or you have an idea of your own that you would like to share with the rest of us, please contact me immediately and we can do our best to get it out there.