Posted on behalf of ClammyC. Welcome Back!

In all seriousness, I am extremely excited to even be in the same room as the most excellent people noted below, for a panel entitled Organizing as a Healing Process: A Fresh Perspective on PTSD, which is not only an incredibly important issue that touches people in all walks of life, but also includes DailyKos and netroots superstars such as Ilona Meagher, Mike Shriver (also known as dadanation), VetVoice’s Richard Smith (RockRichard), ePluribus Media’sDenise Ford and most importantly, Lauren Reichelt (TheFatLadySings), without whom, this panel would never have happened.

Please read: The following request is from Timroff, a member of the ePluribus Media community. Originally posted 2009-06-15 10:00:07 -0400; I've FP'd it and adjusted some of the WYSIWYG formatting. Thank you. -- GH

I was going to write that I don't ask for a lot, but I realized that's not exactly true. In the last year I've asked you to donate to Feeding America and do something to help out your local food program or homeless shelter. I asked you to go and entertain voters waiting in long lines on Election Day. I asked you to help spread information coming out of Texas as Hurricane Ike rolled through Galveston and Houston, And I asked you to donate your time and money to Netroots For the Troops at Netroots Nation 2008 in Austin

Now I have another request.

Today is the deadline for applicants for Democracy For America's Netroots Nations 2009 Scholarships. Winners will be announced Friday, but I need your help now.

As many of you know, I was laid off last April, and am now working to build a large greenhouse in my hometown to grow low-cost vegetables for low-income families. Needless to say, the cost of attending Netroots Nation '09 in Pittsburgh is well above my means. But if I can't make it to NN'09, then I can't help coordinate the building of 300 Care Packages with Netroots For The Troops. I can't help lead a Saturday Night Hootenanny and Open Mic Extravaganzapalooza. I won't be able to participate in Pastor Dan's Sunday Morning Service, and I won't be able to participate in discussions about food policy and agriculture. But, if I were to get a scholarship, I could make all these things happen.

And I promise I'll post pictures and play requests at the Hootenanny.

Okay! They may get some work done at the Netroots Nation too..

Taking place Aug. 13-16 in Pittsburgh. You can start by submitting your ideas on what to work on. And if you want to register to attend go here. Here are the rising registration costs below:

 

Registration is quick and easy! To begin, simply enter your e-mail address and select a registration level.

STANDARD REGISTRATION ($275)
With your generosity and the support of our sponsors and donors, we are able to offer subsidized registrations on a first-come, first-served basis. Our $175 and $225 introductory prices are sold out. We currently have a limited number of registrations offered at $275; when those are gone, the price for standard registrations will increase to $325.

BENEFACTOR REGISTRATION ($800)
The Benefactor Registration represents the full unsubsidized cost to attend Netroots Nation. Registration fees cover only 40 percent of our conference costs. With your generosity and the support of our sponsors and donors, we can continue to offer reduced rates so activists of every age, background, and economic bracket are able to join us in Pittsburgh. If you're interested in fully supporting Netroots Nation and allowing us to offer lower rates to others, we encourage you to register at this level.

In my ePluribus Media Journal article, I write about my meeting with Jeff Merkley, Speaker of Oregon House of Representatives. Merkley has a history of backing progressive legislation to improve access to health care. He ushered The Healthy Kids Act (HB 2201), a universal access bill for children, through the Oregon House despite resistance from the tobacco industry. The payment source for the program would have been an increase in cigarette taxes, a policy proven by research to discourage youth from smoking. In the industry's euphemism, cigarette taxes hinder efforts to generate "replacement smokers," the new young addicts needed to take the place of older ranks killed by lung and heart disease.

Read the full interview on the Journal.

You can learn more about Jeff Merkley by visiting his website and donate to his campaign. Don't forget to add a penny to your donation to identify yourself as a member of our growing netroots nation.

The typical tools for writing a good news story, as imparted years ago in elementary school, were to develop the key answers to six basic questions:

Who did the story involve,
What happened,
Where did it (or will it) take place,
When did it or will it occur,
Why did it happen (and why should anyone care) and
How did it happen (and how does that change or affect anything)?

ePluribus Media is

... a cooperative of citizen volunteers dedicated to researching issues of common concern and encouraging the highest standards of ethics and journalism.

The ePluribus Media community is chartered as 501(c)(4) tax-exempt, non-partisan organization. We are a board run cooperative of citizen volunteers dedicated to researching issues of common concern and encouraging the highest standards of ethics and journalism. Our incorporation papers are public and available upon request.

(from the About Us page)

As such, it behooves us to do our best to cover what events of significance that we can -- directly, if possible. We have done and continue to do this, with our efforts to bring people reports in a variety of ways, using a variety of sources and methods. One of the old tried-and-true methods: on-the-scene reporting and representation.

There are two items coming up in the relatively short term which we should discuss having representation at: the Democratic National Convention in Denver, and Netroots Nation in Austin. We may also want to consider the Republican National Convention, if it isn't closed to "non-members" (i.e., all Americans who haven't sworn a loyalty oath).

Use the comment section below to indicate whether or not you will be attending any of the above, and whether or not (and how) the issue of credentialling ePluribus Media representatives for possible representation at national party conventions can and should be accomplished.

As citizen journalists, we are the future of journalism -- that's not only something we must believe, but strive to achieve. So, let's make sure we put our ducks in a row and spread our eggs across several baskets.

Who can attend (and who can help get the credentialling ball rolling, in general and specifically for the DNC),
What will we hope to achieve (and what needs to happen to enable that),
Where will we be going,
When will it happen (and when should any credentialling efforts begin?),
Why should we try to ensure representation at certain events (and what other ones should we shoot for?) and
How are we going to accomplish these goals?