Get FISA Right

change.gov has put together a new tool where citizen’s can submit their ideas, vote other user’s ideas up and down, and make comments on ideas. It’s called Citizen’s Briefing Book:

Share your ideas on any issue facing the new administration, then rate or comment on other ideas. The best rated ideas will be gathered into a Citizen’s Briefing Book to be delivered to President Obama after he is sworn in.

Citizen Briefing Book’s concept and functionality are remarkably similar to change.org‘s Ideas For Change. I don’t know if this is a coincidence, if it’s a copy/flattery, if it’s meant to distract from the change.org effort, or what.

But regardless, the fact that the president is running a site like this is amazing!

I just put together the official Get FISA Right submission. Vote on it here.

Although I’ve been doing all the blogging here for the first few weeks, that’s certainly not the plan going forward … and now’s a good time to start changing it.

So this is an open invitation to Get FISA Right members who are interested in blogging here (or helping to administer the site).

To start with, please make sure you’re signed up on WordPress.com … once you do that, leave a comment in the thread telling us a little bit about you and what you’d like to discuss on the blog.  If you already have your own blog, please include a link!  I’ll gradually add people over the next few days and we can get going …

jon

PS: don’t be surprised if this process is a little rocky.  I’ve never administered a group WordPress blog before and so will be learning as we go … apologies in advance

See URGENT: last-minute help needed on Ideas for Change for an overall update

Just as I was about to go to sleep, the two drug reform ideas in the top 10 on change.org appear to have merged: dan b’s “end the war on drugs” (formerly #7) is gone, and Jose Torres’ “legalization” has 3000 more votes.  I have no idea whether they talked and got together or what.  More information as it comes out.

Update, January 15: from dan’s idea:

NOTE: the creator of this idea has agreed to merge it with a similar idea that qualified for the final round, “Legalize the Medicinal and Recreational Use of Marijana,” to strengthen their combined efforts. All votes were transferred except for those submitted by people who had already voted for the Legalization idea to avoid double counting. To vote for the combined idea, click here.

In the short term, though, this also means there are at least 7000 votes up for grabs, the ones who had voted for both ideas and now have a spare vote.  It’s probably even more; I for example had voted for “end the drug war” but not legalization* and so have removed my vote.  Still even with “just” 7000 votes, that’s a lot: these are people who have already signed up for change.org and figured out how to vote.  My guess is that almost all of them are against warrantless wiretapping, and a heck of a lot support a special prosecutor.  We don’t know how many have voted for our ideas already but it could easily be a chance for a few thousand more votes.

How do we reach them?  Please leave suggestions in the comments.

And if merging is possible, how do we get ahold of Pierre Loiselle to ask about combining with “Repeal the Patriot Act”?  I messaged him on change.org a while ago, and wrote on his wall … what else to try?   Again, suggestions in the comments please.

In the interim, Patrick made a great suggestion in email:

Pierre has 56 comments. If we could divide them up among 5 people (just number the comments, 10 ea.) we could reach out to posters last minute and if enough of them get the messages and pass them along it might help. We won’t reach all of Pierre’s supporters, just a suggestion as a last ditch effort.

Yeah really.  If you get a moment, please message a few of them on change.org.  Let them know that our idea’s in #9 and Bob’s is at #14, ask them to vote for both — and to pass the word to other friends and mailing lists who may have also voted for Pierre’s idea.  And then leave a comment below with the names of the people you’ve contacted, so we don’t inadvertantly spam them

Thanks much … and let’s think creatively about how we can reach 7000 drug reform advocates and Pierre Loiselle.  Get those brian cells whirling!

And I really am going to bed now.  Promise.

jon

* because legalization by itself doesn’t address issues like race- and class-based sentencing disparities, surveillance, etc. etc.

Update, January 15: please see URGENT: last-minute help needed for more current information

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Update, January 14: please see Act now: 30 hours left in Ideas for Change in America for updated instructions.

The momentum shift I hoped for yesterday may be starting to happen.  After dropping to #9 last night (“Will you still love me if we don’t make the top 10?” I asked Deborah),  Get FISA Right, repeal the PATRIOT Act, and restore our civil liberties is now back up to #8 with 8050 votes.  Even more importantly, the cushion of votes keeping us in the top ten* — probably the most important number to watch — climbed from 1200 to 1500.  Go us!

We got several blog posts, endorsements, and mailings from Facebook group admins.  Thanks all!  We are still trailing badly in endorsements, with only 22 so far — Pass the DREAM Act – Support Higher Education for All Students, which is right behind us at #10 has 67, and some ideas have over 300.  So let’s redouble our blogger outreach efforts** — and at the same time, not rely on this changing and continue to reach out via email on Facebook.  Mail your family and friends!  Change your status!  Change your image!***  Post this link!  Instructions here!

Our voting thread on whether we should endorse Bob Fertik’s Appoint a Special Prosecutor for the Crimes of the Bush Administration has gotten 22 votes: 20 yes, 1 no, 1 present (me, since I voted first and didn’t want to bias things).  If you haven’t weighed in yet, please do.

More ways to help below, but first a few paragraphs about strategy.

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