The Lib Schtick

10/10/2004

 

Event Rundown:

Monday: Lib Dinner, 5:30

Wednesday: YPU Debate, 7:30, SSS 114, Environmentalism; last Presidential Debate, 9 pm, M A32

Thursday: Joint Lib-Tory Debate, 7:30, Location TBA, the War on Drugs

 

~~Incompetent at Life~~

 

It's midterm week, and the obligations just keep piling up.  The coffee is losing its effect.  My attention span is the length of my thumb.  I'm getting old, and I still don't know how to play bridge.  But despite all this, I do have an unsubstantiated rumor to share with all of you.

 

So as the more athletically inclined who are reading this may know, all of the Presidential Debates were scheduled during major baseball games.  Rumor has it that this was done on purpose.  Why?  Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy?  No one will be watching network TV anyway?  Elitist assumptions that the two audiences are mutually exclusive?  Brittney knows.  Come to Lib Dinner to lure the truth out of her.

 

--Jade

 

~~In The Libs This Week~~

 

Monday, October 11

5:30 pm, Commons

Same food, same people, under the same portrait of HW.  Come, and ask Gisele to defend Stalinism.

 

Wednesday, October 13, 7:30 pm

YPU Debate, SSS 114

Guest: Paul Driessen

Resolved: American environmentalism harms developing nations.

This is a resolution so laden with evil (both the explicit degradation of environmentalism and the implicit glorification of the status quo capitalist/international trade system) that the debate almost has to end early, as it will because of the event below.  If, however, you are interested in speaking during the shortened meeting, e-mail sophia.brill@yale.edu

 

If you haven't already, you may want to buy your YPU membership this week.  It's $15 for the year or $40 for 4 years, and you need to have it in order to participate in the prize debate next week and to vote at the end of the semester (which is necessary to elect Libs to YPU office so that we get liberal guests).

 

Wednesday, October 13, 9 pm

Final Presidential Debate Viewing

McClellan A32

We're in the home stretch, guys.  There's less than a month left until election day, and this time around our friendly duo will be debating domestic policy.  Does this mean we won't be talking about Tora Bora?

 

And now, for the banner event of the week...

 

Thursday, October 14

Joint Lib-Tory Debate

7:30 pm, Location TBA

Resolved: End the War on Drugs.

Yes, well, drugs are fun.  Then again, maybe they harm society.  You should come and talk about this issue with us on Thursday.  But that's not the only reason you should come.  You should also come because the Tory Party will be joining us for the evening, and they are by far the coolest right-wing party in the union.  We'll eat cheese, we'll talk about Britain, and we'll get to argue about the right v. left issues on a level more intimate than at the YPU.

 

~~Events So Far In the Future I'm Not Convinced I'll Still Be Alive Then~~

 

Wednesday, October 20

Ortel Prize Debate, 7:30 pm, Location TBA

Resolved: Massachusetts politics is truly cursed.

First Prize: $1000

The Ortel Prize Debate will be a little different than usual YPU debates.  For one thing, you might win money.  Also, you *must* be docketed in order to speak, and you also must submit a pre-written speech before the meeting begins.  Additionally, you need to be a member of the YPU in order to speak, so if you haven't bought your membership already, think about doing so soon.  I'll be sending out more information next week.

 

Friday, October 29

Lib NY Trip

Every semester, the Libs go to New York together to meet with liberal thinkers, activists, etc.  This semester our guest list will include Gloria Feldt of Planned Parenthood, Gail Collins of the NYT editorials page, and Adam Aronson of Lambda Legal.  The details are still being ironed out, but contact yassmin@yale.edu if you're interested so that she can get a tentative idea of how many people will be going.

 

Additionally, we usually do a little something extra in the evening while we're in the city.  Past excursions have included the Guggenheim and Jason's father's apartment.  If you have any suggestions, let Yassmin know.

 

~~Campaigning Opportunites~~

 

From Abe Koogler, with Bush-Busters 2004:

 

Hey Libs!

 

Want to spend the last days of the election in Ohio or Pennsylvania, working to turn out Democratic voters? We'll pay for it.

Leave Friday morning, come back Sunday night or stay until Election Day.

This will be the adrenaline rush of a lifetime, and we'd love to have a Libs team on the ground with us.

Teams are forming now.

Contact koogler@yale.edu for details.

 

From 2004forward:

 

CELL PHONE BANK

MONDAY, Oct. 11, 9 pm to midnight, WLH

FREE FOOD

Want to work toward a Kerry victory in Oregon?

 

Got some free time tomorrow night?

 

Got free cell minutes after 9?

 

We will be doing voter identification calls (ie asking registered voters who are they going to vote for) so that Carry Oregon knows who to persuade, who to give rides to the polls, etc.  They're really simple calls but they make a huge difference. 

 

Come by for an hour or stay for the whole time.  The only requirement is that you bring a cell phone (your own or one you borrowed).

 

Call Kevin Abels at 203-843-1490 ASAP to let him know when you are coming so he can get enough lists to keep us busy.  Those who want to start at 9 should meet outside WLH.  Those coming later should call Kevin to find out what classroom we're in.

 

~~Squirrel Links, In Honor of Upcoming Events~~

 

Actual Things About Squirrels

www.squirrels.org

 

Disco Squirrels

www.discosquirrels.com

 

Scary Squirrel World

www.scarysquirrel.org

 

World o'Squirrels (check out Yale's campus rating)

www.gottschaill.com/squirrels

 

Killer Squirrels

www.chainreaction.com/squirrels

 

Squirrel Fishing (aka yet another demonstration that Harvard is cruel)

http://www.eecs.harvard.edu/~yaz/en/squirrel_fishing.html

 

Outwitting Squirrels Society

www.outwittingsquirrels.com

 

All Squirrels Must Die

www.deadsquirrel.com

 

Fun as this is, I have to stop now...