BNCPJ regular meeting 11/07
    Unitarian Universalist Church
    31 present
    6 new

1. Introductions and greetings
    - Passed out brochures to everyone
2. Sharing
    - Unitarian survey found church member will be on draft board
    - Tuesday night on Frontline: What was Republican strategy?
    - Two issues:
        - Disappointment with election
        - Moving toward alarmism
    - Don't overreact to Kerry's defeat
    - Democratic party exists to absorb and blunt popular movements
        - All that work supporting Kerry was wasted
    - Found some allies at work
    - Feel like juggling between amazement at right and fear for rights
    - What can we do on the local level to make a difference?
    - Part of justice part of BNCPJ needs to be directed at corporations
        - We should avoid buying from bad corporations
    - Have dual citizenship - should I leave the country?
    - The problem isn't how did Bush win
        - It's what's wrong with the population
    - Should find a way to reach high school children
    - We need uplift in collective consciousness
        - Meditation lowers crime rates
        - Movie: What the BLEEP do we know?
            - Shows how our reality is created by thoughts and ideas
    - Not what's wrong with the middle
        - What is the left doing wrong?
    - How did Bush get on the Republican ticket?
        - 1964: conservatives took over country piece by piece
            - Especially school boards
    - If all we're doing is voting, we're part of the problem
    - Democratic party does not represent general public
        - We need to take it over or leave it
    - Campaign reform is needed
    - We should trust people, not politicians, not government
    - Phil picked sustainability as key issues
        - Groups working on sustainability locally
            - No New Nukes
            - Company bringing in wind farms
    - Most people are left of the Democratic Party
    - The way to contact people is to contact people
        - People get information from neighbors, coworkers, church
    - We're all white
        - That's a problem
3. Past Successes
    - Obama, Durbin
        - Obama was landslide
    - BNCPJ creates a community for conversation
    - Karl Rove thought Bush would win landslide victory
        - Vote was close
    - Voter turnout was a big success
    - Phil's campaign put issues on map
    - We've raised awareness
    - BNCPJ has grown
    - Educational forumn on gay marriage was full
    - We have increased our potential
    - Labor Day Parade
4. Discussion of post-election action plans
    - Votes weren't counted
        - Letters to the editor
        - blackboxvoting.org
    - Petition drive for upcoming election
        - Demand voting machines have paper trail
    - Support opposition to draft/war among military 
    - Letters to the editor
        - Send to representatives
    - Change people's minds
    - Put more pressure on Durbin and Obama to move left
    - Reach out
        - Especially to minority communities
    - Redefine rules of engagement in politics
    - Get into the streets
    - Normal Theatre will bring in suggested movies
    - Go to other organizations
        - SPAN meets Tuesdays at 9
            - David is going
        - No New Nukes meets Tuesday 7:30 at Ecology Action Center
        - NAACP
        - Boys and Girls club
            - predominately African-American
    - Decided Goals:
        1) Vic will lead outreach/letters
            - how to write letters to the editor
            - reviewing drafts
            - drafts on website?
            - put letters on website
                - Scott will do
        2) Networking - David will lead
            - Ralph will be No New Nukes contact 
            - Valerie wil connect to African-American community
            - adopt-a-group
            - identify already existing members of other groups
        3) Maria will network with global uplift
            - develop a resource list for BNCPJ
        3) Elections - Phil
            - Dozens of offices up locally
            - need list of local open offices
            - Scott and Kevin are both interested in running
            - can get advisory questions on the ballot
        4) Media criticism - John Ernst
            - column in Indy
            - collective statements from BNCPJ
        5) Sustainability - Greg
            - Renewable energy portfolio in state legislature
5. Announcements
    - Tomorrow night 7pm in Student Services building
        - Ralph will go
    - Followup on December 5
    - PICC 
        - will be making a website
            - anyone want to help?
        - will be selling ornaments for $4, personalized for $6
        - will be doing international art project for kids
        - continuing work on peace camp
    - Art studio walk in downtown Bloomington 
        - Music at 411 N Center - Greg
        - 5-9pm Friday
    - Bloomington town council will be voting on a living wage ordinance
        - for arena staff
        - write letters
    - Phil gets to appoint 66 precinct captains for McLean County
    - Ralph has videos of Helen Caldicot