Drinking Liberally

The “Official Unofficial Drink of the Obama Administration,” as decided by Drinking Liberally’s National Contest, was the Hope Float. The Drink consists of Baileys, Butterscotch Schnapps and Crème de Cocoa, and was concocted by Cass Chulick of the Spartanburg, South Carolina chapter. This week we profile the Spartanburg chapter as it celebrates its first birthday.

Cass Chulick, a chapter leader for Drinking Liberally Spartanburg, was first recommended to Drinking Liberally by her therapist, who thought she might need a social outlet after the tragic loss of her boyfriend to cancer. Cass brought along her friend, Kevin Justus (who is also a chapter leader for Spartanburg), and together they attended a meeting of the Greenville, SC chapter, about 45 minutes away. They had a wonderful time and couldn’t believe they had all these “instant friends who think like we do…in South Carolina!”

After making the trip to the Greenville chapter’s meeting a few more times, bringing along more friends and even Cass’ parents, they started to question why they were making the drive to Greenville when so many of them were from Spartanburg in the first place. Cass’ dad, Al Chulick, took the first steps to make the first meeting of the Spartanburg, South Carolina chapter happen.

The first year was nothing short of a successes. “It has been a truly amazing year to host Drinking Liberally in a conservative southern town,” said Cass. “The gratitude that has been expressed by the folks who have found us this past year is outstanding.”

New chapters can learn from Spartanburg’s experiences. In the beginning, meetings would sometimes amount to just two to four of them hanging out at the bar, wondering if they were wasting their time. But after promoting their chapter on MySpace, spreading fliers around town, and hearing the encouraging words of Justin Krebs at the Living Liberally National Conference (where he noted that, in the nascent days of the original DL in New York City, it was sometimes only two people sipping at Rudy’s), they decided to press on. Now, when the Spartanburg chapter gathers at the Hickory Tavern, between six and fifteen people show up, and that number is anticipated to grow.

“Spartanburg appears to be becoming more progressive,” says Cass. The town had their first Gay Pride March this year, the number of local liberal bloggers is growing, a co-op grocery store is in the works, and they even held a pep rally, “Stand Up for Spartanburg” this spring, where community members got together to celebrate their Spartanburg pride and find ways to better their home. The changing environment in Spartanburg is setting the stage for a fantastic second year of growth and prosperity for this great Drinking Liberally chapter down in South Carolina.

The Republicans spend their time insinuating
that Sotomayor is a bigot who is weak on the law
& aren't interested in listening to her actual views.

The Democrats use their minutes lobbing praise,
delighted to listen to their own grand rhetoric
but not much invested in her responses.

And Sotomayor, for her part, learned the lesson
not to be a thoughtful, persuasive conversationalist
...but simply to say as little as possible.

This may be called a nomination hearing,
but it is not clear that any of these folks are listening
...which is fine, since they're not saying much either.

And yet...this is how we'll get a better Court.

Wash the taste of Lindsey Graham out of your mouth
with cool beer & warm conversation on this hot night
at your local progressive social club.

DRINKING LIBERALLY
Find - or start - a chapter near you.

In the quiet, Southern California town of Claremont, a Drinking Liberally chapter rages on every Wednesday night at 7:30 at the Casablanca Bar and Grill.

David Withers started the chapter after moving from Pasadena, where his son had first introduced him to Drinking Liberally. While he claims he’s not “an activist,” Withers has always been involved in politics in one way or another. He admits that it all began in the 1960s when he “wore out his shoes protesting.” The Claremont chapter began last October with three or four members, and has now grown to an average size of 15 to 20 members. Withers has helped the chapter expand and introduce its own exciting events.

The Claremont DL chapter has quite a bit of spunk. Their party for Obama’s inauguration was attended by over 80 people and featured decorations, music, a screening of the ceremony, a food drive for the local Inland Valley Hope Partners, and plenty of tears of joy. In preparation for the May city council election, all three candidates came and chatted at DL. When notable speakers like Obama’s campaign manager David Plouffe and activist Bill Ayers came to speak at the Claremont colleges, the chapter went to see them together, and then reconvened to discuss it afterwards at the bar. The group is also working on starting an ongoing political book and DVD exchange.

The chapter certainly doesn’t lack a sense of humor. When they met on April Fool’s Day, Withers sent out an email saying that they were going to stop gathering at bars and instead hold their meetings over Twitter. He quite convincingly explained that the chapter had grown too large for in-person conversation, but that they would meet for one last time that night to discuss the new arrangements. Several people showed up at the meeting just to yell at him and others sent him delayed emails saying it took them too long to realize it was an April Fool’s Day prank.

A few weeks ago, when the Los Angeles Lakers played the Houston Rockets in the NBA playoffs, Withers made a bet with Houston DL chapter leader David Robertson. The losing chapter leader had to write an embarrassing message on their face for the duration of their weekly meeting. After the Lakers victory, Robertson wrote “Lakers Rock” on his face, and documented it for the Claremont folks.

The group has also garnered a fair amount of media attention. Both the Claremont Courier and the Daily Bulletin have done extensive pieces on the chapter, and word about the group has spread throughout the community. While they got a few, as Withers described them, “damn hippies” comments, the community has been largely receptive to the chapter’s activities.

Soon, the group will visit the local Dale Brothers Brewery and hear from the Dale brothers themselves about their beer. They’re also planning a movie outing to see “Food, Inc.” In the future, the branch hopes to do more charity work and reach out to the Claremont colleges.

As they continue to expand, the Claremont chapter is certainly a branch to watch. They have been pursuing new and interesting ways of creating discussion and awareness around important issues.

Mark Sanford was derelict in his duties
but Sarah Palin's living up to her responsibilities
...by abdicating them before finishing a single term.

John Ensign was a hypocrite & a disappointment
but Sarah Palin's proving herself a leader
...by giving up governing to focus on herself.

The Senate GOP is out-of-touch & out of power
but Sarah Palin's making real change
...by leaving office to work "outside the system."

But, she insists, don't you dare call her a quitter!

Quitter?...I don't even know her...

Hell, at least she's entertaining & I hope she stays:
it just helps conservatives look even worse.

Come share a glass, in disbelief or delight,
as we toast farewell to one more Con
and share the company of a few Pros
at your local progressive social club.

DRINKING LIBERALLY
Find - or start - a chapter near you.

Josh Bolotsky and I are seated in the auditorium at the Hotel Trades Council union hall, gearing up to cover the Working Families Party Mayoral Forum.

We'll be doing the live posting over at Open Left -- and you can also watch the forum for yourself at: http://www.workingfamiliesparty.org/liveforum/

The rules and timeline are up; the forum should begin at 5:30pm.

Join us!

At 5:30pm today, the Working Families Party will be hosting a Mayoral Forum -- they'll be interviewing Democratic hopefuls Bill Thompson and Tony Avella, and incumbent Michael Bloomberg.

You can watch the live feed here.

Or tune back in for live blogging coverage.

After Mark Foley, David Vitter & Larry Craig,
the latest exploits of John Ensign & Mark Sanford
make "Republican family values" an instant punchline.

While Americans want healthcare & energy reform,
the Congressional GOP keeps saying everything's fine
...a strategy that's made them a national joke.

And every time Michael Steele opens his mouth,
Palin's on TV, or Rush pipes up again,
it's hard not to chuckle at the absurdity.

Sure the Left may have Senator Al Franken,
but it's the Right that's making us laugh.

But be careful, Dems - with 60 Senate seats,
we better see meaningful reforms out of DC
...or else, next election, the joke's on us.

Head into the holiday with reason to smile,
share that laughter as your share a few drinks
at your local progressive social club.

DRINKING LIBERALLY
Find - or start - a chapter near you.

Mark Sanford betrayed family, staff & supporters...
yet GOP governors already betrayed their citizens
by playing games & obstructing the economic stimulus.

So he's a hypocrite who judged others' affairs...
but the right-wing is full of hypocrites,
who support government handouts for corporate cronies
while objecting to a helping hand for regular Americans.

Yes, he was dangerously irresponsible in his actions...
just as the Republican Congress irresponsibly endangers us
by fighting healthcare, energy & financial reforms.

We're not surprised Sanford disappeared from his job.
The GOP Party-of-No checked out of governing months ago.

Now let's hope grown-ups show up & get to work.

Whether you're laughing at the farce of it all
or crying at the frustration, you need a drink --
shared with other like-minded libation-lifters
at your local progressive social club.

DRINKING LIBERALLY
Find - or start - a chapter near you.

Liberals aren't too happy about the current New York State Senate debacle, but at Drinking Liberally chapters across the country progressives are finding a meeting place to discuss and debate what should be done.

As the contentious power struggle continues, the question arises: what will happen if the stalemate persists? So far, it is blocking abortion rights, marriage equality, and other progressive legislation.

Republicans are also rejecting Democrats' proposals to create a provisional bipartisan committee to enable the Senate to vote on urgent legislation while the debate continues.

While the advantage of blocking partisan issues is obvious, Living Liberally friend and supporter Senator Eric Schneiderman points out that there are serious consequences to inaction which should be considered nonpartisan. One example: legislation that will affect city operating budgets in the near future.

Hear more of Schneiderman's thoughts on the issue and how progressives should handle the clash in his interview on the Fred Dicker Show:

Part 1

Part 2

Living Liberally isn't known for moderation -- after all "Drinking Moderately" just wouldn't have caught on as quickly.

And so, we're sometime find ourselves in disagreement with those who plead for compromise, bipartisanship and false centrism as though they are inherently good things. Being "bipartisan" doesn't make something right -- and as the US Senate keeps reminding us, not all "partisans" are as much on the liberal side as we like.

But today we tip our hat to State Senator Eric Schneiderman -- another generally uncompromising figure -- for encouraging a compromise worth its weight: getting the State Senate back to work.

As the long-time Living Liberally friend and fan-favorite wrote in a column run by The Huffington Post today:

Marriage equality, the Reproductive Health Act, paid family leave, tax relief for the middle class, the Crime Gun Identification Act, the Farm Workers Bill of Rights, mortgage and pension fraud legislation, school governance reform and other essential bills must be addressed this year. All of these important agenda items are being held hostage by politicians who are more interested in perks and titles than doing what's right for the people of New York.

We look at other states like California that are so bankrupt as to be essentially broken. In New York, we've broken ourselves.

Many of us wonder why NY hasn't become the progressive champion that would lead other states down routes like marriage equality. That question will remain important in future sessions -- but for now, it's not about how we lead...it's about how we function.

Until we get that done...then get onto the business of building real momentum behind our issues that wouldn't be halted by a few self-serving Senators.