A note from Barbara Steinwachs

Dear Friends,

So many of you have said, after [the November 2004] election, that you entered a period of deep depression. Some stayed in bed. Some refused to listen to the news.

This always happens after elections that we lose, but this was worse. And our fears have been more than confirmed, each day bringing new amazements. Norma Brailow, now in her nineties, a committee woman before she moved to Indiana, told me over the phone, "They are destroying everything Franklin tried to do."

Many of you speak of how you are dismayed, not only by the administration's actions, but by what often seems to be the lack of action by our Democratic officials.

So why are we still caring about politics? Why are we still choosing to spend precious time from our precious years of life trying to influence what happens?

I for one have made the choice to continue to treasure the values Democrats have long held dear, and to build a Democratic presence right here in our tiny Yates County.

I look to Chuck Schumer and Hillary Clinton and the Senate's coming efforts to preserve a bipartisan voice for judicial appointments, in the wake of the judicial branch's recent staunch stand for separation of powers. I look to Eliot Spitzer, who exercises his office with relentless responsibility, and eagerly await his becoming governor.

I look to so many of you who are active here in Yates County, behind so many scenes, fighting tirelessly for human services and health care and social justice in our own community, understanding that everyone has a right for their voice to be heard, the most vulnerable above all.

I look to those few courageous persons who have agreed to run for office here this fall, despite the odds of challenging a heavily Republican district. They believe in serving their communities, and they believe in giving the voters a choice. They choose not to give up, but to be vigorously proactive.

I believe our Democratic party, though far from perfect, is one of our best hopes. I believe it provides a setting, a forum, for working for change. As our mission statement says, I look to this Party "to listen with tolerance and respect, to find ways to reconcile differing views."

Besides, despite everything, politics remains, as many say, the best game! It is a place to meet friends and have fun and pour out our energies for those people, imperfect like ourselves, who do their best to create a fair and just world.

I ask you to help us provide administrative support for all we do, to relieve the financial burden on our local candidates. Please send back the following donor form (click HERE). Thank you for never giving up on creating a Democratic presence.

Gratefully,

Barbara Steinwachs
Yates County Democratic Committee