We talked about Barack Obama tonight at the second ever Drinking Liberally Martinsburg.

A Hillary Clinton supporter sent him $100 today.

Ironically the most ardent supporter of his I know in this county who worked her ass off for him for months, phonebanking, etc., hasn't liked his recent positions. But we'll still vote for him.

I realize that DKos is not exactly the best forum in which to post announcements.  If any of the developers are reading, it sure would be nice to have a calendar on which Kossaks could post event information :-)

Progressives in Japan have a couple of events coming up that are open to anyone who happens to be in the Tokyo area.

1.  Drinking Liberally Tokyo, tomorrow!  Please feel free to drop by the Clubhouse sports bar in Shinjuku for our monthly Drinking Liberally event.  It's a fun group of people and I can help you request your ballot for the '08 election, if you haven't already requested it (you can request it at the link in my signature).

What interesting timing. Today, John McCain said   the following:

"I will use the veto as needed. I will veto every single beer — bill with earmarks," he said, as rumblings from the crowd could be heard. "And every single bill that we have come across my desk I will make them famous. I will veto them, you will know their names."

Come on, I know you're all tired of the primaries.  Don't you want to have some fun?  If you're in Denver, join us, and help save some ales at the same time.

In addition to rising temperatures, global warming is shifting precipitation patterns damaging the once plentiful supply of hops. Growing wheat and barley is also being affected.

Don't believe me?  See here:

WELLINGTON, New Zealand - The price of beer is likely to rise in coming decades because climate change will hamper the production of a key grain needed for the brew - especially in Australia, a scientist warned Tuesday.

Jim Salinger, a climate scientist at New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, said climate change likely will cause a decline in the production of malting barley in parts of New Zealand and Australia. Malting barley is a key ingredient of beer.

Hi Tucson and Southern Arizona Kossacks! This is a second announcement of the First Official Kossack Drinkup de Tucson (FOK’DT). The first announcement and feeble effort at a roll call on a holiday may be found here:Tucson Roll Call & Liberally Meeting Drinkup. We are crashing the already planned Liberally Drinking Meetup during which the following Special Guest will speak: Shireen Keyl, a graduate Fellow at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies who will share insights into the culture and people of Iran. It should be very informative and interesting, and timely.

Below the flip for details:

My fellow Kossaks,

I met most of you at the first and second YearlKos conventions in my role as Laughing Liberally MC, rabble rouser and Drinking Liberally party-goer. This Thursday, Drinking Liberally turns five years old, and I'd like your help in celebrating.

We have 247 chapters across 47 states, and need just a few more to cover the country. It's a 50-state strategy in line with what many of us in the netroots fight for at the local level: active, informed citizenship.

More below the jump

Hi Tucson Kossacks. Last night I did what Kid Oakland told us to and I joined a bunch of Obama campaign groups, including one for Kossacks and others for supporters from around AZ. This prompted me to want to finally motivate to get together with Tucson Kossacks for a meet-up. Kate McKinnon, another Tucsonan Kossack, suggested gathering at the already regularly scheduled Drinking Liberally meet ups, which I thought was an excellent plan. I don’t think Tucson has ever had an official Kossack meetup before, so let’s do it! What have we been waiting for?

Of course if you are anywhere within driving distance you are more than welcome to join in, even if not from Tucson proper.

Below the flip for details:

My wife and I will be visiting San Francisco the second week on August.  Perhaps my son will be on leave from his near Bagdad duty station and be able to join us.

We enjoy a good beer.  In fact I host the Ridley Park, PA chapter of Drinking Liberally  http://drinkingliberally.org/.

Who can suggest a San Francico brewpub we might especially enjoy?

Tonight, drinkers of all ages, races, sexes, and types will be gathering at
Sheffields
3258 N Sheffield Ave
7pm

in my kind of town, Chicago is.

A nice place, they even permit libruls.

Obviously, we will be watching the returns from NC and IN.  So, anyone who is interested, please join us and others and maybe even do something about your dangerously low blood alcohol levels.

When I was a child, I spoke like a child.  No, wait.  Drinking liberally report included!

A.  My parents had distinct routines for Sundays that differed from the other days of the week.  

B.  I have been in a social rut of late, and I am starting to cure it.

C.  How is your local Drinking Liberally chapter?

Last week I discussed the economic mess we are in. Someone commented on my blog that I am just making things up and that job growth has been fine under Bush. She claimed I gave no evidence that job growth has been nearly flat during the Bush administration. Well, let me refer people to Paul Krugman to sum up the dismal record Bush and the Republicans have had on job growth.

Krugman compares Bush only with Clinton, whose job creation record was unusually good. So here is a comparison of Presidents since Roosevelt from Daily Kos: (see below the fold)

Hey, Seattle-land Kossacks:

My birthday is a week from today. Help me celebrate by joining us Tuesday evening at Drinking Liberally at the Montlake Ale House, where we'll be watching primary results and consuming pub grub.

I've been looking forward to this particular Tuesday since forever, not because it's my birthday, but because I think it's a watershed in the primaries.

Bang-Bang!
I've been hinting at it for weeks if not months, but it's finally coming together.

Two of us came up with the idea of Shooting Liberally while at the last YearlyKos during the Rocky Mountain caucus.  It turns out it's not that far out an idea as Stan, Brad, and Jeff in New York and Charleston thought of it independently.  Great minds and all that...

Anyway, There are a lot of hunters in this state.  Some Americans also enjoy target practice.  And there are those who have their own home protection.

Not all of these folks are conservative, and many aren't political at all.  The NRA on the other hand, a little political.    

While there are extremists at each end of the 2nd Amendment, most people don't want to ban all guns or allow the free ownership of bazookas without any sort of regulation.  Some gun enthusiasts are even liberal.  

So with that we're launching Shooting Liberally.  We've done drinking, reading, and movies, so now liberals are gonna get together for a little target practice.

I participated in my first caucus today in Washington state.  It was a wonderful experience.  I acknowledge the participation problem with a caucus; yes, there are people who really cannot participate due to conflicts.  But now that I've experienced it, I have to say that I'm a vehement advocate.

Here's why.

The only Maine chapter of Drinking Liberally (run by Kennebec County Democrats, yay!) will be holding a Super Duper Mega Tsunami Tuesday party on February 5th at 7:00 till whenever we feel like leaving at a location to be determined in Kennebec County (probably Augusta or Waterville). This is a free event to attend, just bring money for grub and booze!

I've avoided the flame wars and constant attacks on the candidate diaries. I've already made up my mind as to who I favor, and the bottom line is that I'm going to vote for the nominee, whoever it is. I'm certainly NOT going to vote for whoever Wingnuttia puts up.

That said, I've been on DKos for just over three years and I love the sense of community here. Granted, I do avoid the conflict: I'm a Pisces, so take that for what it's worth.

But tonight I went to my very first Drinking Liberally here in the Emerald City, and my heart is STILL overflowing with what I encountered.

The Progressive Democrat Newsletter grew out of the frustration of the 2004 election. I have try mixing my own rants and ideas, with national issues, news items, and some very local groups and events in an attempt to both help shape debate and to help people find their own ways of getting involved.

This week I discuss the latest horrors committed by America's mercenaries in Iraq, a couple of comments on the special elections in OH-5 and VA-1, and the comments from the Anti-Defamation League regarding the Christianization of American plitics. I also do a roundup of local progressive events for places where I have had the most readers over the last couple of weeks including anti-Semitism in NYC, Veterans for Peace in Atlanta, Georgia, and upcoming chances for meeting Rick Noriega in Texas. Don't forget to visit an advertiser or two and if you want more, please visit Culture Kitchen.

This is being simul-posted at the exact same time on SquareState.net and DailyKos, because all politics is local and all local politics are national, and nowhere was that as readily on display as at tonight's Drinking Liberally in Denver where we raised a glass with Daily Kos front page writer, McJoan.

It seemed that every person in the room served a strangely dual role on both the local and national levels. We were just a group of local progressives, but the Mountain West seems to be enjoying a rare moment of relevance, and something is coming together politically in Denver right now that feels the way a town with a good music scene or flowering art movement must feel. I have been places where the pendulum of politics swung incrementally through the center, and certainly many area politicians are advocating for exactly that, but it was not the mood of this night. This was a creative movement that sought change on its own, very western, terms.

It was a cluster of average people, but they were all fearlessly willing to take the lead in crafting their own futures, and in that way their stories are worth telling to a wider audience.