Last Sunday, I announced that I would draw two names from a Kossack-generated list of nominees and give them gifts of life-time subscriptions to Daily Kos. The outpouring was immense. In the announcement post and in emails to me, people provided 423 names.
The hat from which the names were drawn
There was a bit of confusion. Many commenters seem to have thought I was going to sort through the nominees' "résumés" and
select who I thought would be the best recipients. That was never my intent. It's why I called it a "drawing." A completely random selection of two names from the pile of nominees.
As it turned out, things got a bit complicated. I started that very evening to write the submitted names on scraps of paper. Within a couple of days, however, I found myself tossing one after another after another of those scraps because somebody else had chosen to give them a subscription. The generosity of so many Kossacks was, of course, a good thing. It made it obvious, however, that I needed to come up with a more systematic means of separating the nominees from Kossacks who were, every day, finding themselves with a surprise, often anonymous, gift subscription. So, I created a sortable file. And crossed names off as the gifts kept up their steady flow.
Then, KelleyRN2, Onomastic and Dr. Erich Bloodaxe RN made matters still more difficult with their Small Donors campaign. That project, still going on by the way, allows Kossacks who can't afford to spring for the $100 it costs to buy a lifetime subscription to contribute smaller amounts that are aggregated. At last count this morning, a dozen people, nine of them on my nominees' list, had been given subscriptions through the Small Donors campaign.
Eventually, by the time of the drawing, I was down to 94 names.
The hat filled with the names
Something else happened during the week, too. A Kossack who wishes to remain anonymous asked me to draw a third name when I drew my two names and s/he would pay for that third subscription. I said yes, of course. Later, that generous soul decided to make it three names. Consequently, I got to draw five names from the hat at noon Pacific Time today. The new life-time subscribers:
Susan G in MN
Avenging Angel
ColoTim
AoT
ScottyUrb
I wish I had a wallet deep enough to have drawn 20 names. But there are other places that need support, too, such as the propane project for the Lakota reservations in South Dakota and the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric Aids Foundation that I donate to each year. Happily, scores of Kossacks have stepped forward in the past week, dug into their wallets and found a Kossack or two they thought should have a life-time subscription at this place. Like the angel who added money for three subscriptions to my drawing, many of these donors took no credit for it. Told nobody publicly. Just opened up the subscription window, wrote in the name and paid.
The names that were drawn
This didn't just happen accidentally. It's long been obvious that this is more than just a place to talk about and organize around politics. It
is a community. You can read about how and why that is so nearly every day here. Lifetime friendships and political partnerships have had their genesis here. Isolated individuals have made connections. Solidarity has bonded us with struggles from Wisconsin to North Africa, not just abstractly but personally. And while it might seem hyperbolic to say that Daily Kos has rescued a few lives on the brink, we know it's true because a few people whose lives have been saved have told us so publicly. No small thing.
Just 13 more days and you won't be able to buy a life-time subscription again at Daily Kos, either for yourself or someone who you think ought to have one. If you can't afford to come up with $100, think about adding what you can to the Small Donors campaign.
To everyone who has written diaries about receiving a gift subscription or urging others to subscribe, many of whom have told amazing personal stories — poignant, funny, sometimes heart-breaking stories — thank you so very, very much. And thanks to all who have already bought subscriptions or are planning to do so before midnight, Dec. 31. You rock.
