The Citizens United decision allowed a flood of corporate money to manipulate the electoral process -- and, to say the least, the results have not been good. Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry's came up with a simple but powerful idea for a grassroots effort to petition for a Constitutional amendment that would undo this dreadful court decision. It is called the Stamp Stampede. Ordinary people can stamp their petition on dollar bills. This is a perfect activity to do around the kitchen table! But it is also a fun thing to do in groups -- and we Kossacks in Portland, OR will be having a meet up on Aug. 24 to do just that. (Let me know if you are in the area and would like to join us.)
If you decide to organize a stamping party, here are some tips.
First, message me to join the brand new DK group, Daily Kos Stamp Stampede, a place where you can post your experiences with stamping and connect with other stampers.
Second, connect with the Stamp Stampede on Facebook. There may be other stampers in your area who do not know about Daily Kos but who would love to join your party. The people at Stamp Stampede can connect you.
Third, (and most important) get a stamp! Buy them here -- the Stamp Stampede store has everything you need. There are five messages to choose from. I chose, "Corporations are not People" and "Stamp Money Out of Politics" myself...
Fourth, prepare for questions about the legality of stamping on dollar bills. Here is the Stamp Stampede page about that, including a handy legal opinion to print out and take to your meet up.
Fifth, learn how to place your stamp on the bill! There is a tutorial here. Essentially, you want to avoid stamping on the middle section of the bill if you can because that is the part of the bill that automatic scanners focus on. The tutorial will tell you what you need to know.
Sixth, choose new bills if you can. They will be in circulation longer and your stamped message will be seen by more people. It is estimated that each bill you stamp will be seen by 875 people -- but this number will be even higher if your bill is new and crisp.
There is a lot more info on the Stamp Stampede website. Check it out. The stats are pretty powerful:
Every dollar you stamp will reach 875 people, if you stamp 5 dollars a day for a year, that's over a million. Together, we can create a stampede that Congress can't ignore.
Welcome to the Kitchen Table! It is the end of the week, time to relax and spend time with friends. Pull up a chair and tell us about your day and your weekend plans. And if you would like an invite to the Daily Kos Stamp Stampede group, let me know in the comments. I will send you an invite straight away!
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Kitchen Table Kibitzing is a community series for those who wish to share part of the evening around a virtual kitchen table with kossacks who are caring and supportive of one another. So bring your stories, jokes, photos, funny pics, music, and interesting videos, as well as links—including quotations—to diaries, news stories, and books that you think this community would appreciate. Readers may notice that most who post diaries and comments in this series already know one another to some degree, but newcomers should not feel excluded. We welcome guests at our kitchen table, and hope to make some new friends as well. |