Das Williams for Santa Barbara City Council

2006-05-19T20:32:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone - just noticed that this weblog is still high up in the results if you google Das Williams. Google's algorithm is a little slow so we'll help it out here: his main site for the run for supervisor is here...

http://www.daswilliamsforsupervisor.com/

and the weblog is here...

http://www.legendarysurfers.com/das/blog/

Don't let grumpy Travis Armstrong sway you...Vote for Das!

2003-11-05T01:55:00.000-08:00

We won!

And now, we sleep! Thank you for your help, everyone!

2003-11-04T08:56:00.000-08:00

Go vote! Go vote! Go vote!
Morning everyone! Today is the big day. The polls are already open and don't close until 8pm tonight. All you have to do is get out there and vote for Das, but if you want to go above and beyond the call of duty, come by campaign HQ (1019 Quienientos #2). We'll be coordinating our reminder system from there.

And, it's too soon to talk about this, but just as a reminder: the party is going to be at SoHO tonight, that's 1221 State St., upstairs (go back through the courtyard if you're coming from State). The party is for all our supporters, so if you're reading this, you're invited. If you have any questions about the party give me a call at 455-3003, and for any other questions call Stephanie at 886-3181. If you have any questions about polling places or anything else to do with the actual voting process, try sb-democracy.com or 1-800-SBC-VOTE. See you out there today!

2003-11-03T10:11:00.000-08:00

Josh Molina had another terrific story this morning in the News-Press, City's Golden Triangle holds a wealth of voters. This story grapples with issues that are hugely fundamental to the operation of democracy: not just who votes and who doesn't, but who it is that campaigns try to talk to. Young voters are the perfect example of this viscious cycle nationally. Everyone wonders why the turnout among people ages 18-24 is so dismal, yet there have been few campaigns in recent history that have actually reached out to them. Most campaigns only target likely voters with their message, so the citizens who have been left out before continue to be left out.

Das' campaign tried to turn back the tide at least a little bit, because we know democracy only really works when everyone participates. While anyone can speak up at any time in theory because there are public meetings almost every week, speaking up isn't easy. Those meetings can be very intimidating. But it's a heck of a lot easier to speak up if a candidate or volunteer shows up your doorstep, and gives you a piece of literature with the candidate's cell phone number or website where you can leave comments on it!

The thing about this strategy is that it's risky. If people - that's you, the readers of this weblog -don't show up at the polls tomorrow and vote for Das, other candidates in the future will be less likely to try talking to new voters. Yet another reason why getting out to vote tomorrow is going to be extremely important.

So here's a kind of long excerpt from the story, but definitely check out the whole thing at the link above too:

Mr. Williams estimated that he or his volunteers have walked at least 75 of the 80 precincts in Santa Barbara.

We did a lot of that walking this weekend. We also worked on Saturday to get a last-minute GOTV mailer out on time. Here is a picture of a crew of us busily sticking and stuffing (note a casual Pedro Nava, our esteemed Coastal Commissioner, doing his part):

Important news! We have a location for a victory party tomorrow night, and everyone is invited. Stop by SOhO, 1221 State St, anytime after 8 p.m. and say hello. We will have music, and probably a few other surprises!

2003-11-02T09:02:00.000-08:00

Today's schedule. We're going to walk this morning after breakfast I think, but the main event will be this afternoon from 3pm, until a little after sunset. Meet at Campaign HQ, 1019 Quinientos #2. Sunday afternoon is my favorite time to hit the neighborhoods and with the election less than 72 hours away, a lot of people are thinking about the election, and the ones who aren't need to be. So come on down and give us a hand!

2003-11-01T22:15:00.000-08:00

Okay, so trick or vote didn't work out, thanks to Mother Nature's decision to grace us with a downpour! But it was beautiful, and definitely worth it for the crisp, super-clear day we got for walking this morning. I was lucky enough to get the upper east side, and at one point, after knocking on a door, I looked to my right, saw the view of the islands, and literally gasped! It was an amazing day, and a great walk, too. A lot of folks weren't home, but most of those who were liked what I had to say about Das (if they weren't completely for him already).

2003-10-31T10:33:00.000-08:00

Trick or...Vote? Tonight around 5pm we're going to be walking a neighborhood - in our Halloween costumes! It's going to be a blast. If you want in, give Stephanie or Das a call, we'll be leaving from campaign HQ (1019 Quinientos #2, one and a half blocks east of Milpas).

I'm at campaign HQ now and Das just brought around a plate of crackers, brie and sausages. Kind of a weird breakfast, but yum. Kim is doing some data scanning and getting ready to go deliver some more lawn signs with Patrick, Brinn is sorting through a pile of press clippings, and I just resurrected the ancient Compaq that I'm typing this on (Windows 95...it's allllivvve!).

Make sure you pick up a copy of this week's Independent. Das gained their endorsement, and their coverage of the importance of this election was as good a summary as I've seen.

2003-10-30T08:32:00.000-08:00

We had yet another good phoning session last night, and this morning's story is about last night's Brotherhood of Santa Barbara forum. Sorry we didn't post that here - we meant to but heard about it too late. The focus of the story was on the two candidates that didn't show up, but here's part of the story regarding what Das had to say:

There was also an excellent letter signed by the Director and Co-Chair of the Central Coast National Conference for Community and Justice office (it's in the letters section, about halfway down the page). Here's an excerpt:

This letter makes an excellent and important point about the necessity of diversity on our city council. If there's one thing that the people I've talked to on the phone and out in the neighborhoods and in forums and meetings can agree on (and there may be only one thing!), it's that the council needs to be shaken up a bit. There is no better way to do that than to bring in some fresh and diverse voices.

2003-10-28T22:07:00.000-08:00

News roundup. Now that it is complete, we are happy to post about the series of issue stories that Josh Molina has been writing in the News-Press over the last three days. While it's very difficult to squeeze 10 different candidates' positions on issues as complicated as the 101 traffic problem and the housing crisis in a single news story, Josh put forth a noble effort, and these articles are a decent introduction to the different perspectives that exist among the field.

Highway 101. For those of you without subscriptions, here is the beginning, and Das' part (we get a lot of questions about this at the phoning sessions):

The 10 candidates for Santa Barbara City Council have traded barbs in recent days over a variety of politically charged issues -- but the one that gets people riled the most is congestion on Highway 101. Most of the candidates believe that it will take some combination of widening the highway and alternative forms of transportation, such as commuter rail, to solve that problem. But specifics on how to do it, and how to pay for it, pull the differences among the candidates into sharper focus. "We should be encouraging people to get out of their cars," said candidate Das Williams. "We've got to have some better long-term solutions." Mr. Williams said it is inevitable that Highway 101 will gain a third lane, but he believes that such a lane should be for vehicles carrying lots of passengers, such as commuter vans or carpool vehicles. He would like to combine that change with commuter rail. Mr. Williams said that, if elected, he would work with city and county governments in Ventura and Santa Barbara to share the costs of creating the rail system -- so the burden doesn't fall to one government agency. Housing. In this piece, Das' position isn't really accurately depicted. Whenever Das talks about housing, he talks about affordable and workforce housing for middle-class Santa Barbarans and working families. It means building more housing for people considered "poor," but it also means urban infill-type projects for people who aren't poor, but who still can't afford to buy houses in the city where they work:

If elected, he would like to double the amount of redevelopment money the city spends on affordable housing projects, to about $6 million. Unless that happens, "the middle and the working class in this community will be decimated in the next 10 years," he said." The Budget. In this one, Das talks about the sewer pipe replacement issue, which many of us feel is one of the most important things the City Council must do in the next few years:

Candidate Das Williams would like to spend at least $2 million in reserves to replace the city's sewer system. Mr. Williams, who is campaigning largely on water quality and environmental issues, says leakage from old pipes seeps into the groundwater and pollutes the ocean. He is on record as supporting a living wage, but he said his candidacy is about more than just social issues. "I will be fiscally responsible with the taxpayers' money," he said. If thinking about spending money in the reserve funds makes you queasy, consider the cost of not replacing the sewer pipes and having to deal with a major water quality disaster in the future.

Oh, and while we are speaking of news, we wanted to post this profile of Das that the News-Press has kept permanently on its site (along with the nine others). It's a nice overview of him and what he stands for.

2003-10-27T22:23:00.000-08:00

Just got back from tonight's edition of Dialing for Das, which was jam-packed! I had trouble finding a phone, we had so many great volunteers giving their time for the cause. I was calling voters on the Mesa, telling them about Das' qualifications and platform when it comes to the environment. Even though there are people who aren't interested in talking, it amazes me every time I do this how aware most people are of the problem, and how hungry they are for people who speak about solutions.

This is especially true when it comes to bacteria pollution in the creeks. Dan and I live very close to Mission Creek, and we are horrified by its condition every time we walk by and catch a whiff of it. I know it's a problem that has been with us for a long time, but what I told voters tonight is that we need someone on the City Council who is going to make solving these problems a priority. I can't stress enough how important this is. Being a City Councilmember is a tough job, and it demands someone who is used to toiling tirelessly for little or no pay. I can tell you from the perspective of a Das volunteer that he does not rest much!

The other thing he has going for him over the other candidates on this issue is that he has real experience and expertise behind him. He really is an expert on this stuff, and he can speak amazingly articulately about it, which is crucial when you have to take your case to state and federal agencies for funding and cooperation.

Now, before I sign off, I have to throw in a modest request: I hope some of you who have read this blog will take a minute to give us some feedback in the comments section. One of the best things about blogging is the community that sprouts up out of nowhere around issues, ideas and people. We love that people are checking out the site but we want to hear from you! It's not the same without the two-way communication going. Don't be shy! Tell us what you think, how you're feeling, what's motivating you to be involved or engaged in this City Council race. Or what's turning you off? What do you think could be done better? Let's start the dialogue.

I hope everyone is having a great night. I am happy to be listening to Dan make a mix on our turntables for Zephyr Teachout and Ryan Davis, Howard Dean campaign staffers who will be in Santa Barbara tomorrow as part of the Drive for Democracy Tour, traveling from LA to Vermont in a 1978 Airstream. They are doing a big visibility event at the Farmer's Market on State and Cota from 3 to 6:30 p.m. Das will be there, showing his support at about 4:30, so drop by and say hi!

2003-10-27T14:27:00.000-08:00

Eight days and counting. I've been keeping an eye on our statistics page, where I see that we've been linked to from this super cool and beautifully designed local blog that I had no idea existed before. We're getting a lot of hits today - welcome to all of you, and please post any comments or feedback you have via the "comments" link below this or any post. Das is knocking on so many doors because he wants to know what's on your mind, but this is a good place to let us know too!

2003-10-25T20:19:00.000-07:00

Nine days left!. We've had a fun couple of days, keeping the campaign going for the final push into the home stretch. There's going to be a lot going on this week and next weekend but today and yesterday have been fun too. Here's a few pictures:

Pat, Chad & Brinn take a break from calling

Patrick, Das, Christine, Stephanie & Chad

A few of Saturday morning's herd o' walkers

Das explaining the intricacies of the city's sewer system. "Lemme 'splain. No, no time. Lemme sum up." (that will only really make sense to Princess Bride fans).

The turnout we've had has been terrific. Walking neighborhoods is something that can seem a little overwhelming if only a few people show up, but with a big group like we had this morning it doesn't seem nearly as daunting. We'll be at it again tomorrow (Sunday) afternoon, starting around 4pm.

2003-10-23T12:33:00.000-07:00

Things have been a little quiet in the News-Press over the past couple of days in terms of the city council race, but there was one really amazing letter the other day that I'm going to take the liberty of posting in its entirety here since the whole thing is so darn good:

Williams' concern, vision offer hope

Our humble little blog here got a mention on Doc Searl's weblog sometime yesterday! Doc is a techie with soul and a blogger from way back, he's been at it about as long as anyone. He moved here to Santa Barbara from the Bay Area a few years ago (around when I did). Hello to all of you coming in from Doc's site, and everyone, do let us know what you think with the comment links found below every post!

2003-10-20T22:25:00.000-07:00

It's a little late for this, but check out Eric Cardenas & Geoff Green's morning radio show, Grassroots Radio, on KCSB tomorrow morning from 8-9am. (that's 91.9 AM here in Santa Barbara, but you can also tune in on their webcast.) And of course you can use the comments feature here to discuss it, if anyone is up and listening.

2003-10-19T11:48:00.000-07:00

Pictures! We've got some pictures from Friday night's Dialing for Das session...

The pictures are of Das, Jen and Kim (in that order). Things were cut short a bit because Das suprised us by giving away some free theater tickets! Kim, her boyfriend and Jen and I snapped them up. The play was Arthur Miller's The Ride Down Mt. Morgan - it was funny and smart and well acted and exactly the break I think we all needed.

This weekend's neighborhood walks are continuing. Jen and I talked to a bunch of people down in the Funk Zone yesterday since that's part of our precinct. The main worry that came up from a couple of different people was that what they've got down there is going to be gentrified into oblivion after La Entrada is built. This is yet another situation where the Neighborhood Preservation Ordinance that Das supports could be really helpful. That's a great area, and we should fight to keep it that way. Sunday afternoon is a great time to walk and we'll be heading out again today, so give Das or Stephanie a call if you'd like to join in.

2003-10-18T08:19:00.000-07:00

Also, the topic of the budget came up this week a couple of times, both in the News Press and on here. You can decide for yourself: the city has the whole thing up on the city website. Feel free to use the comments link (just below this post) to discuss it.

2003-10-18T07:38:00.000-07:00

This weekend's schedule. It's a bit late notice but there is some walking going on this weekend. Meet at Campaign HQ (aka Das's house, 1019 Quinientos #2, a block and a half east of Milpas) this morning around 9 and grab a few hours worth of neighbors to go out and talk to. We'll also be going out tomorrow afternoon and will announce the time here later today. Next week, we'll start at 5:30 AM Saturday and Sunday with calisthenics. Just kidding, although we did talk about it!

2003-10-17T15:00:00.000-07:00

Friday News Roundup. Yesterday in the News Press' ongoing editorial page coverage of Monday's Planning Forum, they came out against the very idea of the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance that the current city council and staff are working on. Their stated reason for opposing it is on the grounds that it "may turn off builders from our market and ultimately serve to increase home prices for those not lucky enough to get the special units."

Taking this one argument at a time: what, really, does it take to discourage builders from a market where they can build small townhouses next to a freeway and turn them around before they're even built for $900,000 a pop? The housing problem here is absolutely not a result of our inability to attract homebuilders if we want to; it's that we've intentionally limited development to protect this beautiful place. This is as it ought to be; it means that unlike practically everywhere else in California, the people are truly in charge of development here, not the developers.

Their second argument would be true if we had any hope of building our way out of this problem. This isn't going to be possible if we're truly serious about preserving the character of our neighborhoods. The market is failing to deliver the South Coast the housing we need - intentionally. So we must consider other solutions and we need some new thinking on the Council to effectively do that.

The combination of the Neighborhood Preservation and Inclusionary Housing ordinances could very well be the solution here. The city could use this opportunity to design market-based solutions, such as revenue-neutral incentives, paid for by differential mitigation fees applied to the market rate housing that is being built. (that's a little jargony maybe, but if you're curious, give Das a call - he loves explaining this!) Getting these two pieces of legislation right is going to require vision and a lot of hard work. Das is uniquely suited for this difficult task.

A few weeks ago, the Economic Community Project released its report that included six scenarios for the future of the South Coast. In all of them, the middle class (that's any family earning under about $150k in this case) gets booted unceremoniously out of Santa Barbara and traffic on the 101 goes through the roof as we transition further towads what the Independent recently called a "plantation economy." Das believes that these scenarios symbolize a failure of the political imagination. We absolutely can do better, and it's the job of the city leadership to investigate alternative solutions. Rigid thinking and blind adherence to how things have always worked isn't going to solve our problems, but the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance might. We should elect a Council that would be willing to continue to study this with open minds.

2003-10-15T22:04:00.000-07:00

Evening News Roundup. The News-Press chimed in this morning with another editorial fretting over the city budget. While we know it's not the booming 90s, Santa Barbara is hardly teetering on the verge of bankruptcy. Just look at what they did to the sidewalks on State Street last summer! Here's the deal:

Das has studied the city's budget. He agrees that now is not the time for costly new programs or pricey outside consultants. While it's also true that the state and federal governments are shifting more of the burden onto the local level, the city budget is basically sound, and Das will continue to be a careful guardian of it. The News-Press needs to back up its assertions about the budget rather than just leveling them.

We need fiscal responsibility, but we also must meet the infrastructure needs of this city. There's a cost to doing something, and a cost to not doing something. If a project, like replacing our crumbling sewer lines, is going to cost us more money in the long run, then that's something we have to think very hard about doing sooner rather than later.

As for the living wage, the facts are this: if we don't pay these people what they deserve, the taxpayers end up subsidizing them through other methods. We have to build astronomically expensive new highways so people can commute from Timbuktu, we subsidize the health care they can't afford that puts them in the emergency room rather than a doctor's regular care, and we subsidize after-school programs because both parents are working so hard and commuting so far.

We have an economic choice to make in this country: we can start to choose to pay people what they're worth or we can continue to ignore the problem. We can start right here in Santa Barbara. Let's elect some representatives to city council who aren't going to be penny wise and pound foolish.

2003-10-15T08:33:00.000-07:00

We had a terrific phone session last night! Unfortunately I forgot the camera, but we had most of the lines in the office lit up the whole time - Except when we were eating Thai food from Your Place. (easily the best Thai place in town) I talked to a bunch of nice folks up in Samarkand. Got a couple of hangups of course, too, but when you call people like this most of them realize pretty quickly you're not selling anything and are happy to talk to you. We're doing it again tonight, so come by if you've got a chance! 130 E. Carillo from 5:30 to 9 or so.

2003-10-14T15:13:00.000-07:00

Morning news roundup. The News-Press had two stories this morning on the City Council race. The first was about last night's packed planning forum, and the second was about the raft of forward-thinking groups that endorsed Das, Helene and Babatunde:

"Incumbent Councilman Babatunde Folayemi, Helene Schneider and Das Williams were backed by the Sierra Club, Women's Political Committee, Service Employees International Union 620, Santa Barbara County League of Conservation Voters, Justice PAC, SEIU Local 535, Santa Barbara County Action Network (SBCAN), Tri-Counties Central Labor Council and Democratic Women of Santa Barbara County."
Tonight we are phone-banking again, from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at 130 East Carillo Street. It should be a fun night, so hope to see you there!

2003-10-13T23:42:00.000-07:00

Das, along with Helene and Babatunde, picked up the endorsement of an armada of nine progressive-minded groups today. We'll pick up the story and post the details tomorrow but it's exciting stuff.

Here's a couple of pictures from this evening...

Das speaking at the tonight's planning forum, and...

Stephanie, Patrick and Das at the ensuing strategy session a few hours later. Note the ratio of three empty salad containers to one empty pizza box - we eat healthy!

2003-10-13T10:06:00.000-07:00

Morning news roundup. No post from yesterday because we were running around as usual. Das walked a neighborhood in the afternoon and then swung by the terrific Bread & Roses fundraiser for the Fund for Santa Barbara before heading off to a phone session.

But the big news this morning is in the News-Press, with a story by Josh Molina headlined "Young candidate wants to shake up City Hall." It's a great article and you should go read it, but these two clips sum it up pretty well...

Today's Schedule. Tonight is another City Council candidate's forum in the Faulkner Room at the library (40 E. Anapamu St.), from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. If the forum sounds a little boring and you'd rather pitch in with a phone session, that's happening too tonight. Give us a call if you want to come by!

2003-10-11T18:26:00.000-07:00

We didn't get any pictures from the walk this morning, but we do have a couple from tabling at today's pride festival downtown...

Jen, Charles (a friend visiting from Oakland) and Das enjoying some kind of BBQ chicken sandwich.

Das and fellow candidate Helene Schneider, locked into mortal combat in front of the Democratic Service Club's voter registration and information table.

2003-10-11T08:56:00.000-07:00

Good morning! It's almost 9 am here at campaign HQ west (also known as Dan & Jen's apartment in West Beach) and we're tearing around the house getting ready for today. There's a monster precinct walk going on this morning, and Das will be at the Pride Festival at De La Guerra plaza today, from around 12:30 to 1 or so. Look for the local Democrats table. See you out there!

2003-10-10T17:28:00.000-07:00

Hello Santa Barbara! Welcome to the brand spanking new weblog for Das Williams' campaign for Santa Barbara City Council. The next three weeks are going to be democracy run amok here in our little town, so we're starting this site to help you keep track of the action and to let you get to know Das and his vision for Santa Barbara as fully as possible in such a short time.

My partner Jen and I are new to politics, but we got involved in this campaign from almost the first time we met Das and heard him speak. I've never seen anyone work as hard or as passionately or as smartly as this guy. To try to sum it up, he cares deeply about both preserving the environment and creating an economy that works for all of us. He grew up here on the south coast and has a bottomless love for this city. He's going to be an amazing leader.

This campaign is, to paraphrase from one of our inspirations, one of the great local grassroots campaigns of the 21st century, built from mouse pads and shoe leather. We need your help: calling your neighbors and going to talk to them out in the neighborhoods are the best ways we're going to get people to know him. We have phone sessions and neighborhood walks going on almost every day for the next three weeks. You can always call Das or Stephanie the campaign manager on their cell phones to find out what we're up to, and we'll be listing these events here. Their phone numbers are listed on the right.

Welcome again. If you have any questions about this weblog specifically, let me know - my email is da {at} usprogressives {dot} org. Thanks for tuning in and we hope to see you out on the campaign trail!