APN 2016 Endorsements Pt. 3: Brown, Johnson, Bazemore, Decline/U.S. Senate
(APN) ATLANTA — The Atlanta Progressive News Board of Directors is pleased to announce our third round of Democratic Primary endorsements for 2016.
We are endorsing Janine Brown for House District 59, Rafer Johnson for House District 62, and Debra Bazemore for House District 63; and declining to endorse for U.S. Senate.
Previously, APN endorsed Bernie Sanders for the Democratic nomination for President of the U.S.
Also, APN has endorsed State Sens. Vincent Fort (D-Atlanta) and Donzella James (D-Atlanta); State Rep. Mable Thomas (D-Atlanta); Brian Westlake for HD 82; and Renitta Shannon for HD 84.
JANINE BROWN FOR HD 59
Three Democrats–Janine Brown, David Dreyer, and Josh Noblitt–are running for the HD 59 seat being vacated by State Rep. Margaret Kaiser (D-Atlanta), who is likely running for Mayor of Atlanta.
We are endorsing Janine Brown because we believe she has the right combination of progressive values and a demonstrated record of participation in Metro Atlanta’s progressive advocacy community.
Thank you to all three candidates for completing questionnaires timely and thoroughly.
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2016/03/25/apn-candidate-qa-david-dreyer-hd-59/
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2016/03/11/apn-candidate-qa-janine-brown-hd-59/
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2016/03/12/apn-candidate-qa-josh-noblitt-hd-59/
Of the three questionnaires, we found both the responses of Brown and Dreyer to be without issue; however, we had a few concerns regarding Noblitt’s responses.
Noblitt’s responses were problematic on the issue of public education, in that he chose not to take a position on the Opportunity School District. In addition, among other issues, he said he supports the short-term use of nuclear power, which we find problematic.
While Dreyer’s responses were without issue, and we were impressed with his call for Georgia to have a renewable energy standard, we felt that his background was more of a Democratic Party activist, whereas Brown is more of a grassroots, progressive activist.
Brown has a labor union background, has done work with ABLE, and, most recently, was involved in a grassroots coalition that called for enhanced authority for the Atlanta Citizens Review Board.
RAFER JOHNSON FOR HOUSE DISTRICT 62
We are supporting Rafer Johnson for House District 62. Of the five campaigns for this open seat, being vacated by State Rep. LaDawn Blackett Jones (D-Atlanta), only Johnson’s campaign is not a hot mess.
Valerie Vie is the only other candidate to complete a questionnaire in the race, although she failed to show up at forums, including a forum recently hosted by former 2012 candidate for this seat, Kip Carr.
Johnson has a demonstrated commitment to public service, including his advocacy in the Legislature for the City of South Fulton; and his participation on the Fulton County Housing Authority Board of Commissioners. He has run a responsive, accessible, and visible campaign.
We had a couple of issues with Johnson’s answers. For example, we take exception to his assertion that nuclear power is an acceptable current solution, when Tritium is just one of the radioactive elements being routinely released into the air and soil in Georgia because of nuclear power
We also take exception with his assertion that Georgia’s current ballot access, or petitioning requirements, for minor party and independent candidates, are easy. One of those requirements was recently struck down by in federal district court, and APN has covered over many years the failed efforts of numerous candidates to meet the requirements.
In a follow-up interview, Johnson demonstrated an openness and accessibility to learning more about both of these issues. In light of this conversation, and when considering both the factors of questionnaire responses and public service record, we believe Rafer Johnson would be a welcome addition to the Legislature.
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2016/03/20/apn-candidate-qa-rafer-johnson-house-district-62/
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2016/04/20/apn-candidate-qa-valerie-vie-hd-62/
DEBRA BAZEMORE FOR HOUSE DISTRICT 63
We are endorsing Debra Bazemore for House District 63, the seat being vacated by State Rep. Ronnie Mabra (D-Fayetteville), because we thought her questionnaire responses were quite progressive.
Five candidates are running for this seat, two of whom are not serious and did respond respond to APN Questionnaires.
Of the remaining three, candidate Linda Becquer-Pritchett has a troubling criminal past.
Of the remaining two, Debra Bazemore and Kelli Hooper both responded to the APN questionnaires.
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2016/04/18/apn-candidate-qa-debra-bazemore-hd-63/
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2016/04/25/apn-candidate-qa-kelli-hooper-hd-63/
Bazemore’s responses were slightly more progressive in our view, especially on the issue of nuclear power. Also, she has a record of public service that includes advocacy at the Legislature on the issue of City of South Fulton.
U.S. SENATE – DECLINE TO ENDORSE
Candidate Jim Barksdale has failed to articulate his positions on the issues, failing to respond to an APN questionnaire, and recently telling the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he would only discuss his campaign strategy, not his position on any issues.
Candidate John Coyne has been responsive, but we did not exactly find the Alpharetta-based moderate-to-conservative Democrat to exactly share our progressive values.
In prior years, we have had progressive candidates to support, including Rand Knight in 2008 and former State Sen. Steen Miles (D-Decatur) in 2014. We were able to get behind Michael Thurmond in 2010.
For the first time in our eleven years of publication, we decline to endorse in the Democratic Primary for U.S. Senate.
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2016/04/21/apn-candidate-qa-john-coyne-u-s-senate/
http://atlantaprogressivenews.com/2016/04/17/barksdale-u-s-senate-campaign-avoiding-media-voters/
(END/2016)
Tritium occurs naturally. The amount produced in and leaked from reactors is not harmful. Natural background radiation is 1000 times what you get from nuclear power plants. You get 100 to 400 times as much radiation from coal fired power plants as from nuclear power plants. You are naturally radioactive from the potassium that you must have to live.
Your Geiger counter clicks. Every time you turn it on. Everywhere. At all times. If you had a time machine, you could take your Geiger counter back in time 1000 years or a million years or a billion years. Your Geiger counter would click at any of those times. How fast your geiger counter would click at any given time in the past would vary according to your location. Natural background radiation varies from place to place and from altitude to altitude. Buy a Geiger counter now. Find out how much radiation is there now, before the accident. That is the step that the Japanese didn’t take.
All rocks are radioactive. All rocks contain uranium and thorium and their radioactive decay products. They always have. Cosmic rays come from the sky. Cosmic rays come from super-novas thousands of light years away. They always have. Cosmic rays turn some nitrogen atoms in the atmosphere into radioactive carbon14. The carbon14 reacts with oxygen to make CO2. Plants eat the CO2 and make radioactive sugar. People eat the plants. We use the decay of carbon14 to figure out how old ancient mummies are.
Look up “Natural background radiation” in Wikipedia.
Pingback: Comments/Endorsements - One Vision, One Community, One DistrictOne Vision, One Community, One District
I’m a little confused by a couple of endorsements, particularly 59 and 63 with regard to nuclear power. Right now, the only alternatives to nuclear power that can put out power on the scale we need are fossil fuels, which threaten the long-term stability of the planet much more severely than nuclear power. Short-term use is necessary if we don’t want to hasten the potential mass destruction that climate change will ultimately bring.
Josh Noblitt is clearly a progressive who gave a measured, tempered answer, which is the sort of personality I think our legislature needs. Bazemore didn’t even take a position, she just listed advantages and disadvantages, so I’m even more perplexed about how that was a selling point.
wind and solar with backup storage is feasible and competitive with other energy sources, especially when you consider the extremely long-term isolation required for nuclear waste. tritium is extremely harmful to humans & other life forms. nuclear is way too expensive, takes too long to get the energy on-line and is extremely dangerous, leaving future generations with serious and expensive obligation that they are not here to object to. there is also conservation. it you reduce your need for energy it is as real as building a power source. the book carbon and nuclear free is available as a free download at http://www.ieer.org
I agree with Prog Man for 63 especially because Hooper’s answers were clearly more progressive in nature. Just look at the answers given for medicinal marijuana – and the difference is night and day as to which one has thought out what to issue means to the community and for themselves.