Entry bubble Get Out and Vote!

By: Joanne | November 04, 2008 | Category: General

voteYou know that it’s Election Day, right? I assume you’ve been getting as many political mailings and phone calls as I have so I don’t know how you could miss it.

Did you vote yet? Are you planning to vote? I would have voted already if I lived in a state that provided for early voting, but I don’t. I’m going to vote during my lunch break today. I always look forward to voting, even if sometimes it doesn’t end up the way I want it to. At least I try and I don’t leave these important decisions up to everyone else.

I hope you’re going to vote today. I’m counting on all you highly intelligent readers of the GovGab blog to weigh in on the future of our country. If you’re not sure if your polling place is still open, check on its hours because they vary from state to state.

If you go out to vote and feel that you’ve been discriminated against or witness voter fraud, there’s something you can do about it. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 protects every American against racial discrimination in voting. The law also protects the voting rights of people with limited English skills.

If you have information about voter fraud, you should contact the nearest office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) or your local U.S. Attorney’s office or the Public Integrity Section of the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.

If you know of activities that intimidate, coerce, threaten, or oppress voters based on race, color, religion, or national origin, report it to the Criminal Section of the U.S. Department of Justice.

Now get out and vote!

| View Comments [3] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: congress   democrat   election   house   joanne   place   polling   president   republican   senate   vote  

 

Entry bubble How Does Your Representative Vote?

By: Joanne | June 24, 2008 | Category: Home and Family

U.S. Capitol buildingYou know how it goes; you pay a little attention to political candidates before an election, and you uphold your responsibility to vote for the candidate of your choice. Once they’re in office you’re too busy to think about what they’re doing with the power you’ve given them.

At the national level, sometimes we see news stories about hot topics and bills being passed by the U.S. Congress. I’ve often seen people write in to USA.gov wanting to contact a high profile member of the House or Senate in order to express an opinion on a topic.

There’s something you need to know about contacting a member of Congress – they answer to their constituents, that is, the people in their voting district. If you really want to get your message through to the Congress, you’ve got to keep tabs on the House Member or Senator from your voting district. When they do something you like, let them know! When they do something you don’t like, let them know! Sometimes I feel like only special interest groups have influence over their members of Congress, but then I also wonder if the special interest groups are the only voices being heard because the rest of us just grumble about public policy in our kitchens.

| View Comments [7] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: bill   congress   house   joanne   law   legislation   representative   senate   senator   vote  

 

Entry bubble Ask a Librarian

By: Nicole | April 18, 2008 | Category: General

BabyMany Gov Gab regulars might know that our Friday blogger, Sommer, has been expecting her first baby. Her son, Andrew, arrived late Wednesday night, and Sommer will be spending the next few months enjoying his company (and changing his diapers!).

In the meantime, I’m thrilled to be your temporary Friday blogger. I’m looking forward to sharing tidbits of information and pointing you to government services in your area. For example, did you know that this week is National Library Week? It’s true. And it seems like the perfect time to remind you that many libraries have government publications, like the Consumer Action Handbook, available in their reference sections.

Library ShelfNational Library Week is designed to promote library use and support, and I feel more than qualified to help. Even as a kid, I loved to read. In fact, on a soggy spring day in fourth grade, I managed to get myself locked in a public library after closing time. Boy did that emergency exit alarm cause a ruckus.

Despite this slightly traumatic experience, I’ve decided to celebrate National Library Week by highlighting two free online services. First, "Ask a Government Information Librarian" gives you immediate access (by chat or e-mail) to librarians who are experts in government information and resources. Want to know more about the Presidential election process or where to get a passport form? Want to ask about the history of the Social Security Administration? Go ahead. Test their knowledge. If you have a more detailed research question, "Ask a Reference Librarian" gives you access to researchers at the Library of Congress.

If you’re looking for more information about libraries across the country, don’t forget to check out USA.gov’s Libraries page, which lists government and public libraries and allows you to locate the ones closest to you.

| View Comments [4] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: congress   government   information   library   reference   research  

 

Entry bubble Perfect Sound Forever

By: Jake | October 01, 2007 | Category: Fun

On Saturday I saw Thurston Moore perform his new solo album in Washington, D.C. Moore is better known for being the leader of Sonic Youth and I saw Sonic Youth perform their 1988 album “Daydream Nation” in July.

A 33 album playing on a record player

“Daydream Nation” is one of 225 recordings in the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress. The National Recording Registry was created by the National Recording Preservation Act in 2000 “to maintain and preserve sound recordings and collections of sound recordings that are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

The National Recording Preservation Board chooses which recordings are to be submitted every year. They have chosen things you’d expect to see (or hear) such as the “I Have A Dream” speech by Martin Luther King Jr. and President Roosevelt’s address to Congress after Pearl Harbor and things you wouldn’t expect such as recordings of Asian Elephants by Katharine B. Payne and various popular rock, rap and country albums.

The coolest thing about this registry is that the board accepts recording nominations from the public year round. A recording has to be 10 years old and can’t be a video recording to be nominated. I looked over the list to see if there is anything “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” that I would nominate and found they really do have a lot covered. Most major historical events I thought of I witnessed on television so they’re not eligible.

Of course one major historical event they don’t have is the first Federal Citizen Information Center campaign “Happy Facts” from 1973, but I'm not too certain it would make the review board's cut. The government still uses radio and television campaigns, but has expanded to use podcasts and blogs to distribute information these days.

While historical event sound recordings were a challenge for me, I had no problem thinking of three albums to put on the list. Suggest your own sound recordings in the comment section so we can discuss them.

“Remain in Light”-Talking Heads (1980)
“Ride the Lightning”-Metallica (1984)
“Slanted and Enchanted”- Pavement (1992)

| View Comments [2] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: congress   government   historical   history   information   library   music   preservation