April 7th is the last day to register to vote in order to be eligible to vote in the primaries. I have attached the North Carolina voter registration form. Please register and ask your coworkers and friends to register; people are much more likely to vote if they are asked to by someone they know.

For background on the sale go to Lance's original post

It looks like the backbone of our local Democratic officials and online activities have postponed the propsed forest sale:

Agriculture Under Secretary Mark Rey recently announced that the public will have another month to comment on a list of forest lands that would be available for sale in a proposal to provide funding to extend the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000 (SRS).

On Thursday of this week President George W. Bush is coming to Charlotte to sound the drum beat for his war on terror. What are we hearing in Charlotte from Republicans who typically line up to rub nuts with Bushie? Pleasantly enough, not a damned thing. If you visit the web site for the Mecklenburg County Republican Party, you will see their rundown of judges but NOTHING (until they get a ping from this link) on the President's pending visit.

While it required a huge dose of antacid, I even braved a visit to the North Carolina Republican Party Web site. Not.A.Word. Shhhh! Let's not tell them. Maybe nobody will show. Then again, maybe that's the plan. Maybe even North Carolina Republicans have figured out Bush is toxic.

More below the fold...

• The Gay and Lesbian Guide to Asheville
• That cat has come home.
• Virginia lottery ticket sales haven't dropped off, maybe because NC games are boring.
• Hiding the Sudafed may have done the trick.

That dark expanse of days known as the "flyerless period" is at its end. I present you with this, a work that is equal parts handy and dandy, with a dash of moxie and verve to taste. Our lawyers say I can't promise you that if you print these out and hang them up you'll be met with the esteem of your peers and the amorous attentions of beautiful people. What I can promise you is that people who see these will know where and when the next Chapel Hill Drinking Liberally will be. (Which is this Thursday evening at Tyler's Speakeasy; details here.)

Flyer document is not actual flyer; some downloading and printing required. Void where prohibited. By downloading flyer you agree to never sue anyone. Price excludes tags, title, and license. Do not eat or drink flyer. Flyer is not intended to be used as a life-saving device. This document was produced by professional drivers on a closed course; do not ever try this yourself. Please use flyer responsibly.

first posted at Scrutiny Hooligans

Tom DeLay/Charles Taylor partnership info.

Hey there!

We'll be at the Flying Saucer in full force this week. C'mon out and join the fun!

Our Durham outreach meeting was a lot of fun. If somebody is looking to start a new DL chapter there, Tyler's Taproom would make a good choice. Their Tuesday 5-7pm "Hoppy Hour" can't be missed!

Items of interest:
 - The Charleston, SC and Louisville, KY chapters of Drinking Liberally have taken part in the Army Man Project. Here's a summary what the project is about: "We're placing little green Army Men in apartment lobbies, in the produce aisle, on SUVs and everywhere else we go.  They have a sticker attached that reads, "Bring Me Home" and "Stop the War" as a reminder that people in Iraq are dying every day while we just go about our business." There was an article in the Charleston Post and Courier about it. Anybody can take part on their own. It's cheap and easy!
 - 21st Century Democrats and Ironweed Film Club are teaming up to promote house parties as a kickoff of the election season. They are encouraging groups, including Drinking Liberally, to host house parties featuring the Academy Award-nominated film, Street Fight, which gives the viewer an inside look at a heated local campaign. "It's a truly captivating film that's certain to both entertain and inspire house party attendees to get involved in upcoming campaigns, either through financial contributions or participation in outreach, voter registration, canvassing, etc." If we get enough local interest, I will pursue hosting such a house party. Please let me know if you would like to attend such an event.

Local (Wake) political notices:
 - Friday, April 7th - Last day to register, change your party affiliation or your address. The voter registration form must be postmarked by or hand delivered by this date.
 - Thursday, April 13 - One-stop voting begins - no excuse required.

Cheers!

Wallace Pankow
Drinking
Liberally - Raleigh
raleigh@drinkingliberally.org

Location
Tuesday 6-9pm
Drinking Liberally @ The Flying Saucer (Just look for our sign at a table toward the back)
328 West Morgan Street @ Harrington
Raleigh, NC 27601
919.821.PINT
http://www.beerknurd.com/

About Drinking Liberally
Drinking Liberally is an informal, inclusive weekly Democratic drinking club. Raise your spirits while you raise your glass, and share ideas while you share a pitcher. Drinking Liberally gives like-minded, left-leaning individuals a place to talk politics. You don't need to be a policy expert and this isn't a book club - just come and learn from peers, trade jokes, vent frustration and hang out in an environment where it's not taboo to talk politics.

Bars are democratic spaces - you talk to strangers, you share booths, you feel the bond of common ground. Bring democratic discourse to your local democratic space - bui
ld Democracy one drink at a time.

For more information about Drinking Liberally, check out http://drinkingliberally.org/.

While drinking liberally, always drink responsibly!

This little story about the impact of judges retiring in North Carolina scares the shit out of me. Especially this quote:

It's unclear when President Bush might name replacements for the two judges, which the US Senate would have to confirm. North Carolina Senators Elizabeth Dole and Richard Burr could recommend nominees, though none have been publicly identified.

Dick Burr and Wighead Dole would have their ultimate revenge on civil society, no doubt recommending theocon nutjobs to further Bush's goal of creating Armageddon before his term expires.

Closing in on the first week of lottery sales, I figured I would add a little reminder on the fact that lottery sales do not really help education. From WFMY:

But critics are already howling about Easley's plan to use some funds for existing education programs instead of new ones.

Not only that. The funds may not even always going to go to education:

Some other lottery states have passed laws to protect the money. But in North Carolina, the Legislature can decide, with a simple majority vote, to spend the money on something other than schools.

Hotline On Call invited submissions of the funniest pictures on congressional websites, and two of our own made the list. The full list is here. I got a kick out of the photo of Tom Delay in a flight suit and the multiple (proud?) images of congresscritters being manhandled by the Prez.