Re: Don't bother with ACLU tonite; apologies for Satlow's insincere invitation

[MNess98@xxxxxxx]

I went to the ACLU annual meeting last night.  It was far from a waste of my time.  Rather, it was an excellent panel/discussion on gay/lesbian marriage rights and on the City of Boulder housing policies which currently discriminate against gay/lesbian couples.  Thanks largely to the volunteer ACLU board working with City staff, changes are being made to fairly address the concerns of neighborhoods while not being discriminatory toward gay/lesbian couples.  I learned a lot from the panel on the marriage issue and was very happy I attended.  

The annual ACLU meeting always has a very brief business meeting prior to a more in-depth panel and discussion on a topic chosen well in advance of the date in order to get knowledgable panel members and make other necessary arrangements.  The voting machine issue was brought up during the business meeting and was briefly addressed by meeting attendees.  However, this was not the focus of the meeting and was not the proper forum for any lengthy discussion about it.  

It's too bad Barry gave you the wrong information or you misunderstood what he said, but regardless of what happened and how you feel about Barry, he and others on the board put in a lot of volunteer time to help this area.  I used to be on the board but had to quit due to other commitments.  It's true that the meetings are sometimes frustrating and argumentative, but it's also true that the board does a lot of good work to protect the rights of us all.

Good luck with the petition.

Margi Ness