Saturday, September 17, 2022

On the Host Committee: Honorable John Giles

Official Statement: "This convening of invited elected officials, business leaders, community activists, and grassroots organizations will focus on strategies to protect, defend, and promote voter rights and access to the ballot box while equipping local leaders with tools to increase civic engagement in their communities."

Mayor's Office Press Release

Mayor Sylvester Turner Announces the National Nonpartisan Conversation on Voter Rights
Two–Day Event will Take Place in Houston, Texas

Voter Rights Conversation Logo

September 12, 2022 -- Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner will host the National Nonpartisan Conversation on Voter Rights alongside five leading mayors from across the country, including Michael Hancock (Denver, CO), Acquanetta Warren (Fontana, CA), David Holt (Oklahoma City, OK), Regina Romero (Tucson, AZ), and John Giles (Mesa, AZ).

The invitation-only event will take place from September 19-21, 2022, at the Hilton Americas Hotel in Houston.

This convening of invited elected officials, business leaders, community activists, and grassroots organizations will focus on strategies to protect, defend, and promote voter rights and access to the ballot box while equipping local leaders with tools to increase civic engagement in their communities.

31 August 2022

CITY ENGAGEMENT CHARADE ------ Get Ready for one more?

Hey guys! What's this??

✓ PLEASE NOTE

Mesa Council may diminish public comments | | eastvalleytribune.com

www.eastvalleytribune.com › mesa-coun...

Duration: 5:08
Posted: 3 days ago

✓

“Municipalities are looking at ways to enhance their citizen engagement "

Now that's a WHOPPER of a statement!

It is true, however, that some city officials, especially current Hizzoner John Giles admit publicly they have a problem with engaging citizens in government > "a problem" they created to avoid scrutiny and oversight.

✓ BLOGGER INSERT 2016

17 February 2016

FYI: The Mayor + The Mesa City Council > Tell Me Again How's That Supposed To Work?

According to The City of Mesa webpage , Mesa operates under a charter form of government with citizens electing a mayor and six councilmembers to set policy for the City.

Mesa's councilmembers serve terms of four-years, with three members being elected every two years. The mayor is elected at-large every four years. The mayor and council are elected on a non-partisan basis. The vice mayor is selected by the City Council.

The Mesa City Council believes that its people not leaders, are what makes a City great and actively works to encourage citizen participation in the decision-making process.

That's the lip-service out in the public domain [italics for emphasis by your MesaZona blogger].

Voter Turnout 27.7%

Hello! Mesa! WE HAVE A PROBLEM: Less than 50% of registered voters actually turned out to vote on issues in 2014 and less than 28% turned out to vote for the mayor and City Council members in the last primary election [the same seats to be filled in this year's election]:

Voter Turnout Statistics [from the city clerk's office for 2014]]
Voter Registration 222,290
Ballots Cast 96,646
Voter Turnout 43.5%
Voter Turnout Statistics [in the August 28, 2012 Primary Election Results]
Voter Registration 223,295
Ballots Cast 61,879

✓ BLOGGER INSERT FROM 2020:

The Race for Mayor

Source: https://recorder.maricopa.gov/electionresults/primary2020.aspx

[1] Contest for Mayor received about 97,000 ballots with a Voter Turnout = 34.85%

[2] That's about only 1 out of 5 of those who were eligible to vote

12 August 2020

Lop-Sided August 4 Primary Election 2020: Unofficial Results

Where Have All the Voters Gone? | The Tyee

Low Voter Turnout Is Not An Accident - in fact that is what entrenched and generations-old Political Machines are counting on when they can deliver a bloc of votes.
In one Mesa City Council race in District 2 there was a good example of that when one inexperienced candidate was hand-selected by Mayor John Giles - and doused with thousands of dollars in disclosures made in required Campaign Financial Statements - to unseat the incumbent Jeremy Whittaker. That was the closest contest for the Mesa City Council.
_________________________________________________________________________

Last Sunday the The Mesa Tribune had this to say:

After his resounding re-election to his second and last full four-year term, Mayor John Giles cherishes the lengthy 10-year opportunity voters have given him to make his hometown better.

Giles on reelection: a chance to make Mesa better

". . .10 years is a long time, Giles said...

In District One, Vice Mayor Mark Freeman, a close Giles ally, won an equally lopsided victory over former mayoral candidate Danny Ray, 10,235-4,696, a 69-31 percent margin.

Giles scored a secondary victory of sorts in District 2, even though he wasn’t on the ballot, when his hand-picked candidate, political novice Julie Spilsbury, coasted to a comfortable victory over Jeremy Whittaker, Giles’ unofficial nemesis, 8,465-6,802, a 55-45 percent margin.

The turnout was uninspiring at nearly 35 percent for mayor and nearly 38 percent for the two council races, . .

(Spilsbury)

said the mayor, City Manager Chris Brady and virtually the entire council called her or texted her, congratulating her on her victory over Whittaker and welcoming her to the council. She will be seated in January.

“I’ve been given leadership qualities by God. I can make things happen,’’ Spilsbury said. . .

Spilsbury has mainly been noted in the past as a school volunteer and said she didn’t know initially that serving on the council was a paid position when she was weighing a bid at elected office.

She said she would like to think that residents voted for her because of her years of building relationships in the community as a mother and a lifelong Mesa resident, but acknowledged the impact of Giles support, saying, “I’m sure that didn’t hurt me.’’

CITIZEN PARTICIPATION GUIDE
Go to this link >> http://mesaaz.gov/residents/get-involved
As a citizen you can take an active role in shaping Mesa government policies, programs and decisions.

Participating in government can be as simple as voting at each election.

One of the greatest challenges of governance is finding a balance between the interests of the community as a whole and those who have a special stake in a particular issue.
Citizens can help strike that balance by looking for solutions that work for the entire community, not just a small group.
Although participating does not always mean prevailing, it does make government a partnership effort. That's something positive, because when citizens are actively involved in their government, decisions can better reflect the will of the people.

Friday, September 16, 2022

STATES ARE MORE CORRUPT THAN THE FEDS ...when it comes to telecom lobbying and corruption, states are even more corrupt than the federal government. So what we’re seeing is a process that favors entrenched interests, resulting in pretty obvious outcomes.

Karl Bode nailed down that report yesterday - "...So again, Americans talk endlessly about our absolute fealty to “small businesses,” but if you dig below the surface, you’ll routinely find (and I know this may come as a surprise to many) systems that inherently favor the wealthiest and most politically powerful companies.

That’s not to say the $50 billion+ broadband funding infusion isn’t going to do some amazing things. Or that incumbent ISPs winning these awards won’t follow through on their deployment promises (though their history on this front isn’t great). But it’s pretty obvious that state corruption is going to result in a lot of money being mindlessly thrown in the lap of monopolies… because that’s how it’s always been done."

[More than $50 billion in new broadband subsidies are already headed to the states thanks to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and American Rescue Plan Act. Millions more are already flowing as part of older government broadband grant programs.]

Surprise: Telecom Giants Are Exploiting State Corruption To Undeservingly Funnel A Disproportionate Chunk Of The Massive Broadband Infrastructure Stimulus To Themselves

from the David-needs-better-lobbyists-to-defeat-Goliath dept

Thu, Sep 15th 2022 09:37am - Karl Bode

Between COVID relief and the new infrastructure bill there’s a massive, historic, $50+ billion taxpayer subsidy headed for the broadband industry that should do a lot of good in shoring up access in underserved locations. But we’ve also noted how the government still doesn’t have a great idea of where that money should be spent, because our broadband maps (while improving) are generally terrible.

✓ And we’ve also noted that (surprise), the telecom industry’s biggest players are working overtime, state by state, to ensure that this money goes exclusively to them, and not to any of the smaller utilities, cooperatives, municipalities, or small private businesses in desperate need of such funding.

✓✓ The infrastructure bill dictates that states should be in charge of their own broadband funding and grant process, which makes sense. The problem is that when it comes to telecom lobbying and corruption, states are even more corrupt than the federal government. So what we’re seeing is a process that favors entrenched interests, resulting in pretty obvious outcomes.

That’s a major problem, since most of the most exciting innovation in telecom is happening at smaller ISPs, local utilities, cooperatives, and community broadband projects (I just wrote a paper for Techdirt and Copia on this very subject), which tend to offer faster, cheaper, more reliable (and locally staffed) service than most of the nation’s lumbering regional monopolies.

In Louisiana, Issie Lapowsky at Protocol notes local communities already earmarked for broadband improvement funds have had that money unceremoniously stripped away after the funding awards were challenged by large, incumbent telecom giants.

✓ So what I’m seeing repeatedly is a giant telecom with an unlimited budget, challenging each and every grant or award doled out to smaller businesses, smaller cooperatives, utilities, or municipalities. These smaller operators can’t afford to go toe to toe with with giant companies, which are able to outspend and out politically maneuver them, ensuring the biggest players get most federal and state grant money:

Fifteen other broadband grants are being contested in Louisiana alone, and similar fights are playing out across the country. Now, thanks to a massive amount of broadband funding set to flow into states under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, these fights could become even more frequent — and even more fierce. “It’s happening all over the country,” said Jonathan Chambers, a partner at Conexon, “but it’s going to get worse.”

I’ve seen some variety of this play out in most states as the funding began to flow.

✓ I’ve written about how monopolies like Charter Communications and Comcast are making life hell for anybody who applies for federal broadband grants by saddling them with costly, onerous challenges at the NTIA, based on flawed FCC mapping data.

✓ I’ve talked with state leaders in Maine who say federal broadband maps still rely heavily on bogus coverage claims by incumbent monopolies, which allows them to both mask the sorry state of U.S. broadband competition, and direct funds away from areas they falsely claim are already served.

✓ I’ve also written about how monopolies like Charter, Comcast, and AT&T are convincing numerous states to pass laws blocking federal grant money from going to cooperatives, utilities, and municipalities, despite this specifically being forbidden by federal rules.

Monopolies like Charter are hoovering up more than half of all grants in states like Montana, pissing off smaller ISPs in desperate need of funds.

✓ And I wrote about how the FCC still hasn’t built an adequate system allowing smaller companies or municipalities to challenge FCC broadband mapping data they know to be false, which lets monopolies overstate coverage and claim any additional grant funding to these areas is “duplicative.” If locals do challenge, again, it’s a costly and cumbersome battle waged against a national ISP with unlimited funding.

So again, Americans talk endlessly about our absolute fealty to “small businesses,” but if you dig below the surface, you’ll routinely find (and I know this may come as a surprise to many) systems that inherently favor the wealthiest and most politically powerful companies.

Filed Under: BEAD grants, broadband, cooperatives, digital divide, grants, high speed internet, ntia, telecom, utilities

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Mexico Independence Day 16 September 1810

Intro: "Bells rang through Mexico City Thursday night, recreating the 1810 call to arms famously known as El Grito — the cry to overthrow Spanish rule and fight for independence.

"Viva México!" President Andrés Manuel López Obrador shouted repeatedly — calls that were loudly echoed by the massive crowd that packed Mexico City's Zócalo, the capital's main square. He celebrated Mexico's identity, its culture, its indigenous people; he also acknowledged the challenges the country faces.

"Death to corruption, death to classism, death to racism!" López Obrador said in Spanish. Responding to each phrase, the crowd shouted, "Muera!" (Die!)

... The government issued a video of the celebration, showing a military honor guard presenting Mexico's tricolor flag to López Obrador, followed by his invocation to the crowd, the national anthem and a large fireworks show.

As is traditional, when the president finished his brief speech he repeatedly yanked on a long sash to ring a bell perched high in the palace's wall — the same church bell the priest Miguel Hidalgo rang 212 years ago in the town of Dolores, signaling the start of the war against Spain and the fight for Mexico's future.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador addresses a huge crowd marking El Grito — the 1810 cry to overthrow Spanish rule and fight for independence.

The festivities extended beyond Mexico City and Mexico's borders. A special light show marked the day in Dallas, for instance.

Mexican expats and others abroad traded tips on where to find traditional dishes like pozole and chiles en nogada -- which Mexico's embassy to the U.S. describes as "a poblano chile prepared with ingredients that symbolize the Mexican flag," including parsley, a walnut cream sauce and pomegranate seeds.

The formal date of Mexico's Independence Day is Sept. 16. But the commemorations begin the night before, to mark the early-morning call to arms that rang out from Dolores.

López Obrador's guests for the celebration presented an interesting tableau. Watching from the National Palace's balcony were Bolivia's former President Evo Morales, Uruguay's former President José Mujica, and Aleida Guevara, the daughter of Ernesto "Che" Guevara. They stood alongside John and Gabriel Shipton, the father and brother of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange."

Presta atención a esta información. Te invitamos a revisar las mejores frases para gritar ¡Viva México! e imágenes para compartir en redes sociales. Este viernes 16 de septiembre se conmemora el aniversario 212 de la Independencia por lo que los ciudadanos del país ya están listo para celebrar en grande la fecha con fiestas, gastronomía de temporada y desfiles.

Comparte los mejores mensajes e imágenes sobre este día tan especial. Si estás buscando enviar mensajes lindos para algún familiar o amistad, esta lista es para ti. En esta lista te presentaremos algunas frases para destacar el orgullo mexicano que puedes enviar por WhatsApp y Facebook.

Frases para dedicar por el ‘Día de la Independencia’

“América es libre e independiente de toda otra nación” | Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla
“Sin importar el tamaño de la ciudad o pueblo en donde nacen los hombres o las mujeres, ellos son finalmente del tamaño de su obra, del tamaño de su voluntad de engrandecer y enriquecer a sus hermanos” | Ignacio Allende
“Cuando el pueblo salta sus barreras, casi ningún esfuerzo es bastante poderoso para detenerlo” | Guadalupe Victoria
“Mi patria es primero” | Vicente Guerrero
“Morir es nada cuando por la patria se muere” | José María Morelos y Pavón
“Soy siervo de la nación porque ésta asume la más grande legítima e inviolable de las soberanías” | José María Morelos y Pavón
“¡Viva la independencia! ¡Viva la América! ¡Muera el mal gobierno!” | Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla

Frases para destacar el orgullo mexicano

México no se explica; en México se cree, con furia, con pasión, con desaliento. –Carlos Fuentes.
De ninguna manera volveré a México. No soporto estar en un país más surrealista que mis pinturas. – Salvador Dalí.
Como México, no hay dos. – José Guízar.
Los mexicanos nacemos donde nos da la rechingada gana. – Chavela Vargas.
México lindo y querido, si muero lejos de ti… Que digan que estoy dormido… Y que me traigan aquí. – Jesús Ramírez Monge.
No amo mi patria. Su fulgor abstracto es inasible. Pero (aunque suene mal) / daría la vida por diez lugares suyos, ciertas gentes, puertos, bosques de pinos, fortalezas, una ciudad deshecha, gris, monstruosa, varias figuras de su historia, montañas (y tres o cuatro ríos). – José Emilio Pacheco.
México, creo en ti, porque eres el alto de mi marcha y el punto de partida de mi impulso. – Ricardo López Méndez.
Del México que yo hablo es el que atraviesa por situaciones difíciles, pero encuentra una salida. – Laura Esquivel.
México, para mí, representa el amor, la paz y todo aquello que es magnífico y maravilloso en el mundo. – Juan O’Gorman.
Todo en México tiene para mí una fuerza secreta que me seduce. Su tradición y su esperanza en el futuro, la vida de su pueblo, la riqueza de su paisaje. – Alfredo Zalce.
Soy muy mexicano. No tiene remedio. En donde he estado, lo que me alimenta es México.– Rufino Tamayo.
Estos mayos y abriles se alargan hasta octubre. Todo el Valle de México de colores se cubre y hay en su poesía de otoñal primavera un largo sentimiento de esperanza que espera. – Carlos Pellicer.
Porque soy mexicano.– Guillermo del Toro.

Día de la Independencia: imágenes para compartir

Las mejores frases por el Día de la Independencia de México (Foto: Internet).

TE PUEDE INTERESAR

México celebra hoy jueves 15 de septiembre del 2022 el tradicional Grito de Independencia, encabezado por el Presidente de la República, Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

El Zócalo capitalino vestirá sus mejores galas, luces y colores para recibir a miles de personas que acudirán a la fiesta del grito, la cual será amenizada por los Tigres del Norte.

¿A qué hora es el Grito de Independencia en el Zócalo de la CDMX hoy 15 de septiembre?

Aunque la fiesta, el color y todo el ambiente popular por la noche mexicana inicia desde temprana hora, el tradicional Grito de Independencia, que por cuarta ocasión encabeza el presidente López Obrador, será a las 23:00 horas

Día de la Independencia 2022, 2023 y 2024

El Día de la Independencia en México se celebra el día 16 de septiembre. Conmemora el “Grito de Dolores” de 1810 cuando Miguel Hidalgo clamó contra la opresión española y en favor de la independencia de México en el pequeño pueblo mexicano llamado Dolores.

Año	Fecha	Día	Días festivos
2022	16 septiembre	viernes	Día de la Independencia
2023	16 septiembre	sábado	Día de la Independencia
2024	16 septiembre	lunes	Día de la Independencia
2025	16 septiembre	martes	Día de la Independencia
2026	16 septiembre	miércoles	Día de la Independencia
Desplácese hacia abajo hasta la parte inferior de la página para ver las fechas de años pasados.

El grito de Miguel Hidalgo se hizo el 15 de septiembre, pero las celebraciones caen principalmente el día 16. Miguel Hidalgo era sacerdote en el estado mexicano de Guanajuato y se convirtió en líder del Movimiento de Independencia de México. Este hombre dio un discurso a un grupo de personas que se reunieron en su iglesia después de tocar las campanas de la iglesia para indicar a los congregantes que se reunieran.

Nadie sabe con certeza exactamente lo que Hidalgo dijo ese día, pero citó varios actos de opresión española e instó a la gente a sublevarse. Así lo hicieron ellos, y la primera batalla, la Batalla de Guanajuato, ocurrió tan solo cuatro días después. El mismo Hidalgo fue ejecutado por los españoles en el año 1811, y la declaración de independencia llegó el 28 de septiembre de 1821. Sin embargo, su conmovedor discurso es visto como la chispa que encendió la llama patriótica que con el tiempo culminó en la independencia de México.

La ceremonia principal tiene lugar el 15 de septiembre cuando el presidente mexicano toca la campana en su palacio en la Ciudad de México, aparece en el balcón ante multitudes emocionadas y grita patrióticamente en la tradición del Grito de Dolores. A continuación, nombra a varios héroes de la guerra por la independencia y termina con tres gritos consecutivos de “¡Viva México!”. Luego toca las campanas una vez más, ondea la bandera de México y espera a que las multitudes entonen el himno nacional tocado por una banda militar.

La mañana siguiente, 16 de septiembre, hay un desfile militar por la Ciudad de México. Comienza en Plaza de la Constitución, pasa por una estatua y monumento a Miguel Hidalgo, y termina en la calle principal de la Ciudad de México, llamada “Paseo de la Reforma”.

Años pasados

Año	Fecha	Día	Días festivos
2021	16 septiembre	jueves	Día de la Independencia
2020	16 septiembre	miércoles	Día de la Independencia
2019	16 septiembre	lunes	Día de la Independencia
2018	16 septiembre	domingo	Día de la Independencia
2017	16 septiembre	sábado	Día de la Independencia

Grito de Independencia 2022 en vivo: Horario y dónde ver el concierto de los Tigres del Norte en el Zócalo de la CDMX hoy 15 de septiembre | Marca

www.marca.com › Portada › Actualidad

dia de independencia mexico 2022 from www.marca.com

Duration: 22:25
Posted: 1 day ago

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