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Basel Chapter Annual General Meeting
The Basel chapter of Democrats Abroad Switzerland is pleased to announce our upcoming elections. We hope that you will attend to meet and/or reconnect with local Dems Abroad, show your support for the nominees and vote for the candidates of your choice. We need to have a quorum for the elections to be official, so please come, or vote by proxy if you can't attend (more information below).
Agenda
3:15 to 3:30 Registration
3:30 to 3:45 Brief presentations from outgoing leaders
3:45 to 4:30 Elections
4:30 to 5:30 Call to action brainstorming and discussion with new leaders
DA Switzerland is made up of volunteers working together to keep Americans living abroad informed and connected with the political process and to make it easier to vote from abroad. We invite you to become involved in Basel chapter activities and political activism. We are expecting a very exciting and busy next term, resisting the Republican administration in 2019 and voting in primaries and elections in 2020. Come help us elect Democrats!
We thank those that have come forward to present themselves as candidates. To see more on each candidate, please see here.
We have nominations for all offices except secretary, and if you are interested in running for this or any other position, you still can. We will entertain nominations from the floor. If you would like to run, please let the Nominations Committee know at basel-elections@democrats.ch
For further information about elections or the officer roles, contact any committee member (or email basel-elections@democrats.ch)
- Kelli Brouillet, Outgoing Basel Chapter Chair and Nominations Committee Chair, dach.basel@gmail.com
- Jamie Donahoe, Active Member, jamiedonahoe@gmail.com
- RJ Chaplin, Active Member, Rjc4shpk@aol.com
Voting Method
Americans who are Democrats Abroad members by Saturday, March 30, may vote. Please register to attend by March 31 at https://goo.gl/forms/ToLwSB2Kjrtj8Hy22
There are two ways to vote:
In person voting: Printed ballots will be distributed at the meeting.
Vote by proxy: Request a proxy form via the registration form at https://goo.gl/forms/ToLwSB2Kjrtj8Hy22. Proxies must be in writing, but the giver may sign, scan and email it to the proxy holder, who should then bring a printed copy to the meeting. Any voter at the meeting may hold at most two proxies.
Election Process
At the meeting, the four offices will be elected one by one, in the order shown above. Nominations may be made from the floor or as write-in candidates. Candidates who are not elected in their chosen position may nominate themselves for other positions. All candidates will be given two to three minutes to address the members. Up to three questions from the audience will be allowed (per candidate).
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Tuesday, April 02, 2019 at 06:30 PM
American International Women's Club in Geneva, SwitzerlandGeneva Book Group
Come along and join in a future discussion of the Geneva Book Group. Meetings are usually held on the first Tuesday of each month. Whether you read the book or not, it's always a lively discussion. For more information, send an email to gvabooks@democrats.ch.
The next book for discussion is Maid by Stephen Land on Tuesday, April 2, 2019.
- Nominal start time is 18:30; if you arrive after 19:00 you'll need the door code, so be sure to email gvabooks@democrats.ch.
- The group is currently meeting at the American International Women's Club, 4th floor, 11 rte. de Chêne, Geneva.
- by TPG: Convenient to the tram #12, stop "Amandolier"
- by car: No easy parking in the vicinity. Use Villerouge parking garage (about a 10 minute walk) rather than Coop 2000, which gets locked early and you might have to wait until Wednesday to retrieve your car.
Not required, but appreciated is if you can bring some food and/or drink to share and Fr. 5.- to help with the room rent.
Save the future book group dates:
- May 7, 2019 | June 4, 2019 | July 2, 2019 | Aug. 6, 2019 | Sept. 3, 2019 | Oct. 1, 2019 | Nov. 5, 2019 | Dec. 3, 2019
Possible future titles:
Here's a look at what's coming up in future months. But nothing is definite—the future books are decided at the end of each meeting.
- American Like Me by America Ferrera
- Collection of first-person accounts of growing up in cross-cultural settings.
- Conditions of Liberty, Civil Society and its Rivals by Ernest Gellner
- [published 1994] NYTimes review: A witty, elegant and sharply pointed essay on the prospects for liberal democracy in the late 20th c...
- The Corrosion of Conservatism: Why I Left the Right by Max Root
- (from review) An elite Republican has had enough, and turns on the party of Trump, urging people to vote a straight Democratic ticket.
- The Forgotten Americans by Isabelle Sawhill
- (from review) One of the country’s leading scholars on economics and social policy, Isabel Sawhill addresses the enormous divisions in American society—economic, cultural, and political—and what might be done to bridge them.
- How democracies die by Steven Levitsky
- (Amazon 4 stars) Collection of information on how different autocrats took over various countries. Chilling in its analogies to what has started in the US.
- It's even worse than it looks by Thomas Mann and Norman Ornstein
- column by T. Friedman 2018-10-03 Sub-title: How the American Constitutional System Collided with the New Politics of Extremism
- Listen, Liberal by Thomas Frank
- (from review) Democrats have occupied the White House for sixteen of the last twenty-four years, and yet the decline of the middle class has only accelerated. Frank demonstrates, cogently and at times acidly, how the party lost the allegiance of blue-collar Americans.
- Maid by Stephen Land
- Observations of the problems faced by poor, working single parents, written by a woman who has been there.
- Minds make societies by Pascal Boyer
- (from review) (Amazon 4.5 stars) Integrating recent insights from evolutionary biology, genetics, psychology, economics, and other fields, Boyer offers precise models of why humans engage in social behaviors such as forming families, tribes, and nations, or creating gender roles.
- The once and future worker by Oren Cass
- (from review) core principle?a culture of respect for work of all kinds?can help close the gap dividing the two Americas….
- The soul of America by John Mitcham
- subtitle: The battle for our better angels.
- Them: Why we hate each other—and how to heal by Ben Sasse
- (from review) The Republican Senator from Nebraska preaches his solution—more community. But does he practice what he preaches?
Historical Record
- Mar 05, 2019: Becoming by Michelle Obama
- Feb 05, 2019: Fear by Bob Woodward
- Jan 08, 2019: Donut Economics by Kate Raworth
- Dec 04, 2018: Temp by Louis Hyman
- Nov 06, 2018: The Dictator's Handbook by Bruce Bueno de Mesquita
- Oct 02, 2018: Why Liberalism Failed by Patrick J. Deenen
- Sep 04, 2018: Political Tribes by Amy Chua
- Aug 07, 2018: This Fight Is Our Fight by Elizabeth Warren
- July 03, 2018: Dark Money by Jane Mayer
- Jun 05, 2018: Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance
- Feb 27, 2018: Conscience of a conservative by Jeff Flake
- Jan 30, 2018: The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
- Nov 28, 2017: Giant of the Senate by Al Franken
- Oct 17, 2017: What Happened by Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders Guide to Political Revolution by Bernie Sanders
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Sunday, April 07, 2019 at 01:00 PM · 1 rsvp
2019 Annual General Meeting
The Executive Committee of Democrats Abroad Switzerland is pleased to announce the 2019 Annual General Meeting on April 7, 2019 at Strassburgstrasse 11, 8004 Zurich. A separate email from the Elections and Nominations Committee will present the nominated candidates and voting procedure. Your presence is greatly desired as we need a quorum for the meeting. This is an important event to determine the future of DACH as we enter this extremely vital election season.
You will hear our annual reports, show support for the nominees, and vote for the candidates of your choice. A speaker or brainstorming session regarding important goals for the next year is planned.
>BRUNCH: An optional brunch with limited seating is scheduled from 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM before the meeting. Details and tickets can be found here.
>WHEN: Sunday, April 7, 2019 from 1:00 to 5:00 PM
>WHERE: Strassburgstrasse 11, 8004 Zurich
>RSVP: HerePreliminary Agenda
12:45 - 1:15 Check in and mingle
1:15 - 2:45 Guest speaker presentation with brainstorming session for goals and priorities for 2020. WE NEED YOUR IDEAS!
2:45 - 3:00 Break
3:00 - 3:40 Business meeting and officer reports
3:40 - 4:50 Election of new Executive Committee
4:50 - 5:00 Welcome remarks from new Executive Committee
5:00 AdjournmentWe are looking for volunteers to help us with signing in, tabulation of votes, discussion guides, and AV set-up. Please indicate your willingness to help by emailing elections@democrats.ch.
The registration form has indicators to check if you'd like to be in touch with others traveling from your area for ride sharing or companionship on the trains. We will do our best to link you up.
Democrats Abroad Switzerland is an active grassroots organization made up of volunteers who are passionate and dedicated to helping elect Democrats in 2020. We strive to provide friendship and support to Americans abroad through activities that bring us together in political activism and fellowship. We are expecting a very exciting and busy term. Come help us elect Democrats!