The year 2010 was one full of more political stuff for me, and by that I mean the stuff outside of my Parks board and East CAC activities. With these two Raleigh civic activities I do my best not to lobby or persuade for one decision or another. I simply try my best to represent my “constituents.” There were a few notable legislative issues where I was an active proponent or opponent last year: all of them above the city level.
First up was a trip to Washington, DC to the Clean Energy, Jobs, and Security Forum as part of the Operation Free group of veterans who are pushing for changes in America’s energy policy. In January I flew into DC with other vets for a day of media training. I spent the following day in the Dirksen Senate building, starting off with speeches by Sen. John Kerry, Sen. Lindsay Graham, and other leading clean-energy advocates.
Later that afternoon, I joined several other North Carolinians concerned about clean energy for a meeting with Sen. Kay Hagan. There were a half-dozen of us in Sen. Hagan’s office at one time, each representing their industry or point of view. I told her how North Carolina has a proud history of innovation. I mentioned SAS Institute’s new 2 megawatt solar farm, and I also touched on the Wright Brothers’ choosing their first flight here because of the abundant clean energy in the form of wind. Lastly, and most importantly, I emphasized how North Carolina is in a great position to benefit from clean energy jobs.
Right away I could tell Sen. Hagan seemed to “get it.” It was little surprise to me when weeks later Sen. Hagan agreed to support clean energy legislation. While the legislation ultimately did not pass the Senate, I am still a strong advocate for clean energy (as my recent blog posts indicate).
It was quite fun walking around the hallways of the Dirksen building. I enjoyed getting my picture taken in front of a Senate podium. I enjoyed waiting in the cafeteria. I enjoyed lunch in one of the large dining rooms, and I enjoyed watching the talking heads do interviews at the end of the building. I was thoroughly enjoying the whole experience, imagining that maybe one day I might be a senator myself, when I abruptly realized that all morning I had been walking around with my fly open!
Ahem.
Curiously, I never thought to blog about this fascinating field trip to the halls of power. The only mention was about my creepy interaction with Andrea Mitchell.
I also spent time at the General Assembly when another anti-municipal broadband bill was introduced. After talking to many representatives about the issue, I was happy to see at least some of them supported municipal broadband. There were a few who said they did and then when it came time to vote they caved in. I learned quite a few lessons from this foray into state politics, and it wasn’t flattering.
The process wasn’t for naught, though. Ultimately the good guys prevailed, and I made some contacts with some important lobbyists and political consultants.
Another fun adventure was the effort to lure Google Fiber to Raleigh. Within hours of Google’s announcement of the project, I blogged about it here on MT.Net. That drew many Google Searches to my site. Before I knew it, my website was the number-one hit for the “1GB Internet” search term. It stayed at the very top for many months.
I also marshaled the troops in showing Raleigh’s support for the project. I created a Facebook page, the “Bring Google Fiber to Raleigh!” group, which gathered over 1,600 members at its peak. I also lobbied city leaders to pursue the project, alerting them via email less than two hours after the announcement. They responded by creating a promotional video and website. No locations have yet been announced by Google but I’d like to think Raleigh made a good case. I certainly had fun helping to organize our response.
Lastly, I did a little campaigning for candidates during the November elections. I spent a few hours one afternoon canvassing a North Raleigh neighborhood for Brad Miller and Grier Martin. Then I spent several chilly hours on Election Day morning being a poll greeter for Grier outside a North Raleigh church. A poll greeter from Grier’s opponent was also there and we struck up a friendly conversation. I’ve always enjoyed talking politics, and many times I’ve truly enjoyed talking to the “other guy” at the poll. I think it’s great that people can have different viewpoints on issues or candidates but still be civil and understanding.
We’ll see what 2011 brings. It will definitely be different.