I strongly encourage you to immediately endorse the Employee Free Choice Act. I fail to understand why you are not taking a firm public stand on the EFCA when you previously have co-sponsored the bill.
I strongly encourage you to immediately endorse the Employee Free Choice Act. Two weeks ago I attended the town hall meeting held at the IBEW Local 68 offices.
In the recent months since the Wall Street melt-down and subsequent bank bailouts, we saw a most surprising and refreshing public response involving the $50 million arts package part of the federal economic stimulus proposal. When the arts money appeared to have been eliminated from the stimulus, 85,000 people responded to the Americans For The Arts call to write to senators and congresspersons. Showing the significance of one aspect of American government, that it actually will respond to noise in great numbers, the arts package was put back into the stimulus.
Click on subject title to read on:
Responding to daily revelations of corruption and scandal with the AIG bailout, an estimated 10,000 Americans are hitting the streets tomorrow, March 19, in more than 100 public demonstrations across the country. These public displays of mass outrage will surely force accountability and oversight that decades of litigation and lawsuits could never produce.
A DMA (Denver Musicians Association) member called me yesterday asking if it was necessary to buy liability coverage for his band. He was offered a gig to provide lunchtime entertainment in a public square for a downtown business. This is the first time he’s been asked to show liability coverage, so he was curious how to respond.
This mornings email blast from the Colorado Council on the Arts (CCA) contained disturbing news about anticipated stimulus grants. We should be very concerned that 1) only a handful of employers are even eligible to apply for these funds, and 2) if utilized, may only enhance a travel getaway for musicians who summer in Colorado.
Legislative, Local Discussion, National Discussion, Pete Vriesenga, Symphonic/Classical
We must also encourage our elected officers to write and present their viewpoints in a public forum. This increased public visibility will strengthen our collective viewpoints and simultaneously create a forum for debate. Disagreements often arise within a board, as they should. Differing opinions lead to necessary and healthy discourse, but it serves no purpose if these discussions are confined to the boardroom … does it make a sound?
…I hope to illustrate positive concepts concerning, among others, management/union relationships; funding possibilities; community visibility; and musical relevance with respect to educational outreach…That said, I recently had an interesting conversation with national union activist Chris McKeever. Chris laughed and said that musicians really aren’t union people.
Thoughts?
On this day (March 3, 2009) representative AFM members from across the U.S. are meeting with members of the House and Senate to lobby in support of the Performance Rights Act, H.R. 848 and S.379. Denver Local 20-623 members’ Bob Montgomery and Tom LeRoux are among the AFM contingent. This effort is made possible through contributions to the AFM’s Legislative Action Fund (formerly TEMPO).
Electronic Media, Legislative, National Discussion, Pete Vriesenga
Larry has established a worldwide reputation as an arranger, orchestrator, and innovative composer of contemporary music. He’s an accomplished keyboardist, saxophonist, oboist, vocalist and producer. His diverse background, talent and experience, make him the obvious choice to handle the heavy responsibilities of ‘Orchestral Music Director/Conductor/Arranger.’
Electronic Media, Feature/Interview, Labor, Local Discussion, Pete Vriesenga, Rock/Pop, Symphonic/Classical, The Denver Musician
Recent Comments