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Hi Dennis, The URL <<http://www.berkshire.net/%7Eifas/activist/>http://www.berkshire.net/~ifas/ activist/> gives email connections to federal/state politicians, the news media, radio & tv. I contacted a large number of newspapers a while ago and had 'some' success in having my Letter to the Editor printed. Another URL is <<http://www.gebbieinc.com/index1.htm>http://www.gebbieinc.com/index1.htm> I think your idea is great and should be pursued. Of course the utmost would be to get into one of the weekly news magazines. Also, why not the international papers? Also, let me remind everyone to notify their local papers that the PAN Forum is taking place next week and that we hope to come back with an announcement of success. Margaret At 02:54 PM 6/11/98 +0800, you wrote: >1st. With regard to petitioning politicians: > >It is my understanding that petitions to politicians tend to be treated as >statistics. Staff members sort the mail into "for" and "against" piles, and >the politician gets a summary on the lines of : for = 1000, against = 999. >Non constituents don't even make it into the statistics. Hence my >reluctance to become involved in writing petitions. > >Discussing this 'off list' with Gail, I wrote: > >"In the second half of my foreigners posting I listed the questions I would >be asking if I were a citizen. (------------). I would be posting that >letter not only to my representative (where it would be reduced to a >statistic) but to every newspaper editor in the land in the hope that it >might find a voice somewhere." > >It occurred to me that maybe, just maybe I could have some influence on >funding the Udall Bill by recruiting US citizens to the cause who would not >normally have become involved. > >Consequently I have written the Open Letter below. It is my intention to >post it to as many US newspapers as I can find addresses for (not to mention >being able to afford stamps for). I admit its a long shot but if only one >editor prints it and only one person responds to it at least it will have >given me a vote so to speak. > >Before sending it out I would be grateful if listmembers could let me know >if I have made any errors of fact in the Open Letter or committed some >cardinal sin of American politics which will condemn my effort from the >start. I would also be glad to hear of any American conventions of writing >to the editor that I should observe. Finally I could use all the help I can >get with those addresses. My thanks in advance to anyone who can send me >the address of a US newspaper. E-mail is a lot cheaper than snail so that >would be my preference. > >Thanks > >Dennis > > An Open Letter to the People of the United States of America > >Last year the Congress of the United States of America did a wonderful thing >for millions of people all around the world. It voted into law the Morris K >Udall Bill. The Morris K Udall Bill did two things. The first was that it >made $100,000,000 available for research into Parkinson's Disease. The >second was that it touched with hope the individual lives of the millions >world-wide who suffer from this life altering, debilitating disease. It >gave us hope that soon a cure would be found, hope that soon our ordeal >would be over, hope that soon for future generations Parkinson's would be >just a word. > >Less than a year later that hope is dying. > >It is dying because Congress, having passed the Udall Bill, is now reluctant >to fund it. It is dying, we are told, because of the system. It is dying >despite the heroic efforts of American people with Parkinson's and those who >care about them. And we millions of people with Parkinson's outside the >United States, having no voice in your political process, are condemned to >watch in silence. This is of course in the nature of things. The Udall >Bill is America's business. It is a vote to spend American money on American >research. No one else has rights in the matter. But it's potential to >change our lives in such a profoundly personal way and the hope it has >already engendered in so many of us make it right that we all be represented >to some degree. > >To which end we need help. > >We need the voices of fair-minded Americans to speak for us. We need you to: > >- check how your representatives voted on the Udall Bill, >- pressure those that voted for it to do whatever they have to do to get >it funded, >- remind Congress that the passage of the Udall Bill raised the hopes of >a particularly vulnerable sector of society right around the world and that >it would be cruel to fail us, >- co-ordinate your efforts with your local Parkinson's organisations. > > >My thanks, > >Dennis Greene (who at 48 is an 11 year veteran of Parkinson's Disease) >Perth, Western Australia > [log in to unmask] DOB: 1941/Dx: 1980/Cured:ASAP Slogans wont do it/Hard work will