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May 29, 2012
Independent and Green-Rainbow Party voters have successfully petitioned to place Lee Scott Laugenour on the ballot in this year’s elections in the 4th Berkshire District, making his State Representative race against incumbent William Pignatelli the only one in the Berkshire County area where voters will be given a choice between voting to keep things the same or voting for real progressive change on Beacon Hill. PRESS RELEASE >>

SHOUT OUT TO BE PART OF THE TEAM - team@scottlaugenour.org

R E C O G N I T I O N  &  F R I E N D - B U I L D I N G

BERKSHIRE RECORD (Oct 29, 2010 editorial endorsement)
“With Laugenour, southern Berkshire County residents have a rare chance to make a real change in the House... Laugenour actually wants to look at reforming the state income tax, and balancing the budget without gutting state aid to our towns....We need to send a message not just to our representatives, but to the entire Legislature. It's time to demand solutions to problems – our towns just don't have the tools to solve them in a sustainable way... Southern Berkshire County is unique. We need a unique voice.”

BERKSHIRE EAGLE (Oct 28, 2010 editorial)
“Lee Scott Laugenour of the Green-Rainbow Party emerged as an impressive candidate in the 4th Berkshire District.... Eloquent and enthusiastic, he is the kind of person the county needs more of in the years ahead.”

M O B I L I L I Z A T I O N

Since the 2010 elections local greens have continued to be impactful and have grown into a strong political force. Fellow greens serve on boards and committees, and have organized town and political action committees.

Mark Miller's campaign came was within 200 votes of winning the 3rd Berkshire District seat in the special election in neighboring Pittsfield, collecting almost double the number of votes of the fourth-place Republican candidate.

I am proud to have joined many fellow supporters canvassing, volunteering, and contributing to Mark's campaign.

With 2011 now behind us we are getting ahead of the curve, organizing ourselves to bring about change next year. We'll have double the resources in 2012 than we had in all of 2010. Thanks to supporters we'll be able to hit six times as hard this time.

S T R O N G E R  &  H I T T I N G  H A R D E R

Look at what is happening locally, statewide, and nationally!

Public trust in politics is at an all time low. Communities, local businesses, and people are being hit with service cuts and fee increases that they cannot absorb. Politicians are more concerned with currying favor with the moneyed institutions rather than in the responsible stewardship of public services.  We are not powerless, though. Although we couldn't all be on the bridge with Martin Luther King in 1965, and we now can't all pitch a tent on Wall Street, we can all fight back with impact from here at home.

Let's hit even harder this year to demand fair taxes and budgets. We need investments in public health insurance and in public education systems that do not further increase the personal debt levels that now stifle individual enterprise. Future green jobs and the economic development will come from healthy, educated, and solvent people. Today's unfair regressive taxes and budgets do not serve these needs while the politics of today is making this situation worse. Real solutions are not being debated. We have the solutions; they are part of our American heritage, but they are well outside established political paradigms and far beyond the tired uni-partisan or bi-partisan political debates of today. These solutions, though, are within the reach of a determined campaign and determined voters.

We're looking to the future in setting the course for environment and energy policies while reducing the influence of corporate money (with its bias for short-term private profit) in policy-making. We will call for a major change in budget priorities. This call is backed with popular power because the ideas behind them are powerful and popular.

Our 2011 fundraising drive surpassed our goal and we have hired Suffolk University graduate Kalin Jordan to manage the campaign. Please contribute to our effort to strengthen us further as we begin this important 2012 challenge for real change.

Thank you.

Rally for Real Change November 1, 2010.

Photo by Susan Geller