Voting Archives - Social Correspondence

Censorship and Book Banning

Libraries across the country are under threat, with a significant rise in censorship and book banning. Library directors, individual librarians, and community leaders have all been under attack, including calls for resignation, and even bomb threats and other acts of violence. Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, Eureka Valley/Harvey Milk Memorial Branch Library, San Francisco 2010 Two of the principal reasons for banning books are titles with LGBTQI content, or books deemed to include sexual content, especially those written for children and youth. Books written by women of color are also a frequent target. During the school year…

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January 18, 2024

Park Slope, Brooklyn

city living / Grandparenting / Politics / Train travel / Voting

Summertime in New York

It is summertime in New York, and things are coming back to life. Restaurants are open, both indoors and out, subway and street traffic are picking up, and more shops are open. New Yorkers took last Tuesday’s election very seriously. It was a primary election for Mayor and City Council in Brooklyn. Due to ranked choice voting, final outcome of the election may take weeks to be determined. Along the busy corridors of 7th and 8th Avenues in Park Slope, near the YMCA on 15th Street where early voting was taking place, candidates and their…

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June 24, 2021

Creating chaos at the U.S. Postal Service

Mailbox, Annapolis, MD

Mail / Mailboxes / News / Pandemic / Politics / Post Office / Postal Service / Technology / U.S. Postal Service / Voting

Creating chaos at the U.S. Postal Service

Multiple crises over the past year created an unprecedented level of chaos at the U.S. Postal Service. The service has been disrupted by political disputes over mail-in ballots; removal of street mail boxes, mail sorting machines, and barcode readers; COVID-related illnesses among postal employees; and a much higher volume of mail and packages due to the pandemic. Some of the causes of chaos were deliberate and avoidable. First, there was the dispute over mail-in ballots. Due to the pandemic, many voters chose to cast their ballots by mail rather than wait in long lines to vote…

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February 1, 2021

city living / email / Handwriting / hiking / Letter writing / Mail / Pandemic / Politics / Postal Service / social distancing / Social Media / U.S. Postal Service / Voting

Politics and Pandemic

Land's End, San Francisco At last, there is good news on the horizon, a promise that a year dominated by politics and pandemic will soon be over. Politics never go away, but hopefully, the days will become calmer now that the November presidential election is finally over and a new administration is on the horizon. With two new vaccines rolling out, there also is hope that the pandemic will subside in the first half of 2021. Election years are always difficult, but 2020 was a doozy. It was a brutal year in almost every way possible. …

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December 30, 2020

Letter writing / Mail / Note cards / Post cards / Post Office / Stamps / U.S. Postal Service / Voting

For the Price of a Stamp

For the price of a stamp (Global International, $1.25), I can send a letter or card to my cousins in Switzerland and Canada. The 2020 Global stamp features a beautiful chrysanthemum. For the price of a stamp (Forever, domestic, 55 cents), I can send a note, thank you, condolences, and other messages to anyone in the country. For the price of a stamp, I can honor history, celebrate musicians, view gardens, national parks, and other landscapes. For the price of a stamp, I can acquire a beautiful piece of art. For the price of a stamp…

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September 29, 2020

Americans rely on mail delivery for letters, packages, checks, medications and more

Letter writing / Mail / Mailboxes / News / Politics / Post Office / Postal Inspector / Postal Service / U.S. Postal Service / Voting

New Threats to the U.S. Postal Service

Americans rely on timely mail delivery for letters, packages, checks, medications and more New threats to the U.S. Postal Service now challenge this essential service. Ongoing budget troubles have been further exacerbated by the pandemic and a precipitous drop in the use of first class mail. Add to that a new Postmaster General, a political appointee, who is making sweeping changes that reduce services, has endangered the ability of the Postal Service to manage mail-in voting Louis DeJoy, a businessman and major fundraiser for President Trump, took over the duties of Postmaster General on June 15,…

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August 17, 2020

city living / Pandemic / Politics / social distancing / Voting

The End of Silence: Vote!

San Francisco Botanical Gardens July 2020 Following five months of lock down due to the deadly COVID-19 pandemic, we have come to the end of silence. That initial peace, the joyful upside to our early stay-at-home directives, has been shattered by the sounds of returning activity, as well as increased frustration and tension. Shelter in place jokes April 2020 When first sheltering in place, the streets were eerily quiet, with barely a car in sight. Many streets closed in San Francisco to facilitate social distancing for walkers, skateboarders, and bicyclists. All but the most essential…

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July 30, 2020