Village Square in the news
John Avlon mentions Village Square | The Daily Beast
Professional partisans present a vision of American politics where everything is divided between the far left and the far right. Lately, they seem to be dominating the nation’s political debate. But there’s a powerful backlash brewing—a movement of voices from the vital center who are declaring….Continue Reading
…their independence from play-to-the-base politics. In fact, the center does not only have the numbers, it has the intellectual coherence and strong advocates. There are academics like the Hoover Institution’s Morris Fiorina, author of Culture War? The Myth of a Polarized America and McGill’s Gil Troy, author of Leading From the Center. There are centrist think tanks, like Will Marshall’s Progressive Policy Institute and The Third Way associated with the Democratic side of the aisle and the Main Street Partnership for the GOP. There are centrist radio-show hosts like Michael Smerconish, Ronn Owens, and Alan Nathan. There are centrist Web sites like TheModerateVoice.com, Donklephant.com and BookerRising.net—as well as aggregators like Fark.com that skewer absurdities on both sides. Most important are the grassroots groups that are growing up on their own, like the Village Square movement based out of Florida, the Transpartisan Alliance, or the newly formed Pragmatic Center, which announced its presence in the wake of Kathleen Parker’s column.
The purpose of this list is to show that there is a coherent and strong centrist movement growing in America right now. It is principled and civil. It is independent of the two parties’ influential, entrenched special interests. And it is on the rise. Read the whole article…
Originally published March 31, 2010 in The Daily Beast www.thedailybeast.com
Peaceful village | Tallahassee Democrat
Remember the fracas surrounding the town hall meetings on health care? The founders of The Village Square do. Their efforts to bring together diametrically opposed ideological groups has earned a $72,000 slice of $24 million offered through the Knight Foundation’s Community………Continue Reading
Information Challenge. The money will be used to support programs that help concerned individuals follow Albert Einstein’s charge: “To the village square we must carry the facts … from there must come America’s voice.”
The Village Square is the type of resource citizens of this country, and more distinctly, area residents will need as we consider opposing points of view with a mind toward strengthening our republic.
Through conversations over group dinners, political discussions over a pint of beer, and soon, online tools that will allow community members to post, read and edit information on locally focused topics, Executive Director Liz Joyner and members of the board are striving to “bring communities back together again as neighbors taking care of what neighbors used to handle.”
Round-table and panel discussions sponsored by The Village Square, through the use of the Knight grant, could serve as the antithesis of the well-intentioned — but easily maligned — local “town hall” meetings.
A good example was the one held on health care reforms Aug. 25 at City Hall. Though it was attended by U.S. Rep. Allen Boyd, it quickly fell victim to an ideological shouting match because it was sponsored by some community agencies that stood to benefit from federal stimulus dollars. An opportunity to meet with our congressman was drowned out by rhetoric from both sides, and an opportunity to truly hear and understand opposing views was crushed.
By contrast, Village Square forums would primarily focus on the local issues, including topics such as the great biomass debate, coal plants and constitutional amendments. The group’s outreach efforts encourage individuals to read, think and opine for themselves rather than allowing their talking points to come from nationally focused partisan agendas.
The first test of bringing the community together in such a down-home fashion is to raise matching funds for the Knight grant. The group is halfway to its goal, but it’s important that donations (and participation) come from throughout the community.
“Knight wants to see that the community supports the idea,” Ms. Joyner said.
Input is sought on how The Village Square can best use its grant money to unify the community in the exchange of ideas.
“There is a way for anyone who’s interested to get involved, whatever their abilities are,” she said.
Whether residents of this area support The Village Square with their dollars, their attendance, contribution to an online Wiki of information pertinent to local topics or in some other form, Ms. Joyner and members of the board march forward with a charge by writer Patricia Nelson Limerick: “Let friendship redeem the republic.”
We hope that it can, and will.
Originally published January 28, 2010 in The Tallahassee Democrat www.tallahassee.com
Bipartisanship on the Hustings | Kathleen Parker
Americans say they’re sick of partisan politics, and some of them really mean it. In Norman, Okla., and Tallahassee, Fla. – two university towns where football usually matters more than governance – local leaders weary of blood sport have begun taking matters into their own hands…….Continue Reading
…Next week in Norman as the media hordes forget they ever heard of Iowa and descend on New Hampshire for the nation’s first primary, a dozen or so renegades from the major parties are convening a forum to develop Plan C. A third way. A bipartisan solution to business as usual. Their immodest goal: To end divisive partisan polarization, create bipartisanship and bring the country together after the 2008 election.
Leading the charge are David Boren, Oklahoma University president and a former U.S. senator, along with former Democratic Sens. Sam Nunn of Georgia, Charles Robb of Virginia and Gary Hart of Colorado, also a former presidential candidate.
Republican sponsors include former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman, former Sens. Bill Brock of Tennessee and John Danforth of Missouri, and Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska.
And yes, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg will be there, but he’s not running for president.
Other formers expected to participate include Bill Cohen, former secretary of defense, and former U.S. Sens. Alan Dixon of Illinois and Bob Graham of Florida. Also, Jim Leach, former member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Iowa, and Edward Perkins, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
Yes, this is primarily a forum of formers. In fact, only Hagel and Bloomberg are politically current, from which one may draw one’s own conclusions. Then again, former politicians may be the best kind. With hindsight comes wisdom and, having been there, done that, people formerly known as politicians have little to gain from speaking out except the rare reward of doing something for the greater good.
While these reform-minded formers are tackling national problems, their bipartisan counterparts in Tallahassee are acting locally through a relatively new Web-based creation called “To The Village Square.” The square is the brainchild of attorney and City Commissioner Allan Katz, a Barack Obama Democrat who used leftover money from his recent re-election campaign to create the project.
He tapped as his partner Liz Joyner, a social worker and stay-at-home mom, (who also ran his last campaign), and recruited a bipartisan board whose members agree with two simple premises: facts matter; solutions should be bipartisan.
“If you say you’re nonpartisan, nobody believes you,” says Katz.
With that reality in mind, The Village Square aims to remind citizens of “The Big Idea” for which our ancestors spilled their blood – that Americans should be self-governing. The Web site, tothevillagesquare.org, explains that history in the context of today’s political dialogue, which “wouldn’t be tolerated between 5-year-olds at recess.”
“We’ve turned ‘talking’ over to professional polarizers on television who make seven-digit careers surfing this wave of hostility,” reads the Web site. “They warp what were once perfectly useful ideas, when understood in moderation, into black-and-white caricatures of ideas, so oversimplified they become effectively useless in solving real problems.
“These entrepreneurial yellers build for us such a fundamental misunderstanding of (and contempt for) people who think differently than we do, we’ve stopped bothering to listen to each other. … We’re spoon-fed slick (and expensive) commercials that sell us snake oil rather than provide the facts so basic to building the informed citizenry envisioned by our Founding Fathers.”
To that end, Katz and friends sponsor topical dinners ($25/person) to air local issues. Next week, while Boren and Co. are figuring out how to advance civil discourse at the national level, participants in Tallahassee’s Village Square will be dining with experts to discuss: “Energy Alternatives À la carte: Fossils and Sunshine and Garbage, oh my!”
OK, so you’re rewinding your videos that night, but somebody has to take this stuff seriously.
It’s not quite a movement, but both Boren’s initiative and the Katz/Joyner project suggest the stirrings of a necessary political backlash. Just as an unhappily married couple nevertheless manages to produce a lovely and beloved child, the ugly divorce of politics from the people may yet birth a very American revolution.
If Washington won’t lead the way, then Americans will simply lead themselves.
Born-again Americans. Now there’s a concept. Syndicated by The Washington Post Writers Group
Tallahassee Democrat: “Our Town forum reviews city’s growth, future”
“With numerous projects nearing completion and others in the works with the city of Tallahassee and Leon County, taking an opportunity to recap isn’t a bad idea. The Village Square created an outlet for that during its first Our Town forum highlighting growth and change in Tallahassee on Tuesday at St. John’s Episcopal Church downtown. The standing-room crowd of more than 250 heard brief summaries on priority projects, such as Gaines Street revitalization. Residents were eager to pose questions ranging from whether Cascades Park will have a dog park and when more parking and sidewalks would come to Midtown…” [Read the article]
Tallahassee Democrat’s Byron Johnson: Avenues of access help government
Last month’s “Our Town” community forum hosted by the Village Square featured members of the city and county commissions. Issues ranging from the value of hiring lobbyists to monitor state and federal legislation to public transportation and a possible gas tax were all addressed. The audience represented a decent cross-section of residents, and the questions could have gone on all evening. Organizer Liz Joyner said the goal is to help eradicate the disconnectedness that some people feel about government. Other, more interactive forums will be held this year. “I feel Tallahassee is the perfect-size city that we… [Read the article]
Residents quiz officials at Village Square
The Tallahassee Democrat: Men and women from all over Tallahassee and Leon County met at St. John’s Episcopal Church on Thursday evening with many questions but one goal — to talk to local elected officials about the day-to-day problems that affect them and their families. The Village Square held the event to give residents a chance to speak with city and county commissioners in an informal setting over pizza and soft drinks. City Commissioners Nancy Miller and Gil Ziffer, along with County Commissioners Bryan Desloge, Nick Maddox, Kristen Dozier, John Dailey and Akin Akinyemi all sat on the panel. [Read the article]
Liz Joyner: Reviving the town hall meeting
There’s nothing more quintessentially American than a town hall meeting. It’s how the business of American community has gotten done from just about the moment the first disaffected European foot hit ground in the New World. Even if you’ve never attended one, the town meeting is buried so deep in our country’s psyche that you can probably immediately call up its intimate details – rows of folding chairs, town council up front with only a school lunch table to define their status, a charmless but functional meeting room. Someone probably saw to it that there would be coffee and cookies. Overachievers might organize [Read the article]
Bob Gabordi: Free pizza and get your questions answered about Our Town
From the Tallahassee Democrat: “Got questions? Of course you do. These days, everyone has questions or comments for their city and county commissioners. There is a lot to talk about. That’s really all this forum from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at St. John’s Episcopal Church is all about. No big long speeches. No campaign rhetoric. No frills. Just conversation, questions and answers. I’m the moderator; I run a tight ship. Oh, and there is free pizza. Order yours by when you RSVP at www.tothevillagesquare.org or by calling 264-8785. Sponsored by The Village Square, with help from a grant from the Knight Foundation [Read the article]
‘Next up at Village Square: Talk about “Our Town” with officials’
The Village Square is giving Tallahassee citizens a chance to interact with local officials in a less-formal setting than a commission meeting. Next week — Feb. 16 at 5:30 p.m. — anyone with anything to say is invited to the “Our Town” forum discussion at St. John’s Episcopal Church, where they can ask questions of their city and county commissioners over pizza and drinks. Leon County Commissioner Bryan Desloge, who will speak at the forum, said this sort of setting is rare for the politicians involved. He encouraged anyone with a question about what’s going on in the city and its surrounding areas to come out. [Read the article]
Tallahassee Democrat: Media experts take questions about the state of the media
There was some role reversal Tuesday night at The Village Square’s latest panel discussion. Media experts were put on the receiving end of some tough questions, with members of The Village Square conducting the interviews. A panel — consisting of a newspaper editor, the man who runs who runs a Florida news aggregate website, two longtime reporters and a professor — tackled inquiries about the state of the news media, where the industry is going and how The St. Petersburg Times picked up a new name. “Media Wars,” a dinner discussion hosted by The Village Square, concentrated on how the news [Read the article]
Tallahassee Democrat: Forum participants to discuss ever-changing news media
The Village Square wants to ensure the community can keep up with the constantly changing face of the news media. Today, several media experts will gather to discuss how media have evolved in society, in the classroom and, of course, on the Internet. At 6 p.m., The Village Square will host “Media Wars: The Future of How (and What) We Know,” which is part of its “Dinner at the Square” series of events. CNBC Washington correspondent John Harwood will serve as keynote speaker. Neil Skene, moderator for the event, said Harwood was a “terrific” option and added that the panel will offer a wide variety [Read the article]
Tallahassee Democrat: Knight grants support local projects
In the coming months The Village Square would like to go from getting people to eat their broccoli to eating double-fudge chocolate cake — at least metaphorically. “The challenge is very often local issues are overlooked with the 24-hour cycle of news on national and state issues,” said Liz Joyner, Village Square executive director. “So asking people to come learn about local issue No. 177 is kind of like asking people to eat their broccoli.” Joyner said in the coming weeks The Village Square will be releasing the dates of its new forums called “Our Town.” The forums will help to revitalize the concept of neighbors with [Read the article]
Forum makes strides in bridging the chasm of ‘December Dilemma’
It’s time once again to queue up the annual media spectacular known as “The War on Christmas.” Americans don’t see eye-to-eye about the role of faith in public life and it’s that time of year when that disagreement reaches a dull roar, often so loud that you can barely make out the “peace on earth, goodwill to men” we might otherwise be sharing. The Village Square has now officially waded into the treacherous waters where faith meets the public square with our monthly forum “Faith, Food, Friday.” Thankfully, we have the good help of local clergy we’re calling the “God Squad.” On Dec. 9, they facilitated a lunchtime [Read the article]
Faith, politics on the table for Friday lunch
“Breaking bread together can lead to civility. That’s the hope of four local clergy and The Village Square, an organization dedicated to fostering conversations between people with different world views. On Friday, they’ll be launching a luncheon series called “Faith, Food, Friday” at First Baptist Church. The first topic will be “Faith in the Public Square.” “Our mothers taught us that it wasn’t polite to talk about politics and religion,” said Liz Joyner, director of The Village Square. “But if we follow that, who’s left to have the discussion? Only people who make seven-digit salaries or win elections if we really hate [Read the article]
Mark Schlakman hosts Village Square forum: Seeking balance in liberty, security
Ten years after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, America continues to grapple with the challenges of achieving a reasonable balance between domestic security and civil liberties. While the anniversary itself is today, on Tuesday a community dinner will offer a chance to more closely examine those inherent tensions. The event, presented by the Florida State University Center for the Advancement of Human Rights and The Village Square, will also explore the dynamics surrounding Islam within the American context and more generally discuss the legacy of 9/11. The program, “Ten Years Time: 9/11, The Heart of America [Read the article]
Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahasseeans plan to mark 9/11
The Village Square – the local bipartisan organization devoted to promoting civil discourse on political and civic affairs – will dedicate its 2011-12 Dinner at the Square series to probing the questions and issues that proliferated in the aftermath of 9/11. “The theme of this year’s series is ‘It’s the End of the World As We Know It … And I Feel Fine?’said Village Square executive director Liz Joyner…” [Read the article]
