This morning, I woke up and listened to a voice mail left by $mentor[0] last night. In it, he suggested that we might get together this weekend. He also mentioned that Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate Mike Miles would be holding a meeting at a Denver coffee shop, and wondered if I would be interested in going to that.

I contemplated the one thing I had already planned for the day -- checking out Food Not Bombs in Boulder -- and decided that I would rather meet with $mentor[0], possibly elimitating the chance to make it to Boulder in time. Besides, I had already heard many good things about Mike Miles, and the thought of seeing, in person, the senate candidate I might vote for seemed like a good idea.

I returned his call, arrived at $mentor[0]'s place at 10:30, and we went from there to the coffee place. There were a few people wearing Mike Miles shirts standing outside on the corner, but nothing significant in terms of speeches appeared to be happening yet, so we went inside and ordered beverages.

In a slightly out of character move for me these days, I actually ordered coffee at the coffee shop. After drinking it, I remembered why I rarely do so anymore. I could feel my heart going crazy inside my chest, muscles all over my body tensing involuntarily, and I wanted it to stop. Once in a while, I just have to remind myself of why I don't do something in order to get a visceral reminder. "Oh yeah. That's why!"

The designated time of the meetup, according to $mentor[0], was to be at 11:15. When 11:20 passed, and no "meeting" appeared to commence, we went outside and asked the Mike Miles people about it. They basically said, "Yeah, this is it right here. Nothing more." It consisted of a few random people standing around, and they pointed out Mike Miles himself, who was standing and talking to somebody on the sidewalk. So much for the big speeches.

But, I thought, this could be a golden opportunity. We went over and listened as he talked to the person, discussing his stances on health care, Iraq, and education. After finishing his conversation with that person, he turned to us, and shook both of our hands.

$mentor[0] asked him a question about school vouchers, to which Miles replied that he was unequivically opposed not only to school vouchers, but also the so-called "No Child Left Behind" act. He said he strongly supports more funding for public education and teachers.

(On this issue, I am personally somewhat ambivalent, as I think both public and private educational institutions as they currently exist are ridden with systemic problems that cause harm to children. However, if I confine myself to the sphere of anything that resembles mainstream debate, I tend to support Miles's position over the alternative.)

A few other people had started to gather around the would-be senator to seek his views on their pet issues. $mentor[0] was making as if to leave, and I was like, "Wait, wouldn't you like to hear what he says to them too?" (I was also contemplating asking him a question myself.)

$mentor[0] was like, "Sure, why not?"

So we returned to listen as he talked, answering questions from the half-dozen who were now standing surrounding him on the sidewalk. He talked about Bush's war (he opposed it from the very beginning), energy policy (a proponent of developing alternative fuel sources), and the current policical situation in America.

The crowd began to grow by leaps and bounds, as more people who were passing or sitting and drinking their lattes became interested. He said, "Wow, I didn't expect to see this many show up here," and suggested that we proceed inside. The assembled mini-masses gathered around several tables inside the coffee shop (whose employees and owners apparently had no knowledge that they were about to becomes hosts to a nearly full-fledged political rally).

Once inside, he did begin to take on more of a "speech" like tone, as the number of people who were now paying attention were several dozen. But his entire talk consisted of answering questions from audience members. I liked what he said, and I liked his style.

At one point, a representative from the Ken Salazar campaign came in (clearly marked by his t-shirt), and did a little bit of heckling. Mike Miles welcomed it, and took him on in a little mini-debate about which candidate is more supportive of gay rights. He was firm but respectful in his tone, directly quoting several things Salazar had said which put into serious doubt just how much (if at all) Salazar truly supports equal rights for gay people. (Salazar was quoted in the Denver Post last year as saying he opposed adoptions for gay couples in Colorado. The best thing Salazar's supporter could do was say, "But that's just a local Colorado issue, and won't be addressed by the U.S. Senate. Salazar does support gay rights in other ways. Really, he does!" Uh huh.)

This was the one time in the entire gathering during which the crowd in the shop erupted in open applause for Miles.

Let's see... other things of note... Miles talked about his background, how he did serve in the military, so he knows a thing or two about "supporting our troops", standing in contrast to the questionable service record of our current "War President". (Is every democrat who runs for any office this year, no matter how far from the White House it may be, going to take the opportunity to somehow differentiate themselves from the man in the Oval Office? Well, I wouldn't blame them. He makes such an easy mark.)

I liked what he said about fighting terrorism and freedom of speech. He said that in the fight against terrorism, we should never use it as an excuse to crack down on those who are simply expressing their views. Even Muslim groups who hate America and talk about it openly should be left to say what they want unless there exists clear evidence that they plan to perpetrate acts of violence. Yes!

He also believes that many "portions" of the U.S.A. Patriot Act need to be repealed.

He believes in helping small businesses with tax breaks, but NOT large corporations. (I'm so glad he distinguishes between the two.)

Toward the end, as the crowd was dwindling, I knew this was my moment. Now or never. I stood up, and asked him my question. Though there are many issues on which I would be interested to converse with our leaders, I chose a topic simple enough to put into a brief soundbite of my own, to see what his reaction would be.

I prefaced my question by saying I would understand if this was something he hadn't heard much about or taken a position on, because it doesn't get much coverage in the big media. I briefly explained how, ever since the 70's, congress has repeatedly extended copyright terms retroactively on works dating back to the 1930's. Specifically, the first Mickey Mouse film; according to the laws of that time, it should have entered the public domain decades ago, but has been kept under the control of the Disney corporation in virtual perpetuity.

So my question for him was 2-fold, and I phrased it thusly: "I'd like to know, (1) If, during your term, a bill came up before the senate to again extend copyrights on works made almost a century ago, would you vote for or against it? And (2) if there was a bill to repeal some of the previous extensions, would you vote for or against it?"

I knew that the likelihood of (1) happening again was unlikely to happen again before 2018(?), but I wanted to hear his reaction. (2) might also be unlikely because of the way politics is done in this country, but you never know...

His response was honest. He said he hadn't studied the issue in depth, but based on what I had just said, it did sound like a legitimate problem to him, and if it came up, he would have to look at it further, but he tended to agree with me.

I added, to punctuate my point, that if these sorts of shenanigans had been in effect a couple hundred years ago, we might still be paying some corporation for the works of Beethoven or Mozart, and that it didn't get more press in tho national media because the same companies lobbying for the laws are the ones who own the tv stations.

He said, "Yes that is a huge problem," and went on to talk about media consolidation, and how FCC rules need to be reformed to again tighten ownership limits on our airwaves. (This does seem to be an issue that, thanks to tons of grassroots involvement, more politicans are aware of and speak on.)

Before leaving, I told him he would have my vote for sure. I like the guy, and his platform of genuinely listening to the people he represents. I want to see him win.

Now, in order to keep that promise, I need to go out to the DMV first thing Monday morning (the deadline for next month's primary), change my party affiliation, and get my address updated. I've been procrastinating it too long. This guy will need all the help he can get in the primary next month, so I will be there at the polls.

After that exciting meeting, $mentor[0] and I went for a 1.5 hour hike up a trail off I-70.

He had to go to work this afternoon, since he had the opportunity for overtime (and needed the money), so our thing ended.

By that time, it was after 15:00. There was no way I was going to make it to Boulder by 15:30. I decided to put off Food Not Bombs for another week.

$mentor[0] had mentioned earlier that Before Sunset was now playing at the Mayan theatre. For some reason, it had just started a week later here. He had seen it at a special showing Thursday night, and loved it.

I decided that this was what I wanted to do with the remainder of the afternoon. I was annoyed to find that matinee prices at the Mayan do not apply to 5:00 showings. The only time you can get a matinee ticket there (still pricey at $6.75) is at the very first afternoon showing. There are no longer any student discounts either (not directly relevant to me anymore, but it's still sad). The regular price has risen to $8.75.

Damn, even the nice little indie theatres are out to take every possible cent they can get from their customers these days. I guess that's what every good capitalist does. Since I didn't want to use my credit cards unless absolutely necessary, and I didn't have much cash in my wallet, I pillaged Tobias for quarters, and managed to find enough to buy myself a ticket. I really wanted to see this movie, and driving back another day would just mean wasting the money on gas instead.

Well, it was worth it, as documented in my movielog entry.

Now I'm here, thinking about starting a gentoo install tonight, but realizing that it's already getting late in the evening. Maybe I'll just prepare Argo now, and do the actual install tomorrow.

And find something to eat. My stomach is sending me messages.

So, as my final message for the day, I shall make a simple suggestion to all Colorado people who might read this: Vote for Mike Miles in the Senate! For the good of America. First August, then November. Thank you.