WARM OFF THE PRESSES ...

Since I'm just now getting to posting this

My favorite local Irishman -- let's just call him "D-Rod" -- sent me this. I thought it was apropos to hold off on posting this until Valentine's Day grew nigh.*

(Set-up courtesy of D-Rod.)

Overheard at the local Democratic Headquarters:

FIRST GUY: "Jeez, I haven't had a date in six months!"

SECOND GUY: "I know what you mean. It's just so hard to meet unmarried women around this place."

FIRST GUY: "Yeah. If we just had, I dunno, like some kind of list."

(SLOWLY THEY TURN TOWARD EACH OTHER, EACH SUDDENLY STRUCK WITH THE SAME IDEA)

SECOND GUY: "And I know just how to get someone elseto pay for it!"

sarah@wvwv.org wrote:

Subject: IMMED RELEASE Reaching Unmarried Women in Pennsylvania

Date: Fri, 8 Feb 2008 09:11:29 -0500

From: sarah@wvwv.org

To: XXX

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

THURSDAY FEBRUARY 7, 2008

Sarah Johnson

mailto:sarah@wvwv.org

Communications Director (202) 659-9570

WOMEN'S VOICES WOMEN VOTE LAUNCHES NATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION DRIVE

Unprecedented mailing aims at Unmarried Women

20 million now unregistered, not voting

With the power to decide elections

WASHINGTON, DC - An unprecedented voter registration drive aimed at the 15 million unmarried women who are not registered to vote will hit mailboxes in 22 states beginning today, as Women's Voices Women Vote launches its largest voter registration drive ever aimed at the nation's largest group of unregistered citizens. In Pennsylvania alone, more than 245,878 citizens will receive voter registration forms in the mail.

Women's Voices Women Vote, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to increasing the number of unmarried women participating in our democracy, is mailing voter registration forms to more than 4.1 million homes in 22 states: Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, North Carolina, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia, Washington state, and Wisconsin.

"In 2008, a new America will be going to the polls. For the first time in history, a majority of households are headed by an unmarried person, and the number of women who are single, separated divorced or widowed is equal to the number of married women," said Page Gardner, President of Women's Voices Women Vote. "But the voices of 20 million unmarried women are not being heard because they are not registered and not voting. Yet, they have enormous power in every election this year."

U.S. Census data shows unmarried women now represent more than 26 percent of the eligible voting age population. In the last presidential election in 2004, of the 20 million who did not participate, nearly 15 million were not registered and another 5 million were registered but did not vote. Compared to married women, single women are 9 percentage points less likely to register and 13 percentage points less likely to vote.

"These are our grandmothers, our mothers, our aunts; our sisters and our friends - across all ages, all races and income levels. These are women facing real challenges in their lives, whether making ends meet, managing a health care crisis without insurance, or worrying about the cost of war," said Gardner. "Unmarried women have already had a profound impact and high participation rates in the 2008 primaries and caucuses. Making it as easy as possible to register to vote will ensure more single women make their voices are heard in our democracy."

From 1960 to 2006, the percentage of the voting age population which is unmarried grew from 27 to 47 percent, according to U.S. Census data. Between the 2002 and 2006 election, the growth rate of unmarried Americans doubled that of married Americans, a trend, that if it continues, means unmarried people will be the majority of the U.S. population within 15 years.

In addition to mailing voter registration forms, WVWV is also encouraging unmarried women to register and vote through innovative online efforts, and is sponsoring the Public Service Announcement campaign, "20 Million Reasons to Vote." The PSAs feature stars such as Christine Lahti and Julia Louis Dreyfus, and are set in the Oval Office, evoking the importance of having women's voices heard and their power felt in electing candidates to every office. The PSAs are visible at wvwv.org.

Women's Voice Women Vote, 1707 L Street, NW 750, Washington, DC 20036 United States

Um, OK.

*For the record, I do not like Valentine's Day. No one is going to tell me when to show my love for someone.