¡One Week from TONIGHT!

Democrats Abroad Argentina was born from a phone call I made almost 2 years ago today. For that reason, this Tuesday night will be a very special evening for me.

On the night of the 2006 mid-term election returns, I went searching for a place to watch what I suspected would be a return of both the House and the Senate to the Democratic Party ...a very optimistic prediction even late that night in November.

After taxi after taxi ...from Palermo to San Telmo ...in a search of any and every expat watering hole with a TV tuned to a station showing those historic gains of the Democratic Party and the beginnings of the repudiation of the policies of George W. Bush and his puppeteers. Only the good Brits at the Gibraltar were kind enough to change the channel for me ...and me alone in the crowd ...to count the burgeoning tally from yanquis sick of the US becoming a failure and a pariah. After about an hour, they apologized (sorry, mate) at having to return the set to a football match.

Back home, I followed the night's returns on the internet alone ...and while I was at it, I googled "Democrats" "Buenos Aires" and "Argentina", knowing that there HAD to be some people just like me here in Buenos Aires that wanted to do the same thing that I was trying to do that night.

I found Democrats Abroad.

That night I left a message for Leo Perez Minaya in the Dominican Republic and a day or two later he gave me the job of organizing Democrats in the wilds of the Argentine.

Next Tuesday, I won't have to look for a place to watch the election returns ...I'll actually be directing people to the best show in town.

The first year was disappointingly tough sledding. I laid a lot of "virtual" groundwork, thinking that expats here would prefer to connect via the internet. But it wasn't until the day of my first anniversary on the job that two Columbia University law students provided a meeting room in their apartment tower that our organization began to happen. Once all of those "cyber-connected" humans got to meet face-to-face, our little band began to catch fire. For that reason, I never call myself a founder ...without mentioning Danny Frost and Alexia Simon in the same breath.

We few, we happy few, have grown to hundreds and hundreds this magic year and we have done some mighty things. We weren't recognized officially by Democrats Abroad International until February of this year but next Tuesday will always be our anniversary for me.

So come out this Tuesday and watch what I'm predicting (still wildly optimistic) will be the most tremendous turn for the better that the United States has seen since 1932.

Sacramento Resto Bar
El Salvador 5729
Palermo Hollywood
Buenos Aires
(click for directions and details)

...and if THAT wasn't good enough for you: Obama's Top Man in South America will be with us, Zak Schwarzman of Americans Abroad for Obama will be enjoying his first night off in god-only-knows-how-long. Make sure he can't BUY a beer! His cash ain't nuthin' but trash for a Democrat in Argentina.

Thanks to each and every one of you, the ones that joined today and the ones that were there for that historic founding in Danny and Alexia's building two years ago.

You all made history. Let's make some more this Tuesday.

Yours in art and labor,
Mike