Back in March, when Donald Trump was facing off with two now-forgotten candidates for the Republican Party’s presidential nomination, the small town of Barnstead, New Hampshire, was quietly protecting its citizens. At their annual town hall, residents voted unanimously for a city ordinance establishing the right to freedom from forced religious identification.
The reality of a Trump presidency fast approaches.This inconspicuous action was part of a growing national movement for strengthened community self-governance that has found new purpose as the reality of a Trump presidency fast approaches. It came in the form of a community bill of rights, a charter or ordinance that affirms certain rights within a municipality. Similar bills have granted the right to a clean environment, safe and affordable housing, health care, and worker’s rights, among others.

http://www.yesmagazine.org/people-power/as-a-trump-administration-fast-approaches-cities-and-towns-gear-up-for-political-resistance-20161229/

New Hampshire Community Rights Network posted an update
Story update 1 hour agoThere are renewed and new preemption threats at the state and federal levels that will affect the people and ecosystems of NH in the coming years. Preemption efforts are targeting social justice, public health and safety, workers' rights to livable wages, unneeded energy projects, water toxicity, and more. The ongoing threats of preemption suggests that we must shift our activist strategy to a proactive method - not waiting until individual bills, amendments, or regulations are passed against our local efforts to protect the health, safety and welfare of our human and natural communities. NHCRN IS EAGER AND READY TO EDUCATE RESIDENTS ABOUT THE NH COMMUNITY RIGHTS AMENDMENT AND WE NEED YOUR HELP TO ACCOMPLISH THAT OUTREACH AND EDUCATION. Please consider a tax-deductible donation to the NHCRN Community Rights Awareness Campaign - Thank you!
http://www.nhcommunityrights.org/donate.html

A new movement is working to protect our environment through the recognition of its fundamental rights. It’s an idea whose time has come.BY MARI MARGIL
  FROM DECEMBER 20, 2016, 4:39 PM – 8 MIN READ
http://democracyjournal.org/arguments/nature-and-the-law/

To the Sentinel,

Jill Stein began the recount process in three states that showed narrow victories for Trump and were way out of line with unadjusted exit poll projections.

Recount supporters asked, “Do we have a voting system which is accurate, secure and just? Is this a voting system we can trust?” 

The answer is no, not until many more informed citizens push for change.

Please go to Jill2016.com find the,Michigan recount filings and read affidavits from seven experts. 

http://www.jill2016.com/mirecountfilings

Did you know that a private corporation programs memory cards that “count” 87.5% of NH votes and that its computers can be hacked without detection? Or that one infected memory card can infect every other memory card it programs? 

Robust hand counts (or other independent checks) are absolutely needed to ensure legitimate vote counts.. That’s why the NH Ballot Law Commission, in approving the flawed technology in 2006, said towns/cities could also hand count ballots to ensure accuracy on election night (as NH law and Constitution require).

Recounts are not enough.  My wake call came during the 2008 NH Presidential Primary Recount. I was horrified by what citizen observers documented about poor ballot chain of custody procedures and the very real possibility of ballot tampering. ”(Search for “sham recount Bev Harris” to see some of those documented problems.) 

http://blackboxvoting.org/when-is-a-recount-a-sham/

Also, search for “David Cobb Mark Halvorson recount” to see what Minnesota and New Mexico citizens insisted on fixing after they understood the vulnerabilities in their voting systems in 2004. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YR0Q7M8XYEw

NH citizens can do that too. But first, as Cobb says, people have to become informed, get angry, then get involved.  I’ve been at this since early 2008.

Fact: There is no evidence to prove that our 2016 elections were legitimate. Will we have that evidence about the NEXT elections? The answer will be up to us.
Deborah Sumner
Jaffrey, NH 03452

NHCRN is a non-profit, grassroots organization that is primarily dependent upon donations. There is much work ahead of us in the new year to protect the rights of people and nature. Please make your tax-deductible, year-end donation to the NH Community Rights Network. Thank you!

http://us12.campaign-archive1.com/?u=d7dc9b9ebb731d9f1f94dee44&id=5aa50b24a9&e=9dd25a4e30

By DAVID BROOKS 
Monitor staff
Tuesday, November 29, 2016
There seems to be an easy solution to a rash of people doubting the validity of election returns in New Hampshire: Always audit the results. That’s the argument of some academics who say that regularly recounting certain races in most or all voting precincts, without waiting for anybody to request them, could help reassure the public that neither machines, nor officials are interfering with election tallies.

​http://www.concordmonitor.com/auditing-elections-NH-6444570

Tuesday, November 22, 2016
  http://www.ledgertranscript.com/Ways-to-strengthen-democracy-5956261
The recent election’s divisive tone left many disgusted, worn-out and lacking in enthusiasm toward politics. This could not be more dangerous, as support is needed to promote community rights, revisit Citizens United, and work together to address the many challenges ahead.

At the headwaters is the need for election reform. Corruption was identified as the number one issue that American adults feared, with 75 percent believing their political parties are corrupt, according to an article in Bloomberg Businessweek.

So how can we get unlimited, special-interest money out of politics? On Nov. 8t, a majority of Americans cast a vote for a candidate who promised to appoint Supreme Court justices who “will stand up and say no to Citizens United, a decision that has undermined the election system in our country because of the way it permits dark, unaccountable money to come into our electoral system.”

This is a step in the right direction, but it will have to come before the Supreme Court, and only then can justices begin to unwind the host of decisions, of which Citizens United is only one. Decisions dating back to the 1800s have torn at the fabric of our democracy when corporate influence began to usurp the rights of we the people.

Originally, every corporation had a public purpose stated in its charter and was accountable to the government. Since then, multinational corporations have become stateless, with their sole focus being shareholders rather than the interests of any people or place. To remedy this, citizens must demand that corporations be restructured as national public-purpose legal entities prohibited from engaging in electoral politics.

The resulting outcome would be accountability and an economy in which communities are free to cooperate for the common good rather than forced to compete for corporate favor.

Secondly, to break through our polarized political atmosphere we need to connect with people we don’t always agree with. Social media is a wonder, but it mostly serves as an echo chamber to reinforce existing views. It’s not a substitute for talking to people, asking questions, and learning why people support certain policies. Instead we need to get out of our individual comfort zones and find ways to meet others face-to-face to engage in authentic and respectful conversations. It is time to step up to protect our real democracy from those who profit from division, picking our battles with persistence and determination.

On Nov. 29 at 6 p.m., Monadnock area residents will gather at the Peterborough Community Theater, 6 School St. in Peterborough, to view “We The People 2.0,” a new film that sheds light on innovative strategies communities are embracing to strengthen democracy. This event is co-sponsored by New Hampshire Community Rights Network and MONIFF. Follow-up activities will be discussed and determined by those in attendance.

John Friede lives in Peterborough.