September 30-October 6, 2004

mixpicks

Moveable Fight

While MoveOn enjoys a high profile these days, both through its online presence, MoveOn.org, and through its MoveOn PAC, it's worth remembering it wasn't always this way. The organization was founded in 1998, gaining its name from its petition to censure President Clinton, and then, er, move on to other important issues of the day. But it had inadvertently hit on a prime example of a right wing-hijacked agenda, and its work has been to counter subsequent attacks.

This week, Carrie Olson, MoveOn's chief operating officer, will speak at a voter mobilization benefit in our back yard—in, yes, perhaps the most contended state in the election. She'll be joined by Mark Crispin Miller (pictured), author of The Bush Dyslexicon (Norton), and Sut Jhally, founder of the Media Education Foundation and executive producer of the upcoming documentary, Hijacking Catastrophe, which'll be screened. The organizer is No American Left Behind, whose goal is to create a sustained interest in politics amongst the public, and local branches of that organization will sign up voters. In the run-up to the election, it's getting to the point where the voter registration booth is elbowing out the cash bar at rock shows—where will it end?

Philadelphia Fight for the Future, Sun., Oct. 3, 6 p.m., $15, The Trocadero, 1003 Arch St., 215-922-LIVE, www.ticketmaster.com.

—Juliet Fletcher