UP COMING EVENTS

November 11: Officers Mtg, 6pm, Mr. Porky’s

15: Denton Toy Run 16: COC&I Mtg, 2pm, TBD

23: Gen Mtg, 1pm, Mr. Porky’s

December 20: Christmas Party

Toy Delivery

January 26: Legislative Day

Events with Flyers

DENTON ABATE NEWS

ELECTION TIME

Nominations for 2015 officers are as follows: Coordinator: Dan Wall “Tanks”, Connie Thompson

Assistant Coordinator: Joann York Secretary: Brenda Rosenbaum Treasurer/Membership: Kirsten Shivers Security: Snyder Rosenbaum Legislative: Kent Longo Chapter Rep: Joann York

NO ELECTRONIC VOTES ACCEPTED MAILED BALLOTTS MUST BE POSTMARKED

BY NOV 19TH OR VOTE AT MEETING ON NOV 23RD.

November 2014

ABATE IS: “An alliance dedicated to the protection of the individual rights of motorcyclists

through political change and awareness, charitable deeds, public education and to the promotion

of motorcycling” ABATE is a motorcycle rights organization.

Preamble to the bylaws, Texas ABATE Confederation Inc.

Tanks, See ya’ll next time

No Report Submitted No Report Submitted

No Report Submitted

Run Coordinator: Kirsten Shivers

Membership/Treasurer: Kirsten Shivers

Denton ABATE meeting minutes: October 26, 2014 Meeting was called to order at 1:13pm, October 26, 2014 at Mr. Porkys followed by the Pledge of Allegiance and a moment of silence for our troops and our fallen brothers and sisters. Opening Remarks: “Thanks for being here today”. Please turn down your phones, $5 to the down riders fund if it goes off. Bios for State assistant coordinator are on the table. Secretary’s Report: September minutes were available to pass around. Motion was made, seconded and passed to accept the September 28, 2014 minutes as printed. August meeting minutes are not available, get with Joann if interested. Treasurer’s Report: A motion was made, seconded and passed to table the treasury report, any questions get with Kirsten. A motion was made, seconded and passed to pay for one year PO Box. Legislative Report: Officer is absent. Elmer reviewed prop 1 for Denton County; also the future of the motorcycle fund. There will no longer be inspection stickers, vehicles will still require inspections, but will be computerized thru your registration…no inspection , then you will not be able to register your vehicle. Get out and vote “Tuesday, November 4th”. Membership: We have lost members since the first of the year, 44 current members. Products: Officer is absent. Newsletter: Officer is absent. Chapter Rep:

Secretary’s Report: Brenda Rosenbaum

Officer is absent. Steve “as proxy” reviewed the last newsletter report and discussed his experience and the importance of the Mid-South Mile. Our chapter vote for State officers will be taken today. Running for State Assistant Coordinator is Connie, Rudy, and “Trainwreck”; State Newsletter is Joann and Kaye. State Security by acclamation is Joe; State Treasurer by acclamation is Robin. Next State meeting is November 8th. Asst. Coordinator: We appreciate all who support Denton ABATE. We must get back to what ABATE is and our mission statement, “An alliance dedicated to the protection of the individual rights of motorcyclists through political change and awareness, charitable deeds, public education and to the promotion of motorcycling.”; read aloud by Kirsten. Run Coordinator: Next event is the toy run. We have a band, Time Delay. Volunteers needed for food and door prizes. Take toy runs flyers with you everywhere. Guests and New Members: Welcome Bobby T who grew up here locally and Gary’s grandson, Cory. Old Business: Vote for State Assistant Coordinator: Connie-3, Rudy-4, and “Trainwreck”-0 Vote for State Newsletter: Joann-5, and Kaye-2 Review 2015 Chapter officer nominations; Coordinator_ Tanks and Connie; Assistant Coordinator_ Joann; Secretary_ Brenda; Membership_ Kirsten; Treasurer_ Kirsten; Legislative_ Kent; Chapter Rep_ Joann; Security_ Snyder; Run Coordinator_ Kirsten. Newsletter and Products are appointed positions. There will be write in spots on the ballots. New Business: November newsletter with ballots will be out early for the November 23rd meeting. Write to Ride: None Open Floor: TMRA II is gone. The funds generated at the Feb. 22, 2015 fish fry at the VFW will benefit the “Save the Patch” fund. Please get with Connie about info or donations for the 2014 Denton ABATE Memorial Toy Run. “Welcome” from Arlin to new members. No 50/50 today: A motion was made, seconded and passed to adjourn the meeting at 2:21pm. Submitted by Brenda Rosenbaum, Denton ABATE Secretary

Security: Tanks

We are secure! Letters to the editor: Hello my name is Connie Jean Thompson, I am running for the position of Coordinator for the Denton chapter

of ABATE. Many of you already know me and what my abilities are. For the newest members of ABATE, I have been a member since 2004. I have held several offices on the State and Chapter levels and have helped to perform the duties of most others. Along with my strong involvement with ABATE, I am also a member of C.O.I.R., US Defender/C.O.I.R. Division, TMRA, Secretary for Mid-South Mile and I am an A.I. M. rep for Richard Lester's Law firm out of California. I have many friends throughout the motorcycling community and many more contacts within other organizations. I am well qualified for the coordinator position and have held it in the past years.

My goals for ABATE is to rebuild our relationship with other organizations. I have already been working

toward that goal and have received good responses from many. I also want to build our membership numbers. I also want to start up some training classes on how to contact our legislators and the art of letter writing. The motorcycling community is vast and varied. As a whole, we are a powerful force for political change. Most of you want the same thing. We are all proud Americans. We all respect the principles of our founding fathers. We all love to ride on 2 wheels and want to keep that freedom.

With the recent adoption of the new bylaws, the entire procedural organization needs to be updated as well.

ABATE has a strong history. ABATE has a strong future. ABATE needs officers that can make that happen. I can make that happen.

Please consider me when you cast your vote for Denton's coordinator. Thanks everyone, Connie Jean Thompson ~ Wild Thang

Write me in!! As you know it’s time to vote for 2015 Denton ABATE officers. Majority of the positions are not contested and will be held by the same few of us, some will be holding more

than one position. Since the closing of nominations I have decided to run for the membership office as a write-in. I have been a member of Texas ABATE since 1994 and helped form the current Denton chapter. I was the Membership Officer for Denton from 1997-1999 and feel I am qualified to tackle it again.

So take your pen and write-in Brenda Rosenbaum for your 2015 Denton ABATE Membership Officer. Thank you, Brenda Denton ABATE Secretary

BALLOT INSTRUCTIONS:

Print your name or member number on ballot.

Newsletters with ballots will be sent by mail and

email. Two member households will have 2 ballots.

You can mail or bring your vote to the November

23rd meeting. No electronic votes.

Mailed ballots will not be opened until the November

23rd

, 2014 meeting.

Make only one choice per nomination, your vote will

not count if you mark more than one choice. Please

mail by Nov. 19th

to the address below.

Ballots will be verified according to the current

membership list.

Thank You

November 15, 2014

any questions or donations contact Connie at

214-399-8353 or cjrdruner@yahoo.com (Full flyer enclosed in this newsletter)

Denton ABATE Nominations for 2015 Officers are:

MEMBER

Name or ID#:

Coordinator:

Dan “Tanks” Wall

Connie Thompson

Write In

Assistance Coordinator:

Joann York

Write In

Secretary:

Brenda Rosenbaum

Write In

Treasurer:

Kirsten Shivers

Write In

Membership:

Kirsten Shivers

Write In

Legislative:

Kent Longo

Write In

Chapter Rep:

Joann York

Write In

Security:

Snyder Rosenbaum

Write In

Run Coordinator:

Kirsten Shivers

Write In

MUST BE POSTMARKED BY

NOVEMEMBER 19

Please mail to:

Denton ABATE “VOTE”

P.O. Box 176

Denton, Texas 76202

Legislative: Connie Thompson

Hello everyone, I hope everyone had a great weekend and remember our Veterans on this Tuesday. If you see someone who has served, or still serving please stop and thank them for their service. We can never thank our military enough for all their sacrifices in order for us to have our freedoms The date for Legislative day has been set it will be January 26th. So ask for the day off and make your reservations for Sunday night to be in Austin on Monday for Legislative day. ABATE will have handouts for everyone with talking points about all the bills we are trying to get pushed thru legislatively. We will also have maps to your elected officials offices and copies of the legislative issues we want to get sponsors for. So call write or email your reps and make appointments to be able to talk to them on January 26th. Hope to see you there.

Are you concerned about the future of our motorcycling lifestyle?

Fact or Fiction? There is a safety community in Washington D.C. that is trying to destroy motorcycling as we know it with lies and half-truths. This group is a quasi-mixture of government and private safety driven organizations including The Center for Auto Safety, Highway Loss Data Institute, the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety and the Governors Highway Safety Association to name a few. All of these groups work to influence the government to enact stricter and stricter safety standards and laws. They all do this slightly differently from each other but they do have one common core; they hate motorcycles. If they thought it was remotely possible for one minute that they could eliminate all forms of power driven two wheelers from the traffic landscape, they would try. They try to alarm the

general public with misinformation or partial information. They claim that motorcyclist fatalities have been on the rise since 2005 and that is true. Some years see a dip but for the most part motorcyclist fatalities have risen. There was an increase of 36 more fatalities between from 2005 to 2011, 4,576 to 4,612 respectively. However, bike sales and registration numbers are up and that tells a very different story. One that they don't want you to hear. A closer look at the numbers reveals the bulk of the story. They tell us that motorcyclists’ fatalities are on the rise but they never mention the number of motorcycles on the road, which is also increasing. When we look at the numbers, they show the exact opposite of what the media, the government and the safety-crats are telling us. In fact, motorcycle fatalities are occurring on a much less frequent basis year after year. Since 2005, fatalities have dropped from 73.5 motorcyclists per one hundred thousand registered motorcycles to 54.7. That is an almost 30% drop in fatalities in the exact same time period in which the fear mongers tell you fatalities are a growing problem. All of the numbers used here are directly from the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) website. Separating fact from fiction reveals the truth. Over six years 2.2 million motorcycles were added to the roads and we essentially kept the number of

fatalities at a near static number. This is not exactly the end of the world, deathtrap-riding scenario that the powers that be would have you believe. All this considering that the only difference is the Motorcycle Riders Foundation created a federal grant program to send money to the states to assist with rider education and share the road type campaigns. We have also relaxed mandatory helmet laws which go directly against what they would have you believe. Year Registrations Fatalities Fatalities per 100,000 registered 2005 6,227,146 4,576 73.48 2006 6,678,958 4,837 72.43 2007 7,138,476 5,174 72.48 2008 7,706,464 5,312 68.39 2009 7,883,446 4,469 56.69 2010 8,212,267 4,518 55.01 2011 8,437,502 4,612 54.66

2014 Elections and Beyond

Now that the dust has settled on the 2014 election, the Motorcycle Riders Foundation issues its reflections on what just happened. As you probably already know, it was a good night for Republican candidates with the pickup of some unlikely Gubernatorial, Senate and House seats. The election ultimately gave the Republicans a Senate majority and the largest Republican House majority since 1929. Some say that the Republicans received a mandate from the country on their conservative platform: that is a little far-fetched, considering the President's dismal approval ratings and the tradition of a second term president's party receiving a walloping at the polls in the midterm elections. President Obama has also inserted himself and his policies into the fabric of peoples daily lives, and that has not had the desired effect-just the opposite actually. The Republicans managed to capture seven additional Senate seats and possibly more, as Virginia is still too close to call. The Louisiana Senate race, according to state election law, must go to a run off in the coming weeks with polls identifying the Republican candidate with a healthy lead over the incumbent. The Republicans will have a slight majority with less than the 60 votes needed for full control. Mitch McConnell is apparently the heir to the Majority Leader position after handily defending his seat against a worthy adversary. The Republicans also held onto and even expanded their robust control of the U.S. House of Representatives. They padded their majority, elected the first black Republican woman, and are set to re-elect speaker Boehner. Speaking of women, this Congress is now the first to elect 100 women to the House and Senate. Longtime motorcycle champion and House transportation committee member Nick “Nicky Joe” Rahall (D-WV) lost his bid for a 20th term in the House. We are sad to see him go, and his loyalty to the motorcycling community will be missed. Republicans also won some very unforeseen Governors’ races, most notably in Massachusetts and Maryland: both were stunning upsets in solid blue states. Whether the Republicans had a great midterm because of these policies, President Obama's unpopularity, or if the Democrats just had bad candidates is up to you to decide. A big thank you to everyone that did go out and voice your opinion and Vote. Great job in fighting for your rights. Now let's use some of the information above when we talk to our reps on Legislative day. Let them know we are aware of what is going on and we are fighting for our rights our Constitutional rights as Americans and as Bikers.

Everyone be safe out there. Remember even thou it is cold you can still get dehydrated, so remember to drink plenty of liquids, water, tea, coffee and not the other liquids unless you are sitting at home and not going anywhere. Let's all be responsible in how we ride. We are our own worst enemy. Ride Safe.... Ride Free... Just got out and Ride ~ Wild Thang Maybe it’s age? Maybe it’s still enjoying friendships made. From meetings where motorcycling was, is still the main topic. I enjoy riding! Enough said? In my day a lazy ride through the woods or hills on a shovel was pure bliss. No helmet, cut exhaust, apes if you wanted. Pull over and fifteen people would stop to help. I only wanted to take a piss! Motorcyclists of that time were a select group. Then someone coined the phrase “ride free”. What did I say? Fast forward and the “M.I.L.E.” for this year is over. It will be in Texas next year. The M.I.L.E. to and for me is rewarding for the update of information gathering, people in one place accessible by me! Or you? Friday…the catching up on personnel things and happenings of the past year. We sample some home brew, exotic drink, jello or chocolate. Saturday…breakfast, last minute meetings, choice of four different speakers. I was global by Theo. Remember my ride on the shovel? Soon, to ride, the gloves, jacket and pants will be government prescribed. And the people who will cry the most sit on their duffs and don’t want to hear about it! The helmet law worked to polarize everyone to choice. The next go-around will be dictation. Fast forward to a banquet and hours of good entertainment, provided by all who attend. Bring some extra money because something will catch your eye! The M.I.L.E. is for the people. No one profits from its existence, all money made insures the next years M.I.L.E. will continue. The people on the committee donate their time and service out of love protecting motorcycling rights. I am a committee member and here’s waiting to see you at the next Mid-South M.I.L.E.

We have a few Not Rot 2013 t-shirts left, at $2 each. There are also a few of the white bandanas with our logo on them for $5 each. Koozie’s are now $1 each. There are also patches for our fallen brothers that are $5 each. Don’t forget we still have plenty of the stickers that go on the back of your driver’s license; they are only a $1.

Article written by: Snyder Rosenbaum

LEGISLATIVE DAY IS JAN 26TH

The state meeting was hosted by the NET chapter, at David and Christie Dobyns’ house in.

It’s always nice to visit with friends.

Connie had a suggestion that I personally thought was a good idea. I want to challenge everyone to do this. You could also have your kids and grandkids send a card as well why all of us don’t send Christmas cards to Wounded Soldiers in Washington, DC. Here is the address if you want to send one. A Recovering Solider c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center 6900 Georgia Ave, NW Washington, DC 20307-5001 Connie is still working on the new chapters. Pit Bull out of Frankston turned over that chapter to Donna Pierce. She is working with me in getting it all set up. Arlington: Their general meetings will be moved to Diamond Jim’s on the 3rd Sunday at Noon GT: Freedom run was a success Lake Cities: Christmas Party will be Dec 6th at the American Legion Post 88. Held a garage sale. Flipper is working on another campout, to be held in early spring. NET: Up Coming Events: 12/6- Santa Cops & Christmas Party; 12/20- Pop’s Ride, Visit Red Crosses; 12/21- COC meeting in Tyler Texoma: Up Coming Events: 12/6- Christmas Party @ Elk’s Lodge; 12/7- Toy Run in conjunction with Harley and the Salvation Army. The toy run will start the Red River Autoplex and ends at the Elk’s Lodge. Old Business: Officer Nominations: Asst Coordinator – Connie Thompson, David Bryant “Trainwreck” and Rudy Hutter Security- Joe Wolf, Treasurer- Robin Warfield, Newsletter- Kaye Elliott, Joann York Election Results: Asst Coordinator – David Bryant “Trainwreck” Security- Joe Wolf, Treasurer- Robin Warfield, Newsletter- Joann York New Business: The following item was tabled- Andy brought up that under the new bi-laws, the assistant coordinator no longer represents the independents. This is due to a conflict of interest. He suggested that the independents have their own representative, as they do have a voice at the state level. Andy suggested that we send a letter to all independents to let them know that they need an “independent rep”. Rick brought up the idea that because the TMRA is disbanding the end of December, a lot of their members will come to Abate as independents. We need to be ready to welcome them. Lori- needs to step down due to family obligations. Snyder brought up the suggestion to call Brenda, to see if she would be willing to take over the membership role. Brenda agreed to take over the position from Lori. The two of them will get together and work out the details.

Chapter Representative: Joann York

Sorry I wasn’t at the last meeting. I took the motorcycle rider class. I had a lot of fun. This past weekend, I went to the state meeting, hosted by NET. The state elections were

held, I was elected to be the newsletter editor. Thank you for the votes.

Our officers meetings will be held at Mr. Porky’s at 6pm on the FIRST Tue of each

month.

Any articles and all officer reports are due by the day of the officers meeting. If

you have an article or report to send in and can’t get it to me by the deadline, let

me know and I will discuss it with you individually.

Please make sure that we have your current email address to ensure you receive your

monthly newsletter. My email is joann.york924@gmail.com if you have any questions

or comments. If there is something in particular you want to see in the newsletter, sent

it to me. I will do my best to make sure it’s included. Please remember, negative issues

pertaining to other Abate members will NOT be added.

~ Never ride faster than your guardian angel can fly ~

Joann York Chapter Rep / Newsletter Editor Texas Abate Newsletter Editor Joann.york924@gmail.com C.O.I.R. Member

The idea was mentioned of doing a trial run of giving a “complimentary” years membership with the targeted age 18-25. The idea being that we get them involved and see what we are about, then after their year is up they will join. We must do something to get the younger crowd involved.

Newsletter Editor’s Corner: Joann York

How to contact your 2014 officers?

Coordinator: Tanks danwall1965@yahoo.com

Assistant Coordinator: Kirsten Shivers 940.594.2309 mimashivers2002@yahoo.com

Secretary: Brenda Rosenbaum snybaum@msn.com

Membership/Treasurer: Kirsten Shivers 940.594.2309 mimashivers2002@yahoo.com

Products: Joann York 469.226.8978 joann.york924@gmail.com

Legislative: Connie Thompson 214.399.8353 cjrdruner@yahoo.co

Run Coordinator: Kirsten Shivers 940.594.2309 mimashivers2002@yahoo.com

Security: Tanks danwall1965@yahoo.com

Newsletter: Joann York 469.226.8978 joann.york924@gmail.com

Join the MRF

Protecting Your Rights in Our Nation's Capital!

The Motorcycle Riders Foundation is chiefly concerned with issues at the national and international levels that impact the freedom and safety of American street motorcyclists. We are also committed to educating rights advocates to improve effectiveness at the state and

local levels. The MRF works together with State Motorcyclists' Rights Organizations (SMROs), assisting them with state and local agendas as well as working with them to influence Washington, DC - from the Congress to government departments and agencies to the Office of the President of the United States. We also work with allies in Europe and Asia to influence talks on vehicle globalization and

harmonization that are proceeding under the United Nations and the World Health Organization (WHO). We have an historic partnership with the American Motorcyclist Association and work with the AMA on a host of issues.

President Barrack Obama The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington DC 20500

Telephone Comments: 202-456-1111 Switch board: (202)456-1414 Fax (202)456-2461

www.whitehouse.gov

Texas Governor Rick Perry PO Box 12428 Austin, Texas 78711-2428

Telephone (512)463-2000 Fax (512)463-1849 Opinions: 1-800-252-9600

Assistance: 1-800-843-5789 www.governor.state.tx.us

Texas State Senator Dist. 9- Chris Harris PO Box 12068 Capital Station, Austin, TX 78711

Telephone (512)463-0109 Fax (512)463-7003 District Address: 522 S. Edmonds Lane, Lewisville, TX 75067

Telephone (972)436-1001 Fax (972)436-9829

Texas State Senator Dist. 12- Jane Nelson PO Box 12068 Capital Station, Austin, TX 78711

Telephone (512)463-0112 Fax (512)463-0923 District Address: 1235 S. Main St. #280, Grapevine, TX 76051

Telephone (512)817-3446

Texas State Senator Dist.30 - Craig Estes PO Box 12068 Capitol Station, Austin Texas 78711

Capitol Phone (512)463-0130 District Address: 1117 Gallagher St. 340, Sherman, TX 75090

Telephone: (903)868-2437 Fax: (903)868-9666 Craig.Estes@senate.state.tx.us

Texas State Representative Dist. 63- Tan Parker PO Box 2910 Austin, TX 78768

Telephone (512)463-0688 District Address: 800 Parker Sq. Ste. #245, Flower Mound, TX 75028

Telephone (972)724-8477

Texas State Representative Dist. 64- Myra Crownover PO Box 2910 Austin, TX 78768

Telephone (512)463-0582 District Address: PO Box 2910, Lake Dallas, TX 75065

Telephone (940)321-0013

Texas State Representative Dist. 65- Burt R. Solomons PO Box 2910 Austin, TX 78768

Telephone (512)463-0478 District Address: 1029 W. Rosemead Pkwy. Ste. 108, Carrollton, TX 75007

Telephone (972)724-8477

Reaching your Elected Officials

Texas Abate Confederation

www.texas.abate.com

Texoma ABATE Meeting 3rd Sunday every month 1pm

@ Sherman ELKS Lodge 1313 E Hwy 1417 Sherman, TX (903)271-8588

www.texoma@texasabate.com

Denton ABATE Meeting 4th Sunday every month @1pm

@ Mr. Porky’s 8430 W University (Hwy 380) Drive

Denton, TX 76207 (940) 380-2945 www.denton@texasabate.com

NET ABATE- North East Texas Meeting 1st Sunday every month 2pm

@ American Legion 236 W Hwy 276 West Tawakoni, TX (903) 447-9502

www.net@texasabate.com

Arlington ABATE Meeting 3rd Sunday every month 11am

@ D & J’s Saloon 205 E Front St Arlington, TX (817) 542-0577

www.arlington@texasabate.com

Golden Triangle Meeting 3rd Friday every month 7:30pm

@ American Legion Hall Memorial Blvd Port Arthur, TX

www.goldentriangle@texasabate.com

Lake-Cities Meeting 3rd Saturday every month 2pm

@ American Legion Post 88 Gotcher St, Lake Dallas, TX

www.lakecities@texasabate.com

Texas Abate Chapters