State Coordinator's Report | |
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Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!
Where in the world has this year gone?
I wanted to touch base with everyone regarding our 501(c)3 status. The final draft has been submitted to the attorney, who will double-check to make sure we have done everything correctly. Once I get it back it will be submitted to every chapter to vote on. It will also be emailed to all ABATE of Washington members to vote on. Currently, the Bylaws state that ‘chapters’ will vote on changes, which excludes those who are not affiliated with a chapter. Under our new Bylaws, all members will be given the opportunity to vote, so we are going to try it out with the Bylaws. Hopefully, it will go smoothly, and if the new Bylaws are approved, then this change will take effect for further votes. Please encourage your members to have their up-to-date email on file with their membership. Chapters will also be sent to the Articles of Incorporation to approve. I have every confidence that these will be sent to chapters and members for a vote prior to the January 2024 BOD.
Black Friday will be arriving quickly. I am encouraging you all to get your contacts lined up with your representatives. There will be a ride in from Hawks Prairie for those who would like to participate. There will also be a breakfast along with donuts & coffee available. More information will be posted on our webpage and Facebook page. Click to read more...
May you and your family enjoy this holiday season.
Andy McAfee
State Coordinator
ABATE of Washington
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Before you know it, the Toy Runs will be in the books and it will be time to go to the Capitol to make our voices heard regarding favorable motorcycle legislation. Ask for the time off, invite EVERY motorcyclist you know to Black Friday! Take flyers to those Toy Runs and pass them out. View the Flyer
United we can support Freedom of Choice. Learn More
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We are in need of a new State Products Coordinator. If interested, please contact Bubba Bowen at [email protected]. A special thank you to Cheryl Holtquist for all her hard work. | |
American Income Life - FREE Accidental Life & Dismemberment | |
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If you are a current non-expired member of ABATE of Washington, you will be receiving, or have already received a ‘beneficiary card’ in the mail from American Income Life (AIL).
These cards are mailed out annually to ABATE members as a reminder to update your beneficiary or add some ‘life insurance’ for yourself and/or your family. AIL provides a free ‘accidental death and dismemberment’ of up to $4000 to any non-expired ABATE member. What this means is: if you are involved in an accident and die or lose an arm/leg/eye, etc. AIL will pay you or your beneficiary up to $4000. AIL also offers other life insurance, and if you are interested in getting any type of life insurance or adding to what you already have, they can help you out.
What I’m asking of you members is, please, when they call, be considerate. They are just trying to do their jobs. If you are not interested in any other insurance, let them know and ask them to send you your certificate. If you would like to hear more about the insurance they provide, they will schedule a meet-up with you and give you other options. If you feel that you are being harassed after saying no, please get the person's name and phone number and send it to me.
I cannot stress enough about making sure your beneficiary is up to date with AIL or any other insurance policy you have. Finding out, after the fact, that someone you did NOT want to be the recipient of your demise is too late!
Please, this is a FREE benefit that AIL provides to non-expired ABATE Members, be courteous to them. Click here to read more…
Andy McAfee
State Coordinator
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Thanks to all of you who have submitted articles, chapter reports, and photographs for our Freedom Newsletter.
I will send an email confirmation of each submission I receive. If you do not receive written confirmation from me, the submission did not arrive as planned. Please reach out to me so that I can ensure your submission is included in the next month's newsletter. I will respond with an email confirmation. As always, thank you for sending your submissions by the 15th of each month.
With respect and gratitude,
Shari Carlsberg
ABATE Freedom Newsletter Editor
[email protected]
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MOTORCYCLE RIDERS FOUNDATION | |
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Two More Bills Aimed at Protecting the Internal Combustion Engine
At the end of October, Senators John Kennedy (R-LA), Mike Crapo (R-ID) and Pete Ricketts (R-NE) introduced the Choice in Automobile Retail Sales (CARS) Act, S. 3094. This bill has a House companion bill, introduced by Representative Tim Walberg (R-MI) and Andrew Clyde (R-GA), H.R. 4468.
These bills would prohibit the Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from finalizing, implementing, or enforcing a regulation concerning emissions for light-duty and medium-duty vehicles starting. Read more...
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Safety Group Pushes for Antilock Braking System in All New Motorcycles
Monday, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety - Highway Loss Data Institute (IIHS-HLDI) announced they filed a petition with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to open the rulemaking process and require antilock braking systems (ABS) on all new motorcycles (click here to see this petition). In 2013 the IIHS-HLDI also filed a similar petition with NHTSA on this topic. Read more...
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“Texas” Larry Walker
Legislative Affairs Officer, ABATE of WA
360-271-9285
Background:
“Texas” Larry Walker is a nationally certified Rider Coach for novice, intermediate, and advanced training. He is the Senior Instructor for Navy Region Northwest, a long-time motorcyclist rights advocate with over 45 years of riding experience.
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Moving Forward to 2024 Session
Things are still up in the air about how we are to move forward with the lane-sharing issue. I have met with some of the players and am still playing tag with Senator Liias. The most recent update is that I will be on the shortlist for a meeting at the opening of the 2024 session.
The one buzz that I am hearing is that to gain traction, there may need to be a bit of friendly amending to make the concept a bit less intimidating or off-putting. The two that tend to come up are looking to a pilot project and a vehicle outreach program to make car drivers more aware of the prospect. I have yet to wrap my head around what a pilot project would look like, but the conversations are beginning. Stay tuned for coming attractions.
In the meantime, keep setting up your appointments for Black Friday and keep your powder dry.
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Meet Your Legislators
BLACK FRIDAY
January 19, 2024
| CLICK IMAGE TO VIEW FLYER | |  |
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Spanaway Potluck & Bake Sale
December 16, 2023
| CLICK IMAGE TO VIEW FLYER | | |
RIDER REIMBURSEMENT
Complete a State-Approved Rider Safety Course to receive $50 reimbursement & more!
CLICK IMAGE TO VIEW FLYER
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COLUMBIA GORGE
Happy Holidays to all our fellow members!
October & November were eventful months for our chapter. Our new Deputy Coordinator, Annette, was able to attend STEAM & came away with many good ideas & soaked up all of the knowledge she could. Halloween came & went so quickly, but we were able to donate supplies to our local middle school for their Monster Mash family event, which was well attended.
READ MORE
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FOOTHILLS
Seasons greeting Everyone, by the time you read this, we at Foothills will have had some of our folks volunteering to assist with the BASH turkey box build held on Nov 17th. Other things going on are as follows. We are hosting our annual Christmas party on Dec 10th (please see our Flyer on our Facebook page). We will be involved with the Wreaths Across America on Dec 16th. We will be hosting our annual Christmas Terry homes ride on Dec.17th (Again, please see the flyer on our Facebook page). In Jan Foothills will host the BOD at the Buckley Eagles (no-host bar and lunch). On Jan. 19th, there is Black Friday. We will be supporting other area chapters in their holiday fundraisers. HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM FOOTHILLS.
Kirk Ball
Deputy Coordinator
210-845-3086
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KEY PENINSULA
Greetings from the Pen!
Riding has tapered off quite a bit the related "off saddle" activities are in full swing. We are once again working with our brothers and sisters in North Kitsap chapter with getting toy for St. Michael's children's hospital. Barrels have been set throughout the county and dates to solicit at our local Walmart's for toy donations are upcoming. We consider this giving the community at large an opportunity to partner with us for this worthy cause and we are very grateful to North Kitsap for letting us help them out. It's done a lot to create an even friendly relationship with those brothers and sisters. Work hard, play hard!
READ MORE
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PACIFIC COUNTY
Christmas is coming, and toy runs are in full swing. Many of our members supported this worthy cause. A big shout out to Debbie and Steve for going above and beyond to make this event a success!
At our November meeting, Pacific County Chapter members chose the local charities and families. We will be helping this year. One food bank we traditionally help has a benefactor that matches donations, so our gift is doubled!
Enjoy the Holidays with family and friends because the political season is just around the corner.
John Tschannen
Coordinator
Pacific County Chapter
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STAR LAKE
Greetings everyone from Star Lake Chapter,
The chapter had our donation drive event at the Maple Valley Fred Myer November 5th,2023, and our Chapter meeting later that evening at Farrellis in the same plaza (Pic 1-5). The donation event for the Black Diamond Community Center was a huge success. The chapter took four van loads of donations and $1,035.00 check to the Community Center November 8th, 2023. Our Deputy Coordinator (Dave Crawford) presented the donations and check to the community center director (Pic 6-8). We discussed the Hopes Closet event scheduled and on the ABATE calendar for June 1st,2024. The chapter discussed doing a similar donation event for South King County Kinship program next year.
READ MORE
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Need to reach a specific Chapter?
Get their contact information here:
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Filling in the Blanks
Most people have a pretty clear memory of how they got hurt. Frequently their memories are punctuated with very specific details. “That son of a bitch looked me right in the eye before turning left.” “The front door mat was a bright pastel color.” “The impact made a sound just like an M-80 going off.” But when you go through something traumatic, like a motorcycle wreck, the brain isn’t focused on making memories—it’s focused on survival. The same mechanisms that keep the brain sharp enough to escape immediate danger may also make it harder to accurately recall the event.
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He Passed Me Going 90 MPH
In just about every motorcycle case we have there
are allegations that our client was speeding. There are a couple of important things to know about the issue of motorcycle speed. The first relates to the reliability of witness observations. The second deals with the way courts deal with favored drivers exceeding the speed limit.
Witnesses are almost always wrong about
motorcycle speed. It may be based on the relatively small size of motorcycles compared to other vehicles. Or it may be based on witness bias.
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Public Health and Relations Crisis
The concept of public health has really expanded. It used to focus on disease. Now it includes things like gun deaths. New York’s Governor recently declared
a gun violence disaster emergency. This new strategy treats gun violence as a public health crisis. We have a public health crisis of our own in Washington. It doesn’t have anything to do with guns. Or COVID-19. It has to do with motorcycles.
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What the Jury Doesn't Hear
The evidence rules have a big impact on what the jury gets to hear (and what it doesn’t get to hear). Evidence can seem a lot like an iceberg: 10 percent visible, 90 percent below the surface.
A lot of the evidence rules are counter-intuitive. Here’s what the jury doesn’t get to hear in a personal injury case:
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