Portside Date: December 5, 2015

Date of source: December 5, 2015

Portside

Dear Portside Labor Reader,

Portside has had a great year, especially when you consider our shoestring budget. Every year we reach out for financial help, and a little goes a long way. That's how we planned it.

We have added new, accomplished moderators to our collective. They all work for nothing - it's a labor of love and political dedication.

Last year also saw the successful launch of two new features. Portside Culture has reviews, news and analysis on the arts and letters. Portside Snapshot lets readers check on the daily list of posts at a glance, including Portside Labor and Portside Culture, and special features like Tidbits, Friday Night Videos, Media Bits & Bytes and Dispatches from the Culture Wars.

We have upgraded our servers, and now can put together and send our daily posts more quickly. It also allows us to handle the growing number of website visitors.

But the really big news is that our readership is up 50% since last year.

We don't take credit for this. The fact is, the political climate has changed in the last year. There is a pendulum swing to the left. Social movements are resurgent, from Black Lives Matter to Climate Justice to Fight for 15. The Bernie Sanders campaign has even brought a socialist critique of capitalism to the national discussion.

The service Portside provides is in greater demand than ever. Thousands are discovering that there is a Left in the US, and our daily posts help give a sense of its real scope, however diverse and organizationally diffuse.

We turn for you to help because as we grow, so do our financial needs. We will continue, but to measure up to a re- charged and re-vitalized movement, your contributions will make all the difference.

In the past year, Portside and others on the left side of the Internet have been victims of cyber attacks and DOS (denial of service) attacks (making a server or a network resource unavailable to users by temporarily suspending the services of a host connected to the Internet). Protecting Portside requires costly upgrades to our operation. This no surprise - it's proof we are becoming more effective.

So please drop in on our secure donation page, and give us a hand. This can be a one-time contribution, or you can become a regular sustainer in whatever amount you can afford. If you would prefer to mail a contribution, please send to the address at the bottom of this email.

At a time like this, a donation to Portside is more than encouragement for our project. It's an investment in the future of the Left.

And your friends, co-workers, neighbors and family could also benefit from a subscription to Portside. Just refer them to our subscribe link, or have them email us at portside@portside.org.

Yours in struggle,

The Portside, Portside Labor and Portside Culture crew -

Mark Allen, Judy Atkins, Peter N. Carroll, Barry Cohen, David Cohen, Ira Cohen, Jeannette Ferrary, Marti Garza, Greg Heires, Michael Hirsch, Geoffrey Jacques, Will Jones, Alice Kim, Stephanie Luce, Ray Markey, Leanna Noble, Carol Pittman, John P. Pittman, Natalie Reuss, Nan Rubin, Meredith Schafer, Jay Schaffner, Kurt Stand, Ethan Young

Portside

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