There are 2 main reasons why the system does not automate an email response system for alerts.

The first is that the officials you send them to generally ignore emails.  They are not only not an effective way to encourage an elected official to vote a particular way, they are worse since they encourage activists to not do the work of actually contacting their elected officials in a way that will be paid attention to.  

With politics, the squeaky wheel gets the grease.  We need to become annoying so that they can no longer ignore us.  The main problem with using emails to contact elected officials is that they can be deleted and ignored rather easily, and the number of emails that would need to be generated to cause a problem is really huge.  A phone mobilization is more effective precisely because if a large number of calls are generated, no one in the targeted office will be unaware of the issue and how strongly people feel about it.  All in all - it is better to have 100 phone calls made to a politician then 100 emails. And, it is even better to have 100 people show up at the office. And, since we actually want to have an impact and actually have an influence on legislation, we are encouraging the communication that has the most impact, and discouraging the communication that has the least.

The 2nd reason for not including an email response system in FL-PIN is because of cost.  To maintain an accurate email list of elected officials at the local, state and federal levels is an extremely expensive proposition.  We did not feel it would be worth the expense to add that functionality to FL-PIN, especially when we really want to focus activists on using more effective and more direct methods of communication.

One of the reasons our opponents on the right are so effective at manipulating policy is because they encourage direct personal communication.  They don't just send emails.  They make phone calls and show up on the doorsteps of people they want to influence. 

This following is a link to a training piece from the Center to Reclaim America:  http://www.reclaimamerica.org/pages/grassroots/ImpactTools/ligeloff.pdf

There are two reasons why you may not have received an alert.

The first and most obvious answer might be that no alert has yet been sent that matches your interests and geographic profile.  FL-PIN requires a critical mass of participation from both progressive individuals and groups to function fully.  FL-PIN became operational in March 2005 and it takes time to recruit groups and individuals to participate.  If you know of a group that could benefit by using FL-PIN, please refer them to us.

The 2nd reason why you might not have received an alert is that you might not have activated your account properly.  The FL-PIN registration system is a two-step process.  When you first register, FL-PIN will send you an activation email.  In order to activate your account, you must click on the activation link.  If you are not sure whether you activated your account or not try logging into your profile.  If you can’t get in, then your account hasn’t been activated. 

If you have an automatic spam blocker on your email account (through Earthlink etc), and you didn’t add info@flpin.net to the allowed list of approved emails, then you will not have received the activation email.  Add info@flpin.net to your approved list and try registering again.

For more assistance, please contact the web administrator.

If you move or get a new email address, you can easily change your email in FL-PIN by logging into your profile and changing the email address.  FL-PIN will send you an activation email, and when you click on the link in that email, your new email will be activated in our system.

If you would like to unsubscribe to FLPIN you must do so manually.  Go to FLPIN and log into your subscriber profile and deselect all of your issue areas - you will no longer receive anything from FLPIN that way. And, if you change your mind, you can always log back in and reselect an issue area to subscribe to. Subscriber login is at: http://www.flpin.net/login_sub.cfm

The individual subscriber database in the system is locked up pretty tight. FLPIN administrators can't remove you or actually adjust your record. You are in complete control of that, so no one can subscribe you or unsubscribe you without your permission. About all the administrators can do is verify you are a subscriber and what your status is.

If you can't remember your password, the network will send it to you. If you continue to have a problem, or are unable to get into your record to deselect your issue areas, let an administrator know, and they will assist you with this process. 

If you have changed your email - you can log into the your profile and change the email. They system will then send you an email to confirm this change.

If you are unable to log in, it is because your account is not active.

Individual Subscribers:
If you are an individual subscriber, please make sure your spam-blocker is not preventing you from receiving mail from flpin.net and that you have properly activated your account.  If you are still having problems, please contact us to get additional assistance.

Group Members:
In order for groups to access their account, their account must be activated, approved by the administrator and the annual dues paid.  Please check first to make sure your account has been properly activated.  (Note: This is the same two-step process that individual subscribers go through – click here for more information).

Once your account has been activated, the administrator will need to verify your information to approve your account and ensure that your annual dues are paid before your group information will be made live.  Please contact us to resolve any issues and to see where you are in that process.

If a problem arises with your account, either from not paying dues or by violating the terms of service, your account may be frozen until the issue is resolved.  You will be notified if such an action is taken. 

Please feel free to contact us to discuss any problems you have with the account.

You can help by spreading the word and encouraging your friends to join FL-PIN.  This can be done via email, or by printing out the convenient flyer and posting it at bookstores, etc.  (Note: The flyer is a pdf file, you need adobe acrobat reader to view)

FL-PIN is a central repository for information about progressive organizations in the state.  It contains a searchable database of progressive groups and their current action alerts.  An individual may sign up free of charge to have these alerts sent to them automatically.

For more information on What FL-PIN is and how it works, please view this convienent flyer.  Feel free to download this and share it with your friends.

You may link by using this banner:  

Located at http://www.flpin.net/flpinbanner2.jpg or you can simply copy and paste the following code into your website:

<p><a href="http://www.flpin.net">
<img border="1" src="http://www.flpin.net/flpinbanner2.jpg" alt="Florida Progressive Information Network" width="450" height="60"></a></p>