There has been much press about liberal PHiladelphian's starting to run as committeepeople all around the City. Getting inside the machine, if done right, can be good for a number of reasons. But, how about the PA Democratic Party? Well, Chris Bowers, of MyDD, found out that in his district, the majority of the state committee seats are not even filled. So, he, and his friend, have decided to do something about it.

Basically, two progressive guys saw seats on the Dem state committee are not even going to be filled, so they decided to run. All they need is 100 votes a piece, and they win, and there is some new blood on the State Committee. This would be an immediate plus for the State Party.

The question is, do YOU live in his West Philly district? If not, can you email a few people that do live there? The instructions, the district boundaries, and everything else you need, is below, in an email from Chris.

Second, as you may have heard by now, along with Kevin Scott, I am running for state Democratic committee here in the eighth senatorial district of Pennsylvania. We are running a write in campaign. Five positions in our district are open, and we need 100 write-in votes to win. The election will be on Tuesday, May 16th. This email contains all of the information you need to help support our campaign.

The Toolkit
First, I have attacked our campaign flyer to this email. Please print and distribute it to any family and friends who live in the district.

Second, if you are unsure whether you or anyone you might know lives in the district, you can see a map of the district here:

http://www.seventy.org/maps/mapimages/8thPaSen.pdf

If the map does not provide enough information for you, you can use this nifty tool at the committee of seventy:

http://www.seventy.org/map/

Next, if you have a blog, you can direct readers to my announcement post, which explains my rationale for running:

http://www.mydd.com/story/2006/5/11/132550/883

Of course, you can also send that link over email, and you can print or repost as much of the article as you like.

Finally, here are the instructions for casting the write-in votes:

1) Find the box marked "Member of Democratic State Committee" (third from the bottom of the ballot).

2) Press the "write-in" button for that section of the ballot. The square red button at the top of the machine will start blinking.

3) Press the blinking red button. The black shutter next to it will automatically open, showing the paper.

4) Write or stamp Christopher J. Bowers in that box (you must write my name in full).

5) Pull down the black shutter, closing it.

6) Repeat steps 1-5 with the name Kevin W. Scott (you must write Kevin's name in full).

NOTE: If you have any difficulties, poll workers will gladly assist you, even if you have already begun the voting process.

Please distribute this information to your family and friends in the district. The election is on Tuesday, May 16th, so there is not much time. A friendly reminder to people the day before Election Day, and on Election Day itself, also wouldn't hurt.

I appreciate your support from the bottom of my heart. Feel free to email me with any questions or concerns.

For a more progressive Pennsylvania,
Chris Bowers

I, like many of the readers of this blog, am pretty "poor," in that middle-class student with lots of loans type of way. I just gave $25 to the Red Cross, to at least help out a little bit with the effort to help mitigate the horrific, and I mean horific, damage in New Orleans.

The water is still rising. 80 percent of New Orleans is under water. Highways in and out of New Orleans have now been destroyed under the weight of water. Mississippi death tolls are expected to be in the hundreds. Tulane Hospital, with 1000 patients, is filling with water. In short, it is goddamn Armageddon, and getting worse by the hour.

People will be hungry, homeless, and devastated.

Donate something here. If you do, leave a note in the comments.

C'mon Philly. Do it.

Councilman Wilson Goode Jr, at Young Philly Politics:

Voting rights for African-Americans were guaranteed under the 15th Amendment to the United States Constitution ratified on February 3, 1870 - but not until 40 years ago was there a federal law to fully protect those rights. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was signed into law on August 6 of that year by President Lyndon B. Johnson primarily to end practices of racial discrimination that blocked voter registration and included the use of poll taxes, literacy tests, and grandfather clauses to politically disenfranchise African-Americans.

As we reflect on the last forty years of progress that has been made in terms of Black political empowerment both locally and nationally, it is now time to also address the generation gap that exists within this community and the nation as a whole.

In Philadelphia, I am the only member of City Council that was born after the Voting Rights Act was signed – in fact; I was born only a few days later. And, although there are seventeen members of council - only two, other than me, are under the age of fifty.

......

Young Philadelphians now see a City Council whose average age will probably be at least sixty at the time of the next election cycle and a city government that still does business almost exclusively with white men. They see a state government that raises its own compensation level without even considering a minimum wage hike for the rest of the state. And they see a federal government that has divested from urban America in a way that diminishes their economic hope.

In short, they see an older generation that can not hold its political representatives accountable.

Read the rest at Young Philly Politics.

Over at Young Philly Politics, I just asked this question:

Let's say you were the Mayor of Philadelphia, or the Governor of PA. If you had one executive order that you could use to create any law or policy that you want, what would it be? Would it address a specific focus like education or the environment? Would you instead try and do something related to how Government functions?

You are the Mayor. What would you do? Join the conversation at Young Philly Politics.

You can do anything within reason, but only one thing; spend it wisely.

We all want change in Philly, right?

So does Chris Bowers, our national blogger from MyDD.

Today, he signaled that he is turning his attention from kicking Republican ass nationally, to going to battle with the unreformed Philly area Democratic Machine.

Check it out, because this looks to be the start of something big.

In his introductory post at Young Philly Politics, Omar asks what issues a "progressive" candidate would stand for. He suggests term limits, campaign finance reform and non-Partisan elections. What do you suggest?

What has come out of the post though, is an interesting discussion about what people think being a "progressive" actually means. Is it about "moving forward"? Or is it about a specific set of ideals?

What do you think?

Come join the debate.

Tonight, numerous bloggers from Young Philly Politics, Rowhouse Logic, and hopefully a bunch of other places, will be joined by readers, friends, and many random Philadelphians, for a fun Happy Hour fundraiser for Seth Williams.

Besides a great chance to meet Seth, there should be a really cool crowd of people there, from both on and off-line communities.

Black Sheep Pub. 17th and Latimer (between Locust and Spruce), from 5:30 to 7. (Suggested donation $25. As Chris said, if you are poor, give what you can. And, of course, if you have it, you can always give more.)

It is going to be awesome. Hope to see you there.

Today, we have our third, and hopefully biggest day of action for Seth Williams. The goal ? Get as many people as possible to sign quick e-pledges to come out and vote for Seth. It is simple, quick, easy and effective, especially in a race where 100,000 votes gets you the win.

Whether you have a "political" blog or not, if you are moved, become a part of what we are doing. Be a part of something that is gaining the attention of both national bloggers all over the Country, as well as the Philadelphia media.

If you want to be a part of it, and help spread the word, leave a comment with your with your blog, and we will update the list of participants throughout the day. If you do not have a blog, and you want to send an email to your friends, a quick example is at Young Philly Politics. Above all else, spread the word, and pledge your vote at www.seth4da.com/vote.

The regionalization of blogs, made possible here by Philly Future, has the potential to be revolutionary in Philadelphia politics. Get involved! Email any Philly voter you know, and ask them to do the same, because this is a small turnout election where we can make a real difference.

So far the participating blogs are:

Above Avg. Jane
Young Philly Politics
Paradox
Dragonballyee
Rowhouse Logic
The Tattered Coat
The West End
America's Hometown
MyDD
iFlipFlop
Music For America
barkingmoose
Suburban Guerrilla

Last week, in a day that was virtually unprecedented in the blogosphere, Philly activists united to spread the word, and give our collective endorsement to Seth Williams, the terrific candidate for DA.

You didn’t think it would end there did you? A few words, and then we are done?

Today, we unite again. This time with a specific goal: signing up volunteers for the campaign. (SIGN UP). All over the blogosphere, people have taken notice of Seth, and for good reason: He stands for everything grassroots and netroots activists have demanded Democrats stand for: reform, innovation, real connections to the community, and a fight against the status quo. More of the same is not good enough. Nor is simply a “D� following your name.

Whether you live in Germantown, or Germany, if you can make it to Philly for a day, you can volunteer. Hell, you can even sleep on my couch if you need a place to crash.

Sign up, leave a comment that you did so, and help spread the word.

Once again, check back at Philly Future for participating blogs.

So far:
Young Philly Politics
Rowhouse Logic
Above Avg. Jane
Attytood [not an endorsement]
Dragonballyee
America's Hometown
Swing State Project

Leave a comment with your blog url, and we will add you to the list. Whether you have a political blog or not, if you feel this is important, join us.

Today, bloggers all around Philly cyberspace, are taking part in an online day of action for Seth Williams, candidate for District Attorney. Our goals are threefold: 1) spread the word about Seth, and what he stands for, to as many people as possible, especially those who may not normally read philly blogs. 2) Sign up as many on the ground volunteers as possible for the Williams campaign. And 3) Raise some much needed money through donations, small and large.

Throughout the day, many of us will be putting up posts to that end. As more posts go up, I will update the list of participating blogs.

So far, we have:

Young Philly Politics
Rowhouse Logic
Above Avg. Jane
Karl and Matt of Philly Future
A Smoke-Filled Room
Music for America
America's Hometown
Dragonballyee
Daniel on DailyKos
Suburban Guerrilla
The West End
Chris Bowers at MyDD
Swing State Project

Email your friends, family and entire personal network, spread the word, put a post up, and let us know. We will be updating this throughout the day.

The mainstream media may be ignoring this race, but we cannot afford to.

This weekend Penn Law School held its annual Edward Spaer Symposium, organized by students in the Penn Public Interest Law Program. For those dedicated to public interest law, the Symposium, totally organized by students themselves, provides an amazing array of public interest practitioners, speaking about areas in which they specialize. This year, the entire Symposium was dedicated to the War on Drugs, and the legal issues the arise from it, all the way from the purchase, to the sentencing, to post-sentencing, etc.

Particularly insane, especially on the local level is the process whereby the DA simply seizes homes, whether the owner has commited a crime or not. And, as you will see with just one case, this practice of the unfettered seizing of homes has two main problems: First, it is unfair, inhumane, and cruel. Second, it is simply short-sighted, stupid public policy.

Read about it at Young Philly Politics.

One of the positive things to come out of the aftermath of the 2004 election was that the energy that was shown by everyday people in the neighborhoods of Philly has not gone away.

There are two organizations gearing up that represent a cool chance for change: The Center for Progressive Leadership and The Philadelphia Neighborhood Networks.

Read more about them at Young Philly Politics.

(Cross posted at Young Philly Politics. If you are willing, put a similar message on your blog ASAP)

Today, the Senate has a final vote scheduled on the awful bankruptcy bill. This is the most vicious, anti-everyday American, anti-everything bill that has been proposed in years. (For more on the bill, see here. For more on the effort by bloggers to spread the word, see this.)

Call our Senators, today. Jam their phone lines. Tell them that you are a constituent, and you will remember when it comes time to vote, that they sided with MBNA over down on their luck Americans.

Indentured servitude is not the American way. Let them know.

And if you have a blog, conservative, liberal, whatever, spread the word, and start calling.

Spector's number is 202-224-4254.

Santorum's is 202-224-6324.

The vote is today. At the very least, make them think a little bit.

Alex has a post up at Young Philly Politics that argues that in the race against Rick Santorum in 2006, Democrats should not simply looking to a candidate they see as a possible winner. Instead, they should attempt to start a conversation that can reframe many of the issues we are losing on, and change the whole debate. To that end, he advocates Drafting Anthony Zinni, the war hero from South Philly, to run against Rick Santorum in 2006.

You may or may not agree, but his piece is certainly thought provoking.

Read it at Young Philly Politics.

Lynn Abraham, quite the polarizing figure (you really love her or really hate her) has some pointed competition this election cycle. Her opponent, ex DA Seth Williams has ideas for making the DA office more effective and tailored to the needs of Philadelphians.

Check out Young Philly Politics for one of his letters to supporters.