A Question for Townhalls

So, here's a question to ask elected officials (at all levels) or candidates at public forums:

If the American intelligence community and the leader of Russia disagree on something, who will you believe and support?

That's a pretty basic question, and one with an expected, basic answer.  Today the President of the United States got it wrong.  Attentive voters should ask all candidates that question from now on.  It's important to know the answer.

Eagles Mural

On the train home tonight I was chatting with the woman sitting next to me.  She showed me a photo on her phone of a painting with an eagle carrying a football player.  The woman wasn't sure if the eagle was carrying a Philadelphia player to victory or carrying off a Patriots player.  I pulled up my phone and checked my Jane mail.  Low and behold there was an email about the same mural.  Turns out the eagle is carrying off Tom Brady. 

The mural was painted by artists at the Meg Seligman studio.  It is currently located at the studio, 829 Bainbridge St.  The studio is raising funds to create a larger mural.  If you want to see what it looks like now and what it could look like check out:  https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/eagles-victory-mural-sports-art#/

It was nice talking with my seatmate.

More PA Women Running for Office

A note from our friends at the Pennsylvania Center for Women and Politics

Observers around the country have noted an uptick in the number of women running for political office, and some areas of Pennsylvania appear to be no exception to this trend. Data collected by the Pennsylvania Center for Women and Politics (PCWP) at Chatham University indicate that women ran for and won more Southeast Pennsylvania municipal offices in 2017 than in 2015.
In 2015, PCWP tallies revealed that less than a quarter of candidates (24.7 percent) in Southeastern Pennsylvania were women—Philadelphia (38.5 percent), Bucks (28 percent), Delaware (22 percent), Montgomery (21.5 percent), and Chester (26 percent). In the same area in 2017, 39.5 percent of candidates were women. 

Preliminary results of data collected from the November election indicate that across Southeast Pennsylvania approximately 41.5 percent of the winners in Philadelphia, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery Counties were women. In Philadelphia, where only a few races were on the ballot, women represented 62 percent of those who won their races (8 women). Many more offices were contested in the collar counties; in Bucks County 45 percent of winners were women (142 women), while women represented 42 percent of the winners in Delaware (139 women) and Montgomery (167 women) Counties. Chester County’s tally was somewhat lower, with 35 percent (96 women) female winners. The 2015 and 2017 results are based, in each county, on candidates and results available in those respective election cycles.

“In the past, we’ve usually seen women make up a little more than a third of candidates and, on average, about half of those in contested races win,” said PCWP Executive Director, Dr. Dana Brown. “This year, women won at about the same rates, but there were definitely more women on the ballot in Southeastern Pennsylvania than in 2015.”

According to Brown, the PCWP has found that the increase in women’s candidacies has not been widespread across the Commonwealth. In Allegheny and Dauphin Counties for instance, women represented only about 35 percent of both candidates and winners. “We really had been expecting to see the number of women’s candidacies, and therefore victories, increase in 2017 since we are having more and more women showing interest in learning more about what it takes to run for office,” Brown added.

Holiday Shopping I: Meg Saligman Coloring Book

Meg Saligman, the artist behind the Common Threads mural at Broad and Spring Gardens St. has created a coloring book based on her artwork.  A sample page is available as a free download on her website, www.megsaligman.com .

MegaColor:  25 Years of MegaMurals, The Coloring Book, prepared by the Meg Saligman Studio, is available on Amazon and also on the shop page of her website, and is a very reasonably priced ($16.50) holiday gift for your favorite artistic friend or relative.  If you are still putting your holiday gift list together keep this unique, locally focused item in mind.

I Am Agog

It is inconceivable to me that the United States is refusing admittance to an interpreter who helped US troops in Iraq.  He has been caught up in the new president's recent executive order.  How in the world are we going to persuade people to help us in future conflicts when we treat them so poorly. See "Judge halts implementation of Trump's immigration order," by Ariane de Vogue and Eli Watkins on CNN.com

Since it is impossible these days to reach Sen. Toomey's office by phone, let me use this blog post to ask the senator to please work against this executive order.  And also, vote against Betsy DeVos.

Note From Larry the Cat

As you may know, British Prime Minister Theresa May is in Philadelphia to visit with President Trump.  Larry, the cat who lives at No. 10 Downing Street, the official residence of the Prime Minister, has a twitter feed.  He recently noted noted that while she will be traveling to the US, she is leaving her pussy at home.  That Larry, what a card!

https://twitter.com/Number10cat/status/818124590694203392

Dean New Chair of House SE Delegation

amended press release:

Democratic members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives’ Southeast Delegation on Tuesday elected state Rep. Madeleine Dean as chair of the delegation for the 2017-18 legislative term.

State Reps. Mary Jo Daley and Patty Kim were elected vice chairs, state Rep. Steve McCarter was elected treasurer, and state Rep. Pamela A. DeLissio was elected secretary.

-------

The Southeast Delegation comprises 22 Democratic members. The delegation website can be found atwww.PaHouse.com/Southeast. Dean replaces former state Rep. Steve Santarsiero, D-Bucks, who did not seek re-election for his Pennsylvania House seat.

Leary Nominated to Social Security Administration

The White House released a list of nominations that have been sent to the Senate.  Among them is Michael P. Leary, of Pennsylvania, to be Inspector General, Social Security Administration, vice Patrick P. O'Carroll, Jr., resigned.

Rite of Passage: Students Become Voters

The American Association of State Colleges & Universities sponsored a report, released last April, called Graduating Students Into Voters.  Ideas42 prepared the report, a 25 page pdf, outlining reasons college students may not vote (not sure of the process, don't know how to register, feel disconnected), and how to increase political participation among college students.  It is very interesting reading.  (The pdf can be found here:  http://www.aascu.org/programs/ADP/StudentsintoVoters.pdf

In my house voting is a requirement of anyone over 18 living at home or taking parental money for college.  It's a form of rent.

News Programs Need a Daycare Rule

Daycares and child care centers often have rules on potty training.  Some won't take kids that aren't potty trained.  I've heard the phrase "3 sh*ts and you're out" as a rule. As I watch what are supposed to be news shows that rule comes to mind. I think if a pundit or spokesperson publicly states something that is provably wrong more than three times their contract should be cancelled.  Surely it is possible to write something like that in, a truth clause, or make it part of a morals clause. It is so disheartening to watch people over and over again flat out lie or dissemble and then appear again the next night with no penalty.

The "Other" Talk

I have always referred to my children as the "little janes."  Some people have assumed this meant I had only daughters, but I was using "jane" as a last name in this context.  In fact, one of my children is male.  He is an adult now and, at least for the present, not living in my house.

I've had "the other talk" with all of my children but reinforced it more often with my son.  It goes something like this:

Unless asked for specific information, there are three acceptable answers when questioned by the police:  "Yes, Officer;" "No, Officer;" and "I don't know, Officer." If pulled over when driving, keep both hands on the wheel, visible at all times.  Don't make any sudden movements.  Do not try to make jokes. If any movement is required explain in advance what you will be doing and why, and move slowly. If the police stop you walking down the street, stop immediately, keep hands out of pockets, stand still, no sudden movements, no jokes. If a police office tells you to sit down or lay down, do it without asking questions or making comments, hands visible. An officer has to assume you are armed and dangerous or potentially under the influence or mentally unstable. Their lives depend on starting with an assumption of the worst possible scenario. Give them the time and space to decide you are not an immediate threat.

The boy is tall and hit a growth spurt right around the time Pennsylvania passed some form of "castle doctrine."  I told him if he went trick or treating that fall (or any fall thereafter) he couldn't wear a mask or anything that covered his face.  Hats were okay provided his face was still visible. I told him that while he might still think of himself as a kid, he was as tall as a grown man and people who didn't know him would react to him as such. Someone seeing him walking around a house on Halloween (or any other night) might assume he was a burglar.

He went with me to a couple of political events and on the way to one I was pulled over. It was a teachable moment. After it was all over I talked with him about why I thought I hadn't gotten a ticket. What I did and did not do when interacting with an officer.

I know several of the police officers in our local force; some are my neighbors. Their jobs are difficult and often provide no margin of error. There was a shootout one street over a few years ago and an officer was injured. It is a dangerous, thankless, poorly paid job.  I've also noticed that the drivers I see pulled over on our local streets are African American far more often than our demographics would suggest.

My family is on the very pale /translucent end of the pigmentation spectrum. We are very white. I cannot imagine the stress African American parents feel when that talk with their children. It is surely more involved than the one I had with mine. As we see all too often in the news, someone who follows all the rules of "the talk" can still be shot.

We need to find a way to help police officers do their job without injuring or killing people who are simply going about their business. We need to make sure racial prejudices don't factor into law enforcement decisions. In the meantime, parents all over country will be having the "other" talk with their kids, especially their sons.

Call for LGBT Non-Discrimination Bill

from the inbox:

Pennsylvania remains the only state in the northeast that lacks laws that would protect citizens from being fired from their jobs or evicted from their homes based solely on their sexual orientation or gender identity.
Senator Bob Casey and members of Governor Tom Wolf’s administration met in Pittston yesterday to address the need for non-discrimination laws at both the federal and state level.  LGBT Pennsylvanians deserve to live in a state that is inclusive and welcoming for everyone. Governor Wolf has already signed executive orders protecting commonwealth employees. It is now up to Congress and the state legislature to pass bills that will protect all Pennsylvanians.

Roslyn Film Festival

The 10th annual Roslyn Film Festival will be held this Saturday, March 19th.  This year's films are:

1. Gift Horses (David Block)
2. Out of the Depths (RJ Nestor and David Scoville)
3. Rockabilly High School (Win Heckert)
4. The Cubicle: How Norman Works In a Box (Michael Ofenheim)
5. Blaze of Glory (Bob Sweeney)                                 
6. Centralia: America's Lost Town (Joe Sapienza II)
7. The Leg That Just Kept Living (Win Heckert)

Tickets are $5.00 and there is a red carpet entrance.  Put on your party clothes are imagine you are at the Oscars!

(Proceeds benefit the Roslyn Fire Company).

Ellen Malcolm at the Free Library

Ellen Malcolm, founder of Emily's List, will be speaking about her new book at the Philadelphia Free Library on Thursday, March 24th.  Tickets are $15.00 ($7.00 for students).  

Details:

Ellen R. Malcolm is the founder and chair of the Board of EMILY’s List, the largest resource for women in politics. Dedicated to helping women candidates win election to every level of political office, its over 3 million members community have helped elect 19 pro-choice female Democratic U.S. senators, 110 U.S. representatives, and 11 governors. Malcolm was also president of the voter-registration advocacy group ACT, national co-chairwoman of Hillary Clinton’s 2008 election campaign, and a member of the National Park Foundation Board of Directors. Including exclusive interviews with many of the country’s top female politicians, in-the-trenches stories of some of the toughest election fights in the past three decades, and Malcolm’s own story of frustration, dedication, and triumph, When Women Win is the inside story of the rise of American women in elected office.In conversation with Tamala Edwards, anchor, 6ABC Action News morning edition

Zivtech Launches New App

Philadelphia is home to a number of innovative tech firms. One of them, Zivtech, an open source web and app development agency, launched a new app this week.  Here is an abridged press release:

Zivtech,  is proud to announce the launch of a new web development tool that changes the game for the whole team. Probo, a continuous integreation app, allows a team to deploy features quickly, with no negative impact on an already functioning system. The people driving the request, such as business owners, project managers, marketers and IT, are now part of the process from the beginning.

Probo CI grew out of a need to accelerate the development process internally; once the product was built, there was a demand to share it with a greater audience. Probo is also much less expensive than other CI tools. Not only is the open source code available at no cost, but a basic account with 1 GB of disk space is free. With a total of five pricing tiers, there’s a size that works for every business, from startup to enterprise.

Probo is different from other CI tools on the market in that it does not tear down your environment, but instead posts a link so that the entire team can review new features or bug fixes. Project manager can always see how tasks are progressing and developers can get immediate client feedback. Probo is designed to be easy to extend and easy to wire into a broader devops ecosystem. It’s the only automated testing tool with quality assurance (QA) and user acceptance testing (UAT) built right in.

Spring 2016 White House Interns

from the inbox:

The White House Internship Program announced today the participants for the Spring 2016 session. The mission of the program is to make the White House accessible to future leaders around the nation and to prepare those devoted to public service for future leadership opportunities.

 

A White House Internship provides a unique opportunity to gain valuable professional experience and build leadership skills. Interns work in one of several White House departments, including the Domestic Policy Council, the National Economic Council, the Office of Cabinet Affairs, the Office of Communications, the Office of Digital Strategy, the Office of the First Lady, the Office of Legislative Affairs, the Office of Management and Administration, the Office of Political Strategy and Outreach, the Office of Presidential Correspondence, the Presidential Personnel Office, the Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs, the Office of Scheduling and Advance, the Office of the Vice President, the Office of the White House Counsel, and the President’s Commission on White House Fellowships.

 

Additional information about the White House Internship Program is available here:www.whitehouse.gov/internships 

Interns with a Pennsylvania connection:


Arango, Jeffrey Hometown: Long Beach, CA; University of Pennsylvania, PA 
Egan, Brian Hometown: Exton, PA; American University, D.C.
Gray, Antione Hometown: Queens, NY; University of Pennsylvania, PA
Kist, Gregory Hometown: Williamsport, PA; London School of Economics and Political Science, United Kingdom
Powell, Ebony Hometown: Philadelphia, PA; Temple University, PA
Scoratow, Jessica Hometown: Pittsburgh, PA; Georgetown University, D.C.
Williams, Joshua Hometown: Jim Thorpe, PA; The Pennsylvania State University, PA

Two Endorsement Notes

A few interesting endorsement notes.  Normally I don't pay much attention to endorsements, as so few are anything unusual, but these two caught my eye.

Kathy Boockvar, who was the Democratic candidate for congress in the 8th district (Bucks Count) in 2012 has endorsed Steven Santarsiero, one of two Democrats running in 2016.  The other is Shaughnessy Naughton; she ran in the 2014 primary as well, but was defeated by Kevin Strouse, who then lost to incumbent Republican Mike Fitzpatrick.

State Rep. Margo Davidson (D-164, parts of Delaware Co) faced primary challenges in 2014 but this year she has lost the endorsement of the Delaware County Democratic Committee.  The committee instead endorsed Upper Darby Councilwoman Dr. Sekela Coles
The Delaware County Democrats deciding against making an endorsement in the 164th state house district. The incumbent, Margo Davidson, was not endorsed, nor was primary challenger Dr. Sekela Coles. My apologies for an incorrect posting yesterday; I misread a press release.

Mark Zandi in Money Magazine

I used to track quotes from Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics; he was mentioned frequently.  These days he writes regularly in the Inquirer.  Zandi is quoted in the January / February 2016 issue of Money Magazine "Is there a hidden bubble in the market?").

Now that Suze Orman is off the air (at least temporarily -- she is supposedly developing a new television series), there is an opening for a new financial guru on tv.  Personal finance isn't really Zandi's thing (his two books are on finance more generally).

Zandi has several degrees from the University of Pennsylvania and lives in the Philadelphia area.

Emerge PA's Inaugural 2016 Class

from the inbox:

Emerge Pennsylvania is proud to announce the following women have been accepted into the Inaugural 2016 Class:

LauraEllen Ashcraft - Pittsburgh

Mary Ellen Balchunis - Ardmore

Heather Boyd - Drexel Hill

Carolyn Comitta - West Chester

Kelly Fraasch - Mount Lebanon

Lissa Geiger Shulman - Pittsburgh

Linda Hee - Abington

Kristine Howard - Malvern

Movita Johnson-Harrell - Philadelphia

Kimberly Kaplan - Pittsburgh

Barbarann Keffer - Drexel Hill

Jasmine Kurjakovic   - Pittsburgh

Gillian Kratzer - Altoona

Nikki Lu - Pittsburgh

Sharon Overton - Elkins Park

Sully Pinos - York

Megan Plinkington - Irwin

Laura Quick - Palmyra

Christine Reuther - Wallingford

Elaine Schaefer - Newtown Square

Lauren Vidas - Philadelphia

Lindsey Williams - Pittsburgh

Since the first Emerge state was launched in 2002 Emerge has trained more than 1,500 Democratic women to run for office to date. Fifty-two percent of Emerge alumnae have run for office or been appointed to local boards or commissions. Of those who have run for office, 70 percent won. Additionally, Emerge has a strong record of diversity - forty percent of alumnae are women of color. Follow Emerge Pennsylvania on Facebookfor more updates on the program.

Ready to Run Philadelphia

The PA Center for Women in Politics is hosting its annual Ready to Run workshop in Philadelphia on Saturday, February 13, from 8 am to 5:45 pm at Philadelphia University.  This daylong workshop is designed to help those who might be interested in running for office understand the process and get off on the right foot.  The event is bipartisan politically, and while it is aimed at women men are also invited.

Workshops like this can be invaluable to potential candidates, or people simply interested in the process.  They are nuts and bolts sessions covering items such as fund raising and media, party politics, and how to launch a campaign.  There is a special program for women of color in Pennsylvania politics.

Early bird registration (by Jan. 15) is $75; regular registrations is $100, a very reasonable cost.