Anne Dicker fundraiser pix & thoughts

Last night we attended a fund raiser for Democrat Anne Dicker (above), a candidate for Sen. Vince Fumo's soon-to-be-vacated Senate seat in Philadelphia's First District, at Johnny Brenda's on Frankford Avenue. The event was pretty well attended, and there were some people there from the Obama campaign as well, which was good to see. (Dicker is supporting Barack Obama for president.)

It's not an overstatement to say that I came away pretty impressed. Vandra went to a Dicker meet and greet last week, and she came home singing her praises. Turns out she was right.

Dicker's platform is one of cleaning up corruption, getting additional money for the Philadelphia school system, getting the guns out of the hands of criminals, and doing something about the casinos in Philadelphia. That last point was good to hear, because I think casinos in Philadelphia is an ill-conceived notion that should never have been passed in the first place. I have no proof of this, but I believe that some people are getting paid for bringing casinos in, specifically Ed Rendell and some other Philadelphia politicians.

Last night, Dicker also mentioned universal health care by expressing the hope that the next president, whether it's either Obama or Clinton, must get universal health care passed. More importantly, however, she believes Pennsylvania should pass its own universal health care plan even if Congress does not. I'd almost vote for her based on that position alone.

Dicker also uttered a word last night that I'm yet to hear any presidential candidate say: infrastructure. What a novel concept - fixing our aging and crumbling infrastructure. I strongly feel that this must be a priority in the coming decades, but so far it seems to be a dirty little secret that very few candidates for elected office are talking about. So, I was happy to hear Dicker give it a mention.

As I attend more Dicker functions in the coming weeks, I will share the news. I urge anyone in Philadelphia, regardless if you live in the First District or not, to support Anne, and volunteer if you can, because she's got a fight on her hands in the Democratic Primary on April 22 against fellow Democrat Johnny Dougherty, the electrical union boss. Organized labor has its tentacles around many aspects of Philadelphia politics, so Dicker needs all the support she can get.

However, don't read what I just wrote the wrong way. She has an excellent chance in winning, but it's going to take the effort of a great deal of people, and also donations in time and money. As the Philadelphia Inquirer so sagely stated in an editorial today, we can't afford to take a step back with Dougherty's thuggish, South Philly ways. Anne represents new and vitally needed change, so please support her. Learn more at her Website Here.

As an aside, the group Philadelphia Slick was at the benefit last night, and we enjoyed hearing their music. To me, they have a Beastie Boys sound, with some brass, including the trumpet and sax. Check 'em out if you can. Oh yea, and a bonus - they support Anne and Progressive candidates. It all seems like a good combination to me.