That's what I did when I turned my cost a couple of years ago. I had tried to take back the GOP from  the extremists and found it a hopeless task, so I joined the only organized opposition that had a chance of ending the insanity that was engulfing my country: i.e. the Demorats. It has been a revelation, and the truth is we need more progressives and more fed-up and dissatisfied folks to join us to keep the reform going. As Jim Webb said, "The Revolution starts here."  But only if we get together and work from within.

My next question has to do with their staffing and funding levels?  Are they running with just a skeleton crew on a shoestring budget?

I guess the next question is whether anyone out there has contacts within the state party so that we can try and connect.

My own gut says that a lot of the political mojo these days is going towards PACs like the ones that Warner and Kaine have.  Or are organized by representatives (such as Moran), mayors or county executives (such as Connoley in Ffx county).  Which in a sense helps, I suppose, but it lacks the coordination that a state party could provide.

Of course, the DPVA recognizes that and wants your involvement at every level of the organization.

What is hard to understand is the concern and anger expressed by individual bloggers on the previous DPVA diary that DPVA has not contacted them directly or issued them some kind of formal invitation to participate.  (Your out of luck if you wait for such an invite since none of us active in the party ever received such treatment,  Most of us chose to join the party organization.  The party didn't choose us.)

Be realistic, the bloggers received no outreach from the Webb campaign when it first started.  The campaign wasn't capable of such action at that time.  The Webb website was terrible and contained no information about Webb's position in those days (or for a long period after that.)

No, the bloggers weren't invited in by the Webb campaign.  They just began to feed off each other.  Lowell Feld was a catalyst but at that time he was apparently not on the Webb staff or payroll.

Why do you expect different from the DPVA?  Do you expect them to track down the millions of Democrats (and Democratic bloggers) in the state and issue them a gold-plated invitation?

How does DPVA know to contact you when Virginia doesn't register voters by party and you may not have enough participation under your belt to be listed on their database as a Dem? (Remember, Senator-elect Webb was listed in the Democratic databases as an R when he first announced his candidacy, based his past voting performance, etc.)

Webb didn't invite you, yet you found him.  Others may have contacted you, but they wre other bloggers, not Webb staff.

Why can't a few bloggers spend enough time to learn about DPVA and share your findings with the rest of the blogosphere (like bloggers did with Webb and some of the other netroots candidates).  That would be a lot more productive than comments that are critical of DPVA but are not backed up by factual information.

Any DPVA official from Governor Tim Kaine, Kaine's hand-picked DPVA executive director Amy Reger, and Chairman Dick Cranwell to the district and county chairs to every precinct worker at the local level will tell you the same thing -- Come aboard!

We welcome new blood but we have no time to be prima donnas with the all-important state legislative elections approaching.

I like blogger (blogspot.com) myself.

The earliest part of the Webb campaign was all bloggers at draftjameswebb.com and the Webb web site came later on I'm pretty sure.

Everyone who has been talking shit about the DPVA should remember that they are then talking shit about Governor Kaine, Mike Henry and the rest of the Kaine campaign who basically took over the operation at the party. 
Please don't say things are broken at the DPVA when your only experience is volunteering on the Webb campaign!!! Spending your long hours making phone calls, knocking on doors or for the more experienced volunteers who have been talking shit, being a Precinct Captain, doesn't make you a campaign expert! Mike Henry has been running winning campaigns for two decades not to mention that he ran the DSCC's IE this year. Yep the 65 million dollars that the DSCC raised was spent by Mike Henry and Mike Henry alone (by law no one associated with the DSCC, DNC, a campaign... not even Schumer, could talk with him about how to spend the money). Chuck Schumer trusted Mike to win back the Senate and you don't think he has done a good job with the DPVA?

Get involved by all means but there is a reason that the people with experience are the ones who run the show!! Volunteer, get a job on a campaign, hold a fundraiser, run for office, run for a spot on the Central Committee but don't come on this blog and talk shit about something that you have so wrong.

Someone stated that there will be a new website in January. I sincerely hope that the design and content included the requirements and needs of us Democratic grassroots workers. If you go to the NC Democratic Party website (www.ncdp.org) you will find an incredible world of information, everything you need to know about what's going on, who to contact, where to go to a meeting. It is fantastic! DPVA, please give us Virginia Democrats what NC Democrats gave their Democratic constituents. 

I've looked at other state party sites and many of them are great also.

I'd urge each of you to contact DPVA officals via e-mail(www.vademocrats.org/Who_We_Are/Staff.asp) and let them know what you want and what you need.

Let's pull together.

This talk of going to Staunton is all nice, and those with the time, money, and inclination to undertake a voyage should do so.  But nearly all of us are in a position to join our local committee, become the chair of our precinct, and get a little work done.

Me, I've gotten off easy: my mother-in-law is my precinct chair. :)

We go from Lorton to Alexandria - basically up route 1.

We welcome all.  (ps my voter turn out went from 59% in 2005 to 70.2% in this election).  While the GOP got out the vote so did we that is an increase of 100 dems in my precinct voted....

  TOMORROW, Tuesday, November 28th.
  Holmes Middle School
  6525 Montrose Street
  Alexandria, VA  22312

  7:30: social meet-and-greet
  8:00: Meeting

The FCDC meetings are always on the 4th Tuesday of the month. We need some new blood. We need the Webb volunteers! I hope to see lots and lots of Fairfax County Webbies there.

Stay active, stay involved, stay strong!
 

Clearly the electronic netroots exists and has been an undeniably overwhleming success for electing Democrats(whether it be bloggers, e-mailers, web developers, etc.). It's an incredible tool and anyone who doesn't understand and use it's power is heading down the road to failure. 

Hopefully DPVA staff is reading this diary and understanding that it has missed an opportunity this year to engage ALL Virginians (not just the Chairs, the Steering and Central committees, the candidates, etc.)in the election process by not using it's website, by not sending Demo Memos, by eliminating the blog, by not posting every single event around the state, and by not providing guidance via their website.  I don't think they have understood that the information is not getting down to the people, the roots, the workers, and the potential volunteers.  They send information to Congressional District Chairs, who in turn send it to city/county Chairs. But it just doesn't get down to the grassroots workers, the Virginia Democrats.  So the DPVA website should pick up that slack.

The commentors in the previous diary said that all of us need to go to Staunton but they need to understand that the vast majority of Democrats out here have families, jobs (sometime multiple jobs), children, obligations, etc.  We can't just drop our lives and go to Staunton.  But a wiser DPVA would have figured out a way to let everyone know what the Staunton meeting is about (I haven't seen an agenda anywhere), nor have I seen what actions/issues might be discussed, what is the expected outcomes, where we can learn more, what we can we do at our level .... things like that. 

A previous poster said there is professional staff now at the DPVA.  Where is the message from the new Executive Director to the Democrats of Virginia?  Where is the plan from the Political Director to the local Dems.  If, as someone said in a post, that some of the county committees and leaders are pitiful, then where is the DPVA to fill in that gap. If, as one poster said, the DPVA can't do anything about non-productive leaders, then that is a defeatist attitude on there part.  How about those committee leaders that don't know how to use a computer?  How much longer are we going to tolerate that?

Each viable candidate that steps forward to take the gamble to run for elective office needs to know that each and every city/county committee is ready, willing and able to do the work to help support that candidate.  They deserve no less.  And that's where the DPVA can help to make sure that the committees are ready.

DPVA, please communicate with us.  Let us know you are there and let us know what is going on and what you are doing. You need us as much as we need you.

Going to Staunton would show you the length and breadth of the DPVA leadership.  But you will gain plenty of insight going to your local committee meeting.  That's where the ground game is played.

I can't defend the DPVA website other than to note that they are planning a new site by the first of the year.

But give the new staff a break.  There are only a handful of them, all underpaid.  They are working their butts off to elect Democrats and trying to stay in touch with several hundred regional and local party officials, as well as the various campaigns.  They can't do everything at once.

You may disagree, but Governor Tim Kaine has said repeatedly that he is pleased with the performance of the executive directorhe chose and the new staff.

And what would you expect Governor Kaine to say in public about his hand-picked staff.  That shouldn't be the issue here.  And I'm sure he knows about the communication problems that we are writing about, for whatever the reason. 

The Republican competition is out there and ready to go.  As I said before, just look at how much information and issues that the Republican entities, such as at the recent VCAP conference this month, are providing their constituents to consider and work with.  (http://www.vaconserv...).  We can do the same.  Just figure out ways to do it without having the the vast money they have!  And when we show our constituents that we are there with an agenda, then maybe DPVA can get the money contribution it needs.  Show us how you'd use the money you are asking for.

Those who are successful listen to those they serve.

I had no secret code. I'm no computer wizard. I simply entered the words "Democratic Party Plan" into the search engine located on the DPVA home page.  I hope every blogger, particularly the ones who post to RK, are familiar with how to use a search engine.

I do recall in the past seeing a link to the plan on one of the pull down menus, but I couldn't find it this time.  It's probably because they are trying to update the site.

But it is not hidden, or elusive, or secret.  There is no plot to deny the information to bloggers or even self-declared subversives.

Just ask for it on the DPVA site's search engine, just like the internal search engine that is on the RK site in the left-hand column.

When you posted the direct link last night, I was able to follow it. I even thought that it wasn't all that elusive (though counter-intuitive), b/c it seemed to feed off the "what's at stake" tab, right at the top of the home page. But, when I tried to access the same info from the tab, all I got was half a page of general pap. (Not that the link you'd posted led to anything that looked like a "plan" to me -- more like a lits of rules and regulations -- but that's beside the point)

Today, when I tried your suggestion (above) and typed in "Democratic Party Plan" into the website's search engine, I got *50 pages* of results and no way of telling which entry was likely to lead me to the link you'd posted. Needless to say, I didn't even try typing in "Mission Statement"; I doubt I would be able to make head or tail out of the results of that search, either.

So yes, I agree with Rob and others -- the info *is* elusive.  Or, at least, not easily accessible.

Regarding your advice to attend local meetings: Via the DPVA's home page, I was able to find my district (6th) and my "local cell". That info is "current as of March" and one's advised to check frequently, in case of changes. But there's no schedule of meetings, nothing other than an e-mail address. I found that info long time ago -- in July -- but... English isn't my first language, nor is American my first culture -- how am I supposed to use that e-mail address? Cold-write a stranger? And ask what?

I had to wait till the local fair (shortly after the macaca moment, whenever that was) in hopes that the party would have a booth (which it did) to put myself on their list -- call me or e-mail me if there's anything happening, or if you need help (anything other than talking on the phone; my spoken English is worse than my written). Nothing happened. I couldn't find where the office was (or even if there was one) from the DPVA's website.

It was via another blog I read that I finally discovered RK and Webb's website and, from there, was able to find out where my local office was. When I went there -- 2 weeks after I'd "registered" at the fair and had heard nothing -- they still didn't have me "on the books"; the fair logs had not been co-ordinated with the "home" ones. I re-registered and began to get some e-mails. But they only told me where to show up for a rally and how to contribute.

Local meetings? I didn't know such things happened, until I dropped in the office the day after we learnt Webb had won and found one in progress. At which point it was made obvious to me that I was "de trop", so I left.

I do maintain -- informal -- contact with some of the volunteers I'd met in the pre-elections time (I came by the office twice a week, on the off-chance that there'd be work for me, and, sometimes, there was). All of us are "old hens", and only a few use the 'puter at all (I may be the only one who reads blogs on a regular basis). We'll be having lunch on Wednesday, so I'll ask them if they know anything about any regular local meetings of the DPVA's chapters, which one could attend.

But, really, it shouldn't be as difficult as it has been to make contact with the party, especially if all one wants is to be a volunteer, ready to pitch in on a need basis, not a paid employee or officer.

Nice that we have a link to this DPVA "party plan." But when you go to the link it is clearly not a "plan" at all and is very general in scope.There are no action items. This looks more like Policy and Procedures to me. And I will note that I am a member of the local party and therefore the DPVA and never knew about this information. Communication is clearly an area needing improvement.

People, including the author of this diary, were all hot to trot about the Party Plan, so that's what I found for them.

If the Party Plan bores you, take a look at the Mission Statement.  I think it contains the details you seek. 

The Mission Statement is also readily available on the website. I can't recall if I saw it in a menu or I found it via the internal search engine on the website, but it was an easy find.

If you feel you have a need to know even more, ask your local party chair for more info.  He or she may be a wealth of information about the party and its history.  Or just do some serious searching on the DPVA website.  There is a wealth of info on the site, if you take the time to look.

If you still lack the appropriate amount of detail about the DPVA and you don't want to call the Richmond headquarters staff, you'll have to take it up with the head of the Party.  His name is Tim Kaine.

http://fredericksbur...

Here's the Table of Contents:

CHAPTER 1 - THE PARTY
Political Parties and the Political Landscape
CHAPTER 2 - TRICKS OF THE TRADE
Tried and true techniques to help you
CHAPTER 3 - SETTING PRIORITIES
Evaluating Your Committee
CHAPTER 4 - PARTY OBLIGATIONS AND OPERATIONS
CHAPTER 5 - THE ELECTION
The Role of the Party in Campaigns 
CHAPTER 6: - PRECINCT OPERATIONS AND GETTING OUT THE VOTE
The Role of the Precinct Captain
CHAPTER 7 - IDENTIFYING MORE DEMOCRATIC VOTERS
Using ‘PREVAIL’ Voter Contact Software
CHAPTER 8 - THE MONEY:
Budgeting, Fundraising and Reporting

I know NC has guidance on their website. I'm looking forward to reading this.  It looks good so far.  This should be spread around!

From recent election results, it appears the citizens of Virginia are increasingly comfortable in the middle. This brings a new opportunity for Virginia's democrats to become leaders in statewide debates- So far, bringing this future to life is something the blogs seem to be doing very well. I hope it continues.  Yet that alone is not enough

To succeed the state party must improve it's GOTV, have more robust input and become less a confederation of county based operations. (Likewise the republicans must move to the middle and put an end to its Maoist like orthodoxy on taxes and social issues, but I am just as happy to watch them implode as they rail against baggy pants on teenagers and road contruction)

As we look forward we need the state party to build out a solid voter AND donor database and other infastructure items. As progressives, we must rely on the grassroots (net-roots, unions, teachers, african americans, etc etc) to develop and promote leaders who can win elections and govern for a better Virginia.

As proved of late, we need a robust and enthusastic broadbased movement- here on the net and in meeting rooms around the state- and we will win elections with the likes of Warner/Kaine/Webb.

IMHO.

I produce a monthly e-newsletter for the committee.  The first time out it went to 0 people as the web/IT guy can't figure out how to send it out.  Instead, it got forwarded by the 5 or 6 with lists to their lists.  Folks start to complain about the dump in their Inboxes.  The committee finally pulls together it's own list which contains a mere 200 names and there is no capacity by which we can start to try to build that list with new subscribers (web/IT guy issues again). 

I volunteered to spend an hour everyday during my lunchbreak (my office was near Webb HQ) and pull and cull all the lists together.  No response from the committee.  This is what I'm talking about as far as bloggers getting involved with their local parties. 

This is also what I was talking about when I wrote a letter to Howard Dean when he first came on board as chairman and asked for my feedback.  Why isn't the DNC and/or the DPVA investing in people like me and/or our web/IT guy and training us on this stuff?  We waste so much bleepin' energy on this stuff.  If it's Prevail and Prevail is improved, then great!  But get us better trained.  Give local committees better instruction on what to do with it.  Give our web/IT volunteers training on using those lists for communications means. 

Can you tell I'm getting a little frustrated?

Also, would it not be nice to have the DPVA to formally post events, plans, website updates, etc. on RK???  It would help their communication problem.

I understand Waldo is working on a project to revamp the state database. You might want to talk to him about what needs to be done.

Alice Marshall posted this excerpt on GOTV.  I found it because Vivian Page referenced it on her blog.

Does this material give the bloggers something to sink their fangs into?

As Harry S. Truman said: “The most important job I ever had was that of Precinct Captain.”

*********THE ROLE OF THE PRECINCT CAPTAIN**************

The Precinct Captain is the most important position in the entire Democratic Party. Never doubt it. When precincts are organized, the Democratic vote is maximized and our candidates win. The Precinct Captain is the leader of the Precinct Team that implements the party’s strategies in the precinct.

The Precinct Team gets the party’s message to the voters and brings to life the party’s plan to turn out good guys at the polls on Election Day. We rely on the Precinct Captain to organize and lead these efforts. He or she should be an outgoing person who likes people because the basis of all precinct organization is person-to-person contact. Should an elected Precinct Captain be unable or unwilling to do the work, another Precinct Team member should be chosen to carry on the political work in the precinct.

THE PRECINCT AS A POLITICAL UNIT
The approximately 4.3 million eligible voters in Virginia are divided into 2,582 precincts in the 134 cities and counties of the state. Fairfax County has more than 220 precincts.

We must organize at the precinct level. Each precinct needs an organized group of workers who know their own precinct and understand how to maximize the Democratic vote – the Precinct Team. FCDC members should be the tip of the iceberg, supported by an active network of precinct level workers. Team members may be called “block captains,” “cluster captains,” “neighborhood leaders” or just plain “workers.” Whatever they are called, the Precinct Captain and other FCDC members must focus on creating the Precinct Team. The team should meet periodically to plan and evaluate their duties.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF A PRECINCT CAPTAIN
The Precinct Captain’s task should be clearly defined. Here are some basic objectives a Precinct Captain should accomplish:

o Know the precinct.
o Organize and canvass your precinct.
o Coordinate campaign activities.
o Convene precinct planning meetings.
o Represent the precinct at FCDC meetings.
o Register Democratic voters.
o Know the law and the rules

The above tasks should not be done alone; our program is more effective when the Precinct Captain leads a team. Gather a Precinct Team of two to ten dedicated workers in your precinct, starting with FCDC members living in the precinct. For more recruits, personally contact your friends, people who have attended Democratic caucuses or fund-raisers, people identified as Democrats in a voter identification program, or people you meet at a Democratic meet-up.

Know the precinct. Maps showing precinct boundaries are available at the Map and Publication Sales Center in the Fairfax County Government Center. A list of streets in each precinct is available from FCDC (703-573-6811).

Organize and Canvass your Precinct: Get a list of UNIDENTIFIED voters in your precinct from your district Chair. Meet with your Precinct Team to design a program to recruit volunteers, do door-to-door or phone-bank canvassing, and get the good guys out on election day.

Coordinate Campaign Activities. The Precinct Captain is the person to assist a candidate during the election campaign. The Precinct Captain should help organize “meet and greets” to introduce the candidate to the voters, inform the campaign of important public events in the precinct, and be sure the candidate’s campaign materials get to events.

Convene Precinct Team Meetings. The Precinct Captain should bring the Precinct Team together periodically to plan activities. After each election, review your precinct’s performance with your Precinct Team. Discuss what might be done differently or better next time. In the spring, get your Team together to decide how to handle voter ID needs – canvassing, phoning, etc. In late August meet with your Team to identify locations for yard signs and discuss the best way to promote the campaign in your precinct. In early October go over details for election day. Consider assembling your team to view a video of George Lakoff’s framing concept or other motivational video.

Represent Your Precinct. The Precinct Captain is the precinct’s representative on the county committee. The Precinct Captain should attend the FCDC meetings every other month, thereby making sure the precinct is represented.

Register Democratic Voters. One of the most important tasks of a Precinct Captain is to make sure that all Democratic voters are registered. Setting up a registration project for one evening or Saturday, every three months, in the precinct would be a wonderful social project for Democrats in the precinct. Note: You want to target areas that are more likely to have Democratic voters.

Know the Law and the Rules: Learn the Virginia Election Law, the DPVA Party Plan (our state bylaws), and the FCDC Bylaws.

Outside of NoVA and a few other targeted areas, outreach was poor from both the party and the campaign.  I posted this in response to Lowell's comments about the local party chairs (and was flamed) but it was a fact that many of the local committees in areas traditionally Republican got nothing from Webb or DPVA.  While this may have been right for the campaign it was damaging for the party.  This was not an election about party building, it was about winning a Senate seat and in this case the two may have been mutually exclusive.  Webb had very limited resources, so I completely understand Larry Byrne's targeted strategy, but quite a few committees were left hurting and on the outside. The DPVA had a great opportunity to step in and work with these committees to increase their knowledge base and keep these folks on the reservation and it simply wasn't done. 

By reading these many debates via post, it has become glaringly obvious that there is a vast information and training gap between targeted markets and the rest of the state.  I very much appreciated your info from the Fairfax County manual, because I have never seen anything like it at my local level.  A lot of the success of the current model is dependent on the skill set and commitment of the local party chairs, which is a flawed system.  Should an entire city or county be lost because local leadership isn't willing or able to train and organize? There are thousands of people throughout the state who want desperately to be involved and we do make it hard for them.  The state website is inadequate.  Communication has been poor.  These statements are not an act of disloyalty but a genuine attempt to recognize the challenges we face so that we can move towards correcting them.

As long as each side, Party establishment and Netroots, become defensive at the thought of improvement we're going to fail miserably.  Webb's victory will be a fluke unless we all find a way to knit the vibrant Netroots community into the local Party system.  If there is to be some conversation on these issues in Staunton I'd love to hear about it.

Let's get real.  If you want a job, the employer doesn't call you, you seek the boss out.  If you want to join a club or a health spa, the club president doesn't call you, you contact him or her.  If you want a meeting with your child's teacher at school, you ask for it.

Why is it so hard for bloggers to do the same thing? Go onto the DPVA website to find the name, email, and phone number of their local city or county chair and then call or email them to tell them you want to get active?  (All the chairs are listed.)

It is the city and county Democratic committees, NOT the staff at the state DPVA office, who conduct political activities and Democratic Party business at the local level. 

In places like Arlington, Alexandria, Fairfax County, Prince William County, Norfolk, Richmond, and many others across Virginia, the county or city committees are active and vibrant.  In other places, mostly smaller jurisdictions, the committees need a jumpstart. That jumpstart has to come from the local Democrats like you, not from the state DPVA staff.  The only members allowed on the local city/county committee are Democrats from that particular jurisdiction.

Also, I have no sympathy for those poor souls who are too confused or too lazy to do a comprehensive search of a website to find the info they need.  Too many people are too used to getting everything handed to them.  (How do you survive in the real world?)

Let me put it in a form many of the young bloggers will understand:

* When you were in grammar school, you homework was handed to you and often pinned on your shirt so you wouldn't lose it.  When you got it home, your parents helped you complete it.

* When you moved onto high school, you had to copy your own homework assignment off the blackboard or take notes on your teacher's comments about the work.  You, and you alone were responsible for getting the homework done.

* When you entered college, you learned quickly that you were totally on your own.  No one held your hand or looked over your shoulder.  No one forced you to study.  If you flunked, it was your problem for not doing the work.

* Well folks, you are not in grammar school anymore.  You are not even in graduate school.  In the real world, you sometimes have to do a little work and/or a little research to get where you want to go and do what you want to do.

The district, city, and county Democratic Committee chairs have lives just like you do.  They have families, they work, they have bills, they get stuck in traffic, they have to clean their gutters, they get sick, AND they find time to run their local committee.  These people ARE VOLUNTEERS just like you are.  They don't get paid.  They don't get perks.  They just work hard and devote as much time as they can steal from their real lives to electing Democrats.

I keep trying to tell you that it is incumbent on you to find your way to the door of your local county or city committee, open that door, introduce yourself as a Democrat, pull up your sleeves, and get to work.

The DPVA headquarters operation is not designed to provide all the services you expect and demand at the local level.  That work is done at the local level by people like YOU.  (Besides, I thought all of you bloggers despise top-down organizations.)

If you don't know that the Democratic Party of Virginia even has a "Party Plan", how are you supposed to know what to look for?  You can't find what you don't know exists.

You have to admit, no blogs entries, press releases, or any other meaningful updates to the website between July and now (in an election year!) is not evidence of a stellar record of outreach.  You may have responses to other criticisms found in these threads, but the DPVa website is objectively problematic.

Not being an expert on websites, I am not the best judge of this.  But I have a grand idea.

Why don't a number of the best website folks here on Raising Kaine get their heads together, join the Democratic Party, and then volunteer your advice and services to the DPVA to help them make it better?

This is far more constructive and productive than complaining about the fact that a handful of underpaid DPVA staff members in Richmond were unable to keep up the website while they also worked to raise funds and coordinate activities for campaigns all over the state.

As for my tone, why is it OK for bloggers to call the DPVA "inept" and call DPVA leaders "useless" and worse, but it is not OK to use the word "lazy" to note that some bloggers on this diary admitted they didn't want to spend the time to dig through the DPVA website to find the information they wanted.

And nobody called anybody stupid.  There are a lot of people on this blog with real chips on their shoulder and I can't understand why.  Their guy (our guy) won.

But, if you didn't notice, this is a public website. Complaints here are for the DPVa's benefit. That's the point of me starting these threads.

Finally, the tone issues apply to everyone. Sorry to use you as an example, but everyone needs to keep an eye on the level of discourse.

As someone who has been responsible for volunteer coordination and leadership development professionally and pro bono for close to 13 years, I can assure you that the more difficult the process to volunteer the less likely that prospects will follow through.  Not because they are children who must be spoonfed, but because they are giving their time and effort free to a process with which they are unfamiliar- if you make them feel unwanted they will take you seriously.

The notion that complaints about communication or imformation dissemination are selfish is ridiculuous.  We are trying to market our product (the Democratic Party) to a consumer group (the Independent voter.  We need to be very clear and concise about who we are and what we are trying to accomplish- no digging, no searching, just good, solid information right on the front page.  Why is that an unreasonable request?  Could McDonald's be the number one restaurant in the world if they only give their business model and recipes to 1/2 of their franchises?  How about the signs that go up in front identifying their restaurant?  The training necessary for managers to implement their business model?

The Republicans kicked our ass for years because they ran their party as a business- they formed a message, distributed that message from the RNC to the Precinct Captain on the street, trained everyone, gave them the resources necessary to be competitive, and used every venue available to distribute their message.

If we do less, we do not deserve to win, period.

Your most recent post is way over the top. Why do you feel the need to be so condescending??? You direct these comments at people who worked hard to elect our candidates including Jim Webb-- a win that got us control of the U.S. Senate. These people gave their time and sweat and you are talking to them as if they are children who should just behave and go away. If you really want them to join our local committees writing a post like this is hardly the way to welcome them. I have to wonder if there is some reverse psychology going on here..Will the local Dem committees really welcome lots of new members and new ideas? Is this a play to make them stay home?

I think this thread has raised alot of good discussion and should be used as a basis for improving our future efforts to elect Democratic candidates. What is very clear from all of these posts is that improved communication among all parties starting with DPVA and the local committees is sorely needed.

So, let's hope this leads to a real, honest discussion and review of the past election with an eye toward improving the process for the future. Mistakes were made. We need to recognize that and make sure they do not happen again. We cannot continue to deny that mistakes were made and be defensive.

Secondly, there are other ways that we can improve communication in the very near future. I am glad to hear that DPVA will be improving its website. I think FCDC has much room for improvement in this area as well. In particular, the blog portion of the FCDC website is a disgrace. There is one person only who writes on this blog. During the past election any mention of Jim Webb was just about non-existent. Why was this the case? We need to encourage all members of FCDC to write on this blog and to use it and the website as a communication's tool. Allowing one person to be the only author on this website since it's inception shows a lack of leadership from the top.

Finally, I think we really need to look at the current leadership and membership and respectfully ask people who are not doing the work to step down. There were many members of the committee who sat on the sidelines during this past election. There was a long reference to the FCDC precinct operations manual on this thread that outlined what our precinct captains and precinct ops people do. I know, I have been one of them for 19 years. That's great in writing but is it really happening in the trenches? It depends on the precinct. There were precincts on Election Day that had less than optimal coverage while our own party members in those precincts did not volunteer at all.

There is alot of room for improvement so let's start doing things to improve our party. And please stop writing posts that are meant to discourage, not encourage, people to join the party.

I'd like to see an encouraging post on RK signed by the local FCDC chair and 11th District Chair welcoming people to join the party and thanking them for all of their hard work. That would be a good first step in the right direction.

If you look at the side of FCDC Blog you will see a list of names of those with active accounts, including several of those who supported Webb in the primary. I don't know why they did not post on FCDC blog. They were encouraged to do so many times. They may have decided that Webb had enough online presence and decided to work for him in other ways. You would have to ask.

It was originally intended that all members of the steering committee contribute from time to time, it just did not work out that way, not for lack of encouragement.

Webb has such a strong online presence in the general election I made a conscious effort to promote the congressional candidates.

Terry says she is a precinct captain.  It doesn't sound like Terry would turn someone away if they called her and said they wanted to be involved in Democratic outreach and activities.

If I was a precinct captain, I wouldn't turn anyone away, either.  We don't have enough workers in my precinct and my precinct captain works very hard to get volunteers.

If my comments sound condescending, it is because I just get exasperated when people expect things to be handed to them on a silver platter. I did the research to find the information that people on these RK posts were clamoring for from DPVA (but not looking hard for on the DPVA website).  I spent my own time to do the research.  Why can't others do it, too?  I called my committee chair to join.  Why can't others do the same?

My philosophy is if I have a complaint I do something about it.  If it means joining a organization to make a difference, than I do so.  It is hard to change a system if you stay on the outside.

I have no control over who joins or doesn't join a local committee or the DPVA leadership.  So why do people like Terry suggest that I am part of some conspiracy or "reverse psychology" to keep people off of their committee?  That just seems silly to me.

That is the type of twaddle, with no grounding in fact, that turns many people off to blogs.

I appreciate your passion on these subjects. I hope we can talk before or after the meeting. That goes for anyone on this blog that would like to join us.

Mark Brooks
Chair
Cumberland County Democratic Committee
Member, 5th District Committee/DPVA Central Committee

I would love to meet you, but I won't be in Staunton.  I am not a Central Committee member and, quite frankly, I already believe in what the DPVA is doing.

I don't need to learn or be convinced about the value of DPVA. I support the DPVA's work and I also support the need to bring new people into the fold.

I also believe that we need team players within the DPVA, not Monday-morning quarterbacks and independent operators.

If not, then I am at a loss to know to whom you are talking. As I said, I like your passion on these subjects. Maybe you could let me know if you belong to your local committee, and which one that is. I apologize if I have already missed that in your comments.

You just reinforced what I meant. You say that, "I made a conscious effort to promote the congressional candidates." That would be fine if you made a personal decision to do that on your personal blog. But the official blog of the Fairfax County Democratic Committee should undeniably have had postings about the Democratic Party's candidate for Senate! This is the offical website of our party and it should represent ALL of our candidates. Jim Webb's presence on other blogs should have had absolutely no bearing whatsoever on this decision.

As for other bloggers on the website, I think FCDC leaders need to keep encouraging people to participate and make sure that others post. Why aren't there messages from the chair, for instance? I, for one, would be happy to write from time to time on issues.It doesn't mean a thing to list names of other bloggers when none of these people ever wrote a post.

I hope you and I can agree that the blog would get alot more traffic if there was more dialogue and good research. And it would certainly be a vehicle to improve communication. We might even encourage more people to join the party!

Not all blogs are the same. There is a role for RK and NLS and other blogs to play that official party blogs cannot. I believe that it is a good idea to think through, not only local committee blogs but integrated web sites as well. A party web site can contain a blog as well as a being a resource for a lot of other material. For example, local committee by-laws and meeting dates and when the leadership election dates are and how to get involved.

Democratic committee process and procedures should be in clear sight for all to see. Transparency is good for the democratic process. However one of the things that need to be kept in mind is that anything found on a Democratic Party web site (blog or not) is the “face” of the Democratic Party to the public. Some of the heated discussions that go on here (for example) may not be the face the party wants to show to the public.

I do not mean to say blogs are not good for the party. In fact I think they are a great idea. I just think the scope and framework of the blog should be thought through in advance.

I am the webmaster for the Albemarle Dems (http://albemarledems...) and for the 5th CD (http://5thCDdems.org). I am also on the ACDC steering committee.

It probably would be a really good idea to get the webmasters from around the state together and brainstorm the best approaches for this. I am sure we can develop and lot of good shared resources and benefit from the interplay of ideas….I think a lot of beer should be involved as well.

Thanks for your post. I totally agree that different websites (like RK and NLS) have different roles to play and that an official party blog should be likewise different in scope. I took a quick look at your links and found your's very informative and easy to read.

I also agree with you about blogs being a face of the party. Frankly, that is why the FCDC blog is of great concern to me. It represents the party in a very poor light when it is clearly a personal blog for one person and failed to even mention news from the Webb campaign such as events that people might genuinely have been interested in attending.

I think it would be a great idea to share ideas among different committees on this topic and will suggest it to our leadership.

Thanks for your comments. This may be an important area where RK and NLS and others can really contribute to the discussion. The netroots community should be invited to give their perspective on the roles of independent blogs vs. the party. What makes them different, what are the pitfalls and what needs to be communicated and how.

If you want to get the attention of the DPVA, just call a meeting of 10 or 15 party webmasters and netroots.

With the netroots folks involved, I think we should double the beer budget

I like effectiveness for #3 so I see DPVA on the sell side of this model. Effectiveness here means an optimal return on my "currency." Here currency is defined as a finite quantity volunteer time and money in support of progressive causes.

There are many sellers out there, especially when allied organizations are taken into consideration.  There are probably 10 outfits in my email right competing for my "business", and that doesn't count any other organizations involved with electoral politics.

Furthermore, volunteering is by definition a discretionary process, and one on which many people choose to spend very little in time and money.

Information and power are certainly important, I just don't see them as the primary "products" of interest in this conversation. 

But those who do believe that party power is the commodity of interest, will have an entirely different utility function, model and ultimately assumptions that they bring to the table. 

Plain Wrong 
I am a member of the DPVA State Central Committee and must let you all know that you are just plain WRONG. The party staff that began in March is head and shoulders above the folks that once were there.

Up to that point the comments were mostly observations from the ground, suggestions, and an announcement for some meetings.  There was some frustration, but even vadem4ever had only a limited number of imperatives up to that point.  And montoya was one of the more positive and optimistic voices.

So the self-identified voice of VADP introduced itself in a rude fashion with an attack on members of the community along with a classical redstate logical fallacy (appeal to authority).  Up to that point about half of the previous participants were active party members, precinct captains or local office holders. They are simultaneously regular (i.e., well known) bloggers on RK.

The reality is that among the regular posters on RK there appears to be an easy coherence between traditional party activism and blog activism. Who knows what kingdem's (and jackdem too - can we get any more patriarchal without having the women dress in drag and continuing the discussion in the basement of the Commonwealth Club over a bourbon?) motives are. 

There's more, it isn't very interesting, but I hope that's enough to demonstrate that "establishment" as in authoritarian in style is not so unreasonable.

You guys need a life, I don't care if you troll rate me. I just may delete you!