Carpet-bombing the Neighborhood

Yesterday, I finally finished the three-day process of walking our precinct to drop off campaign literature: what the political pros call a "lit drop" and I call "carpet-bombing."

I have been walking our precinct in one way or another for nearly twenty years, since an unsuccessful run for City Council. The Sixth Ward then had three precincts, and one of them voted at the High School. In those days, I could walk each precinct in a day, and it took three days to walk the whole ward; now, it takes me three days just to walk the precinct!

A few observations for any of you curious enough to check this weblog:

• The neighborhood looks pretty good. I had a chance to talk with several residents working hard to maintain their property. And the Halloween decorations always enliven the experience of walking the neighborhood.
• It seems that we still have a large number of empty homes. I've been dropping off literature only at places that have had recent Democrat or Undeclared voters, so I'm hoping I didn't hit too many unoccupied homes.
• The packets that we received from the Democratic Party were pretty compact, relatively heavy, and held together with rubber bands. In most cases, I left campaign pieces in front of doors, and it seemed unlikely that they would be blown around and become a nuisance. (I had to forgo some good lit-drop days earlier in the week because I thought it was too windy.)
• In order to introduce myself, I prepared a label that appears on the packets, providing contact information and offering some services. This year, I'm on jury duty for Election Day, so any transportation services will have to be after we're released for the day; please leave a message at my home office, 440-439-5757, if you need a ride to the polls.

Some people are predicting a Democratic bloodbath this year; I've never been that interested in predicting the future. All we can do is to do our part and hope that the electorate is wise enough not to be misled by misleading campaigning.

But there's no disputing that this election is exceptionally important. State elections will not only fill their various offices: they'll determine who sets the boundaries for legislative districts that we'll have to live with for the next ten years. We need to get out all of our voters and hope for the best. With your help and support, we can have some successes this year!

Getting Started

Dear fellow Bedford citizen,

Allow me to introduce myself. In May, I was elected Democratic Central Committee Member for Bedford Precinct 6B. Although I had served in this capacity a few years ago, this time I took office in a period of great turmoil for Cuyahoga County in general and for Democrats in particular. Public anger at an alleged pattern of corruption among some county officials led voters then to approve a county reform issue called "Issue 6." That anger resulted in the removal of Jimmy Dimora as County Democratic Chair, and I was able to join other elected Democratic officials the next month in electing Stuart Garson as the new party chair.

Although I have never met Chairman Garson, I have seen enough of his letters and heard enough of his speeches to know that our party is in good hands again. He is low-key and no-nonsense, and I think those are attributes that we can use after the drama of Jimmy Dimora's administration. I believe it is possible to bring both our party and our county back, and I look forward to working with him and with you in the years ahead to do just that.

Lynn and I have lived here virtually all our adult lives--since 1972, to be precise. We are pretty thoroughly invested in the community: we were longtime members of the now-closed St. Mary Parish, and our children attended the Bedford City Schools. (One of them now teaches kindergarten at her own primary school, Central; another owns the house next door.) My work with the Democratic Party is simply a part of my desire to make our home town better.

If I can be of assistance, please let me know. Specifically, let me know if you need any of the following:

• a voter registration form;
• a ride to the polls on Election Day;
• an absentee ballot mailed or dropped off at the Board of Elections.

Similarly, if you would be willing to put up a yard sign or put a bumper on your car, please let me know and I'll get one for you.

You can reach me at 440-439-5757, or by email at StageCoach@lavezzi.name.

For our community,

Bill Lavezzi