It would be interesting to learn how many visitors to this site know that the Young Democrats of America is having its national convention in San Francisco this week. It would be even more interesting to learn how many give a shit. I've attached a poll to this diary to get an amusing, if totally unscientific, reading on those numbers.

Now let me tell you why I'm in the camp of readers that does give a shit that the YDA is meeting here in San Francisco this week, and what I'm planning to do about it.

There comes a time when the evidence of your self-destructive habits becomes so incontrovertible that it is harder to maintain the illusion that everything is under control than it is to face the hard, inflexible truth, which is that your habits are killing you. It's called hitting rock bottom, and it's what happened to a lot of Democrats on November 2nd, 2004.

The good news is that hitting rock bottom is the first step to recovery. The second step is doing something about it.

Here in the Bay Area, we're awaiting the national convention of the Young Democrats of America, which takes place in San Francisco this August. San Francisco is a good choice for this year's convention: it's chock full of progressive organizers, the kind that can help turn the Young Dems into a real progressive force within the party. After the year we've been through - after the last four years we've been through - we can't afford to let Democratic conventions look like they have in the past, in the sanguine days before the wakeup call on November 2nd. Here in the Bay Area, we're forming a new caucus within the YDA - one part insider, two parts outsider - to make sure that this year, the theme of the convention is reform.

Driving Votes has officially joined Democracy for America. What does that mean?  It means that Driving Votes and DFA will be operating under a common leadership to work toward our common goals: rolling back the right-wing takeover of our country and putting socially progressive, fiscally responsible candidates in office at every level of government. With Howard Dean as DNC Chair, it's the grassroots' party now, and it's time for us to start reorganizing ourselves into a unified movement. This partnership is a strong and exemplary first step.

We succeeded in persuading Dean to run for DNC Chair.  Now it's time to persuade the DNC delegates to elect him.

Driving Votes just launched a Ride Board to help you and your Dean-supporting friends attend the DNC regional caucuses in St. Louis, Sacramento and New York City.  If we want to put some credibility behind our message to the Party that the grassroots is all over this election, then we'd better be at the caucuses to represent.

Word on the streets is that the Sacramento meeting is open to the public, but the St. Louis and New York meetings are not (this in spite of the DNC's own charter, which mandates that they be open).  But that's ok -- they're open to the press, and if you've ever blogged before or if you're willing to start now, that's you!

To get a press pass, send your contact information to leighton@drivingvotes.org (that's me).  Driving Votes volunteers will take care of the rest.  Once you're on the inside with your official MyDD.com press pass, it'll be your duty and privilege to update the rest of us by blogging about your experience.

Go Dean.

The California delegation to the DNC is asking rank-and-file Dems to let them know what message to take to the DNC.  Here's a great opportunity for Californians to give voice to our choice for DNC Chair (read: Howard Dean).

Details in the Extended Entry.