There are only 26 seats left to the 1st Annual Inclusive Voices event!

This Friday, April 3rd, this community exchange luncheon will be held at the Omni William Penn Hotel Grand Ballroom.  This unique luncheon is centered around discussion with a wide array of Pittsburgh leaders, who serve as the conversationalist at their lunch table.  Attendees will sign up with their preference of what conversationalist’s table they would like to sit at.  During the lunch, the conversationalists will host the discussion at their individual tables.

 The event begins with a reception at 11:15am, during which participants will have a chance to socialize with all of the attendees and conversationalists.  The luncheon and discussion will follow from 12pm-1:30pm.

Conversationalists include Councilman Bill Peduto, Heather Arnet - the executive director of the Women & Girls Foundation of Southwestern Pa, Jake Wheatley - Pa House of Representatives 19th District, Meg Cheever - Founder and President of the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy, and many others.

Tickets cost $50, and can be purchased by calling 412-562-0290.

Proceeds from this event will go to PACE, whose mission is to strengthen nonprofit organizations in the community that work to aide African American and economically disadvantaged communities.

Check out this article from Sunday’s Post-Gazette about the need for campaign finance reform for the City of Pittsburgh.

Councilman Bill Peduto’s position on campaign finance reform for our city is similar to the view expressed in this article.  Councilman Peduto will not support a campaign finance reform ordinance that does not do three things:

1. It must have significantly lower limits than the Onorato-Ravenstahl proposal, to match limits that have been established in other cities.  The current bill would give Pittsburgh politicians one of the highest limits in the country, and would do nothing to end pay-to-play politics.
2. It must end all no-bid contracts over 25,000 - not just for contributors, but end all no-bid contracts for everyone.  It must be an ordinance, it must be the law, and it must be written into the city code - not just an executive order from the Mayor.
3. The bill must also contain a law that requires the City Controller to post all campaign contributions and all contracts in a searchable database for the public. True transparency must be written into this bill.

Today there were two news stories in Pittsburgh regarding the signs of our times.

KDKA News published a story about the amazing response to Earth Hour 2009.  The international event had a record number of participants, and the City of Pittsburgh joined in last night from 8:30pm - 9:30pm.  Last year, Councilman Bill Peduto sponsored the City of Pittsburgh as one of only 370 cities worldwide that participated, but this year the movement spread to thousands of cities around the globe.

Another story written by Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Mark Belko discusses the increasing numbers of neon sign advertisements that are popping up all over the downtown Pittsburgh skyline.  Councilman Bill Peduto believes that there must a better balance between the architectural integrity of our skyline and corporate sponsorship illuminating from it. Check out the story to read more about Councilman Peduto’s stance on the issue.

Can’t get enough of your favorite YouTube videos?

Join City Councilman Bill Peduto tonight at 9:30 for PeduTube III at Cappy’s Cafe on Walnut Street!

At PeduTube, Councilman Peduto is the video DJ for the evening, taking request for videos from you!   Proceeds from this PeduTube will go to benefit Every Child Inc.

Remember - tonight is also Earth Hour!  Before you come out to PeduTube, don’t forget to participate by turning off your lights from 8:30 to 9:30, and join in on this international environmental movement!

On Sunday night, Councilman Bill Peduto was a guest at the Turkish Cultural Center of Pittsburgh, formerly known as the Pittsburgh Dialogue Foundation. This organization supports peace through interfaith dialogue between followers of the Christian, Islamic, and Jewish faiths.

The group was joined by leaders from all religious communities, and the keynote speaker, Dr. Jon Pahl of the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, gave a great presentation.

District 8 is home to numerous synagogues and temples, Roman Catholic and Byzantine cathedrals, the Islamic Center, and all denominations of Christianity, including the Korean Christian church.

Over 2 terms in office, Bill has actively engaged with all faiths to strengthen the East End community, and to make Pittsburgh a welcoming city for all.

At the dinner, Bill was asked to speak about his travels to Turkey, during which he participated in a peace mission to promote interfaith dialogue. A video of that speech will be posted in the near future.

It’s time for an update on the Brackets and Brunch with Bill March Madness competition!  We are one week into the game, and the competition is heating up.  Here are the current standings:

1.     Pittsburgh Hoagie - 56 points

2.     Sqhillmom – 54 points

3.     Alcondeluci – 52 points

4.     Motznik’s Main Man – 51 points

5.     Three-way tie: Catsbrac24, Gilman, Billpeduto - 50 points

Congratulations to the top 5 - but the competition is not over!  Anything can happen, so stay tuned to find out who will ultimately win the tournament, and the brunch with Bill!

Last night the campaign staff attended Drinking Liberally, and had a fun night of eating, drinking, and political discussion with friends.

Drinking Liberally is held on the second and fourth Tuesdays of every month at Buffalo Blues in Shadyside.

Councilman Bill Peduto will be attending the next Drinking Liberally gathering, on Tuesday, April 14. 

Come out and join the fun!

This Saturday, March 28th from 8:30pm - 9:30pm is Earth Hour, and Councilman Bill Peduto is asking you to join in on the movement!

Earth hour is an international event that was created by the World Wildlife Fund.  For this one hour a year, households and businesses around the world are asked to turn off their lights for an hour in an effort to raise awareness about climate change.

Councilman Peduto has convinced Pittsburgh universities, museums, downtown skyscrapers, and even the City County building to turn off their lights for one hour, in observance of Earth Hour.  Now we need you to join us as well - turn off your lights, or even just your computer and television for this one hour.  Take the time to think about energy conservation, and show your friends and neighbors that climate change is an issue that is on your mind.  The action may be small, but the impact will be great.

So don’t forget, this Saturday, March 28, 8:30 - 9:30 - join us as we turn off the lights and show that we care about our Earth!

Every member of the Pittsburgh Firefighter hockey team is a firefighter within the Pittsburgh bureau.

The Pittsburgh Celebrity Hockey team faced off against the Pittsburgh Firefighters’ team on Saturday, as spectators watched a fun, action-packed game. With a high final score of 14 - 10, the Celebrity Hockey team came out of the game victorious, and the two teams stayed afterwards to share pizza and refreshments.

The Celebrity Hockey team roster for this game included WDVE’s Mike Prisuta and KDKA TV’s Jory Rand and Ross Guidotti, along with former national and international, pro, and semi-pro, and collegiate players from Pittsburgh.

A childhood friend of Councilman Peduto’s, Lowell MacDonald, who grew up beside and played hockey with Bill, was also playing on the Celebrity Hockey team.  Lowell’s family moved away before high school, and the two friends had only seen each other 1 time in the last 30 years until the game that evening.   Both were excited to be able able to catch up, and play hockey together again in Pittsburgh after such a long period of time.  Look for more about hockey and friendship in an upcoming post.

Last night, comedian John McIntire took the stage at the Cabaret Theater downtown for the Pittsburgh Pundits show – It’s the Stupid, Ecomony!

One of Pittsburgh’s leading alternative comedians Gab Bonesso opened for McIntire, starting off a night of comedy based upon both local and national political issues.

After routines by both comedians, panelists Councilman Bill Peduto, former Republican Mayoral candidate Mark DeSantis, and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette political cartoonist Rob Rogers took questions on local and national political issues from both the audience and McIntire. Question topics ranged from President Obama to Rush Limbaugh.

If you couldn’t make it out to the show last night- don’t worry. Pittsburgh Pundits will return to the stage on Saturday April 18, Saturday May 23, and Saturday June 20. All shows start at 10:30pm.