Friday news II: non-mayoral stories

Politicians

• Fumo resigns post on board of Independence Seaport Museum in light of some charges of improper use of their resources that were part of his federal indictment flurry last week.
  
  
• Damon Roberts makes his case for the 2nd District Council seat at YPP today -- he's talking about reforming how government works for everyone, not just those with "the right" connections.
  
  
• Philadelphia City Council had a speed session yesterday, in the wake of Kenney's pulling his campaign finance bills.
  
  
• Gar Joseph notes the role that ballot position might play in May's Council primaries, and the arcane way it is determined. [Also mentioned here are the numerous folks taking credit for the withdrawel of Kenney's bills, a local Obama fundraiser, and other fluff political bits.]
  
  
• AAJane takes a look at a candidate for Montgomery County District Attorney.
  
  
• Sen. Bob Casey finally found an apartment in DC (but won't say where).
  
  
• "The Hill" does a profile of Patrick Murphy as a Democratic rising star. (I note that he's willing to reveal where he sleeps while in the capital.)
  (via Keystone Politics)

Other news

• More gloomy forecasts from SEPTA, although really what we're talking about here is the need to find dedicated funding. We want *more* people to ride public transit, so improving routes and service are needed, not cutting everything to the bone and charging through the nose... More here, and a note that the city and schools are also dealing with budget shortfalls.
  
  
• Philadelphia's highschools now require classes in African-American history; the DN has a story about the first year of this curriculum, and provides a short summary of what's covered.
  
  
• The Daily News opinion page pleads with mayoral candidates to stop talking about more cops to deal with Philadelphia's crime problem, and instead focus on parole and probation officers, who could make a huge difference, according to expert testimony.
  
  
• And Inga Saffron has another new piece today, this time on some upcoming city planning conventions and other planning-related talks and gatherings taking place in Philadelphia this spring.