Time for me to start harping on one of my pet peeves. No, not site load times; given that we have roughly fifty seven ways of creating content, and every possible feature that nobody ever uses, of course the site loads slowly. That's one thing. My cross to bear.

No, what I'm talking about is this: every day, we get, collectively and individually as editors, solicitations and requests. Candidates want plugs for their candidacy. Fundraisers want publicity for their events. Organizations want plugs for their most recent report, event, fundraiser, personnel announcement.

Fine. So buy an ad. Seriously. We support what you're doing; that's what Progressive blogs do. We do more than that, certainly; the ad campaign for Craig Johnson, back in the day, was produced by The Daily Gotham. The banners you see currently, promoting the Brodsky Bill, also come from us. All 100% pro bono.

But when it comes to the reciprocity, that is, tangible support for our work and our efforts, what you hear is crickets. Does anyone out there think that this site, or others like it across New York's (and the country's) thriving Progressive blogosphere exist in a financial vacuum? Newsflash: our hosting costs have doubled. It costs $300 a month just to keep this site online.

This is a larger problem. New York is in many ways ahead of the curve, compared to other states, when it comes to the networking of the blogosphere, the party, electeds, candidates and organizations. That's great, and we love it. As you can tell, there's also currently a banner ad at the top of the site paid for by governor Spitzer. That's fantastic, and we love that too, especially since it's for a cause we believe in wholeheartedly. But there need to be more of those.

There cannot be a healthy, vibrant Progressive blogosphere without support for blogs from the rest of the movement. You, dear Progressive mover, rely on us to support you, to get your message out. What, then, are you doing to help us? Where is that exclusive interview that you haven't given to the mainstream media yet? Where's the ad? Where's the outright grant?

One example out of many: some days ago, I got an email from some PR firm, announcing a fundraiser for a Presidential candidate, at $100 a pop, complete with promotional artwork. All very well and good, and could we please announce it, or come by and report on it (at $100 a pop)?

Short answer: Hell no. If you haven't noticed, dear PR person, we hawk out every available space here for what? Drumroll, please: ad space! You want a front-page plug for an event where you expect to pull in a coupla dozen grand? Great - the least you can do is hand out comp tickets.

Long story short: there needs to be some concerted investment in Progressive blogs on the part of Progressive organizations, funders and interests. You want a healthy movement? Put your money where your mouth is - right here.