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Various Observations – January 27, 2012

Observation: I pay a higher tax rate than Mitt Romney. We need to fix this country, not enable kajillionaires. Fracking Observation: It looks like Ohionans, by an overwhelming majority, want a moratorium on Fracking, especially since it’s causing earthquakes. PA-10 Observation: GOP Rep Tom Marino, still groveling at the feet of his corporate overlords, is [...]

Redistricting: It’s All Over But the Crying

The State Supreme Court threw out the Republican gerrymander of legislative districts yesterday. This is great, except for the fact that the race was already two days in and people had begun collecting signatures. Now, nobody is entirely sure what this election is going to look like. With the plan invalid, districts are now, according [...]

Hawaii Dems Want To Know The Sites You Visit; Or Hawaii Hates Freedom

I’m just an average man with an average life, I work from 9 to 5, hey, hell, I pay the price, All I want is to be left alone in my average home, But why do I always feel like I’m in the twilight zone and I always feel like somebody’s watching me, I have [...]

Councilman Pat Rogan Responds to the $3 Million Compentence Problem

I got this excellent letter from Pat Rogan.  Check it out. When I ran for City Council in 2009, I knew our city government was inefficient and dysfunctional. Now, after learning the details of the $3 million of taxpayer money that was “forgotten about,” I will also add incompetent to that list. Although it would [...]

Various Observations – January 27, 2012

Observation: I pay a higher tax rate than Mitt Romney. We need to fix this country, not enable kajillionaires.

Fracking Observation: It looks like Ohionans, by an overwhelming majority, want a moratorium on Fracking, especially since it’s causing earthquakes.

PA-10 Observation: GOP Rep Tom Marino, still groveling at the feet of his corporate overlords, is stubbornly still behind SOPA.

PA Observation: Governor Tom Corbett, ever the slave to his corporate natural gas Overlords, slashed science funding to study the effects of drilling. That way, when everybody living near a well has cancer 10 years from now, it’ll just be coincidence.

PA Observation: Keystone Politics has a great headline. “Ex-Corbett Advisor Thinks You Should Try More Semen” is a great read. Corbett really picks winners here.

 

 

 

Redistricting: It’s All Over But the Crying

The State Supreme Court threw out the Republican gerrymander of legislative districts yesterday. This is great, except for the fact that the race was already two days in and people had begun collecting signatures. Now, nobody is entirely sure what this election is going to look like.

With the plan invalid, districts are now, according to the Court, to go back to their original lines. Okay. Except that a place like Monroe County, with a new Senate Seat, loses it. Back to Pittsburgh, where the population has declined. But, hey, this was a Gerrymander and the Court recognized it. Still good.

The problem is that the Legislative Redistricting Commission can issue a new map, possibly soon. They have to await instruction from the Court, which will come tomorrow. There are two options. We run under old lines and then have new lines for 2012, or the LRC draws a new map. If it’s option two, then it’ll either happen quickly, and no dates on the Election Calendar will change, or it’ll happen slowly and we may see some dates pushed back. Either way, we’re in a state of flux right now.

Of course, there is only one group to blame for this and that would be the Republican-led legislature that formed this commission late, then the commission itself, which dragged its feet. The Commission is made up for Two Dems, Two Republicans, and one Republican-appointed “Independent-type” who is, of course, beholden to those who put him in. It’s a smart strategy, really. Put off redistricting as long as possible in order to maximize chaos and minimize the chances of people to react to it. The state was (and now is) under deadlines.

Since I’m working with Kevin Haggerty, and his district has been moved all over the place through these talks, I can speak to the frustration people feel. Uncertainty isn’t good, but we just have to deal.

 

 

 

 

Hawaii Dems Want To Know The Sites You Visit; Or Hawaii Hates Freedom

I’m just an average man with an average life, I work from 9 to 5, hey, hell, I pay the price, All I want is to be left alone in my average home, But why do I always feel like I’m in the twilight zone and
I always feel like somebody’s watching me, I have no privacy oh o oh, I always feel like somebody’s watching me tell me is it just a dream

Remember that classic 1984 hit, “Somebody’s Watching Me“, by Rockwell

Well if Hawaii has it’s way, they’ll have 2 years worth of your web watching.

I know what you’re thinking, why would Republicans want to go down the SOPA/PIPA road? Why would Hawaii go about “requiring Internet providers to keep track of every Web site their customers visit.”

Surprise! It’s actually the Democrats! Led by John Mizuno a Representative.

The bill, measure, H.B. 2288, would require all Internet Providers to keep a history of all the sites you’ve visited for 2 years. This includes those visiting Hawaii.

Don’t think that’s bad enough? There is Democrat Jill Tokuda of the Senate, who will introduce, S.B. 2530, which is the House counterpart.

But what could the law be looking for? It’s not specific. That’s a big part of it (besides the tracking of what sites you visit.) Could they be looking for pirate sites? Could they be looking if you visited an adult website? We don’t know.

Could the IP’s take your information and sell it? If there’s a profit to be made they will!

This is just another example of limiting your freedom, letting “Big Brother” be ever more invasive.

The Internet was left open when it started. The government has done some cracking down – see last week’s Megaupload as an example. But to now, say what you’ve been doing is being watched, or restricted, is not going to be acceptable.

It’s just like being a child on Christmas Day. You wake up to a lot of presents under the tree. You open and play with the toys. Then 20 minutes later your parents take them back. Or your parents say you can only play with them when I am watching you.

Are you going to accept that? I wouldn’t. Why would you accept those rules, when last year there were no such rules?

If government wants to go after people doing illegal things, that’s fine, they should. But you don’t just give up your rights. It’s not a, 1 bad apple spoils the bunch. Everyone is not guilty because a few people are.

Hawaii, if it passes this law, will setup the rest of the country to follow. This isn’t end, but the beginning. And you know states that are Conservative will have no trouble passing the same law. Pennsylvania with its Republican stranglehold on government would pass this without a second look.

Councilman Pat Rogan Responds to the $3 Million Compentence Problem

I got this excellent letter from Pat Rogan.  Check it out.

When I ran for City Council in 2009, I knew our city government was inefficient and dysfunctional. Now, after learning the details of the $3 million of taxpayer money that was “forgotten about,” I will also add incompetent to that list.

Although it would be easy to place all of the blame for this mess squarely on the shoulders of Mayor Chris Doherty, this mess is more than one man’s doing.

First off, city business administrator Ryan McGowan should have picked up on this mistake when analyzing the city’s balance statement before any city employees were laid off or any tax increases were proposed. Mr. McGowan should understand the process of how meter revenues move into the city coffers better than anyone because he previously served as city treasurer. Let’s also not forget that Mr. McGowan is paid more than any other member of the Doherty administration, including the mayor himself.

Secondly, since this $3 million was collected over a period of three years, it should have been reflected in the city’s audits, which coincidentally are always almost a year late. Scranton’s auditing firm, Robert Rossi & Co., was the most expensive firm when bids were received and, despite my objections, they received the contract for the city audit. Without an accurate and timely audit, it is impossible for the administration to determine exactly what funds are in the city’s accounts.

As your councilman, I voted against both the appointment of Ryan McGowan and the contract for Rossi & Co., but unfortunately both were approved. The residents of Scranton deserve better than the incompetence that has played out right in front of our eyes. I am calling on Mayor Doherty to immediately hire a new, competent, business administrator, and also to immediately put out a request for proposal for a new, competent auditing firm.

It is time for the incompetence to end!

 

 

Redistricting: Can It Be Explained?

Olyphant is the perfect example why redistricting should be left to independent professionals, not politicians looking to pad their party votes.

The PA Republicans and Republican King Corbett did exactly what the people didn’t want when voting – confusion.

I want to note I don’t live in Olyphant, but am in the same position – confusion, what district am I in?

Thanks to redistricting Olyphant will be split, not evenly among the 711 residents, but among 703 & 8 (of which are 7 houses.) Read that again. The redistricting divided Olyphant into 2 congressional districts, one of which has 8 people. It’s “designated Census Block 1025.”

Gone is the 11th Congressional District, enter the 10th and 17th. The 10th for 703 people. The 17th for 8 people.

“It doesn’t make much sense to me,” director of elections Marion Medalis said last week.

People will still be voting at the same polling places, but for the next 10 years (at least) Olyphant and many other towns will have to have 2 separate books for the different districts with 2 ballots.

“The first level is the congressional districts. Under the new map, the county will be divided between the 10th District, now represented by Republican Tom Marino of Lycoming Twp., and 17th District, represented by Democrat Tim Holden of St. Clair. The 11th District, represented by Republican Lou Barletta of Hazleton, will no longer extend into the county.

Those shifts alone will affect voters in 125 of the county’s 163 voting precincts in one way or another, Mrs. Medalis said.”

Talk about breaking down the districts by voters. I thought that was joke when I first heard it, now it’s apparently true. And it’s not just an isolated case, it’s the majority of “precincts.”

“That is the twist in this thing,” she said. “If it’s a whole ward, you can kind of deal with that, but when you’re talking about part of one precinct, it’s a little tricky.”

“Department of State spokesman Ron Ruman said the goal was to avoid splitting precincts “as much as possible” while still meeting the statutory mandate to create districts with equal populations based on 2010 census numbers.

In the adopted plan, 13 of the 18 congressional districts, including both the 10th and the 17th, ended up with an “ideal” population of 705,668, according to the department. The other five were at 705,687.”

Again read that, they wanted an close to equal population as possible so rather than have 705,676 with the 5 others losing a total of 8, they said no, we’ll make it even, even if it doesn’t make sense.

“Later, after examining a more detailed census block map at the Regional Planning Commission, Mrs. Medalis concluded it was only half that number: five houses on the odd-numbered side of McKinley book-ended by one house on Gallagher and another on Barrett Street that she and Mr. Koldjeski originally believed was across the line in Jessup.

The eight registered voters who live in those homes will be casting votes in the 17th District for the next decade; their neighbors across the street and all of the other voters in Olyphant 3-2 – 703 of them as of last week – will be voting in the 10th.”

This is just the situation I saw for myself when The Times-Tribune published a map a few months ago. I’m in an area where, depending on the side of the street, maybe the amount of houses on the same side, will put me in a different congressional district.

Olyphant may have it lucky, with only 8 people using a separate ballot, but what if the precinct was divided much larger? You go to vote and you have to wait, to find out if you’re in this book or that. That may not seem a big deal, if there is no line, but this could cause some people to not wait. Is that fair? Is that democracy?

What if you’re not party affiliated or your party is not represented in the primary? You will have to wait for the general election. How do you support/oppose a candidate if you don’t know what district you’re in?

I’m glad this issue was brought to light and I’m not the only one who doesn’t know which congressional district is my new (or same) home. It makes no sense to try to “even the districts.” There is no reason anyone would bring up to argue your district is a little higher/lower in total population than the other. People just want to be able to vote with as little hassle as possible. By bringing in confusion, you turn people away, which is what the Republicans have done in Pennsylvania and across the nation.

If you can’t win on the issues, stack the deck so you can’t lose.

 

Florida Best State In 2012?* (Not Election Related)

The taxpayers pay for many stadiums to be built. We pay so the owner, most likely a billionaire, won’t take his team to another state, we’re put in a bind of what to do. Do we give the owner state money to keep the team? If we don’t some other place will. Do we risk losing $millions in potential revenue from having the team? But how much is too much?

For example we have the Little Yankees. They have a $billion-dollar organization, yet Lackawanna County must pay $20 million + Pennsylvania gives $20 million to renovate the stadium. Is that a fair deal?

Florida came up with a genius idea, of course it’s not being followed, but the idea is still genius.

Florida will give the owners, the money they request to keep the team from leaving, in exchange, stadiums will become homeless shelters when there are no games nights. This has been law for 20 years. It has not been complied with once. Not once!

*This is where the genius part would come in, but it’s not being followed.

There are “17 football, baseball, basketball and hockey arenas that relied on state money for construction have ever been used to house the homeless, according to Sen. Mike Bennett, who’s filed a bill that could cost counties and professional sports franchises big-time.

In total, Florida taxpayers have contributed over $270 million to the various professional franchises that play in the state. Dolphin Stadium (now Sun Life Stadium) has been the biggest beneficiary of the taxpayer subsidy, having received approximately $37 million in funding.”

Bennett, a Republican, thinks the stadiums either show they have a shelter in place or repay the money. The risk is losing the team. I understand a billionaire wanting to spend the least amount of money possible to build a stadium, but a few $million (from their pockets) will be returned in a short amount of time.
It’s too bad that teams aren’t complying and too bad that it’s not a law in all states. We’re giving money away that all of us pay and most of us don’t see any return. (How many of you have been to the stadiums in PA?) I don’t want to be giving away money that could be spent elsewhere, perhaps in some cases, saving programs altogether or at least save in cuts.
It’s also not a matter of the owners not having the money, they do, but they want the handout and know if it really is about the money, they’ll go someplace else. Would you rather PA save $40 million and take our chances the Little Yankees stay? Or tell the Little Yankees, you’ve got the money, pay for it yourself?

Toomey Responds To My PIPA Email

I sent an email to all my representatives regarding my opposition to PIPA/SOPA. I got 1 reply from Sen. Toomey (technically 2 from Toomey , but 1 was a “Thank you for contacting us….” Below is the 2nd email with an explanation of his view.

January 23, 2012
Dear Mr. Hodorawis,

Thank you for contacting me about online piracy, as well as two proposals about this issue (S. 968, the PROTECT IP Act, and H.R. 3261, the Stop Online Piracy Act). I appreciate hearing from you.

I understand your concerns about legislation pending before Congress that would address online piracy – namely, the PROTECT IP Act and the Stop Online Piracy Act. In my view, piracy of intellectual property is a legitimate concern that should be addressed. However, the PROTECT IP Act and the Stop Internet Piracy Act are flawed, and I cannot support them in their current form. I therefore look forward to working with my Senate colleagues on this issue and finding a better legislative approach for tackling online piracy. Please be assured that I value your input and will keep your thoughts in mind as work continues on this important matter.

Thank you again for your correspondence. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future if I can be of assistance.

Sincerely,

Pat Toomey
U.S. Senator, Pennsylvania

HD-112: Glenn Cashuric Mulling a Run, Hits Smith Hard

This interesting graphic just popped up in my inbox.  Between this and some rumblings from the Midvalley that Glenn Cashuric may jump into the race in the 112th prompted me to ask.  He says he’s thinking about it.

And the race heats up!

You’ll remember from the redistricting fiasco that just occurred that, of all the Lackawanna Districts, Ken Smith’s got sliced up the most. He lost some of South Side, all of North Pocono, and gained the Midvalley. We figured somebody from up there would be running.

Based on the graphic here, Cashuric plans on hitting Smith hard for his rather numerous tax and loan issues. For those who don’t recall, Ken Smith, despite making at least $82,000 per year as a state rep (not counting per diems and whatever household income increases he may get from his wife), didn’t bother paying his taxes on the family restaurant in South Side. Not only that, he took out a government-backed loan and simply stopped paying it when he got elected. How nice is that?

Smith won last time despite these problems, but now he’ll have a tougher time, given that the Midvalley is a rather contentious, contiguous voting bloc that I won’t ever claim to understand.

Cashuric, who ran for Controller the cycle before last (when Ken McDowell and John Mellow were on the ballot sans Gary DiBileo), would join Kevin Haggerty, who has been actively running for this seat for some time.

I will be working with Kevin Haggerty on this campaign, so he was easier to . When asked about another challenger jumping in, he said, “This just goes to show that a lot of people aren’t happy with their current representative.”

Based on Cashuric’s slogan, it seems so.

As for his response, it’s pretty golden and doesn’t spare Haggerty either.

Reasons for entering the race:

1. Replacing Ed Staback with Ken Smith is like trading in an Mercedes S-Class for a used Hyundai Accent.

2. Ken Smith has never fully (or even partially) explained the following: (a) his tax situation, (b) his state loan situation, (c) his employment tax situation, and/or (d) whether or not he has a current country club membership.

3. Greeting people at Dunkin’ Donuts and running around door to door is no substitute for a detailed platform. Kevin Haggerty needs to step up his game a notch and maximize his potential as a candidate.

4. The valley needs some representation from the valley. The city has Kevin Murphy.

5. Ken Smith hasn’t introduced one substantive piece of legislation in six years and in my opinion is one of the most ineffective state representatives NEPA has ever had.

Goals For My “One Term In The Minority”:

1. Legislation allowing (and providing funding for) a school district to offer two “fast forward” classes—one math and one science–during the summer for students who wish to accelerate their learning. These classes will count as a full year substitute so the students completing them may leap one year ahead in the respective area of math or science (or both). Cost? $10,000 per school district. Payment? Funding from the state or a “PILOT” from the gas companies.

2. Ending the “distressed” status of Scranton and severing its relationship with PEL so that it may move forward or fail on its own.

3. A Cisco Telepresence system both in my Harrisburg office and district office so that I may maintain live communication with my constituents and capitol staff (of one) on weekends and evenings no matter where I am.

4. A fully interactive website for district residents and businesses to obtain services.

5. Driving my own car and paying my own insurance.

6. Raising the speed limit to 70 (with a buffer to 72 or 73) on the interstates and rounding many of the state speed limits (eventually) to numbers ending in zero to correspond with real-life speedometers.

Things I Support:

1. A severance tax on the gas companies currently destroying the environment and pillaging the state’s natural resources.

2. More stringent controls on the gas companies currently destroying the environment and pillaging the state’s natural resources.

3. A centralized “estate filing” system to ensure thorough compliance with inheritance tax and estate recovery laws.

4. Initiative, referendum, and recall.

5. Adopting the Delaware corporate code and case law and eliminating the loopholes.

6. Term limits. Four terms for a state rep, two for a state senator. I will not even hit this maximum.

7. Responsible funding for education that includes iPads and iMacs (and creative software) but prohibits school board junkets, any nepotism, and tax hikes above the COLA.

Ken Smith’s response? He will have seniority. Unfortunately, I do not remembering this being a factor in his thinking when he ran a primary challenge against 15-term representative Fred Belardi.

Ken Smith’s response? He brings home checks. Any elected official in the legislature with a pulse can bring home checks. While important, there is much more to the job.

Ken Smith’s response? He ran into tough business times. I understand and sympathize. But there are many questions still unanswered and it seems as though Mr. Smith Goes To Harrisburg simply for the paycheck.

 

(Programming Note: I used to write “PA-112″ for this district, but I’ll be referring to House Districts as “HD” from now on so as not to confuse them with Congressional Districts.)

PA-17: Matt Cartwright Set to Announce Candidacy

Thank the Lords of Kobol (Battlestar Galactica reference), Tim Holden has a challenger. And guess what? It’s a real Democrat!

It’s been rumored some time that Matt Cartwright was considering a run and now it’s official: he will be announcing on Tuesday that he’s running against Tim Holden to represent the 17th. I happened to get a call about it around the same time the local political establishment was fawning over Holden at the Tripp House during a meet-and-greet.

Methinks it won’t be nearly enough for Holden. Here’s why:

Nearly 80% of the 17th is new to Holden. Cartwright, because of his law firm, has had his name blasted across the Wilkes-Barre-Scranton media market. That includes the Poconos (aka Monroe County). Easton, which is new to the district, is unfamiliar to Holden, as is Northampton County. Really, all Holden has is Schuylkill, which is pretty sparse.

Additionally, I suspected that, given Cartwright’s money, he might poll whether or not a candidacy would be viable. Turns out, according to an insider, Holden is pretty much unrecognizable to the vast majority of this new district (although common sense says that, too) and that Cartwright has a decent shot. Why would anybody get in unless they thought they could win?

Further, Holden’s political positions aren’t all that great. He co-sponsored SOPA, which would’ve effectively destroyed the Internet as we know it by giving control of it to Hollywood, of all places. He withdrew his support after getting blasted during a day of protest in which sites like Google and Wikipedia either went black and/or directed their users to contact their representatives. Obviously lots of people contacted Holden with their ire.

Gort has been covering this solidly and, like me, is excited to see a candidate with the right positions.

Holden routinely votes with Republicans on their pet issues. If we want a Republican, we can elect one. If we want a Democrat, we can elect Matt Cartwright.

Assassination Whoops!

Anyone hear about Atlanta Jewish Times owner Andrew Adler? He wrote an article “suggesting that assassinating President Barack Obama is an option that should be considered by the Israeli government.”

He then issued a, my bad, I didn’t really mean that. I mean I don’t really mean that now, since I’ve come under backlash, for stating my true feelings.

Is there another country on Earth that supports Israel as the U.S. does?

I would say no. We have protected or offered protection by selling them weapons for decades. It doesn’t matter whom the President is, Democrat or Republican, everyone has supported Israel. But how far should the support go? When is doing enough, not enough?

Adler describes protecting Israel “from threats such as Hamas and Hezbollah and argues that there are essentially only three options available to Israel: 1. attack Hezbollah and Hamas; 2. “order the destruction of Iran’s nuclear facilities at all costs;” 3. assassinate Obama.”

Wait what was #3? Assassinate Obama? How would that make Israel more secure? How does killing your friend make you a better or legitimate country? Your homeland is essentially surrounded by people who want you killed. You being your entire race.

If you attack a friend, then what happens when an entire region comes looking for you? Do you think an apology would make everything better?

From the article: “Yes, you read “three” correctly. Order a hit on a president in order to preserve Israel’s existence. Think about it. If I have thought of this Tom Clancy-type scenario, don’t you think that this almost unfathomable idea has been discussed in Israel’s most inner circles?”

Wouldn’t it be nice if you weren’t at constant war with your neighbors? Wouldn’t it be nice if you didn’t live on 24/7 alert because you may see a rocket coming at any time? You have a country that would support you if trouble became too much. But you want to after your friend(s) as well.

I don’t think this is a normal “race” issue we see in America where President Obama is vilified because he’s black. I think this was just a bad statement that would be direct at any U.S. President.

Regulation And Lies, Glad The Keystone Pipeline Was Denied

Some say there are too many regulations. Regulations are killing the industries, just pick one. Companies should be allowed to regulate themselves – trust them.

Remember over the summer the oil spill in Montana? 1,509 barrels went into the Yellowstone River. 500 more than was reported. 10 barrels were recovered.

Let that sink in.

10 barrels out of 1,509. If the EPA wasn’t watching would we know that 500 wasn’t reported? Maybe Exxon Mobil would only have told us 10 barrels spilled, if they had control of what was reported.

“The company has estimated costs related to the spill of $135 million.”

Speaking of the EPA, they decided that 4 homes in Dimock, PA have tainted water from fracking. The families will be delivered fresh water. Meanwhile, others will have their water tested. What happens until the EPA has results? The families are on their own to take chances. You have to keep a well stocked supply of lighters to check the water every time you want a drink. If it ignites, it’s not alright!

The families are used to this though as the EPA investigation has taken 3 years so far. The drillers are just going about their business, because they don’t care, and the head of the state doesn’t care – King Corbett. He could actually do something, but turns away when the people need him.

So the driller, Cabot, comes in destroys the environment, all the while making hand over fist money at the people’s expense. The state ignores them. But some want the drillers to have even less regulations so they get a free pass. Fines aren’t big enough to make the drillers care. The people don’t have the power.

But lets build more oil pipelines and natural gas areas, because we rely too much on foreign oil. Let the companies do what they want, because the money is more valuable than the land, water, and environment. Let us continue to use these ways for power because clean power solar and wind cost too much.

Carbondale’s Sneaky Sneaky $50 Fire Protection Fee

I must applaud Carbondale City Council, especially the 4 council members, who voted for a “$50 Fire Protection Service Fee.” I was unaware that Carbondale citizens haven’t been paying for fire protection. *Correction they have been.

Carbondale is a nice example of double-taxation. It’s sneaky like the $52 emergency fee people pay when they live outside a city but work within one.

Every plot of land with a house, garage, or empty will pay the fee because, well anyone may need the fire dept. and they’re not getting money through taxes so it’s only natural to tax again.

The fee will raise $240,000 a year based on the 4,800 parcels.

“Some residents who bristled at the new fee said their taxes already pay for fire-protection services and they can’t afford any more taxes or fees.”

How was Carbondale paying the firefighters before? Taxes. So why not just raise taxes? Because Carbondale taxes are so high, to raise them any more would need “court approval.”

“Council President Kathleen Connor replied, “Believe me, not any one of us wanted to do this.”"

If you didn’t want to do it, why do it?

Mayor Justin “Taylor said a fee was pursued instead of a tax hike for various reasons. Because a fee results in a citation if it’s not paid, it typically has a higher collection rate than a tax, he said. The city’s tax millage also already is at 29.7 mills and the city would need to seek court approval to set a rate of 30 mills or higher, the mayor said. Creating a fee avoids having to go to court, he said.”

So last year Carbondale had the money to pay for firefighters, now suddenly they don’t? Could this be another Scranton “finding” money issue in reverse?

Nice way to slap the residents of Carbondale with more taxes, oh sorry fee. Where did the money go? This isn’t about bashing the firefighters or unions, it’s about where does the money go?

Why do city after city keep screwing up or turning the screws to people? The city council then has the nerve to blind-side residents. Will next month a $50 Police Protection Fee be implemented because suddenly Carbondale can’t pay the police salaries?

BP In Gulf; Where Are The People In The Water?

Have you seen the new BP commercial where they toot their own horn about how well the Gulf is after their oil spill disaster?

BP Gulf Commercial

I’ve seen the commercial a few dozen times and I question BP: Where are the people in the water? You say it’s safe, but there are only a few people in it. You also show seafood, that it’s implied, came from the Gulf. How many people are actually eating though?

Is BP the owner of the bed & breakfasts? The restaurants? If not, then why are you telling us? Isn’t that why states have tourism departments? I want to be shown the clean water and beaches that have been restored, by you, without that you can show anything and it’s bogus.

You throw out some numbers like you setup the $20 billion fund for the fishing industry. Yes, reluctantly. If it wasn’t for President Obama you wouldn’t have done that. You, BP, blamed everyone else.

BP don’t act like everything is cool now. It only takes one disaster to ruin the environment. One person’s incompetence screws millions of people.

Laws In Place Now, SOPA/PIPA Not Needed

Does Congress look at laws before trying to re-do what they already did? Megaupload.com was taken down by the U.S. government for piracy. That happened the day after the “black out” of popular websites. Coincidence?

Wasn’t SOPA/PIPA supposed to do the same thing? I guess it’s easier to make new laws than look at what’s already out there.

The site was a “.com” and is a U.S. address, but servers in the U.S. hosted some content. So they’ll be shut-down physically and on the web, until they go someplace where the Internet laws are more free.

“Megaupload was unique not only because of its massive size and the volume of downloaded content, but also because it had high-profile support from celebrities, musicians and other content producers who are most often the victims of copyright infringement and piracy.”

So they had support from the “alleged victims?” But the “other victims” the companies tv/movie did not agree. It’s a catch-22. The people who make the work are okay with it (some people anyway), while the companies that provide the means for the people to work don’t like it. Without either, neither one would survive in the industry.

However, some people are finding ways so they don’t need the companies money and can put the product out themselves, cheaper and without taken less for getting the product out to consumers. See Louis C.K., who put out a comedy show on his own and made over $1 million that went directly to him (he did have to pay for taping the show, getting it on the web, etc.) But if that was done by a company, they would have taken a big chunk right off the top.

Don’t worry pirates, the Justice Dept. is going after the company (can we call a pirate company a ship?) and not the pirates.

Could you also compare this to going after companies that hire illegal immigrants rather than trying to find every individual illegal immigrant?

In one day, the Justice Department showed Congress that for the last year, all their work on “making new laws” was foolish. Perhaps Congress needs to know if there are laws before making new ones?

And it’s another win for Obama. This President is amazing. He comes out against Congress’ nonsense bill. The bill is opposed by the people. BAM! They make arrests with laws that are already in place.

PoliticsPA Cites NEPArtisan’s Holden Criticism, Holden Caves

In what is likely not at all related, but I’ll say it is, after PoliticsPA cited some good old fashioned NEPArtisan criticism of mediocre legislators, Mediocre Legislator Tim Holden dropped his support of SOPA! Victory is ours!

Yesterday, PoliticsPA led off, in their excellent Morning Buzz, with this:

“#SOPA Headache for Holden? We notice a few left-leaning blogs are zinging the Congressman for his co-sponsorship of the Stop Online Piracy Act, which critics (including pretty much anyone who ever had anything to do with creating the internet), say would undermine the freedom that makes the web possible. His soon-to-be primary opponent Matt Cartwright (who will announce in a day or two, sources say) opposes it.”

The second embedded link (if you see the original post) takes you to little ole NEPArtisan. For those that don’t know, yesterday was a SOPA protest day. The Stop Online Piracy Act would basically give the entertainment industry veto power over the entire Internet. I wrote a while back that our new Representative here in NEPA, Tim Holden (who is going to be in town for a “Get To Know Ya” Friday), was a co-sponsor of this bill. It’s one of the many reasons I’m not a Holden fan.

Then later, in this continuing saga of epic proportions, Tim Holden announced he was withdrawing his support for SOPA!

I take full credit. Complaining loudly on the Internet DOES work!

But really, the fact that so many online giants drew attention to this issue probably had something to do with it. Additionally, since PA-17 is now bluer than Holden is used to, and he’s getting a primary challenge from the left in the form of Matt Cartwright, it makes sense for Holden to drop some of his Republican-in-Democratic-Clothing schtick.

NJ “Tough-Guy” Governor Doesn’t Like People Talking About Him

NJ Governor Chris Christie was all huff and puff about columnist and MSNBC contributor Eugene Robinson raising questions on Christie’s weight issue. Therefore Robinson should have his 1st Amendment rights taken away!

Christie said “that people like Robinson “shouldn’t have a platform to speak, they’re so ignorant.””

Why because Robinson brought up Christie’s weight? Christie is a large guy and has trouble doing things like walking. Remember last year Christie had to take a limo (why this over a small vehicle I don’t know), 100 yards from a helicopter to a baseball stadium to watch his son play.

Robinson told Christie to “Eat a salad and take a walk.” Maybe Christie does and we don’t know about it but whatever he does or doesn’t do isn’t working. This should worry a fictional America should he be the fictional Vice President. The VP’s job is to take over for the President because something is wrong with the President. The stress put on his heart would be enormous (no pun intended.) You would have to worry about his health having just taken over as President. Thankfully this is a hypothetical and would never happen.

“It is a struggle and has been a struggle for me a lot of years,” Christie said, adding, “I hope other people in the country understand. I hope you all understand when ignoramuses like Eugene Robinson get on your show, when they talk about weight and someone should ‘have a salad and take a walk.’

“As far as I’m concerned,” Christie continued, “guys like that shouldn’t have a platform to speak because they’re so ignorant.”

So because Christie can’t lose weight, Robinson shouldn’t be able to speak his mind? Maybe if Christie did lose weight, Robinson or anyone else wouldn’t bring it up.

I’ve had weight issues before and was able to over come them, naturally. I know people who had surgery to reduce weight and it’s worked.

Perhaps Christie is unwilling to change his lifestyle (which if something happens, could his family survive without his income? I don’t know.) He’s not only got to think about his family, but the residents of New Jersey who elected him.

Maybe the solution is to do some exercise instead of going on talk-shows or campaigning around the country for Willard Romney.

Free College Could Make Michigan The Best State In 2012

Genius. Just Genius. Michigan’s 2020 Plan would allow children who attend school in Michigan from K-12 to go to college for free! Meanwhile, PA cuts education funding. Who has it better?

This is obviously a Democrat idea, no surprise there.

Children would get almost $10,000 per year because of tax credits and loopholes would be closed. The amount available would be $3.5 billion.

Michigan pays $34 billion in tax credits, $3.5 billion would be eliminated, the proposal would cost $1.8 million. That leaves $1.7 billion available for other programs.

Can you imagine another thing in life you don’t have to worry about besides health care? All you have to do is what you would normally do, finish high school, and your college is paid for.

This should be done everywhere. A free education where you can go to a public school and tuition is paid for. If you want to go to a private school and pay more you could, but for those you don’t have enough money to obtain a degree, this is big news. Who would pass this up?

 

Gingrich Wants To Physically Hurt Obama

Did anyone get the email from Gingrich (more like his campaign team), that Gingrich wants to punch the President in the nose?

I won’t get into the actual thought of Gingrich moving enough to punch someone, let alone the President.

Even as a humorous joke (which it is not), why is this acceptable from a Presidential Candidate?

Gingrich “wants to knock Obama out, because, as the subject line of the email suggests, “A Bloody Nose Just Won’t Cut It.” The comment comes from a recent town hall where a questioner asked Gingrich how he would “bloody Obama’s nose.” “I don’t want to bloody his nose, I want to knock him out!” Gingrich responded. “This is exactly why Newt Gingrich is the candidate who must face Obama,” campaign spokesman RC Hammond says in the email.”

What happened to civility? This coming from a “historian” and “statesman” such as Gingrich. Disparate times call for disparate measures. If this is how Gingrich wants to attack the President, then the gloves should literally come off, and we’ll see the real Gingrich for the old, winded, adulterer, who is a disgrace to the human race.

SOPA Stops; Whom In PA Is For/Against & How Much?

*I’m going to lump SOPA/PIPA together since essentially it’s the same thing – taking our Internet freedom.

**Tim Holden, a co-sponsor, removed his name from sponsorship.

Many Congresspeople saw the power of the people yesterday and backed away from the freedom killing SOPA. In PA’s case one of the co-sponsors didn’t get the message. I couldn’t find any new information that says Senator Bob Casey removed his support. This is still shocking that he would be for it.

Here’s the breakdown of money received from interest groups Supporting & Opposing:

Sen. Casey got $765,038 Supporting, $799,310 Opposing

Sen. Toomey got $295,857 Supporting, $167,348 Opposing

Rep. Barletta got $119,908 Supporting, $21,200 Opposing

Rep. Holden got $175,435 Supporting, $40,300 Opposing

Rep. Marino got $99,485 Supporting, $8,300 Opposing

As you can see Casey is a much bigger player in total money, getting nearly an equal amount of money for and against.

When you look at other members of Congress, some got over $1 million on each side.

88 Organizations Support and 77 Oppose; See Which Ones

It’s interesting to note the groups involved are from a wide variety of the business spectrum – tv/movie companies to jewelry.

So that’s how our democracy works, the more money you give, the more likely you get what you want.

Imagine all the money spent for every bill. Not every bill gets much attention and would probably not require high contributions to buy what they want, but even a small bill, could require “buying” all 535 members of Congress.

The people rose up this time, but what about the smaller bills that are not as publicized? The people don’t even know who’s buying, all they know is that lots and lots of money goes into every YEA or NAY vote.

Think about that next time some bill is announced after it passes Congress and you knew nothing about it.

Iowa Shows 1st Isn’t Best And Has Trouble With Math

Iowa, it turns out, has a math problem. For all the year-long hype of being the first state to vote, they forgot along the way to learn math. Now it appears Rick “I’m not gay, but know A LOT about GAYS” Santorum actually won Iowa.

Nothing like being a bully, who has to be first, then showing how inept you are. Did they think Santorum was actually George Bush? Bush won twice under suspicious circumstances (that’s for another post.)

We’re in the in-between time of New Hampshire and South Carolina, and after NH, the story was nobody ever won Iowa and NH, until Romney came to town.

Now like all things Republican, Iowa shows they’re a joke because they can’t do simple math. Perhaps the whole Iowan Republican Party is home schooled and their parents don’t teach math?

Romney goes from 8 ahead to 34 down. So how does someone’s votes go from ahead down? Why you don’t count everyone’s vote!

Why who wants this fake democracy? We’ll only count some votes, declare a winner, and leave it at that. Unless, someone decides to actually want to count the votes. Then the anti-Romney train gains steam and just happens to “find” 8 precincts were not counted.

Sounds like Iowa isn’t ready to give up the spotlight!

So Santorum must be happy? Well if you want a fake win, he will be. “The Des Moines Register reports that votes from eight precincts will never be counted, however, and therefore the ultimate tally remains inconclusive.”

So the Iowa Republican Caucus of 2012 was won by ?

Did your vote get counted ?

Why does Iowa, who already had a year of headlines, get to be a headliner again?

It goes to show you the Department of Education is needed because Iowa vote counters, can’t count.