tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-84716899681761666992012-02-16T03:55:54.776-05:00Opinions on local, state and national matters that concern citizens of York County, Pennsylvania.Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1091100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-80983105450988514092012-01-19T10:43:00.003-05:002012-01-19T10:52:17.757-05:00

Who would have thunk it? U.S. Rep. Todd Platts has announced he is not going to seek re-election for another term in Congress.This is very surprising news. I don't think it has to do with getting out of the kitchen because it got too hot. He held his own.My hat is off to him for sticking by his own belief that there should be term limits for legislators and he is abiding by his own belief. Good

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-40204774682785857122012-01-02T07:49:00.003-05:002012-01-02T08:11:00.892-05:00

As a Happy New Year gift for its citizens, the York City council and Mayor Kim Bracey gave its citizens the financial shaft by passing a 2012 budget that hikes property taxes by 17 percent. There is every reason in the book for the city's voters to remember this when it comes time cast ballots again.There was no reason for the mayor and council to wait until the very last minute to hash out a

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-79896841086204337852011-12-18T11:46:00.004-05:002011-12-18T12:14:45.564-05:00

A lot of Democrats locally are appalled at the GOP's play in redistricting legislative districts based on the latest census. There is no question that the party in majority -- currently the GOP -- always tries to redistrict to get as much power on their side as they can.Bad news. It is to get power. That's been the problem with Washington -- and Harrisburg -- for the past two decades at least:

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-48323112547235242812011-11-14T18:44:00.004-05:002011-11-14T18:52:29.535-05:00

The investigations continue into former football coach Jerry Sandusky and the awful child sex scandal at Penn State that has been brought to light and yet Gov. Tom Corbett, who is proud to repeat that he launched the investigation while serving as the state's attorney general, continues to motor-mouth his opinions on the case and the players (NOT meaning football players) involved.He, if no one

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-32497552752729547742011-11-10T17:49:00.003-05:002011-11-10T17:58:27.939-05:00

I just finished watching a news conference called by Pa. Gov. Tom Corbett on Thursday, Nov. 10, in State College which turned out to be no real news conference.He spent a lengthy amount of time to 1)comment that he couldn't comment on the ongoing investigation (so why did he call a news conference?) and 2) remind people he began the investigation when he was serving as the states attorney general

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-45343187748742738932011-10-31T17:48:00.004-04:002011-10-31T18:01:52.116-04:00

It's time to turn our attention to Met-Ed and First Energy, which handles the majority of the population in York County. A spokesman just went on TV and tells the news reporter that this is the worst problem in the company's history.Really? Why is it lately everything coming down the pike is "the worst" for one reason or another? It sounds more like deflection of criticism for the company's

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-36556496864839906612011-09-12T22:19:00.003-04:002011-09-12T22:25:48.186-04:00

Sept. 8, 2011Open letter to the York County Commissioners:Dear County Commissioners:On July 12, 2011, Shanan Poe, Chief of the Winterstown-North Hopewell Fire Co., stood before the members of Winterstown Borough Council and interested citizens and described the problems his firefighters encountered while trying to fight a house fire recently on Arbor Drive in North Hopewell Township.

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-78828281880364860192011-07-17T12:00:00.004-04:002011-07-17T12:14:22.908-04:00

A news commentator today said it rather well about the subject of raising the debt ceiling: "Congress already bought car and took it off the lot and now it's trying to pay for it." Can't argue with that logic. The problem I see is that we are experiencing a lot of political mumbo-jumbo -- like a pair of school bullies with their hands on each other's throats trying to suffocate the other. I,

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-69412747562682751672011-02-16T18:43:00.004-05:002011-02-16T19:04:12.825-05:00

On Valentine's Day, nonetheless, York County Common Pleas Judge Thomas H. Kelley VI was the recipient of a temporary protection from abuse order for allegedly assaulting a county assistant public defender Janan Tallo, with whom he was or is an intimate partner.The alleged incident was said to have occurred on Feb. 8, and the scuffle resulted in her being treated for a broken elbow and bruises.The

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-1405931010018997712010-10-17T12:04:00.005-04:002010-10-17T12:23:47.530-04:00

I had the opportunity to watch the Pa. gubernatorial candidate debate twice today, thanks to WHTM-TV and WITF-TV. And it hasn't helped me reach the decision as to who I should vote for.Let me be crystal clear. I am a registered Republican. I am fed up with both the Republican and Democrat parties' politicians. I am, like many of you, of the opinion that, no matter what party affiliation the

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-24314715584922733832010-08-08T11:06:00.004-04:002010-08-08T11:11:20.627-04:00

Congratulations, Toomey for Senate group, on informing me how liberal Joe Sestak is through your television commercials. In fact, I now know more about Joe Sestak than I know about Pat Toomey. Therein lies a serious problem. You see, it scares me as a voter -- and as a registered Republican -- when I see ANY candidate bring up and attack their opponent's stands and ideologies and say little

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-879266108133738982010-06-07T19:08:00.005-04:002010-06-07T19:35:30.936-04:00

The explosion and resulting oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is an environmental disaster that is developing before our eyes in slow motion. As it develops, the more sickening it makes me feel.This man-made disaster has shed light on a huge pile of problems that plague us.1. Our government has again proved incapable of responding to any kind of disaster in appropriate time ... or expertise ... or

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-9313955981288878502010-05-03T19:00:00.004-04:002010-05-03T19:16:07.203-04:00

Only a month or two after the United States opened up more areas of the shoreline for off-shore drilling, which oil companies sought for years, a BP oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico explodes into flames, and now is spewing thousands of gallons of oil into the sea every day.How ironic. And the oil company which has been publicly advertising that it supports spreading out into all forms of

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-54708800069980124032010-04-08T18:52:00.003-04:002010-04-08T19:05:52.970-04:00

Daniel "Dan" Onorato is buying a lot of air time on television stations these days as he gears up to try to win the Democratic nomination for Pennsylvania's next gubernatorial race.With an accounting background, Onorato, who is chief executive of Allegheny County, has done some credible work. He has streamlined the county's government, trimmed unnecessary workers from the public payroll, and

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-31630679721477190452009-07-09T09:21:00.002-04:002009-07-09T09:34:08.576-04:00

Well, here we go again. York City Fire/Rescue Services debacle redux.Yesterday, another row house fire. This time we did it in grand style. 15 homes lost, an entire city block length. 57 people displaced. No insurance, Everything gone for these people.Okay, so county fire companies were called in on the 6-alarm blaze and should be partly to blame for letting it get out of hand.BUT, York City

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-62426232545585006912009-07-05T18:11:00.004-04:002009-07-05T18:35:53.900-04:00

The American Beverage Institute has released a report that states sobriety checkpoints are ineffective and costly and are not catching the real problem drinkers. This, as expected, has Wayne Harper, director of York County Center for Traffic Safety, objecting.We say hooray for the ABI. There are multiple problems with the sobriety checkpoints, Mr. Harper. Not to mention that eventually you and

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-85809518855007472692009-06-23T19:13:00.003-04:002009-06-23T19:18:04.168-04:00

Pa. Gov. Ed Rendell has obviously lost it. He has become, I believe, certifiably nuts. He says he sees no way out but to raise taxes to be able to balance the state's budget.I certainly hope our senators and representatives are not aligning themselves with him and putting themselves into the “nuts” category.Let's draw a parallel here. I am having trouble making ends meet and I don't see where I

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-62651387061965921202009-06-16T22:07:00.003-04:002009-06-16T22:17:47.730-04:00

On June 16, 2009, at about 2:30 a.m., York City Dept. of Fire/Rescue responded to a fire at 817 Prospect St and found "heavy fire at the rear of 817, on the exterior and the (interior)," The York Dispatch quoted Fire Lt. Mark Bowman (Page C1, edition 6/16/09).Inside the house, firefighters struggled to get to burning areas of the building, they said (The York Dispatch, Page C1, edition 6/16/09).

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-56518323954284071712009-04-26T12:38:00.004-04:002009-04-26T13:23:23.795-04:00

An open letter to York County Commissioners:I have read the news report today headlined “911 logs lack info” in the York Sunday News (4/26/09) and, again, I feel outrage about how York County officials try to do business. This time, again, I as a law-abiding taxpayer must transmit my feeling and opinions to you for your consideration.Whether you or your fellow commissioners like it or not, you

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-16690739888355623942009-04-08T16:32:00.003-04:002009-04-08T16:47:13.576-04:00

And so the news story goes: It took only two hours for a York County jury to acquit a convicted murderer of shooting a former taxicab driver in the head and arm. What's wrong with this story?A lot of things, when it comes to York County. One thing, for as much as York countians gripe, moan, whine and complain about how bad crime is getting in the city AND the county, the reputation of York

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-48836393782854663662009-03-16T17:36:00.004-04:002009-03-16T18:11:37.091-04:00

Welcome to the new Wild West town: York, PA. Get the real feel of untamed, rampant disruption of order.Saturday, March 14, hundreds, if not thousands, of people were to converge on downtown York to watch the annual St. Patrick's Day Parade. Around 2 a.m. that morning, according to news reports, there were at least two men running down through Cherry Lane -- where during the summer citizens gather

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-18060653949588284602009-02-26T21:22:00.003-05:002009-02-26T21:44:37.135-05:00

It's about time I throw in my two cents in about the failing economy. Yes, I said failing economy. Not matter how you cut it, we are going down the tubes. We all know how it came about -- greed on all levels: government, corporations, banks, Wall Street.The politicians say it all started because of the flim-flam buying/selling among bankers over mortgages, and pushing people to buy over their

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-91825241763325406112009-01-23T08:20:00.002-05:002009-01-23T08:35:59.927-05:00

It seems pretty noticeable -- at least to me -- that the number of major fires in York City have increased at a dramatice rate.The destruction to old row homes in particular has been great.Granted, the constrction in old row homes, particularly the "common" attic construction, can help fire move from one home to the next in a short manner of time.Even with that problem, it would seem that the

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-24559188233082440772008-11-25T05:07:00.004-05:002008-11-25T05:37:24.873-05:00

Yesterday, Nov. 24, 2008, York City suffered another devastating row-home fire, destroying seven homes on East King Street just east of downtown. The fire became a 6-alarm fire at its peak.Six alarms? Do you know how much fire equipment and personnel that tied up from surrounding communities? It was near to straining the assets of the county if another major fire broke out.Why 6 alarms? Obviously

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-30229716114404874892008-10-31T19:21:00.005-04:002008-10-31T19:29:18.025-04:00

Needless to say, I am not at all enthusiastic this year about exercising my Constitutional right of participating in electing a person to the highest office of this country, although I will definitely do so.But I will be casting a vote for a person whom I feel is the lesser of two evils. I don't think either man is completely qualified to fill the seat in the Oval Office, each for very different

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-84959455346608335572008-10-23T05:17:00.004-04:002008-10-23T05:32:41.012-04:00

There are problems with both sides of the political "spectrum" this year. I am not convinced beyond a reasonable doubt by either John McCain or Barack Obama. The vileness of the campaigns on both sides constantly make me wonder why we are playing to these two structured political machines. It's time for a good, dedicated independant candidate to come forward.So, there is no endorsement coming

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-8606957799707657352008-10-20T04:56:00.003-04:002008-10-20T05:10:38.580-04:00

Former U.S. Secretary of State and retired Gen. Colin Powell was right on the mark with his comments and assessment of the Republican Party on the "Meet The Press" television show Sunday, Oct. 19.My hat is off to him for his comments, which I am sure was painful for him to make considering that John McCain has been a longtime friend.But the truth is out, and was explained eloquently by Powell.It

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-19401174554090499552008-10-01T22:06:00.004-04:002008-10-01T22:10:27.799-04:00

To Senators Robert Casey and Arlen Specter:Congratulations on the passage of the “bailout” bill in the Senate tonight. And I see you voted for it. This wasn't a bill to bail out Wall Street and it wasn't a bill to bail out Main Street as some of your fellow senators tried to explain during their barrage of self-congratulatory speeches before the news media cameras after the vote. It was a bailout

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-27284162915734723472008-09-21T18:57:00.005-04:002008-09-21T19:19:55.400-04:00

Several years ago I predicted among my friends in the newsroom that the stock market had to lose several thousand points to even be near becoming realistic. In the past 1 to 2 years, that prediction has come true. They laughed at me when I made those statements, but the last laugh, sadly enough, was mine.But, sadly, I also expressed my concern that if the government or the financial wizards of

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-40533305990779988172008-08-28T20:07:00.003-04:002008-08-28T20:26:16.642-04:00

Recently the news media reported that there is a pair of men who want to revive both freight and passenger railroad service between York and New Freedom, and possibly into Baltimore, Md., on what originally was the Northern Central Railway line, now part of the York County Heritage Rail-Trail County Park.This right-of-way originally had two rail lines running side-by-side, so south-bound and

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-58262417633373648492008-07-02T19:03:00.006-04:002008-07-02T19:45:57.041-04:00

At a noontime news conference today, Wednesday, July 2, 2008, York City mayor John Brenner announced he won't seek re-election when his current term expires in 2010. He said he was making the announcement now to give political parties adequate time to find someone to run for the office.It may take two years to find someone, but I'll get back to that in a moment.First, I must admit I breathed a

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-61996227644999474882008-06-29T13:02:00.005-04:002008-06-29T13:33:39.626-04:00

If there is any place on earth detrimental to helping the sick and injured in York County, it has to be any piece of land along U.S. Route 30 in the urban area. Especially in the area of Kenneth Road and Route 30 in West Manchester Township, and several intersections of Route 30 in Springettsbury Township.But the "brains" of York's Memorial Hospital, including Sally Dixon, the facility's

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-83080619771623789462008-06-25T16:57:00.002-04:002008-06-25T17:17:25.592-04:00

I have been sending a sympathy card to Mayor John Brenner and his police commissioner, Mark Whitman, each time there has been violent acts in York City, mostly with guns and knives. Needless to say, there have been a bunch sent out to these two key players this past year.The idea is that York is suffering a "black eye" to its pride and reputation every time violence is taking place and ends up

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-75722998254753580182008-05-29T21:12:00.002-04:002008-05-29T21:32:36.538-04:00

Here's a refreshing idea.Pa. State Sen. Jeffrey Piccola, a Republican representing part of Dauphin and York Counties, and chairman of the Senate State Government Committee, wants to ban gifts from lobbyists to lawmakers and other state officials.He is drafting legislation to split this cozy relationship that has existed between lobbyists and many lawmakers. He is the first to admit it will

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-49914612984828421392008-05-20T19:18:00.004-04:002008-05-20T19:29:18.976-04:00

City politicians and officials are already pointing to the "success" of the new, expensive "Shotspotter" system in York.Although they have watched activities with the video cameras and arrested people on warrants and other illegal activities, this system has not yet really done what it was originally installed for: To identify and arrest people shooting at other people.The arrests made so far

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-62765597419805455812008-05-02T07:55:00.003-04:002008-05-02T08:12:17.279-04:00

At Friday morning's breakfast club, a discussion broke out among us about just how bad it is with government services and people, from the local level right up to the top. The arrogance, the greed and corruption, and the incompetence is permeating every level.Some examples we all brought out. And we can start at the top. The President of the United States can't put a complete sentence together.

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-78291821429701759312008-04-25T05:02:00.004-04:002008-04-25T05:18:32.051-04:00

On April 29, 2008, RabbitTransit is holding a public hearing on its proposal to raise fares to help cover expenses of operation. The cost has much to do with the rise of fuel prices, I am sure.I agree that fares need to go up somewhat. So I really have no argument to present at that meeting.What I do have a problem with is that RabbitTransit is really just a token mass transit service. It

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-36548177175975354802008-04-23T07:25:00.004-04:002008-04-23T07:34:40.525-04:00

While the focus has been on the Democratic race in Pennsylvania's Primary, the GOP had its side of the ticket, too. Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul were still on the ballot with John McCain.It was nice to see Hillary Clinton win the state on the Democratic side, although I would side with either Clinton or Obama when the final election rolls around.But look at the Republican side.McCain got only

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-19682599147469769272008-04-16T18:51:00.003-04:002008-04-16T19:03:07.912-04:00

I don't know about you, but I have about had it with the politicking. And we still have a week to go before the Pennsylvania primary election. And I hate to think what the campaigning for the general election is going to be like.There is one thing I can definitely say at this point. Every one of the three top primary election candidates -- Clinton, Obama and McCain, have lost their luster with

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-80405861293842162302008-04-04T15:48:00.004-04:002008-04-04T16:04:04.038-04:00

Here's an observation I've been having for some time now, after listening to speeches and debates from the candidates of both parties, including the "final four" (if you want to lower yourself to the same level as the so-called cable news networks that liken the political process to a sports race).For all the times these candidates have said they are for this, and they are for that, and they'll

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-4604221940001924342008-04-01T21:50:00.003-04:002008-04-01T22:03:59.189-04:00

I got a big postcard in the mail the other day, in blushing color, sponsored by Merchants Payments Coalition Inc., of Washington, D.C., which is fighting the fees charged merchants by credit card companies."Please Thank Congressman Platts!" says the card in big headlines, referring to our local Congressman Todd Platts. We are asked to send him a message or call his office to thank him for

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-91267690167260925872008-03-26T09:45:00.002-04:002008-03-26T09:51:11.065-04:00

State Rep. Stan Saylor, R-Windsor, has introduced legislation to allow municipalities to exclude general aviation airports from protection in their zoning laws.This effort comes on the heels of a Pa. Supreme Court Ruling against Chanceford Township, York County, and in favor of a small public airport there, Baublitz Airport, upholding a law that requires municipalities to protect the airspace

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-43835860777535767672008-02-23T19:04:00.005-05:002008-02-23T20:17:51.159-05:00

I was reminiscing about the "old days" the other day, and it came to me just how much progress we have made -- most of it backwards. Remember the old television commercial motto "Better living through chemistry" made to promote DuPont? I'll bet you haven't heard that in a TV commercial for quite awhile now.Well, let's see how we have progressed.Back in the 1950s, I watched the milkman pull up 2

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-63440134782851438442008-01-30T12:26:00.000-05:002008-01-30T12:31:11.171-05:00

Here is an email I have sent to Pa. Gov. Ed Rendell after hearing his press conference and comments on property tax proposals now being discussed in the Pa. Legislature:I have heard your comments about being against eliminating property taxes in any form. You said it is a "stable" tax and, therefore, shouldn't be taken out of the mix.What a bunch of bull. That demonstrates your -- and the

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-24349572737003390962008-01-29T13:34:00.000-05:002008-01-29T13:52:30.502-05:00

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives had the chance to take a truly historic move today, Jan. 29, by voting on an amendment that would have eliminated school property taxes once and for all, ending the noose around every homeowner's neck that eventually kills them.The House failed, voting down the amendment with a more than 3 to1 majority. A truly sad day. And proof that this group of

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-49465881568020367272008-01-27T15:09:00.000-05:002008-01-27T15:38:47.707-05:00

Here's some interesting news not so widely disseminated by the general news media: Colorado has decertified its new-fangled electronic voting machines after they failed some of the security tests.The state is going to paper ballots.Great for them.Before the new electronic voting machines were introduced into York County, I spoke with the Director of elections at the time, who recently retired. He

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-27545272377953407472008-01-23T10:03:00.000-05:002008-01-23T10:12:42.420-05:00

It's hard to believe, but the York Daily Record actually produced a story that was meaningful and presented something new today!In the front page of the Local section of the Jan. 23rd edition, they published a story to show that all of the members of the state Legislature who represented all or part of York County and voted for the scandalous pay raise 2 years back, are gone or announced they are

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-45974363843757293672008-01-15T20:56:00.000-05:002008-01-15T21:03:07.896-05:00

Some of the school property tax proposals are starting to move through and out of committees in the Pa. House of Representatives. Well, that is except for the one that REALLY would be the answer. Here's what is starting to see movement: House Bill 1600: A worthless bill authored by Levdansky and Scavello that would raise the sales tax and state income tax to finance a rebate of approximately $414

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-12375001376709478252008-01-08T17:14:00.000-05:002008-01-08T17:48:18.986-05:00

I finally got to see Michael Moore's latest documentary "Sicko" via satellite television, after missing the opportunity to see a local screening of it last year.While I thought Moore's "Farenheit 911" was effective showing the incompetence of our government, his latest venture was far more damning. Opponents of Moore's efforts point out that he deliberately skewed the presentation and omitted

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-20818675192468217092008-01-05T22:46:00.000-05:002008-01-05T22:58:02.502-05:00

After about a dozen so-called "debates" between the presidential candidates of both parties, conducted by all the networks, we finally got one that could really be called a debate.Saturday night, Jan. 5, 2008, ABC-TV sponsored a double debate ... first one between the Republican candidates, and then one between the presidential candidates.The moderators asked a specific question ... possibly to a

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-91679150505574355982008-01-01T20:14:00.000-05:002008-01-01T20:23:51.360-05:00

The York County District Attorney's office and the York City Police are investigating some missing drug forfeiture funds from the city police's evidence room, reports the York (Pa.) Sunday News (Page A1, Dec. 30, 2007).The county's first assistant District Attorney Bill Graff is part of the investigating team.Not much to be said here. Whether there are rumors or not, facts or not about his

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-38408470048210765842007-12-28T18:06:00.000-05:002007-12-28T19:05:27.298-05:00

As the year 2007 comes to a close, I wish to express a few brief thoughts on recent events and conditions. (Well, I thought it would be brief!)1. You won't see me at the New Year's Eve festivities in York City this year. I am upset thatt the officials of this event moved the finale to Sovereign Bank Stadium, even if it is just for one year. This has become a tradition. There are festivities at

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-20130377516601107172007-11-18T19:04:00.000-05:002007-11-19T05:38:45.048-05:00

I have just been reading reports on the Metro-York findings about York City's education system problem and my head is pounding. It is hard to believe it is what it is. I cannot begin to fathom the deep pit of despair that the York City District is in.What makes me even feeling more in despair is that we are talking about my own beloved alma mater: William Penn Senior High School.The graduation

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-56282761993841144122007-11-16T12:34:00.000-05:002007-11-16T13:05:02.614-05:00

I watched the "debate" between the Democratic presidential candidates Thursday night, Nov. 15, on CNN, and even though it created some headlines the following day, it continues to puzzle me.First, every one of the networks who have held one of these performances are outright lying when they call them "debates." A true debate would allow every candidate to express his/her view on each question

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-68901470781965732002007-11-13T17:23:00.000-05:002007-11-13T17:43:17.372-05:00

Today, Nov. 13, 2007, State Rep. Eugene DePasquale, representing the York City area, announced that he has authored -- and nearly 30 other representatives have co-sponsored -- a bill aimed at requiring all merchants to remove items recalled from their shelves immediately, or face a fine of $5,000 for not doing so.DePasquale is rightfully citing over 150 recalls for toys alone this year, many for

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-50619481879386411732007-11-10T07:13:00.000-05:002007-11-10T07:37:20.185-05:00

This past week Pennsylvania state Reps. Eugene DePasquale and Keith Gillespie and an aide to Pa. State Sen. Michael Waugh were on hand at the fall meeting of the York County Taxpayers Council.The focus of the meeting was the idea of completely eliminating the real estate taxes over a four-year period, shifting the tax income to an increase of items taxable under the state's current 6 percent

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-47347454522001219602007-11-07T08:53:00.000-05:002007-11-07T09:04:11.110-05:00

There's good, so-so and bad news about this year's election.Good news: Incumbent county commissioners Lori Mitrick and Douglas Kilgore faile in their attempt to win their seats back through a write-in campaign, even after voters threw them out in the primary election last spring. Admittedly, they did rack up a lote of votes, but enough of the electorate prevailed to keep them out!So-so news: The

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-68683340717305393382007-10-30T22:17:00.000-04:002007-11-02T10:30:15.767-04:00

I began watching the debate between the candidates for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States Tuesday night, Oct. 30, and felt that something was wrong.After about 10 minutes elapsed, it dawned on me. Not all of the candidates were there, even though NBC was promoting that they all were.Sen. Mike Gravel wasn't there.I thought I missed something. I emailed NBC News asking

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-36127112038707499052007-10-28T13:20:00.000-04:002007-10-28T13:33:11.686-04:00

It came as no surprise that the editors of the York Sunday News came out endorsing Lori Mitrick and Doug Kilgore for York County Commissioner (editorial in Sunday, Oct. 28 2007 edition) in the upcoming election, even though we, the voters ousted them out of office in the primary elections.For those reading the York Daily Record and the York Sunday News the past few weeks would have realized that

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-78019508771323677392007-10-24T19:35:00.001-04:002007-10-24T19:57:41.971-04:00

It was interesting to watch Anrew Susko, president of the Pa. Bar Association defending the organization's recommendations for retention of judges, and its dismay about organizations such as Pa. Clean Sweep urging a blanket "no" vote for retention of all judges.I have to side with Pa. Clean Sweep and the other activists for several reasons. All of it, I am sorry to say, is tied to the infamous

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-57611495532508386212007-10-18T05:50:00.000-04:002007-10-18T05:57:11.219-04:00

To York County Commissioners Doug Kilgore and Lori Mitrick: Hello! Wake up and smell the coffee. The county's voters decided against you and your expensive efforts to seize Lauxmont Farms for a park project. Time to go home.But, they have begun a write-in campaign to try to keep their seats on the commission.Fat chance, I say. There's only two things I can say about this. First, their

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-62833021142873582492007-10-03T21:14:00.000-04:002007-10-03T21:28:39.089-04:00

President Bush made an appearance in Lancaster Wednesday, October 3, in what was described as an "intimate theatre-in-the-round" venue before a few hundred specially-invited spectators and questioners.Big whoopee. It made the local TV news with reporters acting google-eyed and presenting whatever angle they could dream of.I am not going to spend a lot of time on this. Bush doesn't deserve much

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-18770656669441978972007-09-11T18:27:00.000-04:002007-09-11T18:41:00.718-04:00

Congratulations to the York City Police for the announcement in today's newspaper that city detectives have filed charges against two teenagers for the fatal shooting of Christine Zelinksy on Aug. 27.It is interesting that one of the teens was arrested earlier in a special effort to stop escalating violence between two gangs, their "territories" butting against each other.Thanks to witnesses that

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-47760825089863806572007-08-31T18:22:00.001-04:002007-08-31T19:04:09.692-04:00

It is with great sorrow that this opinion piece has to be written. In less than 24 hours, the City of York has seen two more deaths and several more people injured from gun violence.It isn't limited to the "usual" sections of the city. It's all over. That makes it even more scary.The sad part of this is that the city has been trying desperately to woo people back to the city with such fantastic

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-22476660843240792692007-08-19T18:50:00.000-04:002007-08-22T14:40:19.182-04:00

On October 30, 2005, I wrote a nice, non-aggressive, decent letter to James Gross, the City of York's director of public services, explaining to him that the signal lights at Queen Street and Rathton Road were not functioning properly for several months.Briefly, the signal lights use loop sensors embedded in the street's surface to detect waiting traffic, and the signal's controller changes

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-36626905050635943852007-08-02T16:26:00.000-04:002007-08-20T06:00:58.043-04:00

It is difficult to watch the tragedy that has just occurred in Minneapolis, Minn., when a nearly-2000-foot long Interstate route bridge collapsed into the Mississippi River 64 feet below while fully loaded with traffic.Indications already are pointing to structural deficiencies as a probable cause, though a definite attribution may not be known officially for a year or more.But, even as bodies

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-65704299462016684292007-07-27T05:24:00.001-04:002007-07-27T05:54:30.344-04:00

During a recent concert by York Symphony Orchestra at the bandstand in beautiful Farquhar Park, an elderly man went to the park's restrooms located a distance away, and was attacked by several teenage thugs and beaten severely. He feels the only reason he is alive today is that the orchestra just completed a piece and it got quiet enough some audience members could hear him screaming for

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-24281834720194139542007-07-23T21:18:00.000-04:002007-07-23T21:40:05.242-04:00

Well, here we go again. Another round of presidential debates. Tonight CNN hosted a debate of Democratic candidates using YouTube.com clips for questions. What an innovative idea. And CNN had to mess it all up.Did you watch it? The candidates were good. Did you notice some of the YouTube videos were clipped and spliced? Production changes for timing, I'm sure. Did you notice Anderson

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-70407206649970505872007-07-19T21:51:00.000-04:002007-07-19T22:04:51.063-04:00

On Thursday, July 19, Lancaster, Pa.-based television station WGAL-TV broadcast a news clip about state government officials receiving large campaign contributions from oil companies, or their political action groups, including Sun Oil Co., based in Philadelphia.Pa. Rep. DeWeese, the Democratic leader in the State House of Representatives, and an arrogant, loud person full of hot air whose

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-88293476103417499932007-07-02T17:41:00.000-04:002007-07-04T13:42:29.087-04:00

I was watching the Pennsylvania News Channel which was providing live coverage of the last-minute state budget considerations by the Pa. House of Representatives last Friday, which as we all know now deadlocked and the state is operating without a budget -- again.H. William DeWeese, a representative of Fayette, Greene and Washington Counties, and a so-called big shot for the Democratic side of

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-26144887218494076782007-06-22T05:47:00.000-04:002007-06-22T19:47:22.152-04:00

I was terribly bored last night with re-run marathon of The Office and reality shows -- that are not near reality -- on television, so I started channel surfing. I came across the Pennsylvania Cable Network and saw that the Pennsylvania House of Representatives was still in session at 10 p.m.There was a debate going on over an amendment to the budget that had to do with the shifting and/or

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-24220787125738057572007-06-12T16:05:00.000-04:002007-06-12T21:59:07.364-04:00

On Friday, June 15, York countians will be able to attend a baseball game involving a home town team, the York Revolution. Local baseball has been dormant for decades following the demise of the York White Roses, which played at the now nearly-dilapidated Veterans Stadium near Penn State York.There's been a lot of controversy surrounding this venture ... mostly the location and construction of a

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-51037561064799333752007-06-06T05:37:00.000-04:002007-06-06T05:48:12.913-04:00

What's this? A breeze of fresh air has begun to flow amidst the trash of the times.Kudos to Reliance Fire Company firefighters and West York Ambulance emergency personnel.What am I talking about? It's about a fire Monday, June 4, at a West York residence.Remember the fiasco a few years ago in Springettsbury Township over a fire at an animal hospital and it took bystanders's caring and concern

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-64930932804624029402007-05-17T22:53:00.000-04:002007-05-17T23:04:33.107-04:00

The following is an open letter to Pa. Rep. Eugene DePasquale following the failure by voters to approve Act 1.--------------Greetings Hon. DePasquale:I am not a constituent in the district you serve, but live nearby. We have met, and I had worked with Tracy a long time ago. I was elated that you won the seat to represent the 95th District because I believed you to be a true open and honest

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-52708415195418675822007-05-16T12:30:00.000-04:002007-05-16T13:58:36.375-04:00

Three primary items to cover in this edition:First: This is not a "I told you so" piece, although I am elated. It's one of the first -- if not THE first -- time I was on the winning side of a public issue. To my surprise. York County Commissioners Lori Mitrick and Douglas Kilgore were voted out of office. i thought it wouldn't happen until the general election in November, but the eminent domain

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-33051807765481140012007-05-02T12:22:00.000-04:002007-05-02T17:58:44.793-04:00

Tuesday evening, May 1, proved to be an interesting venture. All 10 candidates for the next term of York County Commissioners (three seats) were present for a debate moderated by political analyst and professor Dr. G. Terry Madonna at the Strand-Capitol Performing Arts Center.The candidates are: Ned Grove (D), Doug Hoke (D), incumbent Doug Kilgore (D), incumbent Steve Chronister (R), Jeff Joy (R)

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-8782687953504223602007-04-29T18:37:00.000-04:002007-04-29T18:50:54.352-04:00

For the past two years at least I have been telling fellow news hounds that something's got to give. You look around and all you see are indications that our economy is going down the tubes. Yet the federal government liars keep dishing out news that it isn't. Take a look at the stock market, they said.That's true, I figured. Why in blazes is the stock market setting new record highs when

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-49566201793810801252007-04-01T12:18:00.000-04:002007-04-04T22:35:23.167-04:00

I just saw the latest sob story from the York Sunday News today, April 1, about 911. I don't like taking 911 to task in just two out of three latest opinion pieces, but the newspaper set the stage.The newspaper picks "controlled burns" out of a long list of calls to claim they plague 911 and overwhelm them with calls. I'm not quite sure what 911 is supposed to do. Aren't they supposed to handle

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-2521183540627586302007-03-30T19:47:00.000-04:002007-04-04T22:39:35.337-04:00

Just as was predicted by a bunch of area pundits, Pa. Gov. Ed "Teflon" Rendell is throwing out all sorts of proposals to raise all sorts of taxes. He even proposed one new tax, that would probably be challenged swiftly in court by the oil companies, a tax that he claims would not get passed down to the consumers. What planet did Rendell just fly to?One of "Teflon's" proposal is raising the sales

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-52979676757675517072007-03-26T16:43:00.000-04:002007-04-04T22:42:49.216-04:00

What do I find in my mailbox today? A slick, glossy circular promoting Lori Mitrick for re-election as County Commissioner, paid for by "Citizens to Elect Lori Mitrick," which has, by the way, Lori Mitrick's home address as their address of operations.She says in her circular "We addressed the #1 issue from the 2003 campaign -- public safety -- by overseeing a successful overhaul of the 911

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-43629585084236078092007-03-22T14:58:00.000-04:002007-03-22T15:05:10.257-04:00

I just received a printout from my insurance carrier for what they paid out to York Hospital, a part of Wellspan Health, for my 24-hour hospital stay and surgical procdure. I was sick again. I had to write a letter to the Wellspan president, Bruce Bartels:Mr. Bartels:I just received the report from my insurance carrier for my recent stay at York Hospital, part of Wellspan Health. For a surgical

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-45614791616090208612007-03-14T14:49:00.000-04:002007-03-14T15:09:09.823-04:00

I have faint feelings of cold fingers on my legs, some faint noises. The voices are getting a little louder. "Mr. Miller. Mr. Miller, can you hear me Mr. Miller?"Aha. I was coming out of my anesthesia. I can see now. I feel it as the nurses are rolling my gurney out of the recovery room at York Hospital into a room where I was to spend the night before they kick me out.So everything seemed to go

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-43899508615209789512007-03-04T10:24:00.000-05:002007-03-04T12:31:52.241-05:00

I was debating with myself on writing this piece. I am about to go into the operating room for an arterial bypass -- or resection, as they term it -- and if, by chance, something happened and I didn't survive, I would have missed the opportunity to convey to you the most important, most meaningful thoughts I have had buried deep in my mind. So, I decided to write this unhappy but truthful and

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-53272433122473012922007-02-25T23:50:00.000-05:002007-02-26T00:01:56.255-05:00

It was a pleasure to watch Hollywood's Oscars award show this time, because two categories were of great concern to me. One was for best original song, the other for best documentary feature.Both of my choices won. What a great feeling for Melissa Etheridge winning for writing the title song for "An Inconvenient Truth," and for "An Inconvenient Truth" winning the documentary.Obviously, I was for

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-61165396827056779252007-02-24T18:28:00.000-05:002007-02-24T18:57:11.048-05:00

It was interesting to hear the comments of citizens yesterday at the hearing held by members of the Federal Communications Commission in Harrisburg. The hearings were centered on whether or not several media outlets could be owned and operated by the same group or company or corporation in the same area.There was a time, for example, that Lancaster Newspapers not only owned the morning, evening

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-58759606415863170702007-02-22T19:35:00.000-05:002007-02-22T19:55:50.507-05:00

Here's a new proposal to provide health insurance coverage top underinsured and uninsured Americans, This is the beginning of an announcement by Reuters News Service:"The proposal by the Federation of American Hospitals, which represents about 20 percent of the industry, is the latest in a flurry of proposed schemes to solve the growing problem of the uninsured. Since 2000, about 6 million people

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-29264851310194802692007-02-17T19:26:00.000-05:002007-02-17T19:39:45.397-05:00

York County sheriff Bill Hose has announced that he will not seek a fourth term as sheriff. Bill was a member of the York City Police, and served as Chief of York City Police until 1995. He retired from that position and then ran for office of sheriff, to which he was elected.Bill modernized the county department and set higher standards and increased the sense of pride the officers had. He

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-11981174703650456472007-02-09T13:52:00.000-05:002007-02-11T08:37:32.437-05:00

It is with deep sadness I must acknowledge the passing a of a longtime friend and journalistic competitor, newsman and columnist Harry J. McLaughlin.Harry was 85 years old. He died at 8 a.m, at York Hospital. He had undergone a surgical procedure for a hernia at York Hospital about a year ago, and contracted a staff infection. He appeared to have recovered from that, but pneumonia became a

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-40718584751844697912007-02-06T18:33:00.000-05:002007-02-07T09:58:17.506-05:00

Pa. Governor Ed Rendell must have his head buried in the sand, or maybe he has lost his mind. He's come out with a budget that needs $2 billion more money than the state will take in. And guess where he wants to get the extra money.Increased taxes on us. Not only that ... The promise he made to increase the sales tax to provide more property tax relief is already broken. And that was the ONLY

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-86108842606226444072007-02-01T15:37:00.000-05:002007-02-01T15:57:27.122-05:00

Here we go again. This time it's even worse than the debacle with Springettsbury Township firefighters at an animal hospital fire about 2 years ago. This time, it is in Carroll Township and involves Wellsville Fire Company.According to today's news reports, a man and his son were told to get back from a garage fire at the son's repair garage, in which was the son's dog. They were trying to save

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-40677569910286835932007-01-28T22:28:00.000-05:002007-01-29T09:18:28.448-05:00

One more time: Now is the time to voice your opinions on state legislative reform while the lawmakers are doing something very unusual -- they're listening.List your ideas for legislative reform, ideas that you feel will make the state's legislative process more lean, efficient, and responsible to us, the taxpayers.The email mailbox set up by the special panel formed by the state's House of

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-4573109477363428702007-01-27T12:53:00.000-05:002007-01-27T13:06:25.445-05:00

An editorial that appeared in the York Daily Record on Wednesday, January 24, took on a couple of issues. One of which was permit improvements by the City of York.The newspaper noted that York Mayor John Brenner wants to improve the city's permit process so it doesn't take so long and so much red tape for developers to redesign and rebuild in York City.The newspaper agrees that the idea is good.

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-90576230515338341462007-01-24T18:29:00.000-05:002007-01-25T08:51:13.968-05:00

There's a breath of fresh air moving through the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. How long it will last, I don't know. But I strongly -- very strongly -- suggest you seize the opportunity as a concerned citizen to participate.The House has formed a panel to study the needs for legislative reform and the panel is seeking input from voters like you and me. It may only be rhetoric coming from

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-53393013934088274152007-01-22T17:48:00.000-05:002007-01-22T18:12:15.861-05:00

Here's a copy of a letter I sent to Pa. Gov. Edward G. Rendell. Maybe you would like to write him, too. His address is: Gov. Edward G. Rendell; 225 Main Capitol Building; Harrisburg, PA 17120.The Honorable Gov. Rendell:I am writing you in reference to your inaugural address. You mentioned several reforms that should be made to how our government officials do business. I assure you, as a taxpayer

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-32589313609057325942007-01-17T14:03:00.000-05:002007-01-17T14:25:10.831-05:00

Printed News reports today show Spring Garden and Springettsbury Townships are close to merging their firefighting services. But, if they move according to their "consultants," it could cost more rather than less.The consultants are proposing that Grantley and Victory Volunteer fire companies should merge their paid personnel into one station, located somewhere near Queen Street hill, which means

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-9952276189994461852007-01-15T15:33:00.000-05:002007-01-16T09:49:11.953-05:00

One of the "benefits" of communicating with your state representative -- at least with Rep. Stan Saylor who represents my district in York County, is that he keeps track of your birthdays.My birthday came and went a few days ago, and I don't really want to say how old I am getting!One of the birthday cards that appeared in the mailbox was from Rep. Saylor.That was too good an opportunity for me

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-90330219513770825452007-01-06T21:21:00.000-05:002007-01-09T09:28:59.526-05:00

Just the other day I was talking with some other photographers and editors in a newsroom, passing the time for a bit. The weather has been outrageously warm for an outrageously long period of time. It feels like late spring when we should be in the deepest part of the winter. So, logically, the subject of the effects of global warming came up.There used to be a time when global warming ideas were

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-42136220664343763982007-01-05T09:09:00.000-05:002007-01-05T10:05:19.499-05:00

Payments to my escrow account for my mortgage jumped 30 percent this month, even though one of the major expenses, home insurance, dropped. The culprit? The real estate tax for Red Lion Area School District. Nothing else. Anything that forces me to pay out 30 percent more -- especially when I am not seeing 30 percent more on my income to meet it -- requires some scrutiny. So I decided to begin

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-11078832782229822522007-01-02T20:30:00.000-05:002007-01-02T21:30:36.453-05:00

In an editorial some months back concerning firefighters' activities at an animal hospital fire in Springettsbury Township, firefighters were taken to task for trying to stop civilians from rescuing animals when the civilians felt the firefighters weren't. I promise replies to be posted whether confirmation or rebuttal, and apparently two rebuttals were transmitted but never received.While doing

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8471689968176166699.post-36604280084043547772006-12-31T11:20:00.000-05:002007-01-02T21:09:35.773-05:00

It was appalling. The arrival of the body of former President Gerald R. Ford and they had to scramble to find dignitaries to attend the special services Saturday night in Washington.Here's how Dana Milbank, staff writer for the Washington Post, put it in Sunday's edition:Everything was in place for Gerald R. Ford's state funeral last night -- everything, that is, but the statesmen.President Bush

Editor YorkPaUSA.comnoreply@blogger.com0