So the good political news about living in Pennsylvania is I get to vote against America’s most reprehensible Senator, Rick Santorum, in the fall.
The bad news is that it can be a perfectly beautiful day and I’ll come home to find this on my front door:
Freedom by Right
We don’t live in America
America lives in US1) Protect, defend and obey the Constitution for th U.S. which is based on Biblical principles.
2) [blah blah reduce taxes blah blah]
Restore morality – return prayer and the Ten Commandments
Restore resposibility – Abortion is not a form of birth control
[blah blah 2nd amendment blah blah]
Jim Barr for State Representative 20th Legislative District
I’ll give it this: it’s better copy edited than most wacko right wing tracts. However, properly placed commas are not enough to swing my vote to Jim Barr and his we-hate-abortion "consitution party." In fact, stacks of thousand dollar bills wouldn’t be enough.
Here, here.
On second thought (and after coffee!) I realize that I meant, “Hear, hear.”
Todd Elliott Koger for State Representative (District 24) is fam from the cut. His site provides good insight into issues important for us.
For example, candidate Koger explains how Joe Preston accepted money from the utility companies and help pass Act 201 which did nothing for the poor and low-income residents of Pittsburgh. However, Act 201 gave the utility companies the right to terminate service during winter months, demand an account balance plus two months security and a reconnection fee, and add any adult family member’s old account balance to your bill.
http://koger.7p.com
http://toddelliottkoger.blogspot.com
Candidate Todd Elliott Koger additionally provided discussion about Pittsburgh’s crime (gun-violence). See below. . . .
“Bob O’Connor has succumbed to cancer. He will be dearly missed by those of us who believed good things were about to happen. The beloved Mayor’s message of inspiration and hope contrasted fairly sharply with the partisan and ideological gridlock that permeates the political culture of western Pennsylvania. Before his committed missions, “To Redd Up Pittsburgh” the only concern on around here was “the problem attracting new business and tourists” if a negative image of Pittsburgh as a violent city persists.
There are long-term issues of poverty, blight and disinvestment in Pittsburgh that politicians refuse to discuss. In the hysteria of the current
gun-violence wave the “Redd Up” campaign was a search by a smart man for an immediate solution to an intractable problem.
That is, crime is as old as human society. It is born out of the fact that at
all times societies have had taboos, customs and laws designed to contain
crime. Recently, as a result of broader economic changes, living conditions for many Pittsburgh neighborhoods have deteriorated significantly. That is, the economic base that had provided meaningful jobs for thousands of residents has been decaying for decades and in the wake an outlaw way of life that thrives on gun-violence and lawlessness has emerged. The deterioration contributed to “white flight” to the suburbs, corporate decisions to close downtown department stores, and the like, depriving the region of tax revenues needed to combat the city’s health and social problems. Additionally, problems with arson, gentrification, and landlords’ abandonment of buildings, have contributed in different ways.
Mr. O’Connor knew lethal gun-violence is tearing our great city apart. Every
murder is a senseless loss for a family and the wave of violence is an
intolerable epidemic for the region as a whole. Thus, nothing was bigger for the former mayor than what was going on with the gun-violence. And, the residents of Pittsburgh knew “Pops” understood well that the killings occurred on streets where the victims, witnesses and defendants know one another or even live in the same building ? a place where opportunity is scarce.
Because of budget problems and the inability to transfer some of the costs
too higher, richer levels of government, the late mayor did the only thing
possible. He took to the streets. He performed a weekly ritual of patrolling
Pittsburgh neighborhoods, because he knew these young men and women were involved with gun-violence because they lost hope. He couldn’t offer much, but he wanted the residents of the toughest neighborhoods to know that he was in the struggle with us. His drive sparked enthusiasm.
Although most elected officials do not consider the consequences of their
actions beyond the election or the budget cycle, their policy decisions have
long-term and systemic consequences. And, in many Pittsburgh neighborhoods the approach of nightfall is dreaded. Our fear is punctuated by sound of gunfire, screams and wailing by a spouse, crack-head, or other family member. However, missing from every political speech is sadness, anger or outrage over the rising body count, or how close gun-violence is to our schools. Already, it appears to be just more of the same, “how to attract new business and tourists.” Bob O’Connor you are missed. . . .”