Day: August 30, 2010

Sestak Earmark Violated Rules

Congressman Joe Sestak who represents Pennsylvania’s 7th District and is the Democrat’s nominee for the senate race in that state  appears to have funneled a $350,000 earmark to a for-profit business. Beside such a thing being hypocritical and a violation of honest government etc, it also now violates House rules.

Sestak got the money for the Thomas Paine Foundation, a non-profit organization that advocates keeping religion out of government. It was to be used for developing an offshore wind turbine.  What does the Thomas Paine Foundation have to do with wind energy? Why nothing. It’s owner, however, is Drew Devitt,  who also owns New Way Energy LLC,  and that has quite a bit to do with wind energy.

New Wave Energy is in Chester Township, Delaware County, which is actually in the 1st District represented by Bob Brady, also a Democrat, and who requested $1 million for the same project.

Devitt has admitted the money will go to him according to the Allentown Morning Call, — his home address is listed on the earmark request — and could be used for commercial application.

Sestak, btw, is now saying his office did due diligence to make sure the money was going to a non-profit. That’s right, Joe. The perfect criteria for getting tax dough to build a windmill is being able to throw a hissy fit over a Nativity scene. And why would you be shoving tax dollars to a common scold like the Thomas Paine Foundation, in the first place?

Hat tip to PoliticsPa.Com .


Finch Fuzz Say Respect My Authoritah

Finch Fuzz Say Respect My Authoritah — In the early morning two days after the Lancaster Intelligencer Journal/New Era carried a feel-good feature about how a grandmother nursed back to health a house finch found by her German shepherd and how the bird became a pet and followed her around the house singing, a Pennsylvania Game Commission Officer and three armed cops showed up at her door with a warrant.

They wanted the bird. Yes, the grandmother, Pati Mattrick, — OK, she’s a 57-year-old grandmother — had broken the law . Apparently it is illegal in this state to heal a sick bird. One must turn it over to licensed “rehabbers”.

The incident happened in May but is now starting to percolate into the rest of the state and, unfortunately, the nation. Having fools and petty tyrants in authority are never things about which one should boast.

Hopefully, the accompanying cops were restricted to just one bullet each and prohibited from keeping their service weapons loaded.

Kudos to Lancaster County District Attorney Craig Stedman who seems sincerely ticked. “At best, this case was a grossly misguided abuse of law enforcement discretion,” he told the Philadelphia Inquirer. ” At worst, it was just plain cruel.”

Earlier this month, he decreed that all game officers go through his office to obtain search warrants rather than simply via a local magistrate.

Finch Fuzz Say Respect My Authoritah

Finch Fuzz Say Respect My Authoritah