Voters Guide Shows A Dem Challenger To Casey

The Pittsburgh 9.12 Project has created an excellent voters guide  for this year’s U.S. Senate race in Pennsylvania.

A pdf download can be found here.

The race will feature the winner of the Republican Primary against incumbent Democrat Bob Casey Jr. — assuming Casey wins his party primary as he will have a conservative, working class challenger in Joe Vodvarka. 

The primaries are April 24.

The Great Walsh Park Dog Raid

A decades-long tradition for dog owners in Springfield, Pa. has been to let their pets roam free at certain times of the day in Walsh Park which takes up 19.4 acres between Brookside and Scenic roads.

The township had been well aware of this unleashed transgression of ordinance and had turned a blind eye.
The county, however, has apparently figured the situation provides a way to reap some revenue. 
The site was reportedly raided by county agents a short time ago. Several were fined $100 and one outspoken protestor was nailed with a $2,000 fine as the story goes.
The dog lovers of Springfield are not happy.
Hat tip Robert.

Springfield Ministerium Seeks Funds

The Springfield Ministerium’s Community Help Fund is critically low and help is needed. The fund helps families with food needs and financial emergencies in Springfield, Pa.

Donations can be sent to Springfield Ministerium Help Fund, CC Hancock United Methodist Church, 45 Wesley Road, Springfield, Pa. 19064.
Many churches in the township also accept funds.

Why Dominic Pileggi Gets a C+

I am the owner and sole founder of The Liberty Index and solely responsible for grading the Acts of the General Assembly and the Governor. I would like to provide a context for Senator Dominic Pileggi’s C+ grade.
Because The Liberty Index is graded on a curve, Senator Pileggi’s grade shows relative standing to other legislators.
Dominic Pileggi’s grade and position on the curve mean he is not as bad as his colleagues.
Given the State Senate’s own record, the grade must be interpreted as not as bad as a bad bunch.
Looking behind the grade at the actual votes, let us compare and contrast the rhetoric and the reality of the record.
Disappointingly, the alleged fiscal conservative Sen. Pileggi, who represents the 9th District, voted “YEA” for seven of eight Ed Rendell’s Bankrupting Budgets. It’s sometimes hard to tell the Democrats from theRepublicans, especially, when Republicans are in Leadership.With his “YEA” vote for Capital Budget Act 130 of 2011,
Senator Pileggi (and every otherPennsylvania State Senator) added $1.6 billion dollars in debt to Pennsylvania’s ForgottenTaxpayer’s financial burden and, simultaneously, voted millions for billionaire corporations: Comcast, Janney, Teva Pharmaceuticals, ShopRite, Franklin Mint and $850,000 toPhiladelphia Democrat Chaka Fattah’s Philadelphia House of Imoja and $1,970,000 to Philadelphia University‐Arlen Specter Library and $10,000,000 John P. Murtha Center for Public Policy in Cambria County.
Contrary to Senator Pileggi’s rhetoric, the reality of the record is that Senator Pileggi is not The Forgotten Taxpayer’s BFF.
Mr. Guzzardi of Montgomery County runs the watchdog blog LibertyIndex.Com.
Why Dominic Pileggi Gets a C+

Crony Capitalism Lives In Pa.

Taxpayer candidate Rogers Howard is giving Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi a surprisingly tough primary battle in the 9th District, and Tea Party activist Bob Guzzardi can explain why.

Guzzardi notes that Pileggi has supported legislation that has provided  millions of dollars to questionable recipients.

Among the giveaways were $10 million to Janney, Montgomery Scott for a Philadelphia office building;   $850,000 to Philadelphia Democrat Chaka Fattah’s Philadelphia House of Imoja; $1,970,000 to Philadelphia University‐Arlen Specter Library; and $10 million to John P. Murtha Center for Public Policy Cambria Contrary.

And you wonder why we have a spending problem.

Smith To Hold Meet And Greet

Tom Smith, one of the conservatives seeking the Republican nomination to take on incumbent Senator Bob Casey Jr. this fall is having a meet and greet 6-8 p.m., April 3 at the Great American Pub, 123 Fayette St., Conshohocken.

The primary is April 24.
There will be complimentary food and drink according to the press release.
Hat tip Bob Guzzardi.

Olbermann Out Again

Keith Olbermann, the one-time MSNBC answer to Rush Limbaugh, has been dismissed from his anchor post at Current TV, the progressive, unwatched media company founded by Al Gore, according to the New York Times.

He held the post for less than a year. What next? A news broadcast from his basement on the local cable community channel? Random postings on YouTube?
Meanwhile, the Sandra Fluke controversy has sent Rush Limbaugh’s ratings through the roof.
Olbermann Out Again

New Voter ID Law Explained

State Sen. Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi (R-9) has this description of  Pennsylvania’s recently passed Voter ID law on his website:

A new law, Act 18 of 2012, requires all Pennsylvania voters to show a valid photo identification at the polling place in order to cast a vote, starting with the November 2012 general election.

Act 18 is designed to protect the integrity of your vote by helping to eliminate the possibility of fraudulent votes being cast. Here are some details you should know about the new law:

What if I forget to bring my photo identification to the polling place?

No one legally entitled to vote will be denied the right to do so.

If you forget to bring identification, you will be able to cast a provisional ballot. You will then have six days to present valid photo identification to your county election board, which can be done by email, mail, fax or in person. More information is available at the Department of State’s VotesPA.com website. 

What if I don’t have any acceptable photo identification?

Voters who do not currently have a valid form of photo identification may obtain one from PennDOT at no cost. Detailed information about how to do this is available at PennDOT’s website.

What types of photo identification are acceptable? 

Valid forms of identification must include a name, photo and expiration date. Most people will use their driver’s license.

Acceptable forms of identification include:

  • Identification issued by the U.S. government that includes your name, a photograph, and a non-expired expiration date.*
     
  • Identification issued by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania that includes your name, photograph, and a non-expired expiration date.**
     
  • Identification issued by an accredited Pennsylvania public or private institution of higher learning that includes your name, photograph, and a non-expired expiration date.***
     
  • Identification issued by a licensed Pennsylvania care facility that includes your name, photograph, and a non-expired expiration date.
     
  • Identification issued by a Pennsylvania municipality to an employee of that municipality that includes your name, photograph, and a non-expired expiration date.
     
  • For those with religious objections to being photographed, a valid without-photo driver’s license, or a valid without-photo ID card issued by PennDOT will be acceptable forms of identification at the polls.

What changes if I vote by absentee ballot?

A photo identification is not required to vote by absentee ballot. Voters who apply for an absentee ballot will be required to provide one of the following:

  • Your driver’s license number;
  • The last four digits of your Social Security Number; or
  • A copy of an acceptable photo identification.

More information is available at the Department of State’s VotesPA.com website.

Will this law be in effect for the April 24, 2012, primary?

The April 2012 primary election will be used as a “test run” prior to full implementation of the law in the November 2012 general election.

At the primary election, poll workers will ask voters for photo identification and advise them that they must have one for the general election in November.

Footnotes:

* In the case of identification issued by the U.S. Armed Forces or their reserve components (including the Pennsylvania National Guard) which establishes the voter as a current member or a veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces or National Guard and does not designate a specific date on which the document expires, the identification must include a notation indicating that the expiration is indefinite.

** If the identification was issued by PennDOT, it will remain valid for voting purposes for 12 months beyond the expiration date. 

*** Pennsylvania residents who attend out-of-state colleges will not be able to use their student identifications to vote.

Parenting Lessons From Asia

Sok Thoeun of  Battambang, Cambodia caught his  13 year-old son  in an internet cafe playing computer games. This made him angry.

So he dragged him out, beat him, chained by the neck to a utility pole on a village street then went to work.

The boy was eventually freed by police and sent home to his mother.

Sok faces 20 years.

Dinesh D’Souza Explains Obama

Here is a link to a video of political thinker Dinesh D’Souza describing what motivates Barack Obama as deduced from his book Dreams From My Father and what little else is known about him.

D’Souza says Obama’s father was a West-hating anti-colonist whose dream was to weaken and impoverish America.
Is anybody with a shred of self-respect admitting to having voted for Obama? 
Hat tip Fran Coppock.