FCC Courting Women

The FCC is investigating whether The View violated the equal time doctrine with a segment featuring JamesTalarico, an anti-administration senate candidate from Texas. Their premise is that liberal politicians and liberal media are using entertainment shows to bypass long established equal time rules by conventional news sources. The Talarico controversy also recently surfaced on the Stephen Colbert show.

I question whether conventional news sources still exist. All the stations now-a-days seem to have a slant, one way or another. What is new is weaponizing these agencies, such as the FCC.

Not to reveal my sexism, but isn't there an old expression about a woman's scorn? Attacking The View before the midterms must have James Carville snickering. Talk about snickering, The Morning Call just gave Ryan Mackenzie promotion to announce that he doesn't know about any ICE detention centers planned for Lehigh Valley. Considering they're planning one next door in Berks County, why would they build one here? They're not McDonalds, not yet anyway.

Divide And Conquer For Allentown's 22nd District

During last week's debate for the Special Election to fill Josh Siegel's vacated Pa. House Seat, Ana Tiburcio on several occasions answered that she was not familiar with a particular issue. Meanwhile, on the dais, Bob Smith was animated and appeared more informed. Now keep in mind that Tiburcio just learned that she was a candidate after Julian Guridy disqualified himself. Smith, meanwhile, had run in the past.

Immediately, in response to Tiburcio's performance, several people have called for writing in Ce-Ce Gerlach, who is a candidate for the full term primary in May. It occurs to me that the intention of promoting a write-in vote is to divide the Democratic vote for Smith's benefit. 

There are people, such as streetwise activist Eddie Aviles, who feel that if Tiburcio wins, she may well go on to win the full term in November of 2026, and that she is the least qualified of all three previously mentioned.

photocredit:VictorMartinez/101.7FM

Radio Returns To Center City

In 1952, WSAN opened its office and studio at 39 N. 10th Street. A pioneer in local radio, the station started in 1923. Although long filled in, next to the door there was a microphone carved into the granite.  In 1982, the station sponsored a contest with three men living on a Rt.22 billboard. The stunt lasted 261 days and attracted national attention.

In the 1990's, former WAEB DJ Guy Ackley produced his iconic radio ads from a sound both inside his advertising agency at 7th & Linden. Bobby Gunther Walsh has hosted a morning show on WAEB with a conservative theme for decades. While Republicans flock there for exposure, for Walsh it's just a gig.

Victor Martinez is building a new studio for his La Mega 101.7FM (WTKZ) on the upper floor of a building in the 600 block of Hamilton. Unlike the Dopey Duncan era of Pennsylvania Dutch, the Martinez show is completely in Spanish. While mostly music, Martinez does produce a news segment.

This blogger is looking for some early morning microphone time, for a balanced discussion of issues local and beyond.

shown above 1982 billboard stunt

An Allentown Story

My grandfather was a wholesale butcher who would deliver meat to corner stores with a horse and wagon.  Family lore has it that on a Sunday, the horse would not take the family on its social outing until he first completed the store route. My grandfather passed away when I was two, and of course I have no memory of the horse and wagon era.

The family lived on the corner of Chew and Jordan, with a small barn structure behind the yard on current Jute St. In a the late 1960's, a friend wanted to show me his younger brother's hot rod, which he was building in a rented garage somewhere in town. 

As we approached the garage, while the brother and hot rod were unknown to me, the structure wasn't. When Jim worked on his car, he had no idea that fifty years earlier my grandfather harnessed his horse to his wagon in the same garage. The old wooden garage is no longer there, but the house, now over a century old, shelters on.

Jim, like his father before him, would go on to work for Mack Truck. When Mack moved production to Winnsboro, South Carolina in 1987, Jim went with them. While production there only lasted for 15 years, today there is a community of retired Mack workers and their children still living around Winnsboro. Allentown officials over the years establish sister cities for political benefit, but Winnsboro really is connected.

Mackenzie Español

After I wrote the post on Wednesday about Trump torpedoing Ryan Mackenzie with his Bad Bunny rant, I was wondering how long it would take Mackenzie to try and make nice with the valley's Puerto Ricans. On Thursday he had himself photographed with some Latino officials. I expect a trip to the island is also on the horizon.

Will a couple photo ops be enough to help Mackenzie come November...I doubt it. I think if he really had bucked the boss, if he had reprimanded Trump at the time, that would have played very well with the Latino community. 

Mackenzie is playing the odds. He wants to keep his MAGA support, and do damage control with the Spanish speaking voters. I think that his real problem is going to be with the independents, not the cross-over Democrats.

The Awakening Congress

Recently I posted that Senator John Fetterman is his own man. Brian Fitzpatrick, 1st District/Bucks County, also votes independently. He joined five other Republican Congressmen to vote against Trump's tariff policy on Canada. Trump has promised to primary them as punishment. 

Not needing to worry about a Trump sponsored primary is our own Ryan Mackenzie. Mackenzie is independent with his Facebook memes, but not so much on the floor of Congress. He's a good Republican Party puppy.

The bill against the Canadian tariffs will now go to the Senate. I'll be watching how Fetterman and McCormick vote, because Trump's aggression toward Canada has been nothing less than absurd.

Peace Bridge between Canada and United States

Trump Not Entitled To Express Every Opinion

The other day a Republican steward explained about the Super Bowl that Trump is entitled to have an opinion. Karoline Leavitt would say that people elected Trump because of his frankness. The excuses are wearing thin. Could you imagine Trump calming a nation, as Roosevelt and Churchill did during WW2.

The bad news for the Republican Party is that their president isn't a Republican. If he cared about the party he would say much less, and not tweet at all. Already his Super Bowl rant will cost them the 7th Congressional District in Pa., and it's only year one for the coming damage. In a couple more years Republicans could be reduced to proverbial dog catchers.

The annual bi-partisan Governors meeting will not be at the White House...Trump only invited Republicans, and some of them wouldn't come in protest. There are Republicans all over this country serving their constituents well, they don't deserve the backlash coming their way. Hopefully they will start speaking out.

Mackenzie Loses Election At Super Bowl

Ryan Mackenzie has already lost the election, there's not enough money to save his seat. He and the local Republican sycophants were too indoctrinated to calculate that Trump's Bad Bunny rant wouldn't play well in the 7th Congressional District. Hope they enjoyed the Kid Rock show, because it will end up being a very costly ticket. There's an old saying that if you're going to be dumb, you better be tough. Before the Super Bowl controversy, I already decided that anyone that partisan was too dumb for my vote.

Lately, I haven't been printing many comments. Mention TDS and I don't print it. Some unprinted ones claim that the local Puerto Ricans don't vote anyway. I don't know what their turnout is, but I do know that with Mackenzie winning 2024 with just 1%, he can't afford to leave any votes on the table.

I think from the Democratic viewpoint, with Mackenzie shooting himself, who wins the primary isn't as relevant as it was...they will still win. From my independent perspective, I'm supporting Ryan Crosswell. He's not as polished slick as some in Washington, but his sincerity and work ethic sold me.

Trump Wins, Republicans Lose

This past weekend Trump managed to offend both Latinos and many Olympic watchers in just a couple of tweets. Just last November both he and the party bragged about making so much headway with minority voters. 

Here in Allentown we have taken to referring to a minority majority. We have a mayor who promoted his Latino background and makes sure to make all his proclamations in both English and Spanish. Trump in his bubble, it's certainly no ivory tower, thinks that the country is still MAGA.

Those Trump flags on the pickup trucks are getting tattered. While he is worried that a blue wave might result in an impeachment vote, he's not worried beyond his family's bottom line. Beyond the midterms, current young voters will see how little the 47th actually did for them, and how much for his family. The Republicans richly deserve the future that they are currently standing silent about. Nobody will ever accuse Trump of being a great uniter.

Fetterman, A Non-Partisan Politician

So far Fetterman is shaping up to be an independent voice in the Senate, despite being a Democrat. He refuses to vote for a government shutdown, but speaks out against what he considers abuses by whomever.  

He wants to fund Homeland Security, including ICE, but has sent a protest letter to Kristi Noem about purchasing two warehouses in eastern Pennsylvania for detention centers.

Although he proclaims that he wants to reach across the isle and work with Dave McCormick, he might also want to remember that no good deed goes unpunished. The Democrats will resent whenever he votes against the party policy, and the Republicans will still resent him as a Democrat. However, there are independents, such as myself, who appreciate his issue by issue deliberations, as opposed to party rubber stamping. At any rate, he has four more years to please and offend both partys and their voters.

Wall Street Journal Visits Allentown

I'm always interested when big media visits Allentown...they usually get it wrong. Last year the New York Times did a story on the revitalization of Hamilton Street. While impressed by the $billions of new buildings, they failed to comprehend the taxpayer funded, privately owned real estate scheme...they assumed the Potemkin Village was actually teeming.

Yesterday the Wall Street Journal did a story on the upcoming 7th District race and the Hispanic voters. They think that the Hispanics put Ryan Mackenzie over the top in 2024, but that they may not support him for 2026. They blame that divorce on Trump's heavy handedness with ICE. I don't disagree with their analysis, but think that they overestimate the Hispanic vote. The WSJ was here for one or two days, I've here since what the NYT referred to The Latinization Of Allentown decades ago.

I believe that a Democrat will flip the seat back to that party, but not just because of the Hispanics. The Hispanic flip will be bigger than the Journal foresees, because that new detention center in Berks County will need detainees. But Ryan will lose because the bread and butter MAGA's turned out for Trump, not him. More than the Hispanics, he'll lose because the independents are fed up with Trump's dictatorship. Ryan will bet on the Trump support and campaigning, and not speak out enough to save himself.

Pennsylvania's 7th Congressional District

A closely watched race next November will be for our local congressman. While the incumbent is Republican Ryan Mackenzie, the Democrats have a contested primary in May. The top three candidates for that race are Ryan Crosswell, Bob Brooks and Lamont McClure.

If contributions and money on hand for the campaign prevail, it whittles down to Crosswell and Brooks. Crosswell is a former federal prosecutor who resigned, rather than back off a case as requested by associates of  Trump. Brooks is head of the state fire fighters association, and has the party backing.

I consulted with fellow blogger Bernie O'Hare about the candidates. Bernie thinks (and hopes) that McClure's experience will end up putting him ahead primary night. He feels that Crosswell's Republican past is a bug and will haunt him. For an independent like myself, that is not a bug, but a feature. I hope that come November it will be Ryan vs Ryan.

The Dumb And The Desperate

On Friday I posted about Trump's FBI trying to prove that he won the 2020 election. For what purpose? Only the dumbest would think that Trump is concerned with election integrity. The skeptical think that the real motivation is to discredit the upcoming midterms, where Republicans will likely be decimated.

The Trump coalition is composed of the dumb and the desperate. We know what the dumb look like. The desperate are partisan Republicans, who are setting themselves up to lose for the next decade. Nobody inclined to be a Democrat will make the same mistake they made in 2024. I believe that minorities will be back home with the Democrats. The Hispanics saw the prison in El Salvador, and the rush to build Alcatraz in the Everglades. The blacks saw the eagerness of the ICE Troopers.

The dumb is self-explanatory, but I'm surprised at the stubbornness of the Republican Party. Do they care that much about Trump, and do they think that he cares about them? I've been urging Republicans to stand up and speak out. So far that's a short list, containing no locally elected. While a Mackenzie could not earn back my vote, there is still time for them to assert themselves, but that time is waning. The consequences of Trump's arrogance and unqualified advisors are coming home to roost.

ICE Prison For West of Lehigh Valley

ICE has purchased a large warehouse west of Lehigh County for use as a prison. The 500,000sq. ft. prison purchased for $85million shows that we're getting our share of federal attention. I wonder if Ryan Mackenzie will be bragging about this with his messaging? 

Being in Berks, near the Amazon warehouse, sort of takes some of the shine off the recent Lilly announcement. Will Kristi Noem be coming to look over the new inmates? Who knew that our corner of Pennsytucky would be making the news twice in one week?

Between Allentown and Reading there is a large Hispanic population. I would suggest that our Spanish speaking residents carry their ID with them at all times.

Gilding The Lilly

It was announced with much fanfare that Lilly Pharmaceutical is going to build a new facility on Rt. 78 west of Allentown. Attending the announcement were all our elected officials, including presidential hopeful Josh Shapiro. The show featured that the manufacturing plant would cost $3.5 billion and employ 850 workers. They will produce the new injectable for the weight challenged.

Local media articles mentioned state incentives, including a new entrance/exit for Adams Rd.. We apparently offered more incentives than hundreds of other areas, which also entered the LIlly contest. The big winner of course is David Jaindl, who is selling the parcel to Lilly. More so, he owns the adjoining land, whose value is greatly enhanced by the new exit.

While there are plans to widen Rt. 22 through Allentown, I expect that you'll still be sitting in traffic on 22, long after the new ramp is built for Jaindl. Supposedly a pill is in development to replace the injectable for the heavyset. We'll see how long, if ever, there are 850 employees at Lilly Lehigh Valley.

Moby Dick, McCormick and Mackenzie

With the FBI now searching voting machines in Georgia looking for those votes Trump claims were stolen from him in 2020, Kash Patel and the agency are acting like private police for the administration. Trump appointed him, but we voted for you guys.

Trump cannot appoint Mackenzie to a second term, but the voters can turn him out. As a senator McCormick has four more years, but the voters then will be reminded of his complacency now.

Trump and his obsession about the 2020 election being stolen makes Moby Dick look like a passing thought. It is one thing for him to be obsessed, but it is another for him to exploit the federal government. It is only Congress that can rein him in.

Throwing The Baby Out With The Bath Water In Lehigh County

The Morning Call reports that the CEO of a woman's survivor group is upset with Lehigh County evicting the Homeland Security Investigations from its office space in a county building.  As reported previously on this blog, the office goes after human traffickers, not the ICE mission of deporting illegal aliens. 

The eviction proceeding was the brainchild of two very liberal, ambitious county office holders, Controller Mark Pinsley and Executive Josh Siegel. Ironically, the current person complaining about the eviction heads the Bloom For Women group, hardly any sort of right wing affiliate.

Siegel in the Morning Call article double talks about the issue in regard to exploited women. Perhaps he could best serve the community by rethinking the actual consequences of evicting an office defending and helping women from exploitation. The administration in Washington is criticized for never admitting that they made a mistake, perhaps Lehigh County can do better.

The Crassness Of The Trump Deal

Decades ago the book about Trump, The Art Of The Deal, helped propel him into the national spotlight. People now refer to his presidency as transactional, referring to his deals on national and foreign policy.

I for one, along with many others, am finding that style of governance distasteful. I'm also souring on the peripheral characters who float in and out of Trump's orbit. We learned this weekend that Elon Musk is back. With SpaceX going public, and NASA'S ARTEMIS 2 not a SpaceX project, Elon wants to insure his position at Cape Canaveral. He will be dispensing $millions to the likes of Ryan Mackenzie to keep Trump's favor. While the Palestinians in Gaza are living in tents this winter, Jared Kushner is showing upscale skyscraper sketches for its waterfront...how's that for a disconnect from the harsh realities there!

This blog started about two decades ago to fight against the corruption in a mayoral administration. Although I feel the same revulsion against the current administration in Washington, I'm encouraged about Trump's shift in attitude in Minneapolis. I'm hoping it is more than just reacting to a newscast.

Who Told Trump To Apologize To The British?

Last week was bigly bad for Donald. He would have been much better off skipping Davos. His Greenland threats went flat, and his Peace Club was reduced to foreign aid recipients. Worse for his battered ego, he had to apologize to Britain for his remark about their NATO troops. 

The reason of course he had such a bad week was that he has no advisors, at least on his cabinet. But the apology does indicate that he does listen to someone, because I cannot imagine that he realized that an apology was necessary on his own. If it is Stephen Miller or Steve Witkoff, or someone else, my staff has not determined. There does however seem to be some definite advice toward moderation. Tom Homan is replacing Gregory Bovino in Minneapolis, suggesting Trump knows that ICE has gone too far.

We do know that a victim of Trumpism is our homegrown Ryan Mackenzie. His press release yesterday on the ICE shooting was better thought out than his meme last week praising Trump. On this recent shooting he struck a conciliatory tone, although staying to the right.There was no mention that Kristi Noem defended the shooting, and other immediate knee-jerk reactions from the administration.

The Toll Of Trump's Arrogance

For Trump's second term, he wasn't going to put up with any pesky advisors. No expertise need apply. He assembled a cast of sycophants, yes men and women, whose requirements were no deeper than their appearance.

Last week Trump put the last nail in our coffin with Europe. He undid alliances going back to the First World War. Europe knew Trump was deficient  before last week, but then Britain actually wanted an apology about NATO losses in Afghanistan. Trump apologized to the British, but not to other NATO members. Our next president is going to have a job on his hands just restoring trust with our former allies.

Most consequential to American health is Kennedy, whose anti-vaccine ignorance is reviving dormant diseases. Most consequential to American defense is Hegseth, who has turned our Navy into pirates. Most consequential to our democracy are Noem and Bondi, who defend Americans being killed for protest. Although this recent shooting by ICE is under investigation, with mixed reports about the sequence of events, it is clear that ICE is doing the country more harm than good at this point. Republicans will have to decide if they put party or country first.

MacKenzie Doubles Down On Trump

I was surprised to see the Trump meme on Mackenzie's Facebook feed. While I have been recommending that the Congressman speak out against Trump, I figured that he would just quietly promote himself, with little to no mention of Trump. 

Could Trump be more popular here in the Valley and Poconos than I realize? I don't think so .Is it possible that Mackenzie thinks that the President's agenda is wonderful?

While Mackenzie's Democratic opponent is yet unknown, it is known that it will be a very expensive election. In addition to maintaining a majority in the house, Trump is concerned about impeachment. I'll speculate that Ryan is going for the campaign money, and likely Trump himself campaigning for him.

Siegel Bites Holihan Twice

Last fall when Republican DA Gavin Holihan endorsed Josh Siegel, the local Republicans were upset. He was endorsing a Democrat, a no-no in politics. To add to the angst, Siegel, a couple positions earlier, had marched with a defund the police group.

Earlier this week Siegel announced the eviction of a federal enforcement agency, playing on the current emotions against ICE. Never mind that this particular agency is involved with human trafficking, not deportation. Among those upset with the decision is Holihan, who counts on and cooperates with that agency against traffickers. 

The eviction dog and pony show was co-sponsored by Siegel and Mark Pinsley, a perpetual candidate now running for the 7th Congressional district nomination. Like Pinsley who is currently County Controller, Siegel may have ambitions beyond County Executive. I doubt that Holihan will want to be bitten three times.

Jarrett Coleman Speaks Out

Jarrett Coleman has been taking some flak for calling Philadelphia a sh-t hole. He accused their progressive DA of being too soft on crime. 

Just a few years ago the DA and the former police chief decided to turn their backs on shop lifting. Finally the merchants cried uncle loud enough to be heard.  Larry Krasner the DA has responded to Coleman that the homicide rate is lower than it has been in a decade. Credit poor aim and good ER hospitals.

Coleman is my favorite pol in Harrisburg, he actually wants an accounting by Allentown's NIZ. Although his choice of words about the City Of Brotherly Love may have been better chosen, he's correct about safety in Philadelphia. There are neighborhoods there, like Kensington, that most cities would not tolerate.

Trump The Tariff Man

Trump's threat to use tariffs against countries which do not support his grab for Greenland is a threat too far. In a recent post I wrote that his political support in the country is crumbling fast. This latest threat will likewise erode his international influence. He, and consequently we, are being taken less seriously everyday. 

Thank goodness for the midterms. By November any member of Congress wanting to be re-elected will have to speak out against this would be king. For my vote they would have to have spoken out much earlier.

I don't know what kind of psychiatric department Walter Reed has, but it will be in the news soon, because their Commander and Chief is quickly losing it. Yesterday he told the world that because he didn't get the Nobel Peace Prize, he doesn't have to behave.

Ryan Mackenzie Has Two Opponents

Congressman Ryan Mackenzie is facing two opponents in November. One is a Democrat, as of yet unnamed. The other is Donald Trump, and his declining popularity. Although Mackenzie will not face the dreaded Trump primary challenge, he's trying to ride the fence between these two opponents. 

At this recent press conference, Mackenzie said he supports the separation of authority with the Federal Reserve, yet, if Chairman Powells did indeed something wrong, that he should be prosecuted. He defends the ICE officer in the Minneapolis shooting, but Trump wants to defend the protesters in Tehran.  

Mackenzie's tightrope walking will become more difficult as the election nears. By spring he will have a real Democrat hurling accusations, and a President who is more taken with his powers. By that time the first term congressman will have to take an absolute position on the issues as they arise, if he hopes to return to Washington.

ADDENDUM:Local mainstream is reporting about Mackenzie's support for ICE, so now he has three opponents...the Democrat, Trump and himself.

OPEN MIKE WEEKEND

                        ACCEPTING COMMENTS ON ANY TOPIC.  

Mary Ann Donuts and Donald Trump

Amanda Seyfried gave Allentown another plug on national TV, and in gratitude MaryAnn Donuts delivered their goods to the Stephen Colbert Show. That concludes the good part of this post.

Maria Machado wanted to share her Nobel Peace Prize with Donald Trump, and told him that the people of Venezuela are counting on him for their freedom. Well, that's more faith in him than the people of Minneapolis have. They're counting on him to get his ICE Cadets out of there.

Apparently, the people in Tehran might have also overestimated our help. So many of our assets were moved from the Mediterranean to the Caribbean to pilfer Venezuela's oil. Apparently we're going to use mercenaries to protect the snatched oil wells.

Trump's Crumble Will Be Swift

The Trump crumple with the public is starting, and it will be swift. Joe Rogan, podcast influencer of the young, is becoming disillusioned more with Trump every day. Giving the finger to a Ford factory worker isn't exactly courting the blue collar MAGA base.

Telling prosecutors and Pam Bondi that they're weak isn't winning points with the Department of Justice and other government workers. We know from Trump's first term that people working for him have a short shelf life. His current staff and appointments were based on loyalty, but that's a two way street.

When the public turns enough, so will the congress. Although Trump is consumed with his legacy, congress is consumed with getting re-elected.

Help Is On The Way

Trump told the people of Tehran that help is on the way. There are plenty of people in American cities who would say no thank you.  Trump promised to end forever wars, but apparently that doesn't apply to wars forever. 

We have the most ill informed president in the history of the country, with the most unqualified cabinet ever assembled, what could go wrong? We have a president who has no understanding or appreciation of the constitution. We have a congress scared of him, who so far, has failed to stand up for the people. We have a polarized country, with a president encouraging the discourse. 

The only hope I see on the horizon is the mid-terms. Here in my district, I see a freshman Republican congressman waffling between the options. He supports Powell, unless he has done something wrong. He supports protest, but you have to be careful not to step over any line. To complicate his predicament, he is in a purple district. His time to get my vote is getting short. I no longer have a problem sitting out elections.

photocredit:TomShortell/LehighValleyNews.com

The Aftermath Of The ICY Hand

On Friday, I elaborated in both the post and comments, that I feel that the fatal ICE shooting in Minneapolis was a wrongful death. Many readers feel differently, and expressed their views in the comments. This post is not to rehash those videos and conclusions, but rather examine the aftermath.

While initial reactions to the shooting mirrored left/right, Democratic/Republican perspectives, the vigils occurring around the country are another dimension. I believe that this death is another George Floyd type moment, which likewise will have wide sweeping political ramifications.

While Trump and Vance are immune to the repercussions, Kristi Noem may pay the price for her zealousness. Republicans* up for mid-terms will have to buck the front office. Trump is powerful, but shooting protesters in the head has no longer been permitted since Kent State.

Kent State 1970

*Ryan Mackenzie stated at a press conference yesterday that he considers the shooting justified.

Chaos In Democratic Lehigh Valley

Over the weekend it was announced that the chosen Democratic candidate for the state special election in the 22nd District, Julian Guridy, has withdrawn for personal reasons. Meanwhile, articles about how Julian Guridy was chosen over the other candidates two weeks ago still linger on the local media pages. 

To me, the big news is that Ce-Ce Gerlach was once again passed over, and a new Allentown School Board member, Ann Tiburcio, was chosen as the replacement candidate. Mike Schlossberg acted as the spokesman to confirm the candidate switch, and along with Matt Tuerk, provided endorsements. Tiburcio was not even an announced candidate prior to this snap appointment.

While Mike may be acting as spokesman, an important person behind the curtain is his former boss, Jennifer Mann. Jenn is still a discreet Democratic kingmaker in the valley. Apparently, Ce-Ce doesn't fit Jenn's profile for a local state representative. That slur hasn't deterred Ce-Ce from campaigning for the regular May 19th primary. Knowing Ce-Ce's work ethic, I believe that in November of 2026, she will be elected the new state representative for the 22nd District.

above a billboard from 2014, showing an independent candidate and blogger

Disgrace In Minneapolis

Kristi Noem defended the fatal shooting in Minneapolis, despite videos showing that it was an overreaction by the ICE officer. We have cowboy policies being defended by cowgirls. That victim might as well. have been living in Caracas under Maduro. Trump helped cut his Venezuelan victory lap short by blaming the shooting on the radical left.

Elsewhere, we have another Trump cowboy denigrating an American hero and astronaut. In reality, Hegseth is making Mark Kelly viable for 2028

Locally, I'm watching the 7th District race. Unless Mackenzie stands up against the Administration's recklessness very soon, it will matter little who wins the heated Democratic primary.

ADDENDUM: I keep hearing that the officer had the "right" to fire, but was shooting her the right thing to do? ... Not by a country mile.

Plunderer-In-Chief Trump

The consequences of the 2024 election are coming home and abroad to roost much harder and faster than Trump's critics could have imagined.

Trump is warning the Republicans that if they don't win the mid-terms, he will be impeached. He doesn't realize that unless they speak out against his recklessness, they won't be re-elected. His threat against Greenland is an invasion too far. Even though Rubio tried to soften the language, NATO is beginning to realize that they are threatened from both the east and west.

Trump's support was based on MAGA and partisan sycophants. MAGA is beginning to realize that Trump cares more about golf courses than grocery prices. Even that January 6th revisionist demonstration didn't play well.The partisan sycophants read the poll numbers. As much as they liked a winner, they like winning more than any person.

We would all be better off if Trump played more golf.

United States Becomes United Fruit

In the early 1900's, the United Fruit Company installed a president in Honduras, and the phrase Banana Republic came into fruition. We now have a president in the United States who is telling the Western Hemisphere what the new rules are.

Apparently, all natural resources are ours for the taking. Considering Trump thinks that climate change is a hoax, those indigenous people in the Amazon better move out of the way. The new White House ballroom wants a mahogany ceiling.

My pro Trump readers at Molovinsky On Allentown are in an uproar. They tell me that my sources are leftist propaganda, while they have a direct line to the truth. Their Trump is the best thing that has happened to America since baseball and hot dogs.

General Trump

From the photos released from the Situation Room at Mar-a- Lago, you would have thought that Trump was directing the invasion of Normandy in 1944. At any rate, he's quite taken with his new chops as Commander-In-Chief.

Less than a day later, he's talking that we need Greenland, and Cuba was told that they're next. He is braying about a Don-roe Doctrine. Here's a man who already had four star delusions of grandeur, being toasted by his appointed and anointed sycophants.

Although we will certainly profit from pilfering Venezuela's oil, his aggression will not play well on the world stage. Although we may have the most powerful military in the world, our long term economy is dependent on international stability. 

the SOON meme shown above was posted by the wife of Trump Homeland Security advisor Stephen Miller.

A Congressional Test

Trump just came off a big weekend with the Venezuela snatching of Maduro. MAGA and the Republican hierarchy are basking in a perceived accomplishment. While momentous for the American oil industry, time will weight the real results for everyone else, including the Venezuelans.

Meanwhile, last week Trump had vetoed a Colorado clean water bill for political reasons. Trump claimed people are leaving Colorado anyway, because one politician is bad and another is scum. Only in Trump's mind is that relevant to a veto. The bill had passed both houses of Congress unanimously.

When the Venezuelan chest beating subsides, and the slur against congressional leaks is considered along with the Colorado veto, we'll see what Congress is made of. If there was ever a veto which demanded an override, it is the Colorado Clean Water Act. With Republican incumbents facing the midterms, and the veto so egregious, I think that the Republicans will have to finally assert themselves.

Colorado National Monument Park

Trading Bananas For Oil

A century ago we managed Central and South America for bananas and rubber. Trump has now decided that he and the oil industry can have Venezuela. For months we heard pretenses about drugs, but at Saturday's press conference Trump wasn't hiding his cards, we're there for the oil.

When Trump and Hegseth bragged on about the military operation, you might have thought that they had extracted Putin from the Kremlin. Caracas isn't Moscow or Peking, but China has invested in Venezuelan oil production, over a $billion. While Hegseth and Rubio fell over each other praising their boss, they would be better serving their country gauging world reaction, which doesn't share their pride.

We also heard that Congress couldn't be trusted to be in the loop, they leak too much. If congress has been passive about Trump's unilateral decisions, now is the time to speak out. Perhaps Fetterman is correct wearing sweatshirts, at least you can't call him an empty suit.

In 1912 we were satisfied with bananas

An Identity Crisis In 2026

Yesterday, I claimed that I was going to become more fashionable, but little did I know that I was only a few hours away from an identity crisis. 

Long time readers of this blog have been recently accusing me of TDS. Seems like my questioning of Trump, and especially his cabinet picks, didn't resonate well with them. I always labeled myself as an independent, so this new criticism of me was almost complimentary. In addition to the blog, I'm also an administrator of a Facebook group. A member there accused me of pushing my rightwing politics when I posted a link to the Amanda Seyfried post. He said my explanation that she was an Allentonian was a BS excuse, and he left the group. So by noon, I was a liberal here, and a Trumper there...But, it got more confusing. I commented on a national site, and a reader stated that I was a Democratic Socialist, using a fake Russian sounding name for emphasis. Who am I?

Meanwhile, back here in the blogosphere, I was again changing the name of my other blog back to its original title. I'm always annoyed by the verification process all the offices use now. I get an email that I have a message from LVHN. I go to their site, and I have to get another email with a verification number to read the message. The message is wishing me a calm year...We'll see.

A Progressive Fashion

New York new Mayor Mamdani is taking the oath of office in an abandoned Manhattan subway station. New Lehigh County Executive Josh Siegel is taking his at a public housing development. 

My New Year's resolution is to be more fashionable. For progressives like Mamdani and Siegel, there's always a new cause. This year it is affordable housing. I remember before I first started blogging, some Allentown non-profit did a building on 10th Street. Until they were done, it cost about $500k a unit, and that was thirty years ago! I was thinking at the time that for the same cost, they could have bought all those people a condo in a resort. Reilly's new affordable apartments construction at the old Morning Call site is framed out of wood, why not use cardboard?

Anywho, I will be more fashionable for 2026. New clothing and a new hair style is on the way. If you see an old man who looks like me, he just got my old clothing.

An Allentown Star's Controversy

There is probably nobody reading this who knows less about Amanda Seyfried and Charlie Kirk than me. I never saw a Amanda Seyfried movie, and I never heard a Charlie Kirk podcast. I actually never even heard of Kirk prior to his murder. 

I did however know that Seyfried grew up in Allentown, and attended William Allen High School. Although she has made it clear that she abhors anybody being the victim of violence, she has pushed back for not apologizing about saying that Kirk made hateful statements.

Kirk has been lionized by both Trump and Vance. Jimmie Kimmel was suspended from his show for not showing due reverence to the shooting. Likewise, Trump has been criticized for his reaction to the Reiner deaths. This post isn't to keep score regarding sensitivity, or lack thereof. Suffice to say that it is something which is hard to have too much of.

Amanda Seyfried at Allentown Farmers Market

Democratic Dustup In Allentown

There is a commotion in the Allentown Democratic Party over the  candidate for the special election to replace resigning Josh Siegel. Siegel is moving on to be Lehigh County Executive, having handily defeated Roger MacLean.

The above referenced commotion is that the selection process being utilized supposedly favors Julian Guridy. For the next regular election of District 22, Guridy will face Ce-Ce Gerlach in the primary.

While several other candidates, activist Lewis Shupe among them, wished to be considered for the special election appointment, there is an  irony not being discussed elsewhere. This old blogger remembers why the 22nd District was created in the first place...it was to represent the growing Hispanic Community. The first victor was the very un-Histpanic Pete Schweyer. After another redistricting, very un-Hispanic Josh Siegel won the spot.

It is assumed that the Republicans will be a no show for the special election (and the regular to follow), and that the appointee will have a heads up for the next regular primary in May.

shown above is Ce-Ce Gerlach welcoming a Buffalo Soldier Motorcycle Club member to a street fair she organized in 2013.

Warning of a "Bad President" Dominating Washington

Earlier this year when it became apparent that Trump's amateur cabinet was becoming detrimental to the nation's welfare, this blog began speaking out. As the damage added up, I felt compelled to call out our silent, local Washington representatives, first as compliant, then complicit with veering away from our nation's moral compass.

My conservative readership, Republican first and foremost, started accusing me of TDS, which is a poor excuse for deteriorating leadership. Partisans slowed down commenting in protest. When Mackenzie signed the Democratic petition, explanations mentioned that we're in a purple area.

We're in more than a purple area, we're in a condition red. I had posted that unless Mackenzie stood up, he wouldn't be re-elected. It is now becoming apparent that unless the Republicans forcibly act out, Trump  will be using our military on personal whims. Whether they can restrain him, remains to be seen.

Bill O'Reilly Drinks Trump Potion

As a blogger, I'm constantly accused of watching and listening to the wrong fake news, depending upon the persuasion of the reader I'm offending at the time.  I never reveal which news sources I read/watch, and never presume that any of those sources knows the whole story.

I hadn't heard of Bill O'Reilly in a long time. I always found his demeanor annoying. Recently, I heard him on a news type show, and it was alarming. Trump had given Bill a tour of the White House, and the old pontificator was very impressed. He raved about Trump's decorations, and said that it would give Trump an advantage with any visiting world leader.

Trump showed him his new presidential gallery, where he has replaced history with his uninformed opinions about previous presidents. O'Reilly should be restricted to hosting bingo parties in senior living faculties.

Molovinsky Christmas Tour

Recently I posted about Bill White's recommended Christmas Light tours.  I hope that caravans of  new SUV's are taking White's tours, because he publishes his recommendations every year.  Bill, after all these years,  has his job down almost on autopilot;  Christmas light tours,  Eating his way through Musikfest,  Cake contest at fair, Grammar columns,  Hall of Shame, Worst sentence writer. etc., etc.

Anyway, I recommend that nobody take my light tour,  it's in the hood in center city Allentown. Actually, the block shown has had its share of crime in recent years. The alley is narrow,  so there is no passing another car.  The double parkers get very annoyed if you beep your horn.  Best to stick with White's tours out in suburbia, with the inflated decorations that are flaccid during the day.  Personally,  I prefer the center city house decorations.  There is something so much more inspiring about decorating a low income house, many of which are rentals.  It makes me feel better and more hopeful about downtown.

reprinted from December of 2017

This blog has been published every weekday, including holidays, since 2007.

The American Dictatorship

With 60 Minutes killing its exposé on Venezuelans in the El Salvador prison, we have effectively entered an era of censorship. Between Trump privately filing lawsuits, and government approval needed for mergers, the price of speaking up is currently very expensive for corporate America.

A small time pizza blogger like myself can still speak the truth, but for how long? We have turned the Navy into pirates, and are going to build new Trump Class battleships. Trump campaigned against forever wars, but now we throw threats around the Western Hemisphere.

I do sense an awaking. I believe that the incumbent Republicans facing midterms are beginning to appreciate how out of control Trump has become. MAGA itself is starting to splinter on several issues. Between his ego and truth bending, each speech strains his credibility more and more.

Another Shift For Jared Isaacman

Isaacman's second appointment to lead NASA took, unlike the first. He obviously has whatever administrative skills are necessary to run an organization, having started and turned Shift4 payroll into a national success.

Jared, in conjunction with Elon Musk's SpaceX, was the first civilian to do a spacewalk. Isaacman is a local, living in Northampton County.

Although I'm pleased with Isaacman's appointment, and it is the only Trump appointment I can say that about, I have issues with the space industry at Cape Canaveral. As previously reported on this blog, the industry is the growth engine for Brevard County Florida, and questions about environmental pollution there are heresy.

However, there is an old snowbird blogger in a small office inland from Canaveral, concerned with both the frequency of the launches, which are about every ten minutes, and the environmental consequences.

A Question In Allentown

When Matt Tuerk talks about making Allentown bike friendly, he wasn't thinking about large group of teenage riders, often starting in the wards (1st and 6th). Matt was envisioning the middle class, west end spandex types seen in Trexler Park. In Matt's vision, they stay in those stenciled lanes, and use bike racks when stopping at Starbucks.

I've seen the real-life hordes in Allentown. They're often going the wrong way, and ignoring traffic lights and stop signs. I've seen them doing wheelies in the middle of Tilghman Street.

But the reason for this post isn't the hordes, but reaction to them. Local photographer Devin Ford posted a batch of photos on a recent ride, and they were shared on social media. He wrote...The point of these group rides is to create an outlet for inner-city kids as opposed to getting involved with guns, drugs, etc. Very fun to get out there. Good energy & a great cause. Commenters were describing these group rides as kids being kids in 2025. They were saying give them room, and allow them to stay together, even by ignoring the traffic lights. 

It appears that there has to be discretion about different groups of riders at different times. It appears in the photo above that Matt is exercising that judgement.

photocredit:Devin Ford

Playing With Trains In Lehigh Valley

When I read about the new train to NYC feasibility study, I looked like I needed that drug for drug induced involuntary motions. My head was shaking back and forth and I was snickering. This is at least the second time such a study is being conducted, at another $1/2mil dollars. 

The article mentions and credits Phillip Armstrong and Becky Bradley.. Armstrong, counting the days off for Christmas, only has 34 minutes left as County Executive. Becky's last brainchild was planting flowers along Rt. 22, so that rush hour traffic would have something pretty to look at while they're struck for an hour every day.

Last time they concluded that bus service was more cost effective, considering the remaining rails are heavily used by freight, and new rails would be cost prohibitive for the demand. Considering that the population hasn't grown significantly, and less demand for on site employees in NYC, I would bet the conclusion will be the same. But when I bet it's my money, Armstrong and Bradley bet with our taxes.

Trump's Speech, Vanity Squared

I believe that Trump's address to the nation was conceived by Susan Wiles, to show that she is still in the co-pilot seat, despite her confessions to Vanity Fair Magazine. It was probably also intended as damage control in regard to Trump's crude remarks concerning the Reiner tragedy. It was very ill timed, considering that Trump had nothing substantial to say, and that he will have to repeat himself soon enough, for the State of the Union speech.

While none of his sycophants clued Trump in about why he was giving a speech, the media will inform him, again, soon enough. His speech was a ramble of factual errors and promises. Nothing you can put under the tree next week.

Wiles generally made the best of a hard case, an impulsive ego-maniac, her replacement won't fare as well. She had Trump's confidence, while her replacement will have Trump's doubt. I could care less about Trump, I do care about the country. If there was ever a president who needed a good manager, it is him. Let's hope that he picks this next apprentice well.

Ryan Mackenzie Stands Up

Ryan Mackenzie has stood up and signed on to a petition intended to extend the ACA subsidies. Although the petition was sponsored by Democrats, he joined several Republicans who joined the effort...The petition now has enough signatures to force a vote on the measure.

In the recent past, Trump and Company has referred to those who cross party lines as traitors, and has threatened to primary them. On that score, I can see no primary challenge coming Mackenzie's way.

I do believe, however, that his willingness to put his constituents ahead of a party agenda will help him in November. He has pretty much assured the vote of this old blogger.