Pension Reform In Pennsylvania

It's not often that I have anything especially good to say about our boys in Harrisburg.  Today is the exception.  I congratulate the state house for finally passing a pension reform bill.  Needless to say it will disappoint those who sought greater reform, however, for Harrisburg it is as much as I hoped for.  Understand that even under a Republican Governor, with Republicans in charge of both houses,  it failed to pass.

Although 50% of the pensions for teachers and state workers will remain guaranteed,  the other half will be governed by the market,  as it is for most people in the private sector, those who still even have a pension.  No previous or existing employee's pension will be affected by the reform,  which will only effect new employees, starting in 2019.

Tax relief advocates now hope to shift school taxes from real estate to income.  I don't think we will see that anytime soon, if at all.

Bernie The Blog Lawyer

The local blogosphere has its own self-proclaimed legal authority, Bernie O'Hare.  Between Bernie's background and his temperament,  he's a whole courtroom; prosecutor, judge and jury.  Anyway, what brings us to this post is Bernie's statement last week that I implied that a commentator using a pseudonym might be Bernie, while knowing that wasn't the case.  Bernie is simply wrong.  By design,  people comment either anonymously or with a pseudonym to keep their identity hidden.  In some cases I might happen to know who the person is,  but in this case, I do not.  Bernie states that I knew he doesn't use a sock puppet because he told me so several times.   Actually, what that reveals is that I harbored this suspicion, and questioned him about it.  Although, I was polite enough to not further question his denials, it doesn't mean that I accepted them as gospel.

Bernie is offended because he considers such speculation an affront on his honor,  which he is seeking to repair because of some issue in his distant past.  Regardless of Bernie's personal history, or whether my speculation is correct or not,  he should not disparage my reputation because he's defensive about his own.

ADDENDUM: I would have preferred to place this post as a comment on O'Hare's post about me.  However, he made it clear that a comment from me would be deleted.

UPDATE:  Bernie posted Friday June 9th, describing this post as an attack on him.  In reality, this post is a response against his accusation that I made a speculation that I knew to be untrue.  I suppose he believes that he is so persuasive that his readers will accept such distortions.

Armstrong Suit Makes National News

A lawsuit started by Scott Armstrong and Steven Ramos made national news yesterday as the media picks up on the ghost teacher problem in Pennsylvania. As reported years ago on this blog, the head of the teacher's union who does not teach is paid by the Allentown School District. Armstrong, a former school board member, initially made this outrage public. Needless to say he became a target of the union, and was subsequently voted off the board. It says something about Allentown, that someone being recognized nationally for protecting the taxpayers, could not get re-elected to the board.

I believe that Armstrong's departure from the board didn't bode well for the district.  In a less than color blind search for a new superintendent, all finalists were of color.  The board and district seems hellbent on trying strategies which are proven failures from elsewhere.

I'll leave you with breaking tip, not yet known by the local main stream media.  The district is changing the payroll schedule, which will delay paychecks, and annoy everybody.

We Are Still In

Lafayette College has joined and signed the We Are Still In agreement,  a reaction campaign against Trump not signing the Paris Accord.  The college's president said climate is not a partisan issue.  Bi-partisan and college hardly go together,  they're much more comfortable with bi-sexuals than Republicans. : )  Anywho, although it's wonderful for the college president to be pro-active about climate change,  I wonder how she is preparing the students for jobs in the real world.  Trump didn't sign because he doesn't believe in climate change, but because he's afraid that the accord may make United States less competitive in world markets.  By most standards we are already more advanced in pollution measures than most countries.

Institutional politics are the current public relations rage.  Amazon, which opened in the Lehigh Valley with horrendous working conditions in its warehouse, signed on to the agreement. We are a Sanctuary City and Starbucks pledged to hire immigrants. Years ago a coffee house charged a buck for a cup, and people talked politics. Now they charge $4.19,  and pour their politics down your throat.

Trexler Park Pond Probably A Thing Of The Past

The pond at Trexler Park may be a thing of the past. Supposedly, the dam gate was breached over the weekend.  I examined it in the last several months, and it appeared in good enough condition to me. Last year, when the second, lower pond next to it developed a sinkhole,  it was never restored.

Understand that the Wildlands Conservancy doesn't like dams and ponds, and that the Conservancy dictates policy, for both Allentown and South Whitehall Park Systems.  If anybody doubts that reality,  just visit Cedar Park by the Rose Garden and try to find the creek.  The Conservancy has a riparian buffer hiding the creek from both view and access.  The weed wall buffer provides no ecological benefit, because the storm water system is piped directly into the creek, bypassing the buffers anyway.  Never the less, this is the Wildlands' policy.  In South Whitehall, the Conservancy has installed a son of one of their officers as Park Director.  In Allentown, the Park Director does as she is told.

Those who appreciate the iconic park system gifted upon Allentown by both General Harry Trexler and the WPA,  can only learn about the degradation of the park system here at this blog. The local paper, The Morning Call, has refused to publish my protests against the Wildlands Conservancy, and the consequences of their influence on our park systems.

Although, the Trexler Trust should insist that the dam gate be replaced (it's only a few pieces of lumber stacked in a rack) they probably also have a working relationship with the Wildlands Conservancy.  Trexler Park was the private estate of Harry and Mary Trexler.  The now empty pond was always the heart of the park.

Trump And The Inarticulate Truth

A comment on a local blog stated that the terrorists in Britain had no connection to the countries on Trump's travel ban. Actually, in reality they did. The Manchester bomber had returned from trips to both Syria and Libya just before he set off the bomb at the concert. The erroneous comment appears on a local blog post admiring Britain's stiff upper lip, and taking Trump to task for his out of context remark about not being alarmed in London. I think that in this war we're better off erring on the side of caution. While we lament that Trump doesn't sound presidential, British PM Theresa May laments that they have been too politically correct about radical Islam.

Yesterday on facebook, I saw some locals talking about moving to France because Trump opted out of the Paris Accord. I though that they had already moved to Canada after the election in November. Meanwhile, while they blather about moving, Trump is trying to keep them safe here, in spite of themselves and their criticism of him.

Bernie The Movie

In a post yesterday, Bernie O'Hare kidded that they're making a movie about him.  A reader questioned who would play the part of Bernie?  There was a suggestion that George Clooney play the part.  I doubt that Clooney is available for a movie in Nazareth, but for the last couple of years I've seen countless comments on Bernie's blog about the Mediterranean Manslab.  Supposedly the Manslab has forgiven Bernie for any association with his prolonged incarnation, and might consider the part.  Of course, the woman Bernie calls CRaZy should be the female lead.  Hopefully, she can forgive him for putting the judgement he won against her on his blog sidebar for a year.  At the premiere, the former mayor could introduce the local celebrities, assuming he forgives Bernie.  Security could be handled by the former police chief, assuming he forgives Bernie.  Because Bernie's blog readers are mostly anonymous, he can invite them on the blog, instead of by mail.  Wonder if I'll be invited?

Shock Comedian Goes Too Far

Kathy Griffin has used shock as part of her act for over a decade. If it was simulating sex with Anderson Cooper,  or whatever. However, her severed Trump head photo shoot has cost her the New Year's Eve CNN date.  Actually, I was surprised that Cooper kept agreeing to that gig, as he evolved into a broadcast journalist.

Although CNN might now be even more anti-Trump than MSNBC,  Griffin's stunt was even too much for them.  You cannot be associated with something like that, and still purport to be a news outlet.  Griffin has sincerely apologized, after she realized the damage. Even people on the left, such as Chelsea Clinton, spoke out against severed head image. Perhaps, we have reached the low point in permitted desecration of the President.

On a more subtle note, writer Thomas Ricks suggested that General McMaster resign from his position as a security adviser,  rather than enable Trump with his good reputation.  After his article appeared in Politico,  Ricks has been making the rounds on commentary shows, repeating his recommendation for McMaster literally word for word on each show. Being anti-Trump has become a cottage industry in itself.