The LuLac Edition #1167, Apr. 30th, 2010

PHOTO INDEX: VIETNAM FELL 35 YEARS AGO TODAY, OUR 1966 LOGO, CONGRESSMAN PAUL KANJORSKI AND THE COVER OF A SHAPP FOR GOVERNOR FLYER.

TALK RADIO BABBLE

I love talk radio although I must confess with baseball season upon us I’m gravitating more toward Fox Sports and ESPN Radio. But the other day on my friend Sue Henry’s program a caller from Old Forge (I won’t give her name because I don’t reward stupid behavior) said with utmost authority that there were no hearings at all about the Wall Street problems. That Congress didn’t do anything about it and didn’t even bother to convene on that issue. Here are the facts: This woman’s Congressman, my Congressman Paul Kanjorski has held (chaired) 20 hearings since the summer of 2008. He is the Chairman of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government Sponsored Enterprises. Many of these hearings were to help guide the work of the Financial Services Committee in the 11th Congress in undertaking the most substantial rewrite of the laws governing the U.S. financial markets since the Great Depression. He also participated in countless full Financial Services Committee hearings. Those are the facts. Talk Radio is a wonderful medium. People have a right to express their opinion. But opinions that are taken seriously are based on facts. As the Isley Brothers used to say “Express Yourself” but get some facts right.

MALCOM X SHOOTER FREED

The Associated Press reports that the only man to admit shooting Malcolm X was freed on parole Tuesday, 45 years after he assassinated the civil rights leader. Thomas Hagan, the last man still serving time in the 1965 killing, was freed from a Manhattan prison where he spent two days a week under a work-release program, state Department of Correctional Services spokeswoman Linda Foglia said. Hagan, 69, has said he was one of three gunmen who shot Malcolm X as he began a speech at Harlem's Audubon Ballroom on Feb. 21, 1965. But Hagan has said the two men convicted with him were not involved. The assassins gunned down Malcolm X out of anger at his split with the leadership of the Nation of Islam, the black Muslim movement for which he had once served as chief spokesman, said Hagan, who was then known as Talmadge X Hayer. The board granted Hagan's parole request on his 17th try. He was initially scheduled for release Wednesday, but the date was moved up because his paperwork was completed, Foglia said. I was off of school that Monday for Washington’s Birthday. The killing of X so close to the assassination of JFK was very unsettling but a harbinger of things to come in the 60s.

O’MEARA ON CLINIC

James O’Meara Sr., Republican candidate for Pennsylvania’s 121st Legislative District, said the controversy arising from the operation of a substance abuse treatment facility in Ashley underscores the need for a new state law that would protect the interests of residents while adhering to federal non-discrimination laws. The Ashley situation involves the Miners Medical Center, 43 S. Main St., which residents say houses a methadone clinic for substance abusers. They say the clinic’s proximity to a playground, bus stop and daycare center poses a risk to the neighborhood. A 1999 Pennsylvania statute that barred such clinics from operating near a residential area was struck down in 2007 by a federal appeals court. The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia overturned a lower court’s ruling and declared the state law in violation of federal law. O’Meara, who is seeking to represent the 121st District which includes Ashley, said state lawmakers should take another look at the previous piece of legislation. He applauded resident Marie Saltz for taking the lead in protecting her neighborhood. “We need a way to reconcile situations like this,” O’Meara said. “I understand the importance of helping folks who are seeking to rid themselves of addictions.“But we cannot ignore the needs of our children and our biggest responsibility to our children is to keep them safe,” he said. The appellate court’s decision ended a years-long dispute between the city of Reading and owners of a methadone clinic. In the 52-page opinion, the case was described as a “familiar conflict between the legal principle of nondiscrimination and the political principle of not-in-my-backyard.” O’Meara, if elected, would propose setting up a committee to explore a revised bill addressing the concerns of the neighborhoods as well as the clients seeking help at the clinics. “If we could craft legislation, then I would be willing to sponsor or co-sponsor it,” O’Meara said. “This is more than a ‘not-in-my-backyard’ issue. It’s about protecting our greatest asset, our children. “It’s a shame that this law was declared unconstitutional. It’s a bigger shame not to go back to the drawing board and work with legal experts to craft a bill that would stand up in the courts.“I believe we can write the bill in such a way that it would require local officials to weigh the pros and cons of each case and not give carte blanche to any substance abuse clinic that wants to set up shop in the middle of a neighborhood. This is a matter of looking at the rights of both sides in this issue, and not just the rights of those who abuse drugs. “Our children have rights, too, including the right to play safely in their own neighborhoods.” Without having to have a vote, the full Senate agreed to move to start debate on the financial regulatory reform bill. The chamber did it through a procedure called "unanimous consent" -- meaning that all senators agreed to start the debate.

FINALLY AFTER 3 NOS

So after three votes where every single Republican voted against starting debate, every Republican agreed to start debate after saying they got some concessions from Democrats. Please keep in mind the aforementioned paragraph, there were three votes where every single Republican voted no for Financial Regulatory Reform. THEY VOTED NO! Hey Tea Party people, right wing citizen activists, people making less than $100,000 a year, THEY VOTED NO. They voted NO to regulate the system, the Wall Street Shylocks who literally brought us to the brink of bankruptcy. They just didn’t vote no on a particular measure, they voted no to even start a debate. So the next time you start whining about how you want your country back, how America is losing its stature, don’t criticize the people trying to do something about it, look into your party of NO and realize what they’ll screw you at every turn. Most of you are pro life. Did the GOP overturn Roe vs. Wade? NO. Most of you want border protection. Did the GOP come up with any plan when they were in office? NO. Most of you want more of your income to “invest” because after all it’s your money. Did the Wall Street people look after the little investors in the last decade, people that lost thousands while the greedy Wall Streeters got bonuses? Hear any outrage from the GOP? NO.

AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT

BUSH'S BOOK

The publisher of former President George W. Bush's book "Decision Points on Sunday set a Nov. 9 release date, unveiled its cover design and announced new details about it. Bush has said he is not writing a traditional memoir but an account of key decisions in his life. The cover features a photo of then-President Bush alone with his thoughts, standing in the Rose Garden Colonnade, wearing a dark suit and holding a briefing book, his head turned slightly from the camera. Crayolas not included.

AN EARFUL!!!!

Police say a 24-year-old man is missing a chunk of his right ear that was bitten off by a woman who didn't like being called "fat." Police spokeswoman Katie Flood said officers were called to a Nebraska hospital around 3:25 a.m. Wednesday to talk to the injured man. He told them that he'd been bitten at a party. Flood said officers later learned that the injured man and two others had been arguing with other people at the birthday party. Flood says the man told 21-year-old Anna Godfrey that she was fat. Officers said Godfrey then tackled the man and took a bite. Flood said the ear chunk was not found. It is not clear whether the attacker had the ear with or without a garlic butter sauce.

YUDICHAK GETS ENDORSEMENT

John Yudichak, Democratic State Senate candidate in the 14th Senatorial District, today received the unanimous endorsement of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) District Council 87. AFSCME was established in 1971 to improve wages, benefits, and working conditions for public and private non-profit employees – those who protect and serve the citizens of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. AFSCME members are employed at the state, county, township, borough, and city level, and in health care and social service facilities throughout Pennsylvania. AFSCME is the fastest-growing and most progressive union in the country. The endorsement announcement of Yudichak was made by AFSCME District Council 87 Director David Antle. D.C. Council 87 encompasses all of northeastern Pennsylvania. “John Yudichak has always supported AFSCME members and we are, in turn, proud to support him for State Senate,” said Antle. “John’s pro-labor voting record is beyond reproach. Our unanimous endorsement of his candidacy will translate into many votes from AFSCME union households come May 18th.” AFSCME is more than 1.6 million members strong nationwide. The coveted AFSCME endorsement marks the fifth major labor endorsement for Yudichak, following the unanimous endorsements of the Fraternal Order of Police Wyoming Valley Lodge # 36, Northeastern PA Building and Construction Trades Council, Pennsylvania Professional Fire Fighters Association, and the Pennsylvania State Education Association. “I am extremely grateful to have received the unanimous and important endorsement of AFSCME District Council 87,” said Yudichak. “These are the hard-working men and women who make government work for the people of Northeastern Pennsylvania. I am proud of the job they do and am humbled by their endorsement of my candidacy for State Senate. As their State Senator, I will continue to support AFSCME and the entire labor movement’s hard-won rights to fair wages, benefits, and working standards. I will always stand with labor.”Pennsylvania’s Primary Elections will take place Tuesday, May 18th.

CONAHAN COPS

Former Judge Michael Conahan signed a plea agreement with federal prosecutors that calls for him to plead guilty to a single count of racketeering conspiracy. The Times Leader and WBRE TV's Joe Holden report that all other charges, which included bribery, extortion, mail fraud, and honest services fraud, will be dismissed. The plea deal also calls for Conahan to forego any opposition to a forfeiture action and to surrender his law license. The agreement does not include a cooperation clause. Meanwhile Attorney Al Flora said as far as he knows, Conahan does not intend to testify against his client former Judge Mark Ciavarella. Flora said Ciavarella continues to maintain his innocence and is planning to go to trial on a 48-count indictment that was filed against he and Conahan in last year.

VIETNAM 35 YEARS LATER

Vietnam fell 35 years ago and the scars are still with us.


1966

Uniform daylight saving time is first observed according to a federal mandate in most parts of North America....Swinging Radio England and Britain Radio commence broadcasting on AM, with a combined potential 100,000 watts, from the same ship anchored off the south coast of England in international waters......Pennsylvania voters get a 12 page 8 ½ by 11 book in the mail outlining the campaign of Media Pa. industrialist Milton Shapp, the unendorsed Democratic candidate for Governor of Pennsylvania. Shapp is running against Scranton State Senator Robert Casey…..in Harding 80 workers return to their jobs at Celotex after a strike disabled the plant for a few weeks, meanwhile workers at the Foster Wheeler plant in Mountaintop schedule a meeting to talk about their contract negotiations….and 44 years ago this week the number 1 song in America and LuLac land was "Rainy Day Women #12 and 35" by Bob Dylan.