The LuLac Edition #1629, June 9th, 2011

PHOTO INDEX: GOVERNOR TOM CORBETT, PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE HERMAN CAIN AND OUR 1972 LOGO.

TOMMY TONE DEAF

I wanted to like Tom Corbett as Governor. I really did. Even though I voted for Dan Onorato (I’ve actually voted for more GOP governors than Dems in my lifetime) I thought Corbett would be a pretty good choice. The Education budget was artificially inflated by the reckless Rendell application to it creating a sense of false entitlement and security. Corbett’s cuts were only putting them back to pre-stimulus levels. And he seems to be a likable guy. But two recent developments have me scratching my head. The first is the fleet situation. Corbett said in TV advertisements that he was going to reduce the state fleet because there wasn’t a need for all those cars. Yet we find out that the Governor recently acquired 4 new high end vehicles for his use. Corbett makes a big deal about not raising taxes because he wants to keep to his no tax pledge from the campaign. How did this thing slip through the cracks? Another thing that caused me concern was the act that members of the anti gas drilling coalition showed up at his office for a meeting. From my understanding not one staff member even had the courtesy to sit with them. This complete shut out of citizens is a terrible example of why people hate government. The only thing that is holding this entire country back from a full scale violent revolt against state and federal government is the creature comforts we are used to as Americans. Can you imagine if we were a nation without High Definition TVs, gas grills, decks, pools and all forms of entertainment? Perhaps it is a good and blessed thing that there are few people in this country without absolutely nothing to lose.
But getting back to Corbett, this is a perfect example of a leader being tone deaf to the promises and concerns of his people. Perhaps it’s the Attorney General side of him, maybe its his staff. Either way, the Governor has to make adjustments because this kind of stuff might have worked 20 years ago but certainly not in today’s political environment.

BEFORE THE JUDGE

Two more individuals mired in the Luzerne County corruption case were sentenced today in Federal Court in Scranton. Former County Court Administrator William Sharkey got 10 months in a federal prison and lost his pension. Former Probation Chief Sandra Brulo got 2 years probation and 2 months house arrest for falsifying records.

NEW CHOCOLATE

This is related to Pennsylvania and its economy because of the Hershey headquarters in the state. Hershey's has recently debuted a new riff on its chocolate bars and kisses: aerated chocolate. "Your taste buds have never experienced chocolate bubbles like these," claims Hershey's. While spokesperson Anna Lingeris explains that Air Delight's "light and airy texture causes the chocolate to melt with ease over your tongue, making it the ultimate chocolate indulgence," blogger Foodette sees otherwise. "It's a phenomenal way, much like whipped cream cheese and whipped candy bars, to stuff less product into the container and sell the very air you're whipping into it in the first place and overcharge the customer," she argues (see her full no holds barred review here). Cybele May of Candy Blog notices some sour notes, as well as a bit of saltiness and milkiness, though she deems the treat "worth it" and rates it a seven out of 10. Aerated chocolate accounts for $500 million of global confection sales.

RAISING CAIN

A candidate to keep an eye on in the GOP Presidential primaries in 2012 is Herman Cain. He is the former CEO of GoodFello’s Pizza. When he first started his effort, there were some who said he would be the Republican party’s Al Sharpton. Uh don’t think so. Sharpton to my knowledge has never held a job in the private sector and Cain has run a business. Cain drew over 15,000 people to his kick off and is an articulate spokesman for GOP business policies. How he will resonate with GOP voters in the heartland is anyone’s guess. But keep in mind that it was Barack Obama who won the Iowa caucuses in the nearly white Midwestern state. A political operative told me that he thought Cain might be a tough opponent for Obama. “Right now voters, especially black ones see Theo Huxtable in the White House. Why settle for Theo when you can have Cliff Huxtable, a grown up running the show?” I’m not sure what segment of black voters this guy was talking to but he does have a point. The GOP which has long had the rap of not encouraging black voter participation has a contender that appears to be anything but a fringe candidate. And unlike some of the candidates contemplating the race, Herman Cain does speak like an adult.

JOB DESCRIPTION

The Luzerne County Transition committee has put together a job description for the new County manager. County Council candidates, 11 of the 22 (not to mention Independents if they get on the ballot will be making that big decision. The Job Description is available on the Luzerne County website. Or at least that's what Rick Morelli told Sue Henry yesterday. http://www.luzernecounty.org/county/home-rule-transition.

BUH BYE

It wasn’t at the Anthony Weiner level but an economic development agency employee in the Lehigh Valley lost her job because she twittered about the agency having summer hours. She went on to say that perhaps employees can commence golfing at noon. It seemed like an innocent joke but she was canned because the CEO Phil Mitman said the tweet was out of line. Folks there is a reason why they call it work. This social media is great for keeping up with old friends but unless your building is on fire, stay the hell off of it. Wait until you get home and then if you must tweet, talk about your dog.

WIKIPEDIA AND REVERE

So there is talk that some of Sarah Palin’s fans tried to tap into Wikipedia to add comments on the site that mirrored her statements about the ride of Paul Revere and its historical significance. As Winston Churchill once said, A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject." But let’s hope Palin refrains from opining on old Winnie’s career.

AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT


MEDIA MATTERS

SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE

This week Shadoe Steele’s guest on Satuday Night Live At the Oldies is George Benson. Saturday Night Live At the Oldies is heard on Saturdays from 7pm to midnight with ABC News on the top of the hour on WILK AM and FM.

STORM POLITICS

This week’s guest on Storm Politics is Carol Drewniak. Mrs. Drewniak will talk about summer reading as well as her 40 year association with a book club.
Show Times: MON @ 9:00 PM • TUES @ 4:30 PM • WED @ 8:00 PM • THURS @ 9:30 PM • SAT @ 5 PM • SUN @ 11 PM. WYLN TV 35 can be seen on Channel 7 in the Wilkes Barre Area on Service Electric Channel 7.

ECTV


Mary Ann Moran on the Lackawanna Historical Society will be the featured guest on ECTV Live the week of June 13th. She'll be discussing special ceremonies to mark the 125th anniversary of the first electric trolly which ran throught the streets of Scranton. The program airs onComcast Ch19 at Noon and Midnight throughout the week..


SUNDAY MAGAZINE

This Weekend on Sunday Magazine: Brian Hughes speaks with Jeanne Allen from the Center of Educational Reform about Senate Bill 1 dealing with school choice. Brian speaks with Evelyn Walter and Stephanie O’Hara who discuss the 7th annual Cali Memorial Car Show Sunday June 27th at the Fleetville Fire Company Grounds An encore of Brian’s interview with Shannon Ludwig from the Red Cross who talks about blood drives during the month of June, as well as the Red Cross response to flooding in the South and tornados in the Midwest
This Week In Harrisburg examines the call to reinstate Pa Adult Basic, legislation in the State House that would ban teacher strikes, Senator John Yudichak’s Juvenile Justice Reform bill passes through the Senate, and a Republican bill to protect the PACE & PACENET programs passes through the State House.
Sunday Magazine, Sunday morning at 5:30am on JR 93.7,& 97BHT, 6am on 97.9X, 6:30am on Magic 93, and 9:30am on WARM 590 AM.

1972

The Black Hills flood kills 238 in South Dakota......George McGovern wins the 192 Democratic primary over Hubert Humphrey in a hotly contested race. The winner take all election puts McGovrn in prime position to be the Democratic nominee............in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Governor Shapp’s budget negotiations go through with only a modest tax increase. Revenues generated from the Pa. Lottery go into a special fund for Senior Citizens and that frees up money in other areas of the state.......in Lackawanna County, Congressman Joe McDade wins a seat on the coveted Appropriations committee sharing the workload and the federal largess with his 11th district neighbor Dan Flood. McDade campaigns hard but will have little opposition in the fall election and 39 years ago today the number 1 song in America and LuLac lands was “Morning Has Broken” by Cat Stevens. It also was the class song played at the mass at St. John the Evangelist this week when I graduated high school.