In 2007, when LANTA decided to remove bus stops between 7th and 10th on Hamilton Street, the mostly minority merchants reached out to Fed Ed for help. He refused to even speak to them. He refused to speak with me, too.
One of those he ignored was Bibi Hazra, who then operated the Loco Dollar Store in downtown Allentown. I'll never forget her words.
"He's our father. He's the father of our house. He's supposed to take care of us. If he doesn't take care of his children, who can he take care of?"
The rich.
His campaign finance reports and city contracts tell us who he was really serving.
Judge Sánchez saw through the bullshit.
Press reports indicate he's on his way to the Federal Detention Center in Philly until he's classified. He'd be better off on a slave ship being used as an oar.
What's most remarkable is his complete absence of remorse.
His unwillingness to face his own flaws and be honest with himself paved the way to federal prison for him.
I take no satisfaction in seeing him incarcerated. His years in office haven done great damage to the city he claims to have served. Now he's serving 15.
When are we finishing up with the rest of them. BTW the oar thing, very funny. You might take some heat for the slave ship part though.
ReplyDeleteGod Bless our beloved Mayor Palowski!
ReplyDeleteAllentown bond rate falls.
ReplyDeleteThe Mayor so loved his city that he gave up his freedom for us!
ReplyDeleteThe only one who slipped through the cracks was Susan Wild, her collaboration with choosing the Cedar beach pool contractor, that has been a disaster, should have been enough to indict her.
ReplyDeleteThe pool is still not really usable, whose use of has been denied to the poor kids of the city and has the cost the city millions.
It is interesting that her campaign is paying ex fbi officials to still try to distance her from Pawlowsk's corruption.
She claims she is a politician in the mold of Hillary Clinton, we can believe her on that one.
A little corruption in city government is pre-school for corruption in big federal government.
ReplyDeleteThe present city administrators have learned well, they are still giving out no bid contracts in the dark of the night.
ReplyDeleteWhat ever happened to the demolition contract of Hyman's building?
Fleck next!!!!!
ReplyDeleteAnd Susan Wild slithers on to Congress! Disgusting POS. Why was she not Indicted too Bernie?
ReplyDeleteThe delusional Ed "The Penguin" Pawlowski should be sent to Arkham Asylum!
ReplyDeleteHe brainwashed all that looked up to him and worshiped him as though he was a God. I’m waiting for the remainder of the P gang to be taken down as he’s been. They are still operating with corruption. And mind controlling the weak. Start with the existing Mayor and all of City Council! I have first hand experience with their continued corruption!
ReplyDeleteFour huge mistakes (out of many):
ReplyDelete1. Ever becoming mixed up with Mike Fleck
2. Should have been happy to be Mayor for life and not tried to be Governor or Congressman
2. Should have admitted guilt on Day 1 and took a plea bargain
3. Should have poured his heart out to Judge Sanchex yesterday, admitting guilt and apologizing to friends, family and Allentown citizens (might have shaved 3-5 years off his sentence if he pulled it off with sincerity)
I saw Bill White's column on the "The Tragic Tale of Two Ed Pawlowski's". White's premise was that Pawlowski was both the corrupt politician that was sentenced yesterday, as well as a caring man of faith with a genuine heart for justice.
ReplyDeleteWhite couldn't be more wrong.
If there were two Ed Pawlowski's, they are the corrupt politician that was sentenced yesterday, and the lie propagated by the Morning Call in a decade of glowing accounts of Pawlowski as some sort of savior. Far from a savior, Pawlowski was a troll on the city's bridge to possible success, charging illegal tolls to everyone he could.
Instead of continuing with puff pieces that falsely credit Pawlowski for any progress in Allentown, maybe the Morning Call should look inward and write about its involvement in the whole affair. For instance, how about stories about:
1) How the Morning Call missed (until an FBI raid made it impossible to ignore) the biggest municipal corruption scandal in the region's history, despite the scandal occurring less than two blocks from the newspaper's headquarters;
2) How a newspaper (and columnist) that routinely rails against gerrymandered voting districts stayed silent on City Hall corruption while its offices were gerrymandered into the tax-advantaged Neighborhood Improvement Zone; and how the Morning Call received a sweetheart deal on locating a multi-million dollar parking deck across from its offices;
3) How one-party rule has led to corruption and disfunction in City government, and how politically-biased reporting has contributed to that.
4) How so little has changed in Allentown City Hall despite an FBI raid and conviction of the city's former mayor. No meaningful reforms have been proposed or adopted that would deter a future Mayor from doing the same things to the residents of Allentown.
Any of those stories would be worthy of weeks, if not months, of stories and investigation. But Morning Call readers will see none of them.
I dislike Susan Wild. I consider her dishonest. I believe she is not who she pretends to be. She spent her legal career representing the wealthy and powerful. But I have no reason to believe she was in any way a part of the criminal conspiracy. I do have some questions bc her name came up repeatedly during the trial, but my view is that the feds prosecuted a large number of people and would have prosecuted her if there was sufficient evidence. I do think there was enogh evidence to indict Rosen, and he slithered away. Ruchlewicz, the biggest snake of all, sltgered away without being charged. Wild? Where’s the evidence? These attacks are political.
ReplyDeleteShe approved a contract for the Cedar beach pool by the 3rd bidder,not the the lowest bid, from a company that had poor references. She was pressured to endorse that contract, as solicitor she should have pointed out that it was illegal, she was complicit with the Pawlowski corruption, she was not acting in the best interests of the citizens but in the interests of the corrupt administration. The pool has been a disaster and has caused the city millions in overruns. I don't think the pool is actually usable yet. Come on, a swimming pool is not rocket science. Nor is it rocket science to find a competent contractor to build a pool. This is all documented in the fbi report.
ReplyDeleteThe morning call is as corrupt as the Pawlowski admin. Why any reputable business would advertise with them is a wonder. Does advertising in the Morning call help in doing business with the corrupt local politicians. They are part of the crooked crony system in Allentown.
ReplyDeletefred ed 15 years in the house his lawyer wild to congress think about that
ReplyDeleteThe one who slithered away is Charlie Thiel! He gave money to Fed Ed's campaigns and got a no bid contract for the camera system. That is the definition of pay to play. After speaking with an FBI agent, I was told that he was very close to being indicted. Yet, he will probably run for Mayor again as a puppet of Jenn Mann. The corruption continues...
ReplyDeleteKim Oliver, please explain.
ReplyDeleteNot only is he serving 15 years, he's sucking on a big 15" for 15 years...
ReplyDelete9:55 -
ReplyDeleteI imagine he's going to a federal prison for white collar criminals, and will be treated far better than many would feel he deserves.
although the judge saw through his charade of dragging minorities up to testify for him, the same still can't be said for the Morning Call.
ReplyDeletewe (ramblings and on allentown) can credit ourselves with providing alternative news for this past decade
Thank you BO’H and MM.
ReplyDeleteTHANKYOU!
Bill White is a man who sold his soul.
ReplyDeleteHe’s not alone.
The public record is clear. There is no reason to name names, many of us know who they are and they most certainly do.
How very sad.
All this being said, the corrupting mechanism to allow for the Mayor or City Council to award gifts to their friends or supporters without municipal review is still in the Zoning Ordinance in plain sight.
ReplyDelete1311.17 EXEMPTION FOR MUNICIPAL USES. This Ordinance shall not apply to any lot,
existing or proposed building, use thereof, of any expansion thereof, owned, used or to be
used by the City of Allentown or for a use authorized by the Mayor or City Council by
virtue of a lease or other contract.
As a frequent rider, I'll take the brand new Allentown Transportation Center (ATC) over Hamilton Street any day of the week. Bus operators and people who actually use LANTA love ATC for its ease of transfers, security and centralized support services. Remember those stores are a block away!! Using Hamilton Street as a downtown hub made no sense. No more running from 9th Street down to 8th Street to try and catch a transfer. If I'm waiting for a bus at night, I'd prefer to be at a safe, well lit central station with security guards, than standing up on Hamilton Street in the dark. That whole fiasco was generated by political opportunists, who never actually used LANTA. The LANTA service in Allentown is exponentially better now than 5-10 years ago.
ReplyDeleteanon@11:33, i doubt that you use the bus at all, much less frequently. With most all the stores now gone, I agree that the terminal now does have validity. historically, stores and bus stops complemented each other. I don't know about political opportunists, but apparently apologists still exist......
ReplyDeleteThis story doesn't happen without MM and BOH. They provided what the MC and what's left of local news, refused to, despite the pile of evidence under which they were buried. What a shameful moment for old journalism. What a proud moment for new, alternative sources. Job well done, both.
ReplyDelete1311.17 EXEMPTION. How much did the billboards generate for the City each year since 2014?
ReplyDeleteArena and billboard lawsuits, Using Water lease dollars to buy over valued land. Lease purchase and then the resale. Bottom line, the public lost on all these deals.
"anon@11:33, i doubt that you use the bus at all, much less frequently. With most all the stores now gone, I agree that the terminal now does have validity. historically, stores and bus stops complemented each other. I don't know about political opportunists, but apparently apologists still exist......"
ReplyDeleteOf course I couldn't ride LANTA frequently right? I'm sure you think only, the poor, mentally ill, elderly and urban underclass ride the LANTA huh and they wouldn't post here.
I no longer consider the Morning Call a reliable source of information. About the only straight news that appears there is the Obituaries.
ReplyDeleteBill White? A perfect example of someone who is hanging around way to long.
The parade of character witnesses who actively or tacitly support this criminals behavior is disgusting
ReplyDelete12.55, even that may not be a sure thing, after all none of them can correct the record.
ReplyDeleteThat zoning provision (as quoted above) originally said it exempted City governmental uses that are necessary for public purposes. That is standard language, to cover parks, pumping stations, etc. Pawlowski changed it to include leases approved by the Mayor, which could be for-profit uses that had nothing to do with public purposes. As a result, we have 8 large electronic billboards on city property.
ReplyDeleteCan anyone help me get the names of the people who testified as character witnesses for Fed Ed?
ReplyDelete141. How did this billboard deal go down? It was suggested everyone went away a winner...that of course does not consider the taxpayer.
ReplyDeleteBernie, being on a slave ship and beaten with an oar would be more likened to its need.
ReplyDeleteThe mayor was overwhelmingly elected by a whopping 4% of Allentown's residents.
ReplyDeleteVOR
I am sure that many of these anti-Morning Call posts are being written by WAEBs Bobby Gunther Walsh or his mutant-parasite friends from the local Tea Party or the NRA. Bobby will never forgive the Morning Call for putting his picture on the paper's front page when he got arrested for assaulting his daughter. By the way, these local Tea Party mutants are the same parasites that sit behind Trump at a rally wearing shirts that's say "better to be Russsian than Democrat".
ReplyDeleteSounds like someone here needs his / her safe space.
Delete" Remember those stores are a block away!!"
ReplyDeleteIf you are an aging senior laden down with odds and ends from the Dollar store, it might as well be 100 miles away.
"I am sure that many of these anti-Morning Call posts are being written by WAEBs Bobby Gunther Walsh or his mutant-parasite friends from the local Tea Party or the NRA"
ReplyDeleteI have no idea who posts anti-Morning Call comments, but I know it is not Bobby Gunther Walsh. He reached out to me once about something relayed to him, and told me he does not read my blog.
I don't like what is going on at TMC, and I am by no means with the tea party or NRA. My criticism is that it supports the status quo and those in power. I KNOW editors there killed stories critical of Fed Ed. I have spoken to the reporters. The paper deserves a bit of criticism.
By the way, I am sure you have an agenda, too.
"Can anyone help me get the names of the people who testified as character witnesses for Fed Ed?"
ReplyDeleteNot me. These people should face no retribution for exercising their first amendment rights. I have previously spoken to Alan Jennings about his support for Fed Ed as a person and why. I respect his decision. Hate the sin, but love the sinner. These are mostly good people.
God Bless this man of God!
ReplyDelete