State House Unanimously Honors Grube

The state house unanimously adopted a resolution earlier this month to honor former Northampton County Council member Wayne Grube. He was friend and legislative aide to Rep. Rich Grucela, who introduced the state house document.

Grube passed away on Nov. 11, 2008.

"I am privileged to honor a man today who is widely respected in Northampton County for his dedication to community service and hard work," Grucela said. "Wayne Grube was the first employee hired to work in my district office after I was elected to the House of Representatives in 1998. He spent the last 10 years working as my legislative aide and was a trusted friend, co-worker and confidant for 40 years. I am proud to honor his life with this House resolution."

Grucela added, "A good friend is hard to find, tough to lose and impossible to forget."
Grube was well known for his years as the former football coach at Easton Area and Wilson Area high schools, and for the 19 years he served on Northampton County Council. He was also a veteran of the U.S. Navy.

Don Cunningham To Announce Reelection Bid Tonight

Who: Lehigh County Executive Don Cunningham

What: Re-election announcement

Where: The Palace Center

623 Hanover Ave.

Allentown, PA 18109

When: 6-8 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 17

Don makes the difficult look easy. His campaign web page is here.

Stoffa Quietly Announces Reelection Bid

The waiting is over.

In a story broken by The Express Times' Sarah Cassi, John Stoffa has quietly announced his decision to seek a second term as Northampton County Executive. No fanfare. No collection of campaign contributors - job seekers, urging him on. No campaign photo of Stoffa standing prominently in the courthouse. Just one laconic remark - "I think there will be competition."

In a place with no secrets, Stoffa has managed to keep everyone guessing for months. You see, he swims alone. Mistaking this quiet strength as a weakness, the sharks have been circling. Ann "Nice Guys Finish Last" McHale is supposed to be announcing her attentions in a news conference today. Ron Heckman, a protege of the man Stoffa defeated, has been building support where he can find it. In a 2007 primary, Ron finished 4th in a race for three Bethlehem city council seats. Not good, Ron.

This race is over. The smartest thing McHale could do today is pledge her support for Stoffa. She's banking on her ties to union agents and her last name, but her imperious nature will surely work against her. This is an official who actually walked out on Michelle Obama! She has been the ringleader of the most dysfunctional local government in the Lehigh Valley. She even ridiculously tried to force the county to accept an IT contract that was $1.8 million greater than the one Stoffa ultimately negotiated.

Unlike McHale or Heckman, Stoffa understands who deserves his loyalty, and it is not union bosses or campaign contributors. "I answer to the taxpayers, ultimately."

That's why he'll win.

Update: According to a Morning Call news account, McHale will announce her intentions later this month and party bossman Joe Long will never endorse Stoffa because ... horrors ... he appointed despicable Republicans to his cabinet. Stoffa's Director of Fiscal Affairs, Vic Mazziotti, is a Republican. His Director of Administration, John Conklin, may be a Republican, at least on paper. Stoffa has this weird notion of filling positions with people who actually know how to do the job. Go figure. (Blogger's Note: I screwed up this update by claiming Joe Long would never endorse Joe Long. I'm sure he would.)

Northampton County Controller Steve Barron Ponders Run For Executive

Northampton County Controller Steve Barron has confirmed he is considering running for county executive, the seat currently held by fellow Democrat John Stoffa. Steve's energy and popularity among courthouse workers are great assets. Steve's handicap, obviously, is his relative inexperience. He has only been in office for one year. Should incumbent John Stoffa decide against running, however, many voters are turned off by the choices of Ann McHale and Ron Heckman.

McHale has relied on a distant relation to former Congressman Paul McHale, by marriage, to propel her political career. Imperious, she is best known for her inability to manage the most dysfunctional municipal government in the Lehigh Valley. It has worsened under her Presidency. She will be announcing tomorrow from some throne room somewhere.

Heckman, a very nice guy, has demonstrated he simply lacks the energy to mount a campaign. Just two years ago, he could not even get himself elected to Bethlehem City Council.

In the meantime, the Great White, John Stoffa, swims alone.

USA Today: How the Stimulus Package Will Impact Us?

As rhetoric goes into high gear, it's impossible to determine whether Barack Obamma's economic stimulus package will help or hurt. USA Today details how this economic salve is intended to help. AAA Mid-Atlantic claims it could stabilize market prices for oil and gasoline. For road construction crews, it is manna from heaven. The Washington Times, however, gravely warns that the spending bill's $3.2 trillion price tag far outweighs its potential benefit.

Confused?

Fortunately, Uncle Jay explains the news. I found out about Uncle Jay from a reader named Bernie, but I'm pretty sure he's not me. Uncle Jay's news word for the week, by the way, is "Package."

LC Comm'r Glenn Eckhart: What, Me Worry?

Lehigh County Commissioner Glenn Eckhart missed last week's important vote to decide the fate of the financially distressed Lehigh Valley Zoo. I had joked that he was "probably out somewhere eating bison burgers," but he was actually out of town on business.

In an email exchange for this blog, Glenn speaks of the zoo, his upcoming race and his war of words with Allentown City Council Prez Mike D'Amore.

Q: I saw your proposal to ask school districts to foot some of the bill. I have also heard that you have said the county may be better off to just close the zoo and perhaps have a small petting zoo. What exactly is your position? Where would have come down last Wednesday? Would you have sided with the Don Cunningham initiative to fund the zoo for five years, the Dean Browning initiative to give the zoo some money now while looking at ways to improve it, or would you have voted to close it?

A: "Well, it is over now but I supported giving the zoo this year's money as the administration proposed. But then only $180,000 next year and 4% increase thereafter. I was pushing for the Lehigh County to be responsible for all capital improvements. That way it could be funded in our 5 year capital plan. So I would have voted no on final vote. I would have supported Dean Browning $100,000 and then we could have redone plan. It is my opinion the schools need to help with this and as you noted all they would need to do is send in there children and all schools would have given there small stipend I ask for $3,000-$9,000 for between 30-40 school districts."

Q: Your district seems to have a good mix of both parties while you are a conservative Republican. Some claim you are therefore vulnerable, especially after your threatened Allentown boycott. Do you feel that your war of words with Allentown council president Mike D'Amore may come back to haunt you?

A: "Well, I have never worried about my re-election. It is not my career and I have always governed in what I think is best for the people I represent. Yes, I have run as an underdog every time I have run. We unseated a former President of the School Board in Salisbury in a 45% Republican district. We won that race with 62% of the vote that was in 1997. We defeated the incumbent President of the Township Board of commissioners in 1999, winning 57% of the vote in a district which was only 34% Republican. In the 2003 re-election, we defeated our opponent with 58% of the vote and the district that year was only 32% Republican. The 2005 Commissioner race we won with 52% of the vote in a down year for Republicans against the highest vote count for State Committee woman in Lehigh County the year before in a district which was only 44% Republican. You also are aware of my loss to Marie [Dean]. In that loss, I got crushed but we won the our district with 62% of the vote.

"I still do not agree with the City Council Resolution saying that we County Commissioners do not care about public safety in Allentown and I forgive them for doing it. But no, I don't regret it. It was unfortunate but, moving forward, Mike and I are facebook friends and I would like to work together when possible. We are going to be looking at a 15%-30% tax increase if nothing changes in 2011. I don't know of anyone who wants to see that happen but it will if we keep bringing new programs without looking for cost savings. That has been my job as elected official - to leave it in better shape than when I was elected."

I also have some questions that Eckhart tells me he'll answer later.

Q. Marc Prinzinger, a conservative Republican, is challenging Percy Daugherty, a moderate Republican, in his district. Many feel you encouraged Prinzinger to challenge Dougherty, whose moderate stance and bipartisan tone as chair has set an enviable standard for municipal government. Is this true? Do you have any reason not to support your incumbent chair?

Q. I have also heard that South Whitehall's Brad Osborne is challenging Cunningham. Is this true?

Update: Bethlehem Woman Challenging Eckhart. Behtlehem Democrat Hillary Kwiatek, in her first try for public office, is challenging Glenn Eckhart. In her Faceboook group, she explains why. “I am committed to keeping Lehigh County safe and maintaining services for our citizens in need. I also will work to balance the goal of making the county attractive to high-quality employers with preserving open space and supporting our local farmers. Finally, as a parent, I believe it’s critically important that we support the cultural, educational and recreational assets that add richness to our community.”

Judicial Candidate Jim Narlesky Flirts With Republicans

Last week, DA John Morganelli sent shock waves through both the legal community by deciding against one of the three judgeships to be decided by Northampton County voters this November. It was a tough call for John. As recently as the afternoon before his public announcement, he was still uncertain.

District Judge James Narlesky had previously announced his own candidacy. Prior to Morganelli's announcement, Narlesky was dating the local Republican party. He had all but hired a respected campaign consultant who only works for Republicans, leading me to conclude he was about to switch teams.

But after John's announcement, I saw an email to prominent insider Democrats, and Narlesky was among those in the loop. With Morganelli out of the picture, he has apparently decided to remain a Democrat. Either that, or he's still playing both sides. The risk he runs is that he will end up disappointing both.

In the wake of Morganelli's announcement, rumblings from Easton tell me that Magistrate Michael Koury is again weighing his options, considering a third run. Popular state representative Craig Dally has also been mulling a run for weeks, as was reported here in December.

Aside from Narlesky, those who have announced or intend to announce thus far are Judge Leonard Zito and Attorneys Sam Murray, Barb Hollenbach and Candy Barr Heimbach.

Dent Votes NO to Stimulus Redux

Brack Obama's trimmed down stimulus package is heading to his desk for signature after making it through both houses of Congress. LV Congressman Charlie Dent will receive no invitation to witness Obama's signing. He voted NO to this economic adrenaline again on Friday. Here's why.

“People in the Fifteenth District and across America are hurting in this economy. I strongly believe that government action is necessary to restart our economy and assist those who are struggling, but I don’t believe that the unfocused, inflated spending bill considered by the House today will achieve either of those goals.

“When it comes to legislation I try not to let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Unfortunately, this bill isn’t all that good. This legislation spends too much on government programs that are not targeted to stimulate economic growth and concentrates too few resources on actual job creation and help for families who have been impacted by our economic downturn.

“Despite early claims the stimulus bill would focus on infrastructure spending to create jobs, only $27.5 billion ($2.5 billion less than the House-passed level) or 3.4 percent of the bill is dedicated to highway, bridge and road projects. By contrast, nearly $200 billion is spent creating 33 new programs totaling $95 billion (30 percent of all appropriations) and expanding 73 existing programs by $92 billion. Many of the programs that are funded in this bill are good programs that I have supported, but I don't believe funding for Census expenses or maintenance at the Smithsonian Institution will stimulate our economy.

“To put this spending into perspective, $789 billion is enough to give every person in Pennsylvania more than $63,000. Under this bill, to create 3 million jobs, we will have spent $262,000 per job. In this one bill, we are spending almost as much as the annual discretionary budget for the entire federal government. And let’s not forget, we will still have a $3 trillion budget to pass, military appropriations for the ongoing conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, and other spending measures yet to come before the House.

“Even if this bill creates as many jobs in the immediate as promised, I am seriously concerned about the long-term consequences of the $1.1 trillion price tag ($789 billion plus interest payments of $347 billion). A non-partisan Congressional Budget Office analysis states that ‘each dollar of additional debt crowds out about a third of a dollar’s worth of private domestic capital.’ More debt will result in less private investment in our economy and less private investment will undoubtedly result in fewer jobs.

“I would have much preferred a more targeted, timely and temporary job-creation bill. I supported an alternative bill that would have focused on job-creating hard infrastructure projects, while providing individuals, small businesses and manufacturers with targeted tax relief to create jobs. That bill would have cost half of H.R. 1 and created two times the number of jobs.

“I am disappointed with the process by which this legislation was crafted and also considered. This was a thousand-page spending bill that was not available for Members of Congress to read until just a few short hours before the final vote. This bill is the largest spending bill in U.S. history and I believe Congress owed it to the American public to thoroughly review and analyze both the long and short term impact of the legislation.

“Although I did not support passage of this bill, I am committed to working with the President in addressing the many challenges that face our economy and nation.”

Happy Valentine's Day

Dudes, don't forget that tomorrow is that Day.

Has Neiper Had Enough on Northampton County Council?

An at-large member of Northampton County Council, Diane Neiper has allied herself most often with Charles Dertinger and Lamont McClure. As a result, many of her votes and actions have been inexplicably bizarre.

Examples? She joined Dertinger, McHale and McClure when they very nearly forced the county to spend $1.8 million more for an IT contract than the one that Exec John Stoffa finally signed. She is one of the hangmen who played to the union, demanding that the county's Human Resources Director resign. She is part of a cabal that refused to follow their own lawyer's advice. She was also among those who tried to replace a capable council solicitor with a "pay to play" lawyer who would tell them exactly what they want to hear.

To her credit, she has also been one of council's workhorses, working tirelessly with the county's human services. But she was noticeably upset this January when Democrats chose Republican John Cusick over her as council VP. They really had no choice because it was the only way that Ann McHale could become President, but Neiper was still unhappy.

Neiper's term expires this year. A email being circulated by local Democratic committeemen indicates Neiper has had enough. She will not seek reelection to that dysfunctional body.

Bennett Blames Congressional Loss on LV Sexism

I'm upset. Just last month, blogger Howie Klein (DownWithTyranny, FiredogLake, Huffington Post) talked with failed LV Congressional candidate Sam (Siobhan) Bennett. She blamed her loss on regressive reporters and local bloggers like me.

Now, Howie and Sammy are claiming the real reason she lost to incumbent Charlie Dent is because she's a woman. Her defeat is the result of Lehigh Valley Misogyny. Hey, what about us regressive bloggers, damn it! Do you think it's easy to go weeks without shaving or deodorant?

Howie laments, "During the campaign, I couldn't help but notice a shocking amount of sexist invective aimed at her." He fails to note a single example, but I've noticed he never lets silly little things like facts get in his way.

Even more silly is the essay that Sammy writes herself.

Post announcing my bid for U.S. Congress this same newspaper [Morning Call] day after day ran with this verbatim quote from a local blog [hey, that's me!] on its front page: "Sammy Bennett is a phony political w**** who gives good h*** and makes cheap, blatant political opportunists look like Mother Fucking Teresa. Even her c*** is made of plastic." Though over the next year the paper never cited the differences between my opponent and I on issues, they ensured the launch of my bid for U.S. Congress linked me to "c***," "w****" and "h***." Next this paper promptly dove into a multiple week query about my salary as the newly minted statewide director of a non-profit. Professional women still look me in the eye "Sam, if you were a man, no one would have said a word about your salary."

When Boscola hatchetman Bernie Kieklak crashed and burned, his Bennett snark was just one of many misogynistic remarks noted by local papers, which were mostly directed at other women. His Bennett slam was given no special prominence over his many other absurd comments. It certainly appeared in no headline. No story ran day after day.

It must have slipped Bennett's mind that the Lehigh Valley has already sent three women to the General Assembly and another woman to the Pa. Senate. The President Judge and President of county council in Northampton County both happen to be women. Sam must have forgotten that she fired two female campaign managers and replaced them with a man whom I'm told was paid more than his two female predecessors. Finally, her little essay fails to mention that the objections to Bennett's POM salary had nothing to do with her sex.

Instead of blaming a sexist Lehigh Valley, Bennett might try looking in a mirror if she wants to know who is responsible for her loss.

But what do I know? I'm one of them there "regressives."

"Happy Faces" Save Lehigh Valley Zoo

It was a packed house at the Lehigh County meeting room last night. Aside from the hundred or so zoo supporters, reporters were everywhere. The Morning Call's Darryl Isherwood, The Express Times' Tony Nauroth, Channel 69's Bo Koltnow and the East Penn Press were all on hand. The only commissioner missing was conservative Glenn Eckhart, who was probably out somewhere eating bison burgers. The fate of the nearly bankrupt Lehigh Valley Zoo was on the line, but by the time the smoke had cleared, Lehigh County Commissioners had breathed new life into the facility.

Commissioners agreed, 7 to 1, to pump $525,000 this year to keep the zoo open, with another $325,000 over each of the next four years. This is the solution that Lehigh County Executive Don Cunningham had proposed. He had previously argued it would cost just as much to close the place down. Only Dean Browning was opposed. He preferred giving the zoo $200,000 to meet its obligations now while commissioners and zoo officials work out a business plan, which is already partially developed.

Before things got started, Chairman Percy Dougherty asked the audience, "How many are here to support the zoo?" Nearly every hand went up. He then asked how many oppose the zoo. Not one hand one up. That includes Dougherty's potential Republican rival for commissioner this year, Marc Prinzinger.

Here in Blogistan, we were already firing up the barbeques and preparing for a feast of prairie dogs and penguins. But zoo supporters had a secret weapon last night that quickly destroyed all zoo opposition.

Kids.

Cute little girls got up to save the animals. A ten-year old girl, Ashley, presented Commissioners with a petition signed by her her classmates at McKinley Elementary. She was followed by eleven-year old Amanda Jones, a Shoemaker Elementary student and future veterinarian, who told Commissioners, "I have no animals at home, only a hamster and a fish. At the zoo, I got to watch a lot of happy faces. If someone closes the zoo, it will make me very sad."

Game over. How the hell do you argue with that?

After the kids had made the sale, I thought a bison had entered the room. It was Carol Loomis, whose name pops up everytime the zoo is mentioned. She wasn't really there to oppose public funding, but wanted Commissioners to know about the "suppression of information about what is done to the animals." She's quite the eloquent speaker. According to Loomis, 35 prairie dogs became road kill on Rte. 309 after making an escape, seven kangaroos suddenly became just three and Zorro the Skunk has disappeared. I was waiting for her to reveal the location of a secret lab where animal experiments are conducted.

Sounds pretty bad, doesn't it?

But as I learned from zoo officials after the meeting, Loomis is looney. The prairie dogs caper did occur, but under previous tenants. Zorro did decide to move to a new zoo and who the hell is going to stop a skunk? The kangaroos were split up to different zoos because they are siblings and if they mate, we'll have three headed kangaroos who shit bison burgers. One 'roo did die of cancer.

I was impressed, as always, by the way commissioners treated each other as well as the public. In fact, so were several of the spectators, who complimented this classy set of leaders. So what did they say?

Dougherty: "I am a big supporter of the zoo. ... This is an important part of the quality of life. To close the zoo would be a great travesty."

Browning: "We're putting the cart before the horse. ... I'm not willing to commit to $325,000 in the out years when we are not sure what we are undertaking."

Andy Roman: "I'd like to send out zoo fliers with the tax bills."

Bill Leiner: "The administration has done an extremely good job. We did not give enough oversight to the zoo."

Dan McCarthy: "We're talking about a second last chance here tonight, but I'm not so sure there will be a third last chance."

Gloria Hamm: "I've heard a lot of words. Let's get on with it." [Audience applauds]

David Jones: "If saving the zoo is the end game, then we should put forth the right numbers. Eventually the third strike will come. We're trying to avoid that."

My hero, Sterling Raber, nodded and smiled, but said nothing. He's a wise man.

As the meeting winded down, there was none of the acrimony I see in Northampton County. Conservative Browning joked about providing a copy of The Daily Worker to Democrat Bill Leiner, and he responded "Thank you, comrade."

This is the finest group of municipal legislators in the Lehigh Valley. I feel sorry for Darryl Isherwood, who regularly covers this group. I'll ask Ron Angle to attend their next meeting.

Afternoon Update: This blog is experiencing a Trollvilla attack. Inflammatory, irrelevant and off-topic messages are being posted to evoke outrage and disrupt the usually informative, on-topic discussion. I refuse to enable comment moderation, which I suspect is the goal here. I will delete the comments that appear, and ask that you ignore the childish and petty behavior. I realize that is hard to do, but it seems to work better than anything else.

Happy Birthday to the Poet President

He was a "war president." In fact, the war over which he presided may have claimed more American lives than all other wars combined. But he's not remembered that way.

He was the poet president. The man with the kind yet sad smile. He hated the killing business. Though born and raised in the frontier, he never hunted or fished, not even as a boy. Religious revivals were all the rage, but he never joined a church. In a wilderness full of tobacco and whiskey, he neither smoked nor drank. As a Captain during the Black Hawk War, the only time he risked his life was to save an old Indian who had stumbled into his men's camp. But he told great stories, so he was forgiven his imperfections.

To his generals' dismay, he had an annoying habit of pardoning young men who fell asleep on sentry duty or who deserted. "If Almighty God gives a man a cowardly pair of legs how can he help their running away with him?" He often asked whether a "soldier can better serve the country dead than living."

Happy birthday, Abe. The country misses you.

Lincoln was a Republican, but his was no party of oppression or imperialism. Iraq (and Iran) would have no appeal to him. Here's what Kurt Vonnegut thinks.

[I]t is almost always a mistake to mention Abraham Lincoln in a speech about something or somebody else. He always steals the show. I am about to quote him.

Lincoln was only a Congressman when he said in 1848 what I am about to echo. He was heartbroken and humiliated by our war on Mexico, which had never attacked us.

We were making California our own, and a lot of other people and properties, and doing it as though butchering Mexican soldiers who were only defending their homeland against invaders wasn’t murder.

What other stuff besides California? Well, Texas, New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, and parts of Colorado and Wyoming.

The person congressman Lincoln had in mind when he said what he said was James Polk, our president at the time. Abraham Lincoln said of Polk, his president, our armed forces’ commander-in-chief: "Trusting to escape scrutiny by fixing the public gaze upon the exceeding brightness of military glory, that attractive rainbow that rises in showers of blood — that serpent’s eye, that charms to destroy, he plunged into war."

Holy smokes! I almost said, "Holy shit!" And I thought I was a writer!

"Now he belongs to the ages."

A Day in the Life of a Constable

Nearly a month ago, I posted a blog about the little known world of the constable, Pennsylvania's very own bounty hunters. What surprised me most was how well some are paid. In 2007, Constable Frederick Schoenenberg raked in a cool $131,175.26, just from Northampton County.

I've just heard from Constable Schoenenberger. Fortunately, he had no parking ticket warrant. But he explains his job below, and it's not as easy as it looks.

Hello everyone, my name is Frederick Schoenenberger, one of the constables listed in Mr. O'hare's article and point of interest due to the amount of money the county has paid me.

I felt compelled to write and explain some details and specifics in respect to constables and our jobs. Good and bad points.

Yes, it is true we can make a great deal of money, set our own hours and work with little to no supervision. We are trusted to look and act professionally, respect people, obey and follow the law and uphold people's rights and liberties.

I can say with pretty precise certainty that the constables around here follow these standards. Constables in general do their jobs without notice most of the time.

The only time a constable is brought up usually is when something that the papers feel is bad. I say "feel" because this always isn't the truth and the paper will report what it wants and what it thinks will sell newspapers.

As you can see most of us around here and myself included make what most consider a ton of money.

The average person fails to realize just the amount of people/dockets we arrest or clear to make that kind of money.

For that $131,000 the county paid me I can tell you I made them close or over a million dollars for that. We are making the municipalities, state and county a fortune.

Since our fees are paid for by defendants or plaintiffs in civil cases, we are no cost to the taxpayers. We are really the only self sustained law enforcement that does not derive any money from the taxpayers! What county or state office can say that?

Now you say...."What happens if the defendant goes to jail or has no money, who pays you then?? The Taxpayers??"

Well, sorta but not really because the counties have this already planned.....for every docket that is issued or we collect on a $15.50 fee is added to it for the county to go into a fund....this money is then used to pay us if the defendant has no money.

So how big is this "Fund".....Just ask, it's a ton! Just think about all the dockets that clear in the entire county in a year and x that by $15.50!!

Any idea how many dockets I had to clear to make $131,000???? I cleared almost 6k worth!! now multiply that by $15.50??

That's just me, one constable!

Ok, so now we cleared that we are not funded by taxes so you say we are still making a ton of money.

Not so fast there buddy!

The office of constable is elected and since we receive no money for our office guess who pays for EVERYTHING?? Ding, Ding, Ding.....We do!! We get no benefits of any kind, no disability, major medical, dental...nothing!! Zilch, nada...nothing!

Again, we have to pay for everything! This means...

My car.....I have gone through 3 in my 6 year term.....can't buy new, it gets killed into the ground in a year or two. The cost just to maintain and service a car is several thousand a year and that does not include gas or insurance. We can't get a new car warranty because we are using the car for commercial purposes and the warranty doesn't cover it. So I have to set aside money to pay for a car "cash" every few years.

Any idea how many miles we put on a car in a year??? Just a hint we could go easily through a new car 36,000 mile warranty in a year's time.

I spent almost 20k last year on gas and another 3k on maintaining it.

Regular car insurance?? Nope, I wish....we are transporting prisoners and using the car in a business manner, my insurance is 3 times what a normal person would pay in a year.

How bout liability insurances, professional and umbrella?? Yep, tack on a grand or so there a year.

I spend a few thousand on postage a year....I as well as any other constable I know always sends a letter first.

And yes, that's thousands a year on postage!

Now let's talk cell phones, hmmm...just paid my bill 2 days ago....$523.00 a month! This includes 2 phones and a wireless air card. Ok, why 2 phones??

Well, I shut 1 (my primary) off at 10pm otherwise defendants will call at all hours of the night...Yes I field calls well into the evening when most people get home from work...we never really stop working.

The other phone or phone number 2 is on at all times and when it rings it is a police department or communications center.

The wireless card is used in the vehicle for Internet and to run people for other warrants.

Ok, now lets talk offices....mine takes my entire basement, I need fax machines, desks for warrants, laser printers. I spend a good thousand every month on supplies.

My Internet has to be a business line and is $89.00 a month (I wish $17.99 a month!!). I need a stactic IP address to access Law Enforcement only database skiptracing services which then run me another $425.00 a month just to find people (you don't think they are always at the address on the warrant do you?)

My business overhead just to run my office is a few thousand a month. Heck when gas was creeping close to $5 a gallon I was spending 1600-2000 a month just on gas to drive around!!!

As you can see if you take what I earn and deduct business expenses and ahhh..don't forget uncle sam (taxes), you can now see I earn a modest living.

That is why most constables who earn 6 figures a year would jump to be DJ....the money is more then making those 6 figures because we have to buy everything!

If I was DJ earning 78k a year that would in reality be more then my 131k now.

As for the hours I work 9 hours each day. Sometimes I am up before the crack of dawn to catch the really hard ones who just won't reply no matter what. There are times I am into the night or work night hours as well. I also average 15 - 20 hours of office a week and at the end of the week, if there really is one, I am working about 70 hours a week with this job. Oh, did I forget to mention all the phone calls all the time??

Don't construe this to me griping, I love this job, the freedom and just the profession but I wanted to clarify a few things for most that don't know how it really is.

You see these big paychecks but don't really know what we have to go through to make that kind of money.

Truthfully, most constable do not make what myself or Josh Wagner make because we are workaholics.

I love my job so I don't consider it work, if that makes any sense?

As far as new constables go ... go ahead, run, get elected and spend 20 grand on a vehicle and equipment, get all those insurances, shine those shoes and that fresh duty belt and guess what??

You aren't going to get work as a new constable!! That's right, it's not a guarantee that you get work. Nope, around here good luck.

Every judge has a constable and if that constable leaves there is another constable like myself to take over and you can bet the judge isn't going to hire a new guy with no experience or reputation.

So now you wasted all this time (academy...yes 80hrs but now add 40 for firearms and another 30 for intermediate weapons and you've got some time invested) Money and you got no work.

Welcome to being a constable!!

I think I'll stick to title searching. For excitment, I'll blog. My thanks to Constable Schoenenberger.

Ron Angle & Elmer Gates

Embassy Bank Chairman Elmer Gates was scheduled recently to appear on Business Matters with two Communists. But he passed when he learned that the Northampton County Bulldog, Ron Angle, would also be a guest.

"I can take two Communists, but not Ron Angle," is what I'm told he said.

Favoritism in Allentown Golf Course Restaurant Deal?

On Tuesday, I told you about Allentown's recent decision to dump Robert Stanley, the ten-year proprietor of the Sand Tap Grille at the municipal golf course. He is being replaced by the Allentown Brew Works (ABW), operated by the Fegleys. They happen to be Pawlowski cronies.

King Pay to Play Pawlowski claims "there have been no 'special favors' granted to the Brew Works or any other individual or business in the City of Allentown. I will work and do work with all individuals and businesses that bring such positive attitudes and attributes to our efforts."

Well, he sure as hell has refused to work with Robert Stanley. In fact, it is becoming increasingly obvious that King Edwin worked against Robert Stanley and for ABW. Last night, someone who calls himself "Disgusted" made these observations.

"This story goes a lot deeper than even the videos showed. The Director of Golf told the former owner [Robert Stanley] that he had been awarded the bid on December 6th. He also told other course workers that the Sand Trap was returning. Prior to the bid, he contacted both PPL and Lehigh Valley Propane in an effort to get the Sand Traps expenses for the year. Obviously, [this was] an attempt to answer questions from the ABW that might affect their bid. These facts are eminently verifiable.

"The real shame is that this guy was on the selection committee!!!

"I am trying to get the score sheets that these people used to quantify their results. According to Stanley, not one person wrote anything down. They already knew the result.

"This Councilman (Schweyer?) said that at least four tournaments refused to come to Allentown because of the facilities. The largest tournament possible is 144 golfers, which can and have been handled by the former vendor. I can name at least four tournaments that WON'T be returning because of exorbitant prices being charged by ABW, as verified by the bid submitted.

"Weddings? This is the biggest farce of all. Not a chance there will ever be a wedding at Allentown Muni. Wait, maybe Mayor Ed has some kids that may be getting married.

"Bottom line, a guy did a great job for over ten years, never had a problem, NEVER had a complaint from either tournament sponsors or restaurant patrons. By the way, the Mayor was effusive in his compliments for their handling of the Annual Mayors Tournament.

"Thanks for the efforts Mr Stanley, by the way, you have eight days to sell all your equipment and vacate the premises."

If this can be established, and Disgusted claims it is "eminently verifiable," people within the Pawlowski administration were clearly funnelling confidential information to give Pawlowski pal ABW an unfair advantage. I don't know about you, but I'd call that a special favor. King P2P also claims there are "committees and objective review criteria for major contracts as to not have even a hint of impropriety." But it appears that a member of the committee may have been supplying information to one of just two bidders. How about that? Doesn't it seem just a tad peculiar that there were only two businesses interested in this project, and that one of them just happened to be ABW? What kind of "objective review" occurs when selection committee members don't even note answers to questions? Council member Peter Schweyer's comments are another screaming siren. Why would he, who was not even a member of the five-person selection committee, claim to have spoken to four different tournaments? It is very clear that the King and His Men wanted to rid Allentown of Stanley. There is much more than a hint of impropriety.

Perhaps the ABW should serve up bullshit burgers at their new golf course restaurant. They can call them King Edwins.

Barack's First News Conference

If Barack Obama's Monday night news conference was intended to inspire us, he did not make the sale with me. Two-thirds of Daily Kos readers gave Obama an A or A+, but I felt he stumbled on too many questions, very much like his predecessor. His grammar was a little better.

Now I voted for Obama. I even support the stimulus package as it came through the Senate. Imagine how those who oppose it must feel. Here's what everyone's favorite conservative, Scott Armstrong, has to say.

"The only thing we have to fear is the fear of what is confronting us."

Are a leader's words inspiring if you find yourself quivering in the fetal position after he/she speaks? Listening to Obama's dire description of the current fiscal situation one wonders if stocking up on guns, cigarettes, and liquor might be not more useful than shifting funds from stocks to gold. When one understands that a key ingredient of any economic recovery is a return of consumer confidence why is the president casting dark shadows on the country's fiscal prospects? Is he merely cynically covering his bases in case his own recovery plans fail or does he, more sinisterly, welcome a crisis? Either way the recent words of the new president offer only cold comfort to a nation that perhaps foolishly thought it was headed in a new and positive direction.

Is Hilliard Still at The Morning Call Helm?

I received the following anonymous comment from an obvious Morning Call insider this morning.
"Another bloodbath at TMC yesterday. Ardith Hilliard is history. They eliminated the marketing designers and the PR manager, after moving the 'marketing' director and a couple of do-nothing T & A to other departments. More to get their walking papers shortly.

"The worst thing is that the VP of operations was laughing about all of this while some of the folks getting canned were still within earshot."

Ardith Hillard is (was?) The Morning Call's editor, and her name is still listed with the paper's staff listings. But the paper is reporting a new round of job cuts. Amazingly, the paper is reporting it has no idea how many jobs have been eliminated. It is rumored that no newsroom jobs are involved in this round.

I have asked Vicki Mayk, the newspaper's mouthpiece, for the party line. When I get it, I'll update this post. No matter what she may say, this is sad news for all of us.

5:00 P.M. Update: Hilliard Still Aboard - Although the newspaper has not yet "officially" responded to my email, I am reliably informed that Editor Ardith Hilliard is still with the paper.

Why Orie Melvin Got GOP Nod for State Supremes

Over the weekend, state supreme court candidate Joan Orie Melvin received an endorsement from the millionaires' club sometimes called the Republican State Committee. Republicans claim their party is like a big umbrella with room for everybody, but party boss Rob Gleason warned committee members against rebelling.

How did Orie Melvin get the party nod? As you've probably guessed, Melvin is politically connected. Her sister, Jane Orie, just happens to be a state senator and a member of the judiciary committee. According to Ron Angle, himself a Republican state committeeman, state senator Joe Scarnetti guaranteed the big boys he would personally raise $1.7 million for Melvin. As the Northampton County Bulldog puts it, "If anything rings a bell with those Republicans, it's money."

Melvin first ran for Superior Court in 1997, and pretty much ignored her responsibilities as a common pleas judge. An investigative report by a team of eleven reporters at the Post-Gazette, cast a very public spotlight on a very unresponsive Melvin, a person who obviously considered her personal ambition more important than her work as a judge. Melvin thumbed her nose at a six-week trial term because a pesky little jury trial might interfere with her quest to become an appellate judge. Her courtroom was "virtually shut down . . . for several weeks" while she "spent numerous weekdays out of town campaigning."

She has already run and lost a bid for the supremes, back in 2003. Melvin and Democrat Max Baer engaged in a money war, spending an obscene $3.34 million. This exceeds the total amount spent in all judicial races during the previous two years. Forty-three per cent of this money came from lawyers, a drastic increase from the ten percent total in the 2001 race.

Outside the courtroom, Melvin spent five years of quixotic litigation in two separate states over anonymous comments posted on a Pittsburgh-based political gossip site. A group of John Does had criticized her "misconduct" in asking then Governor Ridge to appoint someone she knew to a judgeship. I'm not sure how that even constitutes defamation, but I guess it must be per se defamation to criticize a superior court judge. She eventually abandoned her litigation.

Amazingly, this is the Republican pick for the state high court.

Angle likes Superior Court Judge Cheryl Allen (no relation to William Allen) and even seconded her nomination. Allen was ignored by her party when she first ran for the Superior Court, but won anyway. "She's real, unlike the fakes, frauds and phonies" is how Angle explains his support.

I know one person who must be cheered by the news of Melvin's GOP endorsement. His name is Jack Panella.

Pay to Play Pawlowski Goes Golfing

For reasons that elude me, the Allentown Brew Works (ABW) web page contains a brief history of Allentown, telling us the city "was founded in 1762 by William Allen; a wealthy shipping merchant who purchased land from the sons of William Penn." But that's only half the story. What ABW's history fails to reveal is that Allen, a supposed New World aristocrat, became a "wealthy shipping merchant" by financing a form of piracy known as privateering. He used political office here to make himself even more wealthy and even supplied the "muscle" for settlers dealing with both Indians and Connecticut invaders. A Tory, he fled to England with his tail between his legs when the Revolutionary War broke out.

Speaking of incomplete stories about wealthy merchants, there are plenty of unanswered questions concerning Allentown's recent decision to replace the Sand Trap Grille with ABW at its muni golf course. They both had submitted identical bids. Now, believe it or not, the ABW gets top billing on the city-funded Allentown golf web page, above the Superintendent. It is becoming increasingly questionable whether Pay to Play Pawlowski is simply rewarding one of his supporters.

The Fegley family, which owns ABW, received somewhere around $3.4 million in federal loans when they purchased their popular restaurant from the Allentown Redevelopment Authority for $1.00. Another $500,000 came in the form of an outright grant from Rendell. Located in a KOZ, they are exempt from what would otherwise be an $82 thousand annual real estate tax. They are also exempt from sales tax and pay no state income tax. Allentown kicked in even more money, perhaps $90,000, for facade improvements. According to the Tony Phillips campaign, the Fegley's ABW has received more than $7 million dollars of taxpayer money.

The Fegleys are major Pawlowski supporters, having contributed $750 to his campaign in 2006 & 2007. Last year, Pawlowski gave Mike Fegley, a Democratic state committee member, $100 to help pay for transportation to the Democratic convention. He has also paid Fegley's wife $2,730 for campaign work. Another $1,150 went directly into ABW coffers.

Blogger Michael Molovinsky is the person who first questioned the preference of ABW over Sand Trap Grille owner Robert Stanley, claiming that Stanley had been out-maneuvered by King Edwin Pawlowski. But what really disturbs me is Jarrett Renshaw's riveting blog at QCD, which actually contains video excerpts of Stanley's presentation of a petition to city council, signed by 150 golfers, protesting the decision to dump him after ten years. I have transcribed a portion for those of you who prefer the written word.

Business owner Robert Stanley: "The bid was due November 24, 4 o'clock. I submit my bid ... I was told three or four days later that I had the bid. In the meantime, people were coming in and saying I was leaving and they wanted to buy my equipment and I said NO, I'm back in. ... Why was I told three weeks before that I had the bid? ... Then I get to go and meet down at city hall. I go in there and I think it's about signing the contract. Well, here they're giving me an interview, asking me questions. Greg Wetzell is the only guy that asked me any questions and one other person asked a question. Everybody else just sat there, didn't say a word, I answered my questions and off I went.

"December 23rd I get a phone call, 'Can I come over to the sand Trap?' Because it was closed because of the weather, I go over there and meet with Greg. He tells me The Brewworks got the bid. I said, 'You gotta' be kidding?' That's when I told him, 'I was told three weeks before I had this bid.' Then I was told I had to be out by the end of the year. ... I lost approximately - I'm not even sure - $20,000 in the sales of equipment because I had to get that stuff out of there.

* * *

"As far as going over to Starters, if you went over there and talked to the Bethlehem golfers, during the league and during the golfing season, they're not coming in there. You're getting the outside people. What do you want? Do you want to run a restaurant, do you want to take care of the citizens of the town?

* * *

"This was all said and done a long time ago. I was told ... as a matter of fact I was told four years ago that Mayor Pawlowski, when he was with Mayor Afflerbach, wanted me out of that place. He wanted to make something flamboyant there. Well, this is what he got. Everybody knows that him and Mr. Fegley - they're buddy, buddy."

Administration: "The Mayor was not involved in this process in any way, shape or form. ... The mayor had no influence and I would not have listened to him anyway."

Council member Peter Schweyer, a Pawlowski cheerleader, provided this justification: "This is an opportunity for the City of Allentown to not be just satisfied with what we have, but to expand our product and actually grow. I've had conversations with no less than four potential tournaments who refuse to move their golf tournaments to Allentown because we don't have the facilities for the quality of the product."

But council member Jeanette Eichenwald, whose once told me her father ran a small business, was more honest. "I think there was an injustice done here."

Jeanette is right.