Twelve Vie For Leiner's Vacant Seat

Ten people have applied for an open seat created by Bill Leiner's resignation as a Lehigh County Commissioner. They are Marc I. Basist, Geoffrey S. Brace, Bruce A. Brinker, John V. Cooney, John F. Cramsey, Walter Felton, Jr., Robert J. George, William H. Hansell, John R. Hofmann, Sr., Andrea Landsbach, George Speros Maniatty, Jr., and Deana M Zosky. I will be posting links to information submitted by each applicant.

Dent: Callahan in Critical Condition on Health Care

I received a news release from Congressman Charlie Dent's campaign yesterday. It's a reaction to Scott Brown's upset victory in Massachusetts, where Coakley went Croakley. Scott Brown talked about issues. Congressional challenger John Callahan runs from them.

Yesterday, in the bluest of blue states, Massachusetts, voters went to the polls and by a large margin, supported Senator-elect Scott Brown. During his campaign, Scott Brown made it clear to the voters of his state that he steadfastly opposed the government takeover of healthcare that Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid are trying to cram down the throats of Americans. There was no question where Scott Brown stood on this and other important issues, and his honest statement of his positions was a service to the voters because it helped them make informed decisions.

Contrast Scott Brown’s honesty and straightforwardness with John Callahan’s evasiveness and emptiness on healthcare. John Callahan started his race for Congress more than six months ago. He still cowardly refuses to open up to the voters of the 15th District about where he stands on the tremendously important issue of healthcare, as well as other important issues.

“John Callahan’s silence on healthcare is deafening and damning,” said campaign manager Shawn Millan. “He is purposefully hiding his position on important issues from the voters,” Millan added.

Most likely with good reason.

“John Callahan continues his chicken-dance on the issue of healthcare,” Congressman Charlie Dent observed. “He’s trying to get away with running an issue-free campaign.”

Callahan spoke at an SEIU/MoveOn.org-sponsored healthcare protest in support of Nancy Pelosi’s healthcare legislation and in opposition to Congressman Dent’s vote against that plan. The protest was held in front of Congressman Dent’s office. Callahan has also expressed support for the so-called public option.

The Dent campaign is calling on Callahan to answer four straightforward, but important questions on health care to help inform the voters of the 15th District where he stands:

1) Does he continue to support the healthcare plan that passed the House in November?

2) Does he still support a “public option?”

3) Will he condemn the Democrat Congressional Leadership’s and President Obama’s lack of transparency during the current healthcare negotiations?

4) Will he publicly condemn any effort to force this woefully deficient bill down the throats of the people of the 15th District?

If John Callahan continues to refuse to answer questions on important federal issues like these, then the real question is: Why is Callahan running for Congress?

Northampton County's 102 Bank Accounts

Northampton County Budget Administrator Doran Hamann told Northampton County Council yesterday that the County has approximately $80 million deposited in 102 separate bank accounts. Thirty-eight of these accounts are with one bank, Lafayette Ambassador.

Council President Ron Angle asked why. "Did they give you blankets or silverware?" Hammon explained that every account bears interest, and those offered by Lafayette are better than most.

Unemployment Comp a Hidden Cost of Gracedale

Yesterday's meeting of Northampton County Council's Personnel and Finance Committees, their first of the year, got off to an impressive start. For one thing, seven members of Council attended. The only absentees were Peg Ferraro and Lamont McClure. For another, they spent two hours going over a number of items, from appointments to swaptions top the Retirement Board. But what interested everyone the most was a review of the Unemployment Compensation Process, based on an audit originally prepared by Controller Steve Barron.

Northampton County is self-insured, meaning that real estate tax dollars pay unemployment compensation claims. Compensation claims have steadily risen from what used to be $51,000 per quarter to much larger sums. In 2009, the quarter-by-quarter breakdown is as follows: 1st quarter - $91,000; 2d Quarter - $90,000; 3rd Quarter - $106,000; 4th Quarter - $64,000.

Benefits Administrator Bob Lasko told Council members that most of these claims are granted, even when an employee is terminated for patient abuse or a corrections officer loses his job for improper contact with inmates. Council President Ron Angle noted that the state would rather have the County pay unemployment than be put in a position where the state must pay welfare.

Personnel Analyst Chris Moakley told Council members that 2/3 of the people on unemployment are former Gracedale employees. This is one of our nursing home's hidden costs.

Why Mexico Will Have No Team in Winter Olympics

So I was minding my own business yesterday during a meeting of Northampton County Council's Personnel Committee. One former bigshot was sitting next to me, whispering throughout the meeting. I thought we were going to get a detention.

He was talking about the Vancouver Olympics for some reason, and asked if I was ready.

"You know Mexico is not sending a team, don't you?"

"Why not?"

"Because every Mexican who can run, jump or swim is already in the U.S."

Don't tell Morganelli.

Sam "Shiobhan" Bennett on Hardball?

After running for Allentown Mayor twice, and never making it out of the primary, Sam "Shiobhan" Bennett set her sights on Congress in the last election cycle. During a time when virtually every other Democrat was riding Barack Obama's coat tails to an easy victory, Bennett was trounced. The highlight of that campaign was when her comments during a televised debate had to be bleeped out. Incredibly, she had to make this request herself, after irresponsibly and falsely claiming that a local bank had failed.

These days, Sam is now Executive Director of The Women's Campaign Forum, where she gets to send out letters asking for money. She signs them like this. --->

She's also apparently a pundit, too, having appeared on last night's Hardball. I don't watch TV so I don't know what pearls of wisdom she imparted to her grateful viewers. But fortunately for me, I have a Sam Bennett email sent out right after that "devastating" loss in Massachusetts. Strangely, her magic touch failed to pull Martha Coakley over the finish line. "It is with deep sadness that I report to you that Attorney General Martha Coakley, a WCF-endorsed candidate, did not win tonight's special election for the Massachusetts Senate seat." Imagine that! Sam then asks for money.

City Without Limits or Outer Limits?

Can you take Scott Armstrong twice in one week? Are you sure? Before you read any further, please make sure you've taken all your pills. Today is Thursday, so don't take Friday's pills.

Are you sitting down? OK, here's Scott's latest ditty, which is cross-published at Allentown Commentator.

When I was a child there was a popular TV show called "The Outer Limits." It was a serial that explored the unusual, the weird and the paranormal. Upon hearing Mayor Ed Pawlowski's announcement that he has changed the city motto to "City Without Limits," the memory of this long forgotten program instantly came back to mind. The truth is that I and many other residents no doubt feel like we are part of that old program, trapped in a scenario that involves strange nincompoops ruining our city while enjoying the almost robotic support of many of our neighbors. How frightening is this?

Of course, the sane Allentonians can't hope to wake up from this nightmare. The ruination of Allentown isn't a bad dream; it is what we live with everyday and the reality of four more years of Pawlowski and company control is a more frightening prospect than any scenario from that old TV show. Strange, isn't it, a once normal everyday American city becomes almost overnight a place of almost total absurdity where nothing is as it, was, or as it should be while at the same time a voice is telling us , "there is nothing wrong with your city; do not attempt to make any adjustments; we will control this city; sit back, relax, you are experiencing the Outer Limits."

Callahan's Arrogance

Bethlehem, already drowning in $298 million of debt, has two ordinances requiring city council approval before spending casino revenue or borrowing from the Treasurer's Escrow Account. Callahan's administration has broken both of these city laws, spending $335,000 of casino revenue and borrowing $2 million without a green light.

Council member Jean Belinski, noting that "I don't think that anybody should be above the law," asked Solicitor Chris Spadoni to investigate, and he lead out several options at Monday night's meeting, from mild to severe. According to The Morning Call, an unrepentant Mayor John Callahan told city council, ''We should be applauded for our conservative estimates.''

This arrogant disregard of spending controls is disturbing, especially when it comes from someone who thinks he belongs in Congress.

Scissorhands Severson Pleads Guilty to Deceptive Campaign Practices

The AG's prosecution proves that even Pennsylvania's campaign finance laws have teeth.

Barney Frank: Back to the Drawing Board

Barney Frank, one of Congress' most liberal and powerful members, shares this insight. "[O]ur respect for democratic procedures must rule out any effort to pass a health care bill as if the Massachusetts election had not happened. Going forward, I hope there will be a serious effort to change the Senate rule which means that 59 votes are not enough to pass major legislation, but those are the rules by which the health care bill was considered, and it would be wrong to change them in the middle of the process.”

Allentown Vision Center Burglaries Get Morning Call Spotlight

Good on them.

GOP Win in Massachusetts a Victory for the Center

"Americans thought Obama was a moderate. He certainly sounded like one. But now he is attempting to remake one seventh of the economy in a quick march of party-line votes. In the process, he has alienated independents in large numbers -- even in Massachusetts."

And so the pendulum swings.

"Transparent" Ed Pawlowski Finally Itemizes $8k Election Day Fund

In his post election campaign finance report, filed December 3, 2009, Allentown Mayor Edwin Pawlowski lists an $8,000 expenditure for to "misc. canvassers for election day." But he fails to tell us who they are, or how much was paid to each.

Voting Registrar Stacy Sterner directed Pawlowski to itemize his expenses on December 23rd, and was told she'd have it by January 4th, the day she retired. Pawlowski dragged his feet, ignoring his promise to Sterner as well as two or three calls from Acting Registrar Terri Harkins. On Monday, I had to wonder whether this was actually an election day slush fund.

Yesterday, on January 19th, Pawlowski finally amended his report, itemizing the $8,000 he claims to have spent on election day.

I'll tell you about that below.

Pawlowski's Knockers

Young Frankenstein: "What knockers!"

Inga: "Oh, Thank you, doctor."
I keep repeating those lines after scanning the itemized list of 76 people that Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski hired, at between $100 and $200 per head, to canvass the streets of Allentown on Election day.

What knockers!

Twenty-six of them come from outside Allentown, from places as far away as Tamaqua. What really caught my attention are the five Easton knockers. One supposedly lives at 11 N. 4th Street. That's the Lafayette Hotel, a well-known Easton dive. The other four list their address as 536 Bushkill Drive. That's Easton's Safe Harbor, a local homeless shelter.

Wow! What knockers!

Three of these Easton knockers have criminal records for minor offenses like public drunkenness. One of them, who keeps getting caught for driving while his license is suspended, was picked up and charged with public drunkenness just six days after the election.

Wow! What knockers!

Now let's say you're the Mayor of Pennsylvania's third largest city, and running for re-election. I could see hiring a few college students to knock on doors. I could see getting a union to help. I could even see going to a temp agency and screening the people who will be representing you. But would you go to a homeless shelter and pull out a few derelicts, with three teeth between them, to knock on doors on election day? Would you hire two people who can't even provide an address? Would you import three canvassers from Tamaqua? Two from Brockton?

Wow! What knockers!

How many of these knockers actually worked on election day? Were they paid by cash or by check? Who recruited them? Were they actually paid the amounts claimed? Or did some of that money go somewhere else?

You can see the names below, and perhaps you know a few. If you do, ask them how much they were paid, and let the rest of us know.
Pawlowski's Knockers

Pedestrian Safety Is Focus of East Allentown Neighborhood Group

Pedestrian safety along Allentown's Hanover Avenue, where seven people have been killed on the street since 2007, was the focus of a recent City Council meeting. And according to Dennis Pearson, President of the East Allentown-Rittersville Neighborhood Association, it was the subject discussed at its Monday night meeting at St. Peter's Evangelical Lutheran Church. Allentown Police Captain Dean Schwartz and City Engineer Richard Young were on hand.

Here's why these city officials think Hanover Avenue, originally though to be an old Indian trail, has a problem: speeding, aggressive driving, traffic volume, width of road, perception that this road is a major substitute for thru-ways, lack of pedestrian relief in the center of the road, lane switching and vehicles passing at walk areas.

West of Irving Street, where two lanes become four lanes, traffic volume along Hanover Avenue increases from 18,000 to 27,000 vehicles per day.

Here's their solution: lower speed limits, traffic islands, larger center painted lines, more defined walking areas, overhanging yellow caution lights at Halstead and Jerome Streets to make drivers aware that they are entering a major pedestrian crossing area, replace older traffic lights with more modern traffic lights with the most modern pedestrian walking signals, reduce the volume of traffic on Hanover Avenue by completing the American Parkway.

Paul Kochanasz, an East Allentown resident for the last 55 years, said that "[m]any of the motorists do not stop when the pedestrian is in the Cross Walk ... I know I stand one step off Hanover Avenue and I counted as many as 10 and more cars go by before someone stops to let you go across ... ."

Barry Detweiler mentioned that a crossing guard at Our Lady Help of Christians is often ignored or belittled. "People ignore her or when she does stop them, they scream at her, curse at her..."

Allentown City Council President Mike D'Amore and VP Michael Donovan attended this soiree.

Lehigh County Has New Voter Registrar

Timothy Benyo has been named Chief Clerk of Voter Registration in Lehigh County. He replaces Stacy Sterner who retired this year after 23 years of service.

Currently Director of Elections in Carbon County, Benyo will start his new job in Lehigh County on Feb. 1, 2010. A former Intelligence Analyst with the U.S. Army, Benyo has an associate’s degree from Allentown Business School and received his bachelor’s degree in Information Technology from Kaplan University.

George Speros Maniatty for LC Comm'r?

George Speros Maniatty, Jr, is a self-employed accountant and an Allentown Democratic committeeman who rabidly has supported Charles Dertinger, Sam Bennett and Ed Pawlowski. He's also one of the anonymous trolls who tries to disrupt this and other blogs with misinformation and childish taunts. He was outed here in 2007.

No gentle soul, George attaches himself to virtually every Democratic campaign in the Lehigh Valley, but it always ends up a disaster. When he volunteered for Dertinger's congressional campaign, for example, he had to be pulled off phone duty because he was screaming at people. He also volunteered for Pawlowski's first mayoral run until he was eventually exiled. He's also a notorious job seeker known to get quite irate when Democratic officials refuse to hire him.

Other than Ron Angle, he's the only person who former County Commissioners' Chair Percy Dougherty has ever threatened with ejection from a meeting.

And now, he's an applicant for appointment to Bill Leiner's vacant seat on that very board.

Above, you can see a brief video of Maniatty in action during a public meeting.

Incidentally, his myspace profile tells us he's single and looking.

Allentown Vision Center: A Cure for Pawlowski's Myopia

On Friday, Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski was doing what he does best - puffing about Allentown in a state-of-the-city address at the Holiday Inn at 9th & Hamilton. Believe it or not, you had to pay $12 for the privilege of listening to his spin. Don't know whether he was doing his power point thing.

If you walked across the street to visit the Allentown Vision Center, you'd hear a much different tale from Kathy Dalton for free. Unlike most of the Hamilton Street businesses in that vicinity, the Vision Center has been around for ten years, and without a nickel of public support. Owners Mark and Kathy Dalton have hung in there, but are increasingly disenchanted by a city government and newspaper that just don't give a damn. Their shop windows have been broken four times since the new year began. Twice, merchandise has been stolen.

You won't read about this in the newspaper. Nobody was killed or maimed. In fact, Kathy tells me that the police report number for the latest incident is somewhere in the 400s, even though this was only early January. No report of these four instances of vandalism ever appeared in The Morning Call. There's only so much space, but this failure to cover the actual news perpetuates a Pawlowski myth that public safety is improving.

Those Big Brother blue cameras sprinkled throughout the city to deter precisely this kind of criminal mischief? Completely ineffective, according to the Daltons. For one thing, there's a ten second delay, ten seconds that could mean the difference between life and death when public safety is involved. In addition to the delay, police officers tell Kathy those cameras get very blurry when it rains or snows.

While completely failing in their duty to protect the Daltons from the criminal element, city officials had no problem citing them last Winter for not painting their facade, even though it's insane to paint in freezing weather. The Daltons paid their fine.

Frustrated, the Daltons and Allentown Vision Center are considering moving somewhere else. Can you really blame them?

Kathy was kind enough to allow me to share her email with you

My name is Kathy Dalton, and my husband, Mark, and I own the Allentown Vision Center. Our office is in center city, at 939 Hamilton Street. I know the Lehigh Valley is not lacking in providing content for your blog, but the story of what is currently happening at my Downtown Allentown business may be of interest to you. I’m a big fan of your blog, and I know this story is probably too small for you to touch, but it’s worth a shot.

Since the new year began, we’ve had our vision center windows broken 4 times, with someone breaking and entering the building (and stealing merchandise) twice. It has been a terrible start to the year, as you can imagine. We’ve been doing business downtown for over 10 years, and we bring whole lot of foot traffic to Hamilton – sometimes as many as 100 folks a day.

The reason I’m writing is because I would normally expect to see crime like this reported in the paper, but there’s been no mention in the police blotter or elsewhere. Also, we hired our own security for one evening after the 3rd incident, only to learn that police only rapidly drove by our business 4 times on Hamilton between the hours of 9 PM and 4 AM – this is amazing to me, considering the police know we are being targeted. We’ve had absolutely no luck getting the police to report to us what may have been seen by the security cameras recently installed by the city, and we learned last night that the cameras are basically inoperable when it rains or snows!! (The precipitation blurs the camera’s images!) I respect the APD, but I am concerned at the lack of response to our problems, and I thought this would make a great story for your blog . Considering that the mayor is reporting a decrease in crime, this case study offers a glimpse of those of us dealing with the reality of crime in Allentown.

Thanks for your time. If you want to follow-up, you may call my private cell phone at xxx-xxx-xxxx, or you may simply visit the office. We’re open between 9 and 5, with a lunch from 1 to 2, but we’ll gladly meet with you during lunch if that is easiest for you. Keep up the good work blogging! (I’ll also be contacting Mike Molovinsky about this – I hope that’s not bad manners to contact 2 bloggers about the same story.) Keep up the good work blogging!

Thank you –

Kathy Dalton
Allentown Vision Center
939 Hamilton St.
Allentown, PA 18101
OFFICE: 610-434-1000

Update: Micchael Molovinsky, the other blogger contacted, has a related post.

Being & Nothingness in Allentown

Allentown's favorite conservative, Scott Armstrong, publishes The Allentown Commentator and is a contributor at Lehigh Valley Conservative Voice. His latest essay about The Queen City ties in nicely with the observations of an Allentown business owner, which you can read above.

Isn't Allentown a strange place? What sane person could understand or comprehend the day to day insanity of both the governed and the governors of this once splendid city? For instance, isn't it curious how the mayor perceives a mandate from his re-election last November even though he had no real opposition? Who or what did Ed Pawlowski defeat in that "great" victory? What message of mandate can be drawn from the dismal few who showed up to vote? The real truth is that the election served only to demonstrated a truly sad state of the city. The acquiescence to the corruption of one party rule is Ed`s crowning achievement.

There was a time not so long ago when Allentown's society was vibrant, involved and filled with discourse and debate. Then Allentown was in a state of "being". It was alive, it had a future, it was going somewhere. Along the way, certain agents and controllers who thought they knew best decided civic disagreement and debate was against the city's best interests. They took the steps they believed necessary to spare Allentown of any and all alternative points of views. The result is what it is. What sane person can deny the obvious: that instead of speeding the city towards improvement Ed has brought it to total and utter ruin.

Clearly the city is now moribund and yet the mayor expects his ridiculous rhetoric to rally the corpse. If the former divinity student should pull off this miracle it would be an amazing feat. However I think we all recognize that removing the life from something is the far simpler act. Ed and his cohorts have so far managed only the facile acts of ruination and in so doing have taken the city far from promise. They have instead plunged the city into its current state of nothingness. It will be difficult to get residents fired up over that.

The Orphans Are Coming! The Orphans Are Coming!

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano, in coordination with the U.S. Department of State, has just issued a news release announcing that Haiti's orphans will be relocated, at least temporarily, in the United States.

“We are committed to doing everything we can to help reunite families in Haiti during this very difficult time,” said Secretary Napolitano. “While we remain focused on family reunification in Haiti, authorizing the use of humanitarian parole for orphans who are eligible for adoption in the United States will allow them to receive the care they need here.”

Today’s announcement expands the humanitarian relief that the U.S. Government is extending to Haitians in response to the devastation caused by the earthquake. Last week, Secretary Napolitano announced the designation of Temporary Protected Status for Haitian nationals who were physically present in the United States as of Jan. 12, 2010—allowing eligible Haitian nationals to continue living and working in the United States for the next 18 months. Those who attempt to travel to the United States after Jan. 12, 2010 will not be eligible for TPS and will be repatriated.