Things to ponder, Oct. 28
From the windmill of my mind … A belated hurrah to state Rep. James Shaner (D-Dunbar), the lone representative with Fayette County territory to vote against a revised gambling bill that contained state Rep. Bill DeWeese’s amendment to cut Fayette County’s share of Nemacolin Woodlands gambling revenue in half. DeWeese wanted to pirate that money off to his native Greene County. Yet state Reps. Larry Roberts, Peter J. Daley, Ted Harhai and Jess Stairs voted for the bill. Harhai and Stairs I can understand, because they represent such small portions of Fayette. Daley’s slice isn’t much bigger. But Roberts?
I suspect DeWeese didn’t try to make off with half of Washington County’s much larger gambling booty (from The Meadows horseracing track) because he didn’t want to step on the toes of state Sen. J. Barry Stout (D-Bentleyville). Stout, you’ll recall, represents Washington and Greene counties in the Legislature.
It didn’t matter anyway, because state Sen. Richard A. Kasunic (D-Dunbar), intervened and had the DeWeese amendment quashed in the Senate version of the bill. The thing is, DeWeese had tried the same maneuver in 2004 and failed. What’s amazing is that DeWeese apparently thought he could slide it past Kasunic this time. Did he think the good senator wouldn’t be watching?
I’ve been having an interesting but respectful e-mail exchange with a reader who’s apparently trying to sway my big-view political thinking as concerns the U.S. Senate race between incumbent Republican Rick Santorum and Democratic challenger Bob Casey Jr. I’ll summarize it this way: Unlike some, I have never believed that the Republican Party was or is the chosen party of God. Isn’t that the same sort of thinking prevalent among the radical Islamists we’re trying to eliminate in the Middle East?
The country’s in a mood for change, at a greater level than I’ve seen in decades. But the most insulated incumbent appears to be Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell. A masterful campaigner and strategist, Rendell has pretty much neutralized GOP challenger Lynn Swann on every important issue. Rendell’s even come out in favor of amending the state’s weak open records law. If he wins Nov. 7, we’ll be expecting him to back up those words with action.
Our Editorial Board met Friday to vote on our endorsements for the Nov. 7 election. We plan to start running those next week. Of the nine races, we’re endorsing six Democrats and three Republicans. You’ll have to read the paper to find out how those match up with the four state House seats, one state Senate seat, two U.S. House seats, the governor’s race and the race for U.S. Senate. But we put a lot of thought and effort into it, and we hope that you’ll give our logic and choices serious consideration.
Many people I talk to get upset about the number of “freebies” given to people who don’t work, such as health care, food stamps, LIHEAP, etc. One of the candidates we interviewed acknowledged that there’s a shortage of good and qualified workers in Fayette County, which was a refreshing admission. But when government makes it so convenient and, in some cases, rewarding, for people to stay on the couch, what incentive do they have to work? There’s a big difference between helping those who are truly in need and letting someone play the system.