Sure sure, this is a fantastic idea:
States and companies have started investing very differently when it comes to the billions of dollars they are safeguarding for workers’ retirement. Companies are quietly and gradually moving their pension funds out of stocks. They want to reduce their investment risk and are buying more long-term bonds. But states […]

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So the redneck neighbor who during the summer rides his ATV up and down the thin strip of land that actually belongs to the township, annoying everyone in the neighborhood, is now on his snowmobile. Several reports from another neighbor this morning that he’s all over the neighborhood roads on the damned thing; there are also, of […]

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More municipal fiscal apocalypse - right here in the Susquehanna Valley:
Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania, will consider Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection along with tax increases and asset sales as options to address $68 million in debt service payments due this year, the chairwoman of a City Council committee said last night.
Every option, including tax and […]

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Not a good place to be:
there are now 26 states which have depleted their [unemployment insurance] trust funds, among these are the usual suspects including California, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio, which now rely exclusively on borrowings from the Federal government to prevent the cessation of insurance payments to recently unemployed workers.
The most bankrupt […]

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Via Atrios, New York is trying to come up with a way to generate more revenue and fill its budget gap:
Gov. David A. Paterson proposed what would be the largest cut to school aid in more than two decades and nearly $1 billion in new or increased taxes and fees as he unveiled his budget […]

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Interesting to see a bit on the front of today’s paper about choosing an electric supplier - I’ve already signed up with one of PPL’s competitors, Dominion Energy, which promises 10 percent off PPL’s announced rate for next year. The duration of the contract with Dominion is one year; so who knows what its price […]

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Funny/interesting:
Beer is locked up in Pennsylvania and needs to be freed from archaic state liquor laws, Sheetz Inc. officials said Wednesday.
The Altoona-based company, with about 200 locations in Pennsylvania, has started the Free My Beer campaign, an online and paper petition effort to urge lawmakers to allow beer sales at grocery and convenience stores.
The company […]

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Interesting. Atrios:
Those of you who saw Michael Moore’s latest know about the case of the judge getting kickbacks to send kids to a private juvenile detention facility. PA Supreme Court tossed almost all of the cases out, meaning they can’t even be retried. Good for them.

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Patriot News writes about how your electric bill is going up come January:
To cash-strapped PPL customers, the only aspect of electricity deregulation that will seem important on Jan. 1 will be the 30 percent jump in your bills.
This is a bad time to add more expenses to home budgets already on tilt — yet the […]

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…never mind the loons:
“As a veteran, I believe that any veteran lending their name, to promote the leftist propaganda of global warming and climate change, in an effort to control more of the wealth created in our economy, through cap and tax type policies, all in the name of national security, is a traitor to […]

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Classy.

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Because Pittsburgh was a lot like Detroit is?
Incidentally, as Phillips note, take a look at Time Magazine’s project on the death - and maybe, eventual rebirth - of Detroit:
This summer the editors at Time Inc. did something a little out of the ordinary for us or, frankly, for anybody: we bought a house in Detroit. As […]

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Yeah, you know, I lived in Pittsburgh on and off for a lot of years, and I’m telling you that your Iron-drinking, Steeler-fan, pickup-truck driving, snuff-chewing ‘burghers ain’t digging this:
Protesters and police are clashing on the streets of Pittsburgh after police tried to break up a march oppposing the Group of 20 summit.
Protesters rolled trash […]

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The LCB apparently wants to put these things in supermarkets throughout the state - which will go over real well here, don’t you think?

Each kiosk is several feet wide and about 10 feet high. They would vend white and red wines and would be located in supermarkets that don’t currently have LCB “one-stop shops” within […]

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Right here in PA, baby. The Pennsyltucky part, of course.
Put that on your road signs: Welcome to Pennsylvania! We allow gays to exist!

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Via Atrios - in one respect, this was inevitable:
State Rep. Bill DeWeese officially introduced his proposal yesterday to add table games to Pennsylvania’s casinos. Under the measure, casino operators would pay a $10 million fee up-front to inaugurate games such as blackjack, poker and craps at their currently slots-only facilities.
That’s pretty much full-fledged casino right […]

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County commissioners make an excellent point here about the upcoming state budget, noting that the Commonwealth is attempting to pass the buck and make counties and local municipalities responsible for raising taxes.
But I have to wonder what Dennis Stuckey is talking about when he says this:
My responsibility to the taxpayers of Lancaster County is to push back […]

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Cedes the field to Toomey, it looks like:

“After careful consideration and many conversations with friends and family and the leadership of my party, I have decided not to seek the Republican nomination for Senate,” Ridge said in a statement, adding later, “The 2010 race has significant implications for my party, and that required thoughtful reflection. […]

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Hm:
A new poll of Pennsylvania from Republican polling firm Public Opinion Strategies shows that former Gov. Tom Ridge (R-PA), who is reportedly considering a bid for the Senate seat now held by Republican-turned-Democrat Arlen Specter, would currently lead conservative candidate Pat Toomey in a 60%-23% landslide for the Republican primary.
Not sure that I buy this. […]

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Lotsa talk over at Josh Marshall’s place about the possibility of Ridge getting into the Pa. Senate race, whether Joe Sestak is poised to give Specter more of a run for his money than might be expected in the Dem primary, etc.
All of it interesting speculation, but pointless.
Tom Ridge is not going to run in […]

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