WATCHDOG: Who cares?

“I awakened Sunday morning, recovered from Saturday night’s adrenaline rush, to have it dawn on me — the editorial! In the light of day, I was hit hard with regret. The editorial page had been finished Friday and I was caught up in breaking events Saturday. No excuses. This error in judgment has made for some gloomy days for me.

“What we wrote needed to be said, but it could have been held for a later time.”

WATCHDOG: Marv Adams still doesn’t get it.   It wasn’t the timing of the editorial that was offensive.   It was his assertion:
“We are …in deep denial over the Sandusky child sex-abuse scandal, as some Penn State alumni show. The university does share in it, and Joe Paterno does NOT deserve an apology. He and others had an obligation to do more to protect children.”

The Watchdog responded.

Given the extraordinary number of letters to the Lancaster newspapers making our point that Joe Paterno did what was required and expected of him and any fault lay elsewhere, the only “denial” is by Adam.  He should be blaming Gov. Tom Corbett for scapegoating Paterno in order to divert attention from Corbett failure as attorney general to timely bring Sandusky to justice.

WATCHDOG:   Two wags of the tail!  This is a well researched and thoughtful article.  

1)$24,000 a year in pay is more than most hotel line workers earn, assuming they are not receiving health care benefits  (which are worth between $2.50 and $3.00 an hour.)  If husband and wife earned that much, their combined income would lift them  into middle class.   However, as Smart points out or implies, most Americans may not be in the physical or psychological condition to undertake such work.

2) Without heavy unionization or government fiat so that an entire  industry in a given market place  faces the same labor cost consideration, there will be a race to the bottom in order to remain competitive.  With a return to prosperity, there will be greater demand for labor from other sources which will have the benign effect of increasing wages… perhaps not enough in some industries.

3) For once, someone other than NewsLanc has the Henry Ford story correct!  Even Robert Reich perpetuates the myth.

“In the months since the Penn State scandal broke, my estimation of Joe Paterno has changed. It’s gone from ‘admirable’ to  ‘heroic.’” …

WATCHDOG:  Ms Toews memorably captures what may be  Paterno’s greatest achievement:  His refrain from lashing back at a conniving governor and unjust critics in his final days, remaining both humble and assured that he had acted honorably.   

Three wags of the tail for Loews’s letter and Paterno.   ‘May his memory be for a blessing.’

WATCHDOG: The editors’ position smacks of ‘holier than thou.’  Several reporters at the Lancaster Newspapers voiced objections concerning the Convention Center news coverage to their superiors.  But none went to the Philadelphia Inquirer or the New York Times to criticize what was taking place.  Do we really expect that they would have?

Paterno followed both the law and Penn State policy by reporting what he knew of the occurrence to his supervisors.   The public lynching of Paterno led by now governor Tom Corbett was designed to deflect attention from Corbett’s failure as attorney general to swiftly and properly prosecute Jerry Sandusky.

Corbett took the lead and the other 31 trustees remained mute while the callous and despicable firing of Paterno was approved.  With all due respect, in this case we feel the editors have lost their moral compass, justifying what amounted to a crucifiction.

“Last month, The Associated Press reported that America’s top export in 2011 wasn’t cars or food or technology, it was fuel — gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. From the article: “Experts say the trend helps explain why U.S. motorists are paying more for gasoline. The more fuel that’s sent overseas, the less of a supply cushion there is at home.

“So if the pipeline were built, Canadian oil would still go to Asia, if Asia’s the highest bidder. So tell me again how the pipeline would increase our national security?”

WATCHDOG:  An additional source of crude oil would enable our refineries to provide more refined fuel for national use in a serious shortage.   The domestic market would benefit from the savings in shipping cost.  Moreover, in a national emergency, the government could restrict oil exports. 

The pipeline issue is a tough call.  President Obama may have made a serious political blunder by ‘kicking the can down the road’ with a ‘wink and a nod’ about re-application with a final decision being made after the 2012 election.  (Two cliché’s in a row!)

WATCHDOG: Let’s put this in perspective.  Couples can pay $200 on an outing to a  football game, a Broadway musical,  an opera, or a rock concert.   We ascribe such expenditures to entertainment.

Couples also, especially the elderly, will spend a couple of hundred dollars, often far less, on a trip to a casino.   They absorb the ambiance, catch some of the entertainment, enjoy a meal, and lose perhaps a hundred bucks.

When the Watchdog was a college pup and traveled through Reno on his way to Cal Berkeley, he noted the signs  placed throughout Harold’s Club:   “Don’t gamble more than you can afford to lose. We want you to come back.”

Well, things have changed since those days when, along with the Burma Shave messages, there were signs along the highways throughout the country with an arrow and stating the number of  miles to Harold’s Club.  But their sentiment was correct.

When the youthful Watchdog sought to cash a check at Harold’s Club, he was asked how much would he care to cash in the future.  He asked if they were going to run a credit check.  “Oh no”, he was told.  “That’s your self imposed limit so you won’t be tempted to gamble more than you had intended.”

The problem isn’t with casinos per se.  They provide entertainment.  It is with those addicted to gambling.  The casinos and the authorities need to be more pro-active in identifying and helping them.  Perhaps the New Era editors can come up with some suggestions along those lines.

“The executive director of the Lancaster County Convention Center Authority on Thursday publicly proposed an increase in the county’s hotel room tax.

“Kevin Molloy, whose position has not been adopted by the board of the public authority, said he raised the specter of a higher tax to start a public discussion.

“’If someone sees a better answer, I’m open to that, but I don’t see it out there right now,’ Molloy said… “ (more)

WATCHDOG: This time there was no spin or obfuscation.   The article was written in a straight forward and proper journalistic manner, despite the sordid history of the Lancaster Newspapers, Inc. in its sponsorship of the project and through its one sided business relationship with the Convention Center via its co-equitable ownership of the Marriott Hotel.

This is a big improvement from past coverage.  A wag of the tail!

(Albeit feint praise, it is sincere.)

“He feels the board has conducted too much business behind closed doors and needs to be more open about the way it conducts business and makes decisions.”

WATCHDOG: Is Puleo describing Lancaster General Health’s Board of Trustees?  It would be apt, but instead he is referring to the Penn State University Board of Trustees.

The article is headed:  “Local attorney to run for seat on PSU’s board of trustees”. We wish Puleo  well!

Editorial: “The state is running nearly $500 million behind projections on tax revenue.

“In response, Gov. Tom Corbett ordered a spending freeze of almost $157 million, with the largest amounts coming from state prisons, child welfare agencies and higher education…

“We suspect that the governor’s reluctance to tax the drilling industry has more to do with ideological purity — and, the cynic in us adds, the hefty contributions that drilling companies made to the Corbett campaign fund — than with serious fears about choking off the Marcellus gold rush in the northern tier of counties.” …

WATCHDOG: Three wags of the tail!