HARRISBURG PATRIOT-NEWS Editorial: …Many in the capital have treated the law simply as an “object” or a “hurdle” to be manipulated as necessary to accomplish a political goal. I believe the disdain for the law is so embedded in Harrisburg’s political culture that it constitutes a very insidious form of corruption. .
Many public officials and other powerful people take the position that “those city people voted for whom they voted, and they will have to live with the consequences.” But the truth is that the average citizens on the streets of Harrisburg did not know about the depth of harmful acts by those they had elected.
They could not have understood there was a highly sophisticated, multi-hundred million dollar debt scheme going on, as shown now in the forensic audit. They did not know about — much less could have understood — the inappropriateness of the interest rate swaps, as revealed now in the forensic audit… (more)
EDITOR: Sound familiar? Although the Convention Center Project slipped through, how many others such rip offs would have been foisted on the public but for the brave resistance by former county commissioners, this publication and various individuals who bravely spoke out and devoted massive time and effort to ferreting out the truth and reporting upon it. The lame brained street car project would have been next in line.
The ill-conceived streetcar proposal (thankfully) fell victim to the realities of economics in the 21st century. As did the Stevens-Smith Historic Site, the Pennsylvania Academy of Music, the Lancaster Quilt and Textile Museum, the Heritage Center Museum, the relocation and expansion of the Lancaster Museum of Art, and the move of the North Museum from F&M to Queen and Chestnut.
As well as the downtown Lancaster convention center.
EDITOR: An enlarged and thoroughly renovated Lancaster Public Library “fell victim to the realities” of having promised funding diverted to complete the Convention Center. Otherwise at least 1500 people a day would be enjoying a modernized facility that would have been the pride of Lancaster. How much else was sacrificed we will never know.