T. Jefferson Think Tank tackles stem cell as topic on July 6

Various stem cell research topics will be discussed at the July meeting of the Thomas Jefferson Think Tank at 7:15 pm on Wednesday, July 6, 2005. Arrive early to enjoy the food, drink. Bring a friend. Gathering hosted at Silvioni’s, 2125 Babcock Boulevard. Dinner will be served until 7:00 pm. The meeting will start at approximately 7:15 pm.

The talk on “Stem Cell Research: The Science, The Ethics, and the Politics” will begin with an explanation of what exactly “stem cell research” entails, and how it is currently being used in medicine and what other medical treatments might arise from it in the future. Next, discuss the ethics of the issue. Finally, the politics.

More in the comments.

Planning ahead for future races, i.e., 2006

Tim C, the Allegheny County Libertarian Chair wrote in part:

Casey and Santorum are both Pro-Life. So the LPPa (Libertarian Party of PA) could field a Pro-Choice candidate and get enough votes to hang onto minor party status. The big hurdle, however, is that in 2006 the LPPa will need to gather at least 66,000 valid signatures. This means that we will need about 100,000 raw signatures.

In 2004, we only needed 42,000 signatures. In 2006 we will need 100,000. This is because Casey ran away with the Treasurer's race in 2004 and we now need 2% of Casey's 3.6 million vote total.

We should begin to have a group conversation about how we intend to handle the 2006 ballot access drive. In 2004, LPPa volunteers gathered 21,000 signatures. That would leave us about 79,000 signatures short.

Since 2004 was a Presidential election year, The Badnarik campaign and the National Party each kicked in for enough signarures for the LPPa to get 42,000 total, enough for ballot access in 2004....

KQV Newsradio Pittsburgh - Opinion Poll on the Light Rail to the Stadiums - Click to vote now

KQV Newsradio Pittsburgh Daily Opinion Poll

The federal government is contributing 290-million-dollars toward the 365-million-dollar cost of the Port Authority's North Shore Connector. The massive project includes twin tunnels under the Allegheny River, extending the 'T' light rail line from Downtown to the North Shore stadiums.

I hate the idea of the light-rail to the stadiums for a number of reasons.

The federal money is our money too. The money can come from our back pocket or our purse, but it is still from the people.

Pittsburgh will never get its fiscal health back when we squander good money on bad projects.

The local match is needed for this project and there isn't any. The county's chief executive has said there is no money to do the project from county sources. The city is broke.

We need to extend the light-rail in meaningful ways. If the light-rail went to CCAC on the North Side -- I'd have a different opinion. But this is to service PNC Park and Heinz Field.

Boston's "big dig" is leaking. That extended a road under Boston Harbor. It went over budget. It is now built and with serious problems. I fear that this project is going to net the same results.

We want game-day pedestrian traffic in the greater area. Let's keep the festive crowds on the closed Clemente Bridge. Let's allow for vendors, and others throughout town and the North Side to capitalize on the fans. If the light-rail stops are put at the stadium doors, the rest of the neighborhoods see no upside. Walking from town is NOT a big deal. Taking a cab is easy.

The PAT plan calls for the re-do of working, existing stops. Gateway Center stop works now. But with the new plan it is totally rebuilt. Same too with the stop near the Pennsylvanian close to the Convention Center. All in all we get four new stops, but two of them are re-done construction projects. The net gain is half. Rather, let's extend the light-rail to Oakland, Lawrenceville, (new Children's Hospital), and even out to Highland Park.

We should be pushing mass transit to places where people live.

Better Hearing given some ink and friends and peers visit Pitt -- a leader in audiology

See the feature article that mentions wellness and audiologist.

New Pittsburgh Courier Her hearing loss was said to be a combination of age, noise and genetics. McCray slipped into depression.

For the past three days, 50 educators of audiologist from around the nation came to Pittsburgh for a workshop organized, in part, by my wife, Catherine V. Palmer. The event was called a "landmark event."

Way to go Pitt!

The "NO" vote was as high as 90-percent in some neighborhoods

This is interesting if true.

New Pittsburgh Courier: In May, I had written a column urging the electorate, particularly the African-American community, to vote No on the referendum question in the primary regarding row office consolidation. I have reviewed the voting tallies. What is bold and interesting is that though the question passed by over 70 percent due to many factors, it failed consistently within the African-American communities, in some cases by over 90 percent. And the no vote was higher in working class communities than in higher income communities.

I've not done my homework, yet, in the vote specifics from May, 2005. If anyone has any insights and charts on the data, I'd be happy to get a copy via email.

Courier reports FAMILY Dollar might open near the Hill House

New Pittsburgh Courier Family Dollar ushers in new Hill House CDC.

No ordinary classroom

No ordinary classroom - PittsburghLIVE.com The gardens will become a key component of the planned community greenhouse and pavilion where students and neighborhood children will learn agriculture and environmental science hands-on, Wilcox said. The greenhouse will be 75 percent solar-powered.

While the greenhouse is 75-percent solar powered, the percentage for the produce grow in the ground will be much higher.
I'd love to see a charter school, or a public school, tied to the Pittsburgh Zoo and Aquarium. A concentration about animals would be rewarding and beyond the ordinary as well.
Tip: Hope we see a Highland Park 4H club bloom soon.

Updating dart boards has become much easier with these cards.

If this was really about growing 'sprouts' -- I'd be happy. However, as I see it, this is more about preservation of the status quo. Same old same old gets institutional support from those who claim to be change-agents.

Want political savvy? It's in the cards - PittsburghLIVE.com The inaugural 60-card set was unveiled Saturday night at Hothouse '05 -- the annual money-raiser for the Sprout Fund, which provided the seed money of $9,400 for the venture.

I'd rather provide a set a trading cards for a thousand Chinees gods than give my kids cards with little known facts of those who are taking apart our city, folly by folly.

Rather than reveal little know facts, the card creators should have stuck to straight politics.

The less the people know, the better those in power like it. Rather than give straight up info on who stands for what -- and who was at the helm as various bogus budgets came into being to cripple our region -- do fluff.

I feel certain that I'd be happy if half of the 60 who are featured on those trading cards were put into the private sector at the next election.

I'd be thrilled, plus we'd see a rebound of the region's public health if every one of those featured today on the trading cards were removed from office and put into the private sector.

Those trading cards should serve as resume cards. Every elected cronie needs a new job. If you like a person -- offer him or her a job in your business. Your business might take a hit, but, the region will have hope.

By the way, does Joe Weinroth have a trading card? What about Alan Perry and Tonya Payne?

Blue City Conservatives by Matt Rosenberg

Seattle Weekly: News: Blue City Conservatives by Matt Rosenberg Here are some admittedly gloomy snapshots of life in the city under the vestiges of one-party rule.

This article isn't about Pittsburgh, thankfully. But, it is something that needs to be understood. In the real world, it isn't always smooth sailing.

SEA needs a hand - PittsburghLIVE.com. I say give it an arm. Then run the other way with a quick turn of ownership.

SEA needs a hand - PittsburghLIVE.com Without more than $3 million in gambling revenue it was counting on this year, the city-county Sports & Exhibition Authority could ask Pittsburgh and Allegheny County to help plug a hole in the operating budget for the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, according to an audit released Friday.

This spells trouble on many fronts. And, some of us saw it coming.

The SEA is banking on hype. The authority is over spent. The authority has yet to tighten its belt to match its income. The overhead of the building is getting like a heavy weight that is going to be a bigger and bigger burden.

The term WHITE ELEPHANT needs to be realized. If it is ignored, the problem is going to be worse later. Come to grips with reality.

That big sucking sound is still ringing from the operation of the Convention Center. Look at the cost of the water fountain that runs within in the convention center, its new DAM, its re-building and contrast that with the cost of running a real swim pool and the smack-down being tossed about with the ACT 47 oversight board (see next post) about the hope of shifting operation of swim pools to other entities.

These are not cash-flow issues. These are overspending issues. These are bad decision issues. These are poor planning issues. These are didn't close down operations issues. These are issues of inaction and poor leadership.

By the way, how much of the Convention Center was put in use by the recent events of the Senior Olympics?

Could the Convention Center hosted the badminton, shuffleboard, table tennis, opening or closing events, and more?

The Convention Center isn't be leveraged to be a great community asset that is could be. Our potential is being squandered because there isn't enough creativity with that venue.

Why isn't the Act 47 team looking into the use and miss-spending at the SEA?

Why wasn't the Convention Center turned into a campaign issue in the mayor's race?

Joe Weinroth could make some serious waves if he talked about the Convention Center and injected some new, creative ideas backed up by research and understanding of what really goes on in that facility and how it is and will yet impact the budgets of the city and the SEA.

Rather than getting a bailout for the SEA for the convention center .. think again. How about if we sell the convention center and make money on it. And, sell the convention center to the new gambling site owners. They could take part of the convention center and turn it into a casino. Then other parts could be dedicated to gaming and other ventures as they wish.

The convention center is a massive public liability now. It would be an asset that can be taken off of the backs of the taxpayers. Then the ongoing gambling money incomes won't be diverted and lost in continual bailouts of the convention center.

Then, the SEA can be liquidated and go away.

The boat show and the home show -- and other conventions that are slated for the convention center can still go forward. But the operators would be the casino owned coordinators.

Get that skin in the game and into the marketplace -- now!

Act 47 team warns city on cost of pool openings - UNREAL Lifeguarding

This letter goes over like running on the pool deck to dive into the shallow end with a tray of whine (pun) glasses.

I think I'll listen to 1360 AM and the Ron Morris show from 9-11 am as I had heard (I think) a promo that a company leader from Centimark (sp?) would be an on-air guest. That firm donated money to enable a REAMS pool re-opening.

Act 47 team warns city on cost of pool openings

Saturday, June 18, 2005, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Pittsburgh's Act 47 fiscal recovery team has sent a letter to Mayor Tom Murphy and City Council warning that opening more than 12 swimming pools this summer would 'be inconsistent' with the city's strict budget.

The letter, dated June 16 and signed by recovery team leaders James Roberts and Dean Kaplan, expresses 'concern' with the possible opening of Ream Pool in Mount Washington, Riverview Pool in Perry North and McBride Pool in Lincoln Place.

None of the three pools was approved for operation in the city's 2005 budget, but plans have emerged to open them anyway. Ream Pool's operations would be covered by a private donation, Riverview Pool's with Regional Asset District funds, and McBride Pool's with state funds that may become available.

The letter warned that the city might be on the hook for maintenance costs, or face liability for any injuries, even if it didn't fund operations at those pools.

The letter asked for prompt clarification of the anticipated costs of operating the pools.

Though the letter did not threaten punitive action, the Act 47 team can call on the state to withhold some funding if it finds the city out of compliance with its recovery plan.

This is grounds for making waves and further investigation.

Riverview is a RAD pool.

REAMS is turning into a civic, private, grass-roots venture that is get strung out again from the city so as to rely upon lifeguards but have pay from non-city budget sources.

The county wanted to pick up the operation of the newer swim pool up in the 31st ward. That pool, on the edge of the city line, is generally used by lots of non-city residents.

COOPERATION.

What does Bob O'Connor have to say, by the way. He was going to see that ALL of the pools were reopened if he was mayor. (Bad idea as well.) Bob was full of hot air on the campiagn trails. Now it is time to sound off on do "follow-up" on this matter.

The city pools opened yesterday.

West Allegheny ponders chops to school budget, plus school offers early retirement incentives

Beaver County Times Allegheny Times - News - 06/17/2005 - School offers early retirement incentives ... Cuts being considered include items such as not hiring additional teachers; eliminating study groups; cutting back on supplies, equipment, books, periodicals and software; eliminating a dean of students position; eliminating some foreign language programs; eliminating conferences; and eliminating after-school programs.

'We don't feel good about these cuts,' DiSanti said. However, he added, 'we can make (the cuts) without compromising the integrity of the program.'

District officials can further cut the budget by eliminating things such as two marching band assistants and several assistant football coaches, sports such as indoor track, hockey and bowling, and cutting back on resource and instructional support teachers.

'I guess everything's fair game,' DiSanti said, adding that those additional cuts would have an impact on students.

'(Without) resource teachers, there's really no place (for students with learning problems) to get help,' he said. '(The cuts) would take a lot of great things that have happened here in education and turn that around.'

While many residents have been outspoken in their objections to a tax increase, several who spoke at Wednesday's board meeting said the proposed cuts would mean only a small savings to the average taxpayer while deeply impacting the students.

'If (the savings are) so small, why eliminate the help for these kids who need it?' said Mike Kiss of North Fayette. 'Most of these programs are for the kids who need them.'

Joe Diven, a Findlay resident and former police officer, also questioned the proposed cuts in the sports programs. 'You cut these programs, and you're going to end up with nothing but problems with these kids,' he said.

In other suburban school news, I noticed that Pine-Richland held a 6-4 vote among its school directors with the outcome to NOT install a JUMBOTRON at the stadium along with two additional gym-based scoreboards. The new materials in the sports venues were to be at no charge to the district and paid for by Datronics, a firm that makes scoreboards. Meanwhile, Datronics was to be enabled to sell advertising to the tune of aprox. $100,000 per year for eight years to pay for the new display toys.

Interesting trend.

Sustainlane US City Rankings

Sustainlane US City Rankings SustainLane began to take a look at 25 US cities across 12 major categories, to measure their relative levels of sustainability...

Hat tip to a comment poster at Pittsblog for the pointer.

Exactly one month from now. How is your training going?

The 8th Annual, Pittsburgh Triathlon & Adventure Race Race on Sunday, July 17, 2005. The Pittsburgh Triathlon and Adventure Race site is www.pittsburghtriathlon.com.
Sign up online and see the details.

The Olympic-distance triathlon consists of a 1.5 K swim in the Allegheny River, a 40 K bike along the I-279 HOV lanes and a 10 K run along the Three Rivers Heritage
Trail.

Adventure race will be slightly different this year, starting with a 2-mile canoe/kayak then a 12-mile bike, and 3.2 mile run following a shorter version of the triathlon course.

USA Triathlon sanctions the event.

I'm considering the race. If I choose to run, I'll try to get last place, just like I did in the recent senate race. But, if either Diven or Fontana enter too -- then I'll try harder and not opt to get beat -- again -- by either one of those guys.

Trail Opening - Dedication Celebration - July 8

Friends of the Riverfront sent out this news, in part ...

You’re invited! for a Trail Party and Dedication The South Side 10-1 Trail Segment of the Three Rivers Heritage Trail (AKA the missing link) is now complete.

Please join us on Friday evening July 8th from 4:00 - 7:00 pm for a Heritage Trail dedication party. No need to R.S.V.P. just walk, bike or blade along the Heritage Trail to the new trail head facility in Pittsburgh’s South Side at the Terminus of Fourth Street at the Intersection of McKean and Bingham off Carson Street.

We will enjoy food, entertainment and an inaugural bike ride. The dedication is being cosponsored by Dasani in conjunction with the Rails-to-Trail Conservancy, Friends of the Riverfront and Bike Pittsburgh.

The event will serve as an unveiling of a new Community Bike Program, a first in the City of Pittsburgh. For more information please join us for the party and visit http://www.railtrails.org/membership/corporate/dasani.asp

chickengen: election day McRantypants

Some nice comments from another blogger published just before election day:

chickengen: election day McRantypants: "
so i'm clearly one of the most hard core democrats among any of you who read my blog. however, i REALLY dig this guy. i mean, mark rauterkus has a blog!

relax everyone who doesn't know who mark rauterkus is, and thinks that i have suddenly begun to support a republican. i'm from pittsburgh, people. why, mark rauterkus is a very special libertarian. he's running for PA senate in the 42nd disctrict and he's rull dahn ta urth. he's all about parks and the arts and he's from the south side and i like that.
check it out, seriously: http://rauterkus.blogspot.com/
michael lamb supports rauterkus. but i still think michael lamb is mildly retarded.

an entry to mark's blog. i am in love with this man:
title: Big week -- and today's my birthday!"

Dads are no longer the 'assistant parent' - The Boston Globe

Some good dad talk in ink in Boston.

Dads are no longer the 'assistant parent' - The Boston Globe
By Barbara F. Meltz

Matt Miller of Ashland is the father of 20-month-old Aaron. Sure, he's also the happily married husband of Jennifer, he's an attentive son, and a respected first-grade teacher. First and foremost, though, he's Aaron's dad.

''Thinking about Aaron is where my mind goes when it doesn't have to be someplace else,' he says.

Miller, 34, had the good fortune to become a father at a time when society accepts, encourages, and values dads' involvement. Like many of his peers, he's just as likely as his wife to feed, bathe, or diaper the baby; to take his turn waking up in the middle of the night or staying home when Aaron is sick. Recently, he was supposed to meet an old friend for dinner and a beer, but cancelled at the last minute because Aaron was vomiting. It was another sign of the times that his buddy gave him only a one-sentence, half-hearted hard time about it.

''People just get it,' Miller says."

More of the article in the comments.

Cleanliness study puts city near the bottom

The PG article snip:

PG recaps Pittsburgh's bad showing 'This was a data-driven story,' said Reader's Digest reporter Derek Burnett, who wrote the article with two colleagues. 'We just let the numbers do the talking.'

McGrath and other local officials say numbers don't tell the whole story.

Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato blamed two poorly placed air-quality monitoring stations -- one on the Greene County line with Ohio and the other in Liberty near the Clairton Coke Works.

'We're penalized for all the smog that blows in from Ohio,' he said.

Guillermo Cole, spokesman for the Allegheny County Health Department, acknowledged the station near the coke works collects some of the worst readings in the country, but it doesn't mean the air throughout the region is poor.

'We think we are excessively penalized for that one station,' he said. 'It really makes us look bad when we really don't have air quality like that throughout the county and region.'

Water quality problems also are affected by the areas included in the study. Allegheny County hasn't had any water system out of compliance with Clean Water Act standards for more than 20 years, Cole said, but there were incidents in Butler, Washington and Fayette counties.

'Our waterways are cleaner than they've ever been,' said Onorato, who noted that the rivers were clean enough for the region to land this year's CITGO Bassmaster Classic, the nation's premier fishing competition.

Craig Kwiecinski, a spokesman for Pittsburgh Mayor Tom Murphy, said Pittsburgh is 'very proud' of the progress made in improving air quality in the last generation.

Kathryn Klaber, a vice president with the Allegheny Conference on Community Development who spends a lot of time on air quality issues, said it gets tiresome trying to refute air pollution information.

She said she would prefer that Reader's Digest and others look at 10-year projections that the EPA released earlier this year that show the region's air is expected to improve steadily.

'It really does cost us a lot of time and money to combat this kind of thing,' Klaber said.

McGrath said he's become convinced over the years that the only way to dispel negative images of Pittsburgh is to get people to come here. Thousands attending the Senior Olympics will leave with a far more favorable impression of the city than they had before, he predicted.

Face the facts. Deal with the truth. Think again.
Rather than spending a lot of time and money to combat this kind of bad PR for Pittsburgh, perhaps the Pittsburgh power brokers should try to invest more effort and energy into fixing the real problem and look more at the roots of the problems -- the smog and polution.

The leadership here is convinced that there is only one way to dispel negative images of Pittsburgh. Think again. To get folks here is fine. But, how about if we just worked a lot harder on fixing the problems.

Scrub the air. Scrub the water. Protect the shared resource -- spec by spec.

The excuse of poorly placed air quality monitoring stations is but a bad excuse. Bad air here can't be ignored because everyone doesn't live in that neighborhood. The air quality monitoring stations should not be put in Dan Onorato's living room nor the Lazarus perfume counter. The placement of the stations should be as they are -- in at-risk quarters. That's how its done elsewhere as well.

The whopper thought is within the bogus hope that the air quality score would be based on a "projection." The only necessary reply is, "Get real."

Fakes and fake outs are too popular here. Pittsburgh needs leaders who can get a tight grip upon the reality of the situations. We have too many who are "proud" of half-truths.

Free Shipping: for golf and basketball equipment

These offers expire on July 2:

Resource Reallocation Community Meetings - PPS meeting and info

Resource Reallocation Community Meetings Thursday, June 16 at 6 p.m. Brashear High School

Final meeting is slated for 6 pm on Monday, June 20 at Peabody High School.

At each meeting, presentations will include information for the entire District as well as data and discussion about the schools and facilities in the nearby communities.