There is an apparent disconnect between those who govern from Harrisburg and their employees. That is, because,  regardless of what is done in Harrisburg, life goes on for the rest of us.

There is a budget battle going on in Pennsylvania. Yes, I know it's not unlike other places in the country, especially California. The big difference is that here in Pennsylvania, while Governor Ed Rendell and the state legislature thrust and parry, state workers aren't receiving their pay for work they've done. That's right, they have to stay on their jobs, or they could face disciplinary action. But they have no idea when they might get paid. 

My wife is a state employee. She is not happy about not getting paid. But she does it because she is, in effect, a good neighbor. She believes strongly in helping others, and believes strongly in what she does. It is, in a large measure, more than a paycheck to her.

That does not mean that we do not have economic needs.

Since this idiocy with the 2009-10 state budget began, the worry over who to pay and who to negotiate with has been eating away at us, who will be nice enough to defer their own needs. Car loan? Rent? Gas? Child care? Medicine? Food?

Ford has been nice enough to delay a payment. Can't do it more than once.

We haven't even gone to our landlord, since they have been less than cooperative in the past.

The few creditors we've gone to have been less than understanding. They act as if somehow this is all our doing, that we are not working, that we are less than deserving of any assistance they might be able to give.

A few of our relatives have come forward to help us out a little in the short term. But what if this goes on for another week or two? They don't have unlimited funds.

Friends have brought us clothes, offered rides to and from work. Our church gave us a box full of food.

Somehow political posturing doesn't fit in with this picture of real life.

Governor Rendell said he made deals with banks and credit unions for workers to get short-term loans. As for the loans - We don't, as do many of my wife's co-workers, qualify for short-term loans. Only those who are well-off, and who already have the resources, qualify for them. And these loans are not free. There is interest attached. In other words, the interest attached is actually a fee, or even a tax, assessed against state employees for being state employees.

It is insulting and degrading. According to the Book of Romans, wages earned are not a gift but an obligation.

Makes you wonder if these people really care about their employees.

For the first time in my life, and the life of our children, we've all had to take to a picket line to protest. Why we should be protesting for wages already earned is beyond me.

So as the game goes on in the General Assembly and the Governor's Mansion, their tactics have about as much connection with real life as does the MTV show "Real Life".

To them it's all a game.

To us, it's very much real life.

I was going through the list of closing times for the polls in the different states, and I'm confronted by a couple of questions:

First, what time do you think that the election will be called - Obama break 270 electoral votes?

Second, do you think it will be BEFORE CA closes?

In reference to the latest use of whipping up crowds by McCain and Palin, I have a question for all the legal eagles out there: At what point would what they're saying be inciting violence and no longer be protected speech?

Here's a Breaking News e-mail I just received from the AP:

Monday, September 15, 2008,  6:41 AM PDT

AP (AP) • Dow Jones industrials fall more than 300 as market reacts to changes in Wall Street landscape

With just 60 days to go (and counting), it looks from this vantage point that McCain isn't going to do well.

For one thing, Palin not doing interviews. That's a media death wish if I ever saw one, for a couple of reasons-- not only will it p*ss off the MSM into digging deeper into her past, but it will create the vacuum that PR folks hate. Once you create that vacuum of information (or, as in the case of Palin, <i>mis</i>information) then other messages rush in to fill that void. In other words, you lose control of the message. Fast.

For another thing, the debates. The MSM might underestimate McCain's ability, so that when he performs <i>mediocre</i> it comes across as a Great Performance (see W's performance in 2000). But I think most folks are so fed up with the BS and genuinely want change that they won't swallow that assessment as easily.

Finally, most people already see that electing McCain is a third term for W.

So, from here, there's one major thing that the Obama camp has to do and that's keep the discipline - on message, on getting out the vote, keeping the focus on McCain.

Steve Rambler, the mayor of Wrightsville, PA, who was convicted on federal mail fraud charges in 1996, has been replaced.

http://ydr.inyork.com/ci_9460794http://ydr.inyork.com/ci_9460794

I kind of feel like Claude Rain's Senator Paine coming onto the floor of the Senate yelling, "Everything that Jessica Yellin says is true!"

I was a newspaper stringer for 17 years from 1990 to 2007. OK, that's pretty low on the journalistic totem pole - heck, let's be honest, it's not on even on the pole, it's somewhere in the dirt -- but I got to see first hand how coverage is spun to support a particular point of view, even to the detriment of the public.

During the run up to the war, I was a full-time stringer for the York Daily Record in York, PA. We did constant stories on "support the troops" rallies that was being held by a variety of people. When I attempted to cover the anti-war movement in the area, I was rebuffed. When counter-rallies were held at the pro-war gatherings, I tried to mention them in my pieces. They were either cut to an absolute minimum or they didn't make it to print altogether. (YDR is owned by MediaNews Group). (I wrote a poem about how I really felt covering these events.)

You also see that same bias/slant/direction being used in the coverage of local news.

If anything, this whole thing is the biggest argument in favor of a not-for-profit media in this country and for breaking up the local media monopolies.

It is also one of several reasons why I've left journalism.

Another one bites the dust according to the Baltimore Sun:

Alan B. Fabian, a Maryland entrepreneur, philanthropist and former Republican fundraiser, pleaded guilty Friday in Baltimore federal court to a multiyear scheme that the government says defrauded banks and businesses of at least $32 million.

"This is a massive fraud," U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett said several times during the two-hour arraignment.

As proof that Democrats are looking towards the nomination end game, the following is an e-mail that was just sent out to Democrats in Pennsylvania:

Dear Fellow Democrat,

As we approach the final stretch of what has been the most exciting nomination process in recent history, one thing is for certain: Each of our stellar candidates will be ready to assume the presidency from the first day in office and promises to perform much better than what we've had in this country for the past eight years.

The failed policies of the Bush Administration will be behind us and either Sen. Hillary Clinton or Sen. Barack Obama will be in the White House if we make sure everyone is on board this fall as we muster all of our support and enthusiasm behind the Democratic nominee.

While we worked diligently for our respective candidates this past spring in Pennsylvania, we strongly agree that each of us will support the Democratic nominee and will campaign tirelessly across the Commonwealth for him or her. Make no mistake about it, we care deeply about Pennsylvania and the nation. We are mired in an unpopular war that is costing us $12 billion a month and affecting us dramatically at the gas pumps as Pennsylvanians continue to pay astronomical amounts per gallon. We are also staunchly against further tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans while our working families continue to struggle with health care costs or continue to exist without it. And we are ready to begin a new period of economic prosperity in Pennsylvania as Bush and his tired leadership begins to fade.

Unfortunately, a clone of Bush is ready to take his place in Sen. John McCain. We simply cannot afford a third Bush term in McCain. He offers no solutions for Iraq, except to commit to another 100 years, and he flip-flopped on Bush's tax cuts for the wealthiest. John McCain is not the straight talker that he projects himself to be. We won't be fooled by his Double Talk express that has rolled into many of our communities. Instead, we promise to work together to ensure that we don't elect "McSame" this fall.

In fact, we promise to work together to ensure we elect a Democrat.

Now, we need your help. As we move forward as a unified Democratic Party, let us agree that as Democrats we have a responsibility to our state and our nation to work tirelessly for our nominee. We have one million more Democrats than Republicans in Pennsylvania. Apparently, our friends and neighbors feel very strongly about the Democratic Party and have made their voices known by either switching from another party or registering for the first time. That alone should inspire us.

As the top elected officials in Pennsylvania, we promise to lead our troops this fall in a UNIFIED fashion that will bring home another resounding victory for the Keystone State, for our nominee and for our country.

Sincerely,
Governor Edward G. Rendell
Senator Robert P. Casey, Jr.

Last night I saw actor Richard Dreyfuss speak at Millersville University of Pennsylvania about civil discourse and civics.

I have been watching W and now McCain go through New Orleans, and their charade of concern. It is a reflection of the good character of the people there that someone hasn't hit them upside the head to knock some sense into the (to use Bugs' phrase) pair of maroons. I just keep thinking how LBJ would be twisting arms until they broke to make sure that New Orleans was as good as it was before Katrina.

This may be closer...I have been following results from my county, and Obama is far ahead with 14 percent in...York County has 13 percent in, and Obama has a slight lead there...in Centre County, where Penn State is, Obama is leading 53-47...

In my precinct in western Lancaster County, I was the 44th Dem to vote, and it was 8:28 a.m. My precinct is overwhelmingly GOP, but 44th for that time is a fairly good turnout.

Montgomery County, a suburb of Philly...

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Philadelphia Inquirer

Harrisburg Patriot News

AP: As for The rest of PA...

Don't expect the results to come in right away. All 67 counties have different methods for vote counting (Yeah, I know, it's a Florida 2000 waiting to happen!), so it will take a while for any kind of pattern to develop. The first results will be from the two big cities - Philadelphia and Allegheny County (Pittsburgh). The rest of the state - the "Alabama in the middle" - will be long in coming. The area around Scranton could be a bellwhether for reasons too numerous to mention here.

So, the envelopes please...

1. Expect the results slow in coming (see above). Don't take results from Philly to be the be-all, end-all. My call is that the results won't be known until after midnight eastern time.

2. It's Obama by a nose. Or Hillary, but also by a nose. Neither will get the knock-out they need.

So it'll be on to Indiana and North Carolina...

From the Lancaster Sunday News:
Obama draws thousands to train station
Between 7-10k show up...

From the Harrisburg Patriot-News:
Obama at Capitol: 'We will change the world'
More than 4k show up...

Trade issues score for Clinton in York
About 1k folks jammed onto a street downtown...

From the York Daily Record:
Clinton: I'll bring back peace and prosperity

If the size and make up of the crowds are to be believed, I think Obama might just pull this off...