Lame effort on funding from Pa. Legislature
A look at the week that was, the issues and people who made headlines, and a few darts and laurels for those who deserve them.
DART: To the Pennsylvania Legislature. This is the best you could come up with? A boatload of new gambling and borrowing a billion bucks from the tobacco settlement fund? Yep, it’s “Groundhog Day,” Harrisburg-style. They keep doing the same thing over and over again.
DART: Not only does the state budget not contain any serious recurring revenue to battle the state’s perilous, ongoing fiscal issues, it also gives the state’s natural gas industry a pass for another year. Pennsylvania remains the nation’s only large gas-producing state that does not levy a severance tax on drillers. Instead we are left with the “impact fee” instituted by then Gov. Tom Corbett, who like most other Republicans in Harrisburg was married to a “not tax hike” pledge. We’re all the worse for it.
LAUREL: To all the candidates seeking public office in Tuesday’s election. That’s right, let’s give them all a hand. It’s not easy to open yourself up to this kind of inspection and public scrutiny. And fewer and fewer people are interested in public service. Kudos to those who do.
DART: To anyone who figures that after taking one glance at Tuesday’s ballot, realizes there is no Donald or Hillary running for office, and thinks you can skip this one. Wrong! There are lots of important races on the ballot, topped by two seats on Delaware County Council, a seat on the county Court of Common Pleas, county row offices and municipal and school board posts. The truth is these people likely have a lot more effect on your everyday life than the president. And that’s not Fake News!
DART: To the mystery of who killed Brad Hayes. The retired Clifton Heights postal worker was found beaten to death in his car on a Darby street.
LAUREL: To his widow, Vanessa Hayes. Incredibly, this is not her first time being touched by this kind of violence. Her first husband was robbed and murdered. She has a simple plea: Somebody had to see something, she says of the events that led to her husband’s death. We hope someone comes forward soon with information to solve this slaying.
DART: To the notion of using the ruse of dressing up as kids’ favorite comic and cartoon characters when you’re also being charged for child abuse. Nothing comical about that.
LAUREL: To the county Heroin Task Force, which continues to do great work in trying to reverse the tide against a wicked heroin and opioid problem. Now police and first responders are getting protection from possible exposure to dangerous drugs such as fentanyl and carfentanil. That’s a good thing.
DART: To another drumbeat that certainly sounds like Delaware County could be losing another of its iconic industry names. The rumors of a sale continue to swirl around the Chester Water Authority, despite many local towns opposing any such move.
LAUREL: To the Raimondo family of Glen Mills. They’ve used a devastating injury to 8-year-old Jenny Raimondo and turned it into a way to pay back to the community with a fundraiser that benefits the good people at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Bravo!
LAUREL: To the hundreds of kids and adults who hit the streets last week to make a statement against drugs. Chants of “Drugs will kill you” filled the Darby streets as students from Park Lane Elementary School took part in National Red Ribbon Week activities.
LAUREL: Ironically, at the same time, they were holding a luncheon not that far away at the Drexelbrook where people who had been saved from a drug overdose were able to offer their thanks to the first responders who administered the Narcan that saved their lives. Yes, the drug problem, in particular heroin and opioids, remains a scourge on society.
LAUREL: To 100 years of Sun Ship. Yes, it was a century ago this past weekend that the first vessel came off the line at the iconic Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co. in Chester. It was one of the powerhouses that turned the city into an industrial titan. At one point during World War II, the legendary yard employed more than 35,000 people. That’s roughly equivalent to the entire population of Chester today. DART: Yes, times changed. After the war the shipbuilding business changed. Struggles ensued. Sun Ship finally closed its doors in 1982, a sad chapter to closse 66 years of economic might. During those six decades the yard produced 250 vessels and 35 large car floats. Another 1,500 ships were repaired at the yard, many damaged in the attack on Pearl Harbor. The saying “What Chester Makes Makes Chester” certainly rang true at Sun Ship.
DART: When the jobs left, the population soon followed. There used to be entire neighborhoods in Chester – such as Sun Village and Sun Hill – rooted in the ship yards. What followed was decades of decline that the city is still trying to climb out of. Today Harrah’s Casino sits where the legendary Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co. once sat on the Chester waterfront.
LAUREL: To Honor Flight. This local agency that is dedicated to helping veterans recently completed another jaunt to Washington, D.C. This time they ferried about a hundred Vietnam War vets to the nation’s capital to visit the Vietnam War Memorial. On their arrival back in Delco, the three buses were greeted by hundreds of flagadorned motorcycle riders that accompanied them on the final leg of the trip home. Many of those belonged to the Wounded Warriors group. Kudos to all involved.
LAUREL: To ‘Lola.’ She’s the cat’s meow, so to speak. Lola is a Maine Coon Cat who is the family pet of the DeRose family of Ridley. She also happens to be featured in the 2018 “365 Cats” calendar. Purr-fect!
LAUREL: To the Eagles. Last week had all the makings of a trap game, one so many other Eagles teams would wind up losing. Facing the winless 49ers, the Birds struggled on a rainy Sunday, but still cruised to a convincing win. This is what good teams do. The Eagles are a very good team.
LAUREL: And they likely just got a little better. Kudos to Howie Roseman. That sound you just heard was the Eagles GM pushing all his chips into the center of the table. The Eagles are “all-in,” ready to capitalize on their 7-1 start. Roseman went out and used a fourth round pick to pick up an AllPro running back, Jay Ajayi, from the Dolphins.
DART: It’s hard to believe, but the Sixers have once again put a No. 1 draft pick on the shelf. Markelle Fultz is following in the proud tradition of Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons. Fultz is “out indefinitely” with a sore shoulder. Figures.
LAUREL: To the Houston Astros, who this week won the team’s first-ever World Series title. After all Houston has been through in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, this should help lift their spirits.