Pottstown Has A Drug Problem – See For Yourself

This is a picture of drug baggies that were collected in the 400 block of King Street this morning, Sunday, June 23, 2013, by a homeowner and taxpayer.  This is an everyday occurrence for people who live in the core neighborhood in Pottstown.  Does this not look like a problem!?!  One day, one block, seven baggies.

Drugs lead to crime and violence; burglaries, shootings and stabbings, oh my!  How does allowing this problem to continue help Pottstown?  Why does the leadership sit idly by and watch Pottstown deteriorate?  The crime rate is astronomical.

Why isn’t Pottstown aligning itself with the Berks County drug summit initiative?  If you listen to certain people, they will tell you Pottstown’s drug problems are because of Reading and Philadelphia.  I am sure that is a big part of the problem.  I bet if somebody in authority reached out to Berks County and explained what’s going on in Pottstown they might allow you to be part of the group, being so close to the Berks County line.

If you listen to others, like Mayor Bonnie Heath, they are in complete denial that Pottstown has problems.  If you try and point out the problems you are labeled a malcontent activist.  Being a cheerleader for the borough is one thing, being in complete denial is quite another.  Bonnie oversees the police department and wants a second term as Mayor of Pottstown.  The queen of obfuscation wants your vote in November.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words.  Just imagine how many more baggies could have been picked up this morning on the streets of Pottstown.  Houston, we have a problem.

Snowden, In Russia, Said To Seek Asylum In Ecuador

MOSCOW — Edward J. Snowden, the fugitive former National Security Agency contractor wanted by the United States for leaking classified documents about global American surveillance, fled his Hong Kong hide-out for Moscow on Sunday aboard a commercial Russian jetliner, in what appeared to be the first step in an odyssey to seek political asylum in Ecuador.

In a day of frustrated scrambling by American officials who are seeking Mr. Snowden’s extradition — and had annulled his passport in attempts to foil any escape — he boarded an Aeroflot jetliner in Hong Kong that reached Moscow on Sunday afternoon.  The Russian Foreign Ministry said Mr. Snowden was in a Moscow airport transit area, apparently awaiting a connection to another country.

Ecuador’s foreign minister said that Mr. Snowden had submitted a request for asylum, an assertion corroborated by WikiLeaks, the organization that discloses government secrets and has come to the assistance of Mr. Snowden.  In a statement on its Web site, WikiLeaks said “he is bound for the Republic of Ecuador via a safe route for the purposes of asylum, and is being escorted by diplomats and legal advisors from WikiLeaks.”

Read more:  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/24/world/asia/nsa-leaker-leaves-hong-kong-local-officials-say.html?hp&_r=0

Outside Investors Purchasing More Downtown Pittsburgh Sites

English: The U.S. Steel Tower, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, with the new corporate logo of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In one sense, Pittsburgh’s resurgence can be measured by its Downtown skyline — not so much by the names atop its skyscrapers but by those on the property deeds to them.

More and more, out-of-town investors are gobbling up prominent real estate Downtown, drawn by a host of factors, from high occupancy rates to the diversity of the local economy.

In fact, a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette review of high-profile building sales Downtown and on the North Shore since 2011 found that 10 of 13 have gone to out-of-town buyers, including such landmarks as the U.S. Steel Tower and the PPG Place complex.

Another three properties currently under agreement to be sold, including Liberty Center and the accompanying Westin Convention Center Hotel, also are being purchased by outside investors.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/business/news/outside-investors-purchasing-more-downtown-pittsburgh-sites-692796/#ixzz2X4r4GKrA

Harrisburg Homicide Count Hits 11 For 2013

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Dauphin County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A man has been arrested and charged with homicide following a shooting that occurred late Saturday night near Dewberry and Blackberry streets in Harrisburg.

A city man in his 40s, whose name was not released as of 11 a.m. Sunday, allegedly shot the ex-husband of a woman with which he had been involved, Harrisburg police Capt. Annette Oates said.  The incident is classified as a domestic dispute.

The man who was shot, a 53-year-old city man whose name is not yet being released, died at the Harrisburg Hospital.  

Read more:  http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2013/06/harrisburg_police_charge_city.html#incart_river_default

James Street Improvement District, Lancaster Alliance Join Forces

James Pirrung 03:48, 12 April 2007 . . JaMikePA . . 2,304×1,728 (5.97 MB) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Good organizations evolve to meet changing times.

Three years ago, the Lancaster Alliance scaled back the broad reach that had established the city’s security camera network and helped find a home for the Lancaster Barnstormers.

In an era of diminishing resources, it would not duplicate efforts being done by other groups.  The alliance board chose to work behind the scenes with a focus on city public safety, finances and forging partnerships with other organizations.

Six years ago, it was the James Street Improvement District that changed.  The northwest city group expanded its reach to take in the duties of the Downtown Investment District under a contractual arrangement.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/864115_James-Street-Improvement-District–Lancaster-Alliance-join-forces.html#ixzz2X4k57mp4

Pelosi Booed By Activists After Criticizing Leaker Edward Snowden

English: Nancy Pelosi photo portrait as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

SAN JOSE, Calif. — House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi was heckled and booed by liberal activists Saturday when she said that Edward Snowden broke the law when he revealed classified information about secret surveillance programs.

Another round of disapproval came when the former House speaker said Americans’ rights to privacy must be balanced with the nation’s security needs.

Snowden “did violate the law in terms of releasing those documents,” she said during a luncheon Q-and-A on the closing day of Netroots Nation, an annual gathering of thousands of liberal activists and bloggers.

The crowd erupted in boos.

Read more:   http://www.timesleader.com/news/local-news/622245/Pelosi-booed-by-activists-after-criticizing-leaker-Edward-Snowden

Feds Investigating McDonald’s Franchise Over Payroll Debit Cards

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Luzerne County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Federal investigators are looking into whether a McDonald’s franchise in Luzerne County is breaking any laws by forcing employees to accept paychecks in the form of fee-carrying debit cards.

Meanwhile, lawyers for the franchise owners say the lawsuit’s contention that employees incur fees on all transactions is wrong and there are several ways workers could access their money for free.

Attorney Michael Cefalo of West Pittson recently filed the class action lawsuit in Luzerne County Court on behalf of Natalie Gunshannon, a Dallas Township woman who quit her job at the McDonald’s in Shavertown after the company issued her a debit card as pay and refused to pay her by check or direct deposit.

Days after the suit was filed and appeared nationally in the media, Cefalo said an investigator with the U.S. Department of Labor contacted his law office.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-mcdonalds-lawsuit-feds-20130623,0,517504.story#ixzz2X4dg5GQZ 
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Under The Gun: Norristown Raises Awareness — And Hope — Through Art

Location of Norristown in Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

NORRISTOWN –  The mission statement of the ACPPA Community Art Center has not changed since 2004, when the doors first opened, but over the years, Executive Director Amy Grebe has changed the way she interprets it.

In an interview at her office, located in the basement of Grace Lutheran Church on Haws Avenue, Grebe rattled off the words by heart, as though she were reciting the Pledge of Allegiance: “We provide opportunities that use art as a vehicle for creative self-discovery and community revitalization.”

After taking a breath, she explained with a smile that while her goal remains the same, exposing children to the arts.  She prefers now to focus on the creative process, rather than the final product.

“I am less inclined to make good artists than I am to create good citizens,” Grebe said.  “We use the creative process to help them envision a possible future for themselves.”

She also provides after school snacks, donated by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

Read more:  http://www.timesherald.com/article/20130622/NEWS01/130629862/under-the-gun-norristown-raises-awareness–and-hope–through-art#full_story

Pottstown School Board OKs Hirings, Raises

POTTSTOWN — As the school year winds down, most of us have vacation on our minds, but in school district offices, its time to close the books on those who are leaving, and set the stage for those who are coming on board or moving up.

Key to that planning is putting personnel in place and among the many changes coming to Pottstown schools in September, is a long list of changes in personnel — and salary.

The changes began with the appointment of Jeffrey D. Hartman as the new principal at Pottstown High School, effective July 1.

Hartman, who will be paid $105,692, finished this school year as the principal of Phillipsburg-Osceola Senior High School in Centre County, where he has served since 2011.

Read more:  http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20130623/NEWS01/130629764/pottstown-school-board-oks-hirings-raises