tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5708938400103267165.post687547062120763080..comments2023-12-20T23:30:54.576-05:00Comments on Pittsburgh Pist-Gazette: City Council Launches Multi-Pronged Attack, Mayor Takes Another HitCharhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06725494226277483936noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5708938400103267165.post-36060500789763336582008-03-31T09:04:00.000-04:002008-03-31T09:04:00.000-04:00Yup, there are multiple prongs alright.Yup, there are multiple prongs alright.Bram Reichbaumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05620172942925293407noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5708938400103267165.post-545571533981912252008-03-30T23:25:00.000-04:002008-03-30T23:25:00.000-04:00Thank you Councilman Shields:This is the first tim...Thank you Councilman Shields:<BR/><BR/>This is the first time a gun bill has even made it to the floor in years and there are Dems And Reps. alike not willing to support this bill. It could very well slow down the sale of illegal hand guns and these guys aren't even concerned.<BR/>If you can call tomorrow morning. It's just an aid that answers but all the pressure they get can help sway them to vote yes on the Lendansy Amendment"report lost and stolen Hand guns to the police "<BR/><BR/>Please help us if you can. Just go down the list and give them all a call. It takes less than a minute per call.<BR/>There is a letter to the Editor in PG today.<BR/> Something has to be done about the sale of these hand guns. The shootings are increasing everyday here in Pittsburgh. <BR/><BR/>The vote is tomorrow sometime so if anyone wants to call, call early........And often !Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5708938400103267165.post-56474289452587792452008-03-30T21:37:00.000-04:002008-03-30T21:37:00.000-04:00Good summary, Char. I have to say I think any one ...Good summary, Char. I have to say I think any one issue could morph into something that might get the attention of Mary Beth Buchanan, but on the whole I don't see the Mayor's days as particularly numbered. Or rather, bloggers have been predicting the administration's demise for some time, and they are still around. But April looks like a busy month. I still think the Act 47 hearing is the sleeper, but so much is happening, and things seem like they wil be real different by the end of the month.EdHeathhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09109361235271107574noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5708938400103267165.post-37609481495701928172008-03-30T21:13:00.000-04:002008-03-30T21:13:00.000-04:00That's why it's important for Council to be unifie...That's why it's important for Council to be unified.Burgess, Kraus, Peduto,Shields. Finally some pretty savvy smart guys. Dowd has stalled too many issues with his vision of Self.<BR/><BR/> Well,<BR/> as so many have said before me...It's a job for the Fab 5.<BR/><BR/> Dowd, get it together man. Stress to these kids that they can't play any more. It's time to take charge......as a BODY OF 5. Unbeatable.<BR/><BR/> You learn how to do that, (work as a coalition to help us taxpayers) you will have the city running again.<BR/> PLEASE try to contain your ego and vote with the body as a whole. Don't hold out. It will back fire on you. You Councilmen must take charge NOW. <BR/><BR/>Harris, too slow, Deasey sold out, Payne too far gone into the grips of the enemy. <BR/><BR/>Motznick, even if he wasn't a good ol friend of the boy, his word still wouldn't mean a thing. He's a body of one. One lunitick that no one really cares what he has to say anyway.<BR/><BR/> Lucky for us, we finally have some pretty smart guys in there now. Too bad Harris can't bring herself to "Just do the right thing. <BR/>JUST DO IT !!!!!!!!!!<BR/><BR/>Or Deasey, show us your not as bad as your choices have been lately and rejoin the group.<BR/><BR/>BURGAS, KRAUSS, PEDUTO, SHIELDS, we are grateful for the four of you and the way you have been unified.<BR/><BR/>Can't any of you knock any sense into Dowd?<BR/><BR/>"CALLING ALL COUNCIL"<BR/><BR/>Im ranting again....It's just such a no brainer. Wake up Patrick!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5708938400103267165.post-56577654708437783742008-03-30T20:42:00.000-04:002008-03-30T20:42:00.000-04:00A Message From the President of City Council, Doug...A Message From the President of City Council, Doug Shields<BR/><BR/>We need the blogging communities help! The Council of the City of Pittsburgh believe mandatory reporting of lost or stolen handguns to the police is a common sense reform whose time has come in Pennsylvania.<BR/><BR/>Law enforcement and police across Pennsylvania strongly support a lost or stolen handgun reporting law as a key tool to help police crack down on straw buyers of illegal handguns.<BR/><BR/>The bill in question is an amendment to HB1845, and the amendment is sponsored by Rep. David Levdansky, D-Allegheny County. It simply, requires people who buy a handgun to report the handgun if lost or stolen to the police within three days of discovering the loss or theft. Violating this law brings penalties ranging from a summary offense for a first violation to a felony for repeat violators.<BR/><BR/>It will be voted on Monday,March 31, 2008 in the House.Opponents in the House, led by the NRA, are raising a host of procedural objections.<BR/><BR/>We need Allegheny County residents, to call their local state representatives and urge them to do the following when the House returns next week:<BR/>Vote YES on the Levdansky Amendment (A0617 to H.B. 1845. This amendment is the lost or stolen handgun reporting law at issue.<BR/><BR/>Phone calls to House members NOW can absolutely make a difference.<BR/>DEMOCRATS<BR/><BR/>Rep. Sean Ramaley, Leaning yes. D-16th, Allegheny/Beaver. 724-266-7774.<BR/><BR/>Don Walko, D-20th. Undecided. PLEASE CALL. 412-321-5523<BR/><BR/>Lisa Bennington, D-21st. Leaning yes. Call anyway. 412-361-2040.<BR/><BR/>Joe Preston, D-24th. Yes. Call anyway.<BR/><BR/>Joe Markosek, D-25th. Allegheny/Westmoreland. Undecided. "Interested but noncommital." 412-856-8284.<BR/><BR/>Tom Petrone, D-27th. Leaning yes. Give a quick call. 412-928-9514<BR/><BR/>Frank Dermody, D-33rd. Leaning No. PLEASE CALL. 724-274-4770.<BR/><BR/>Marc Gergely, D-35th. Undecided/leaning No. 412-754-3500.<BR/><BR/>Harry Readshaw, D-36th. Undecided/Leaning No. PLEASE CALL 412-881-4208<BR/><BR/>Bill Kortz, D-38th. Leaning No. "Opposes gun control." 412-466-1940.<BR/><BR/>Dave Levdansky, D-39th. Yes. Rep. Levdansky is the prime sponsor of the Amendment. Call him and thank him for his leadership on this important issue. 412-384-2258<BR/><BR/>Matt Smith, D-42nd. Undecided. 412-571-2169.<BR/><BR/>Nick Kotik, D-45th. Leaning Yes. Please call. 412-264-4260.<BR/><BR/>Jesse White, D-46th. Alleghny/Beaver/Washington. Undecided. 724-746-3677<BR/><BR/>John Pallone, D-54th. Allghny/Armstrong/Westmoreland. Undecided. 724-339-1990<BR/><BR/>REPUBLICANS<BR/><BR/>Mike Turzai, R-28th. Undecided/Leaning No. PLEASE CALL 412-369-2230<BR/><BR/>Randy Vulakovich, R-30th. Undecided. 412-487-6600<BR/><BR/>John Maher, R-40th. Leaning Yes. CALL HIM. 412-831-8080<BR/><BR/>Mark Mustio, R-44th. Undecided. 412-262-3780<BR/><BR/>8:24 PM<BR/>Douglas Shields | 03.30.08 - 8:35 pm | #Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5708938400103267165.post-31666658273927299022008-03-30T20:05:00.000-04:002008-03-30T20:05:00.000-04:00Thank god we have a strong Council to clean of the...Thank god we have a strong Council to clean of the messes made by the boy Mayor and his gownup manipulating henchmen. It is not a waste. Thank god we have people on Council to check the excesses of the Ravenstahl regime. <BR/><BR/> But the fact that they have to get into it with the Mayor means lost opportunities for the good.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5708938400103267165.post-83663500737077345312008-03-30T13:27:00.000-04:002008-03-30T13:27:00.000-04:00Char,I agree, Council is doing its work for the fi...Char,<BR/><BR/>I agree, Council is doing its work for the first time in a long time.<BR/><BR/>Unfortunately much of it involves cleaning up messes that were ignored for too long.<BR/><BR/>I can't stress this enough: if you believe that council's doing a good job, whether on a particular issue or in general, let them KNOW it. <BR/><BR/>Encouragement & support go a long way. And feel free to contact council members from other districts too, by being on a citywide body, they ALL represent ALL of us.Gloriahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05110400345431171111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5708938400103267165.post-36426187418238208492008-03-30T12:15:00.000-04:002008-03-30T12:15:00.000-04:00Dear Friends. While we muddle trhough the day to d...Dear Friends. <BR/><BR/>While we muddle trhough the day to day of the business of the city, please don't forget the big picture. Our State Senate Judiciary Committee has voted to suspend the Constitution with the latest so called "Defense of Marriage Act." It essentially strips constitutional protections from members of GLBT Community.<BR/>Please call your State Senators and tell them to please vote NO to this lunacy. <BR/> <BR/>Feel free to read the amendments contained in the Bill of Rights in Honor of Blog For Equality Day. http://www.constitutionfacts.com/index.cfm <BR/><BR/>Here are a few of my favorites. <BR/><BR/>Amendment I: Freedom of religion, speech, and the press; rights of assembly and petition <BR/>Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. <BR/><BR/>Amendment IX: Rights retained by the people <BR/>The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people <BR/><BR/>(means States can't infringe upon your rights either) <BR/>Some jurists have asserted that the Ninth Amendment is relevant to interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment. Justice Arthur Goldberg (joined by Chief Justice Warren and Justice Brennan) expressed this view in a concurring opinion in the case of Griswold v. Connecticut (1965): <BR/><BR/>[T]he Framers did not intend that the first eight amendments be construed to exhaust the basic and fundamental rights.... I do not mean to imply that the .... Ninth Amendment constitutes an independent source of rights protected from infringement by either the States or the Federal Government....While the Ninth Amendment - and indeed the entire Bill of Rights - originally concerned restrictions upon federal power, the subsequently enacted Fourteenth Amendment prohibits the States as well from abridging fundamental personal liberties. And, the Ninth Amendment, in indicating that not all such liberties are specifically mentioned in the first eight amendments, is surely relevant in showing the existence of other fundamental personal rights, now protected from state, as well as federal, infringement. <BR/><BR/><BR/>Amendment XIV: Civil rights <BR/>The Fourteenth Amendment was proposed on June 13, 1866 and ratified on July 9, 1868. <BR/><BR/>Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. <BR/>Section 2. Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State, excluding Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the Executive and judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State, being twenty-one years of age, and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion, or other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such State. <BR/><BR/>Section 3. No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability. <BR/><BR/>Section 4. The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void. <BR/>Section 5. The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article. <BR/><BR/>Amendment XIII: Abolition of slavery <BR/>The Thirteenth Amendment was proposed on January 31, 1865, and ratified on December 6, 1865. <BR/><BR/>Section 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction. <BR/><BR/>Section 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation. <BR/><BR/><BR/>Amendment XIX: Woman suffrage <BR/>The Nineteenth Amendment was proposed on June 4, 1919, and ratified on August 18,1920. <BR/><BR/>The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. <BR/><BR/>Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation. <BR/><BR/>Perhaps, someday, we can all enjoy their mighty benefit. <BR/>Happy Blog for Equality Day! Here are a few of my favorites. <BR/><BR/>Peace, <BR/>Douglas Shields <BR/>President, Pittsburgh City CouncilAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5708938400103267165.post-69984963934425710552008-03-30T12:03:00.000-04:002008-03-30T12:03:00.000-04:00Redirecting snow plows for political reasons is st...Redirecting snow plows for political reasons is stupid. Another idiotic move by the Ravenstahl administration. They're damn lucky nobody died on those roads--if they did a mega lawsuit would follow. <BR/><BR/>I think Luke's days as Mayor are numbered. I think Shields or Peduto is going to run next year, and I think either of them would win. I like them both, so I don't care who runs. I imagine they'll talk with each other and come up with a plan...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5708938400103267165.post-27675787141068846042008-03-30T00:42:00.000-04:002008-03-30T00:42:00.000-04:00Hi,I do NOT think you have the story right -- when...Hi,<BR/><BR/>I do NOT think you have the story right -- when it comes to Kraus and Koch. <BR/><BR/>Worse, I don't know if you care to get it right or not.Mark Rauterkushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17157914569686528007noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5708938400103267165.post-84775203883911879182008-03-30T00:34:00.000-04:002008-03-30T00:34:00.000-04:00I agree that there have been some decent advances ...I agree that there have been some decent advances made by the new council but most of it is turning out to be a waste of councils time cleaning up the boys messes.<BR/><BR/>Personally I can only see one thing happening that could turn this entire mess around. Though Councilman Dowd is correct to introduce his own legislation, I was hoping for a more politically savvy politician. One that understands the power of 5. A solid coalition of SMART men that can crush the despicable Ravenstahl regime. Deasy whimped out, (I really thought the guy had a little integrity) not any more. He won't be getting my vote for siding with the enemy. Harris....she is doing absolutely nothing. She could be queen but has no guts. She fears Luke and should wise up and know that soon anyone tied to his puppet strings will be lucky to ever get re elected to anything again. She isn't smart enough to stick close to the winners. Fickle , fickle.<BR/><BR/>So Councilman Dowd.....are you smart enough to know how to play with the big guys or will you continue to stand there in the middle, kinda like in junior high?<BR/><BR/>Hoping for a solid five,<BR/>HazelAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5708938400103267165.post-65761694577855697242008-03-29T23:57:00.000-04:002008-03-29T23:57:00.000-04:00oh jeez, I wonder what luke is gonna have the hamm...oh jeez, I wonder what luke is gonna have the hammer do nextAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com