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Perfect Storm II?

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Sunday marks 21 years to the day after the formation of the system that became known as “The Perfect Storm.” Also known as the Halloween Nor’easter of 1991, the system was a confluence of a hurricane and a cold front. The ensuing monster storm lashed the east coast for days and was immortalized in the movie that highlighted the story of the Andrea Gail, a commercial fishing vessel lost at sea.

Flash forward to 2012 and similar weather ingredients are cooking in the Atlantic and over land. Forecasters say Hurricane Sandy, currently expected to run parallel to the East Coast, could clash with an early winter system moving in from the west and a blast of arctic air from the north. The result could be several days of winds, heavy rain and possibly snow in parts of the east.

The systems are expected to begin having an impact in the Mid-Atlantic region on Sunday with the worst of the storms coming late Monday or early Tuesday.

Cash

Non-partisan Group Embarks on Different Kind of Campaign

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At least one campaign is bringing together both Democrats and Republicans this election season.  The Campaign to Fix the Debt seeks to engage and educate the public on the issue of the nation’s $16-trillion dollar debt.  The list of supporters features some prominent names from both sides of the aisle.  For instance, former Governor Ed Rendell (D-PA) is a co-chair of the national campaign and former Governor Mark Schweiker (R-PA) is a member of the Pennsylvania Steering Committee. 

President & CEO of the Pennsylvania Business Council Dave Patti realizes $16-trillion is a hard number to grasp, so he used the analogy of basketball start LeBron James who made $42-million dollars last year.  “Well, if he plays for another 24,000 seasons he’ll make his first trillion dollars.”    

Fellow Pennsylvania Steering Committee member, and former Pennsylvania Democrat Party Chair, TJ Rooney says these are not abstract issues.  “Inaction on the fiscal cliff and the debt are hindering the nation’s economic recovery,” he told reporters on a recent conference call. 

The diverse group is taking a grassroots approach to urge policymakers in Washington to set aside their differences and address this issue.  Nearly 290,000 have signed their online petition.

Fans, Coaches, Players Fired Up for PSU vs. OSU

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They’re all big games to first year Penn State football coach Bill O’Brien, but even he acknowledges things will be a bit different this Saturday evening.  “For me to sit up here and say it’s not a big game, you know, that’s crazy,” O’Brien said during Tuesday’s media availability.  “This is Ohio State.” 

The Buckeyes are a perfect 8 – 0 so far this year; Penn State is undefeated in Big Ten action (5 – 2 overall).  Neither school is eligible to play post season football this year, however, due to NCAA sanctions.  That twist appears to be making Beaver Stadium and even bigger stage when the two proud programs clash Saturday evening on national TV. 

A record crowd of students has been camping out in “Nittanyville” since Monday night, a phenomenon that has not gone unnoticed by Coach O’Brien.  “That’s just what this place is all about.  A student body that works hard in the classroom, supports their football team, and all their athletic teams.” 

O’Brien is calling on fans to arrive early, to wear white and to be loud (but respectful) throughout the entire game. 

“For all of our seniors, it’s our last WhiteOut, our last time to go out here in front of a WhiteOut crowd and the last time we’ll play Ohio State,” says senior defensive tackle Jordan Hill.  “In my opinion it’s the biggest game for us.” 

A limited number of tickets remains for the 5:30pm game.

Pennsylvania Still in Top Five States for Deer Collisions

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Pennsylvania drivers are among those with the highest risks of crossing paths with a deer while driving.  But your biggest risk of running into a deer is in West Virginia.

State Farm Insurance says drivers in West Virginia have a one in 40 chance of a collision with a deer. Pennsylvania’s rank has dropped from fourth to fifth place, at 1 in 76.

Deer vehicle collisions are three times more likely to occur in November, October is the second most likely month and December is third.

Nationally, the number of deer-related collisions is up almost 8% over the last year.

The number of deer-related claims paid by the insurer has increased almost 8% over the last four years, while similar auto claims have dropped more than 8%.

 

Gov’s Signature to Complete Justice Reinvestment Initiative

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Structural prison reforms are already being put into place, designed to produce better outcomes and save the state up to $350-million dollars over five years.  That was the first half of the Justice Reinvestment initiative (SB 100), which was signed into law in July. 

Like the first bill, the second piece of the Justice Reinvestment effort (HB 135) has cleared the General Assembly with bipartisan support.  It will reinvest a portion of the prison system savings into the front lines of the justice system, like local law enforcement and county probation & parole departments. 

“An effective probation system can lower recidivism among people on probation and can also manage growth in your prison system because of more effective management of offenders,” explains Marc Pelka, program director with the Council of State Governments Justice Center. 

The CSG Justice Center has worked with 16-states on Justice Reinvestment, and Pelka says each strategy is tailored to the issues driving growth in those states prison systems.  “So although the individual policies are different for each particular state, the overall outcome is reduced spending on corrections and reinvestment in areas that increase public safety.” 

A Justice Reinvestment working group first met at the Governor’s Residence in January.  Radio PA spoke at length with Secretary of Corrections John Wetzel about their progress in June.

Pennsylvania’s Attorney General Candidates Clash

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The two candidates for state Attorney General locked horns in Harrisburg Monday night during their only debate of the campaign. Former Lackawanna County prosecutor Kathleen Kane, the Democratic nominee, focused her jabs on the investigation of former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky, again saying she would launch an independent probe into the handling of that case.

Kane has been critical of the charges being filed only after former Attorney General Tom Corbett was elected Governor. She says Republican nominee David Freed could not launch an independent investigation, as he was the governor’s “hand-picked” candidate. Freed has stated that he would launch a review of the case, if elected, but he would not comment further because he could be handling possible appeals.

Governor Corbett has stated in past interviews on PAMatters.com that much of the key information in the Sandusky case did not come in until late 2010 or early 2011, as he was being inaugurated, and he says the end result – convictions on 45 counts of child sexual abuse – show that the office of Attorney General did the right thing.

Freed attacked Kane’s record, saying her attitudes toward the job show her lack of experience.

Recent polls show Kane leading the race, but with a large number of undecideds yet to make up their minds. Pennsylvania voters have never elected a Democrat to the Attorney General’s post.

 

vending machine, junk food, obesity

Study Links Parents’ Stress with Kids’ Weight

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Stressed out parents are more likely to have obese kids, according to a new study to be published in next month’s edition of the journal Pediatrics.  “When you add things up you can get something that’s called a stressor pile-up,” says Dr. Elizabeth Prout Parks of The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.  “So you may be able to deal with one thing that’s stressing you, but when there’s five things stressing you, you’re behavior changes more.” 

The conclusions were drawn by crunching the numbers contained in an existing survey of thousands of households in southeastern Pennsylvania. 

The stressors can include everything from finances to relationships.  While further research is needed to uncover specific reasons for the link between parents’ stress and kids’ weight, Dr. Parks made an educated guess for Radio PA.  “For example if [stress] is leading you to have decreased sleep or increased demands upon your time; then that’s going to make you less likely to want to cook, less likely to want to go grocery shopping and more likely to consume fast foods.”     

In fact, the study also finds that parents who perceive themselves to be stressed are more likely to have children who eat fast food more than two times per week. 

Dr. Parks, a physician nutrition specialist at CHOP, doesn’t want to make already stressed parents feel bad – she wants to make public health officials aware of this issue.

New Voter ID Requirements?

Attorney General Candidates to Debate

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Two candidates vying to become the state’s top prosecutor will debate in suburban Harrisburg tonight.  The Pennsylvania Cable Network (PCN) and Pennsylvania Legislative Correspondents’ Association (PLCA) have teamed up to host the forum at the Widener School of Law’s Harrisburg campus. 

Democrat Kathleen Kane is a prosecutor from northeastern Pennsylvania, and Republican David Freed is currently the Cumberland County District Attorney.  The attorney general’s office is an open seat this year as Linda Kelly agreed not to seek election when she was nominated to fill out the unexpired term of now-Governor Tom Corbett. 

The public is invited to attend tonight’s debate, which will take place in room A180 of the Law School Administration Building.  Doors open at 6pm, and the debate begins at 7pm.  If you can’t make it in person, the event will be broadcast live on PCN TV.

Study: the Arts are an Economic Driver in PA

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The direct economic activity generated by nonprofit arts groups and their audiences adds up to more than $2.5-billion dollars in Pennsylvania, according to a new study by Americans for the Arts.  “We pay our taxes, we spend in our communities and we create jobs,” explains Jenny Hershour, managing director of Citizens for the Arts in Pennsylvania. 

The new study actually finds 81,000 full-time equivalent jobs and $360-million dollars being paid in taxes.  “For this current fiscal year the General Assembly approved a budget that included $8.179 million dollars for grants to nonprofit arts organizations,” Hershour says.  “If you compare that with $360-million that nonprofit arts organizations are generating for state and local governments, that’s a really good investment.” 

Arts supporters in the General Assembly will soon be spreading that message with the creation of a bipartisan, bicameral arts and culture caucus in Harrisburg.  Speaking at a news conference in the state Capitol rotunda, Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) called the arts an essential part of the fabric of Pennsylvania. 

“It is music to my ears,” Hershour told Radio PA when asked about the new caucus.

RadioPA Roundtable

Radio PA Roundtable 10.19.12

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On this week’s Radio PA Roundtable, Brad Christman and Matt Paul are joined by F&M College political analyst Terry Madonna to reflect on the life and career of Arlen Specter. The former U.S. Senator passed away October 14th at the age of 82. You’ll also get an update on the new bills that are about to become law in Pennsylvania.

Radio PA Roundtable is a 30-minute program featuring in-depth reporting on the top news stories of the week.

Click the audio player below to hear the full broadcast:

[audio:https://s3.amazonaws.com/witfaudio/radiopa/Roundtable10-19-12.mp3]