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The National Weather Service in Pittsburgh this morning issued a special weather statement that warns residents across the region to be prepared for extreme hot and humid conditions Friday and Saturday. (snip)

WASHINGTON -- Two Pittsburgh-area television stations have put ads attacking Senate candidate Rep. Joe Sestak back on the air after yanking them earlier this week. [snip] Mr. Miller called the flap "one of the most ludicrous attempts to try to stifle our ability and our First Amendment rights to inform the people of Pennsylvania." [snip]

Port Authority expects to cut service by 30 percent or more and lay off at least 500 employees as of Jan. 1 if it doesn't get state help to close a $50 million deficit [snip] Gov. Ed Rendell has convened a special session of the Legislature to deal with a transportation funding crisis brought on by the federal government's rejection of the state's plan to collect tolls on Interstate 80. [sni]

The Mt. Lebanon School Board voted last night to approve a $79.4 million budget for 2010-11 that will raise property taxes 10 percent. [snip] The increase would help pay for the renovation of the high school, increased pension responsibilities and costs related to a new teachers' contract. The district expects to spend more than $15,000 per student next school year, up nearly $1,400 from this year.

There has been much talk lately claiming that “social justice” is a Catholic imperative. But just as Jesus taught about justice, he also issued a warning: “Beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing” (Matthew 7:15). By this he meant that evil sometimes presents itself as a good. Undoubtedly, words like “social justice” can be deployed in very dishonest ways. It is possible that people could use such words to cloak a very wanton intent. [snip] Catholics are compelled by Christ’s teaching to look at things like the recent health care legislation — cloaked as it is, at least in the minds...

If Allegheny County added a tax of 1 cent per ounce on sugary soft drinks, it would cut consumption up to 8 percent. It would also produce an extra $54 million in revenue that could be plowed back into anti-obesity efforts. That's the conclusion reached by 21 undergraduate students at Carnegie Mellon University, mostly seniors in the departments of Engineering and Public Policy or Social and Decision Sciences. (snip)

Penguins co-owner Ron Burkle, a wealthy businessman, is stepping in to help a local Philadelphia ownership group retain control of that city's two major newspapers. Gov. Ed Rendell said today that he had asked Mr. Burkle to help the current owners {snip}

General Electric filed more than 7,000 income tax returns in hundreds of global jurisdictions last year, but when push came to shove, the company owed the U.S. government a whopping bill of $0. (snip)

Republican Tim Burns (PA-12) is once again going out of his way to prove that he is grossly out of touch with Western Pennsylvania. The latest example is particularly telling; despite the fact that middle class families are already struggling, Burns has endorsed a risky and radical plan deceivingly called the “Fair Tax” that would enact a 23 percent national sales tax on all goods and services including food and clothing. The plan would dramatically increase the tax burden for middle class families while only benefiting the wealthiest Americans like Tim Burns. In Pennsylvania, middle income Pennsylvanians would see their...

Video linked http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt1_lMswja0

A majority of Americans supports increased spending on public transit and a slim majority is willing to pay higher taxes for it, according to a poll released today. [snip] Some 51 percent expressed support for a "small" tax increase to pay for better public transit, while 46 percent were opposed.

MONROEVILLE, Pa. -- The death of a Gateway High School cheerleader fatally stabbed 16 times by her on-again, off-again boyfriend has inspired lawmakers to take action. Demi Brae Cuccia's hometown resolved to not to let domestic violence happen to another young girl. Council members in Monroeville unanimously passed a resolution Wednesday night in support of the Demi Brae Cuccia bill, named for the teen killed in October 2007. The bill would mandate teen dating violence education be taught in all Pennsylvania school districts. "I would think it's a no-brainer that this education needs to be taught," said Cuccia's father, Gary....

JOHNSTOWN — Sadly, for Johnstown Chiefs fans, it’s official. The Chiefs will play in Greenville next season after the ECHL Board of Governors voted unanimously on Wednesday to transfer the home territory of the Chiefs to the South Carolina city. [snip] The news has been heartbreaking to loyal Chiefs fans who have followed the team through 22 ECHL seasons. Johnstown was one of the league’s original five teams and is the only member of that group still playing in the same city. But economic hardships and the declining population in the region contributed to a drop-off in attendance

PRINCETON, NJ -- More than one-third of Americans (36%) have a positive image of "socialism," while 58% have a negative image. Views differ by party and ideology, with a majority of Democrats and liberals saying they have a positive view of socialism, compared to a minority of Republicans and conservatives.

An execution warrant for a former Mt. Lebanon attorney convicted of killing five people during a hate-fueled shooting spree through Allegheny and Beaver counties was signed Tuesday by Gov. Ed Rendell. Richard Scott Baumhammers, 44, was sent to death row after being convicted in 2001 of five counts of first-degree murder and one of attempted murder for the April 28, 2000, slayings. [snip] Baumhammers, who is incarcerated at the State Correctional Institution in Greene County, is scheduled to die by lethal injection on March 18.

A Pittsburgh ordinance designed to protect janitors from losing their jobs in Downtown office buildings violates Home Rule law. [snip] City Council enacted an ordinance in 2004 governing building complexes with more than 100,000 square feet of floor space. If the owner switches security, janitorial, maintenance, stationary engineering or window-washing contractors, the new firm has to hire the old firm's workers.

Federal legislation that could lead to a college football playoff tournament will move a step closer to reality on Wednesday in a hearing before a subcommittee of the U.S. House of Representatives. The Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection will consider a bill that would allow the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to prohibit any bowl game from calling itself a "national championship" unless the game is "the final game of a single elimination post-season playoff system." [snip] The bill would give the FTC the authority to regulate the college football postseason with the power to obtain injunctions and to...

LINK ONLY http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09338/1018440-100.stm

A majority of Pittsburgh City Council members said yesterday that they'll vote for a tuition tax, but that won't stop the universities -- and maybe the students -- from trying to derail the effort. [snip] Mayor Luke Ravenstahl gathered five council members in his conference room yesterday to deliver a message: We don't want to tax students, but unless the universities pay voluntarily, we have no choice. [snip] "If this tax is implemented, it will not be the fault of Mayor Ravenstahl," said Mr. Burgess. "It will not be the fault of council. It will solely be on backs of...

A farm in every Pittsburgh neighborhood would be one of the goals of a Franco Dok Harris administration, the independent mayoral candidate said today, as his campaign sounded its final notes before Tuesday's election. The novel proposal -- which would have the city assemble vacant lots and help gather the expertise needed to transform them into farms Read more: http://www.postgazette.com/pg/09303/1009555-100.stm#ixzz0VRy1TKRj