Free Republic

Almost no matter what you build in Western Pennsylvania, you have to consider the possibility that in previous generations the site had been mined for coal. That’s especially true for the next leg of the Southern Expressway, a 13-mile, $700 million section being built along part of the Pittsburgh coal seam between Route 22 and Interstate 79 in western Allegheny and northern Washington counties. In the area around McDonald alone, where the highway will pass over Route 980 just outside the borough, at least 10 mines operated within two square miles between the mid-1860s and mid-1930s. Particularly in Western Pennsylvania,...

MADISON, Wisconsin (Reuters) - A Wisconsin judge on Thursday voided a controversial Republican-backed law restricting the collective bargaining rights of public sector unions. Dane County Judge Maryann Sumi said Republican lawmakers violated the state's open meetings law in rushing the legislation through during massive protests at the state Capitol earlier this year. The Wisconsin proposal, championed by Republican Governor Scott Walker, eliminates most collective bargaining rights for public sector unions and requires them to pay more for pensions and health coverage. The law has been on hold pending the legal challenge. Mike Tate, chairman of the state's Democratic Party which...

HELENA, Mont. (AP) - A judge sidelined a copper and silver mine criticized by environmentalists and swank jeweler Tiffany, saying the plan was approved without consideration of the possible harm to imperiled grizzly bears and bull trout. Judge Donald Molloy said the Fish and Wildlife Service inadequately weighed the possible effects of the mining proposal on wildlife that fall under the protection of the federal Endangered Species Act. Revett Silver Co. has proposed developing the Rock Creek mine on the edge of the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness Area in northwestern Montana. Environmentalists praised the Monday ruling. "It's a huge victory for...

SAN FRANCISCO - The California Supreme Court ruled Thursday that San Francisco's mayor overstepped his authority by issuing same-sex marriage licenses this spring. The court also voided all the marriages of gay and lesbian couples sanctioned by the city. The court said the city violated the law when it issued the certificates and performed the marriage ceremonies in a monthlong wedding march that began Feb. 12, since both legislation and a voter-approved measure defined marriage as a union between a man and woman. The court, however, did not resolve whether the California Constitution would permit a same-sex marriage, ruling instead...