The Pennsylvania Progressive

Hiatus

I've been down with a wicked flu for over two weeks so I'm just beginning to look into setting up the blog elsewhere.  I have found a new home for The Pennsylvania Progressive and I think readers will like the new look and format.  The bad news is that this will take some time to set up, test and implement.  When we moved from Blogger I had the luxury of setting this up here at Typepad while continuing to write at Blogspot.  Circumstances do not allow that luxury now.

Hopefully all the content from here will be transferred so the archives won't be lost.  It will take time to set up all the sidebar links and blogrolls, test various features and so forth.  The new format will be much easier for readers and commenters and allow for more input from you.  The domain name ThePennsylvaniaProgressive.com and PennsylvaniaProgressive.com will both take you to the new blog once it is up and running.

Thanks to Markos for suggesting the new platform and home for our community.

Update (May 2nd):  The new host for the blog is being established and work developing the blog, design, formating, links, blogrolls and features will begin being developed next week.  The domain name for the blog, ThePennsylvaniaProgressive.com will be the URL for the new location and is no longer linked to this location.  I'm sorry for any confusion resulting from the changeover.  It may be some weeks before we are up and operating again.

Obama Campaign Plagiarizes Me

My.BarackObama.com, according to this authority, is an official website of Obama For America, Barack Obama's presidential campaign. This blog on My.BarackObama.com published, in its entirety, this article from The Pennsylvania Progressive.  The article neither links to my original nor attributes the opening paragraphs, my original work, to me or The Pennsylvania Progressive.  This is called plagiarism.  It also constitutes copyright infringement.  I gave no one permission to republish this article.  I thought the letter from Tammi Hetherington was significant and an important story amidst the discussion about the Bosnian sniper fire controversy.   If I'd known then what I know now I would not have published the letter.

I contacted the press office of the Obama campaign through my contact Matt Lehrich two days ago about this violation and the article still is posted on My.BarackObama.com. They are aware of the legal violation and have yet to respond in any way.

An intermediary contacted me with Tammi's letter and asked if I was interested in the story.  Reading her words I was immediately taken with the significance of offense taken by a soldier who was serving at Tuzla at the time.  I telephoned Tammi and interviewed her before writing my article.  I was told I was competing for the story with Politico.com.  I wrote my story about her letter in conjunction with a press call earlier that day with Major General Walter Stewart and wove his comments into the article as an explanation about valor theft.  Before publishing the article I sent it to Tammi's intermediary (who, aside from a supporter's blog at the Obama website which anyone can do), did not seem connected with the Obama campaign.

They liked my article and gave me the story.  I thought I had an exclusive.  I told them when it would publish and programmed my software to publish the article.  Now it seems they also gave MY article and MY words to other bloggers.  I have found my entire article on other blogs published without any attribution or permission.  Once Tammi gave this story to me and it was published on this blog it became my intellectual property.  This blog is clearly marked, on the masthead, as being copyrighted.

I began contacting some of these bloggers Wednesday now that I have more time on my hands and asking that they remove the article for copyright violations.  One such blogger took offense and emailed me that he published it with permission.  I gave no one permission.  I certainly would not have given anyone permission to use my very own words without attribution.  That constitutes plagiarism.  When bloggers do use other people's words as fair use, they are supposed to blockquote them so readers understand what words have been used from the copyrighted material.  Many of these bloggers failed to do this.

I was interested as to why and now I'm beginning to realize that Tammi, or someone close to her, gave my article to other bloggers.  They did not notify me they were giving my work to other writers to use without my permission or without attribution.  One such person is part of a network called Obama Rapid Response.

The fact the Obama campaign was notified that a violation was on their website and their refusal to deal with this matter seems to mean they are condoning this plagiarism.  Why would Obama For America condone copyright violation and plagiarism on their official campaign website?

Update:  Saturday:  I have now found another of my copyrighted articles published in full, without permission, on My.BarackObama.com.  The more time I spend searching for my copyrighted work on the official Obama websites the more violations I discover.  As of today they still reside, in violation of law, on these websites.  Looks like I need a copyright lawyer.  Anyone know of one?

The more I look the more I find.  What part of "copyright" and "all rights reserved" don't Obama bloggers comprehend?  My articles are all over this website in spite of the fact no one requested permission.  They are here, here, here, here, here, and heaven only knows how many more.  Basically four of my articles have been republished all over My.BarackObama.com and another is so heavily taken it goes well beyond "fair use."  It appears one Obama blogger took these four articles and copied and pasted them all to various sections of the Obama campaign website.  No one noticed this and called him on it until now?

Update:  Sunday, April 20:This is an issue because it goes to honor, a theme heavy in these articles and the message these Obama supporters are using to bash Hillary by stealing my work.  Doing this takes traffic from my website and, therefore, costs me income.  Advertising rates are based on historical traffic so these illegal actions stole site traffic that otherwise would have come here to read the full articles.  Because they were published in their entireties elsewhere readers didn't have to come to this blog and create our traffic and revenues.

My.BarackObama has no integrity.  Five days after the campaign was informed of these transgressions the articles remain on their website.

Why Obama Incites Such Hatred?

Why does Obama incite such hatred? He doesn't. He incites passion. He incites excitement. He gives us drive and makes us want to be more than we are, compelled more than we ever would be about taking our country back. As an Obama supporter, what the actions others do do not represent me or many other Obama supporters than the inspiration of his message of hope and change. You've got to remember, I've been on the street and have bumped into many Obama supporters. Do you know what many of these Obama supporters are? They're not anarchists or "elitist affluent liberals" or whatever. They are teachers fighting for our children neglected by the system, they are low-wage workers working hard for their families and living paycheck to paycheck, they are kids that are turning their lives around and striving to become successful. They are the older people and elderly that are working at McDonalds because they cannot afford retirement or that their pensions were eviscerated by a flawed system made against them. Obama's supporters are black, and white, and Hispanic, and Latino, and Asian, and Middle-eastern, rich and poor alike. Obama's supporters come from all walks of life and they are just like you- they are fed up with Bush and the games of Washington, and they want to turn the page on this BS.

Do not judge a book by its cover. Charles Manson used hippie culture and killed and exterminated the entire movement. However, did Charles Manson represent the hippie culture as a whole in the 1960s? Of course not. We have to be strong enough not to generalize, especially in a position of fear. Fear has created a culture of stereotyping, scapegoating and scrutiny in our country as it is right now. C'mon- what did Franklin Delano Roosevelt say about Fear? "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself:

This is preeminently the time to speak the truth, the whole truth,
frankly and boldly. Nor need we shrink from honestly facing conditions
in our country today. This great Nation will endure as it has endured,
will revive and will prosper. So, first of all, let me assert my firm
belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself—nameless,
unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to
convert retreat into advance. In every dark hour of our national life a
leadership of frankness and vigor has met with that understanding and
support of the people themselves which is essential to victory. I am
convinced that you will again give that support to leadership in these
critical days... a host of unemployed citizens face the grim problem of existence, and an
equally great number toil with little return. Only a foolish optimist
can deny the dark realities of the moment....True
they have tried, but their efforts have been cast in the pattern of an
outworn tradition. Faced by failure of credit they have proposed only
the lending of more money. Stripped of the lure of profit by which to
induce our people to follow their false leadership, they have resorted
to exhortations, pleading tearfully for restored confidence. They know
only the rules of a generation of self-seekers. They have no vision,
and when there is no vision the people perish...Happiness lies not in the mere
possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill
of creative effort. The joy and moral stimulation of work no longer
must be forgotten in the mad chase of evanescent profits. These dark
days will be worth all they cost us if they teach us that our true
destiny is not to be ministered unto but to minister to ourselves and
to our fellow men. Recognition of the falsity of material wealth
as the standard of success goes hand in hand with the abandonment of
the false belief that public office and high political position are to
be valued only by the standards of pride of place and personal profit;
and there must be an end to a conduct in banking and in business which
too often has given to a sacred trust the likeness of callous and
selfish wrongdoing. Small wonder that confidence languishes, for it
thrives only on honesty, on honor, on the sacredness of obligations, on
faithful protection, on unselfish performance; without them it cannot
live.

Restoration calls, however, not for changes in ethics alone. This Nation asks for action, and action now.

Our greatest primary task is to put people to work. This is no unsolvable
problem if we face it wisely and courageously. It can be accomplished
in part by direct recruiting by the Government itself, treating the
task as we would treat the emergency of a war, but at the same time,
through this employment, accomplishing greatly needed projects to
stimulate and reorganize the use of our natural resources.
There must be a strict supervision of all banking and credits and investments; there must be
an end to speculation with other people’s money, and there must be
provision for an adequate but sound currency.</p>

We do not distrust the future of essential democracy. The people of the United
States have not failed. In their need they have registered a mandate
that they want direct, vigorous action.
Source: Franklin D. Roosevelt, Inaugural Address, March 4, 1933, as published in Samuel Rosenman, ed.,The Public Papers of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Volume Two: The Year of Crisis, 1933</em> (New York: Random House, 1938), 11–16.

We, as progressives and people wanting change, need to be stronger and more upright than this. We have different challenges that come up every day, however, we cannot let that make us falter. Remember, once we get a nominee, we're going to get the attacks of the Far-Right from mountains on high thrashing down on us with their messages of fear, stereotyping and paranoia raining down on us in hopes of them getting McBush into office- and we got to be a whole lot stronger than we have been. We have to stand with a strong message in solidarity that we cannot be shaken or scared; not this time. We want change this time. We are not going to divide ourselves anymore, we're going to push ahead and we're going to fight to make our country better. We have so much riding on this. We have the possibility of future wars and future deaths. We have the health and safety of our future children and generations on the line, because of the continuation of a economically vampiric occupation and invasion of a country of poor people, we have a faltering public school system that is neglecting our young people so much that half of our kids are dropping out of school. We cannot let this happen. Our country is in trouble and if we drop the flag now, who will be the next ones to carry it?

C'mon, John, keep writing. We, Pennsylvania progressives, need you to continue taking action and help continue supporting our mission to have more of an open voice to express progressive issues, especially on the eve of the Pennsylvania election.

Why Does Obama Incite Such Hatred?

Update:  I really love embarrassing Typepad this way after what they've done to me.  Let me clue them in to a pertinent fact about truly anonymous bloggers:  they don't voluntarily reveal anything about themselves.  Cats R Flyfishn did so openly on several blogs.  Here are two:

http://fullbodytransplant.wordpress.com/2008/03/19/thursday-thirteen-cheese-and-crackers-for-obama/

http://nthemouse.blogspot.com/2007/11/mouse-is-out.html

In the first one she is identified via the link as "carol" from Pennsylvania For Change and then as Cats R Flyfishn from Pennsylvania For Change.  So she freely told the readers of this blog, along with everyone in Berks For Obama, that Pennsylvania For Change was her blog and she was Cats R Flyfishn.  In the second link she also identifies herself as Carol in a comment posted by Cats R Flyfishn.  Does any idiot out there still believe this woman was blogging anonymously as Typepad maintains?  How many bloggers want to trust their blogs and all their work to these morons?

One final article for this blog.  It is a follow up and update on my appeal through legal counsel to Typepad.  I have details and documentation at the original location of The Pennsylvania Progressive here.

The defining question, for me, after this presidential primary, is why does Barack Obama incite such intense hatred among his supporters.  I expected to see this among those opposed to him, not those for him.  I am not the only media person driven off the air by conduct even Tavis Smiley condemned when he said "I can't stand the hate."  Larry Johnson's blog was also a target.

The hatred which has been directed towards me based on lies and smears has resulted in my car being vandalized and my blogs silenced.  Family members are fearful for our safety.   All this from people supporting a candidate whose message is one of unity, tolerance and coming together. 

The level and intensity of the hatred is terrifying.  The Obama campaign has done nothing to stem this tide of abuse.  I inquired to my press contact and one other person associated with the campaign to determine if anyone with the Obama For President campaign had anything to do with the action taken against this blog.  I know this woman and she isn't smart enough to do this on her own.  Seventy two hours later the Obama campaign has not responded to my inquiry.  I believe their silence speaks volumes.

Here is the quote from Typepad informing me that they upheld the complaint filed against me for using the name of an elected public official:

Dear Mr. Morgan,

If Ms. Wentz did not give you permission to post her name on your blog, then it is still an invasion of her privacy to do so. I have consulted with Six Apart counsel and he does say that the full name must be removed. This is a valid complaint under our Terms of Service and is not criminal. Please comply with the request. Otherwise, we will need to edit the post and comments ourselves to remove the disputed content.

Thanks,
Laura
Six Apart, Ltd.

They have now upheld that decision.  They are claiming they did so now, because I published the name of an anonymous blogger.  This is at variance with their email Saturday.

I believe one has to actually blog anonymously to qualify as an anonymous blogger.  Typepad disagrees.  This woman openly revealed her blogging identity to hundreds of people as is documented in my other article linked to above.  She chose a blogging name which anyone with even a passing familiarity with her or her husband would instantly recognize.  She wrote openly about herself and revealed her real identity on her blog.  She has since cleansed her blog of all those references in order to claim anonymity.  This is akin to a woman trying to regain her virginity.  Once its lost its lost dear.

I have had truly anonymous writers contribute on both my blogs.  These include Raven, Great Auk, and Ian Smythe.  I have zealously guarded their real identities.  I know and respect numerous anonymous bloggers.  This woman was never an anonymous blogger.  Typepad is contesting the fact she is an elected public official though every Democrat in her Township is her constituent.  She ran and won public office.  She is the Chair of the F Region of the Berks County (PA) Democratic Committee.  I and others have been told by legal counsel we cannot sue for defamation because we hold the same office.  Why is Typepad defending this woman?  Can they be trusted by any blogger to support your use of legitimate sources and to write critically about elected public officials? 

As a test my co writer Kirk Wentzel had a series of emails with Typepad yesterday.  They show a policy which goes against their policy towards me as represented by their legal counsel to mine.  Here is the exchange, published with Kirk's express permission:

Hi:
 
I was thinking about starting a blog that would cater to local politics but I had a question about your terms of service. Is it permitted to publish the names, public office addresses and office phone numbers for elected or appointed local (city, couty and state) public political officials.
 
For example, can I write an opinion article about our Mayor and say "Call Mayor X at his office xxx-xxx-xxxx and express your opinion). Keep in mind please that this is a publically avaialbe phone number published in the phone book and on the City's website.
 
Your privacy terms are somewhat less specific that other blog hosting companies terms are and so we though it might be good to check before we start this venture.
 
   Thanks in advance!
 
   K Ashton Wentzel

Hi there,
 
   You can read our Terms of Service online. Because of the size of our user base, we are not able to police or pre-approve content before it goes up. Instead, we only remove content if we receive information that the content is illegal. This would include if it is in violation of copyright or if a court has found it to be illegal for any of the reasons listed in our Terms of Service.
 
Please note, however, that we are very strict regarding any type of child pornography and we fully investigate all reports of this.
 
   Thanks,
   Zalary
   TypePad Technical Services
   Six Apart, Ltd.

I have read your terms of service and your privacy section is not very clear which is why I asked the question. Do you have objection to bloggers publishing the names of public officials (elected and appointed) along with theiir official office addresses and phone numbers...NOT their home numbers or addresses.
 
If you cannot answer that specific question, please just say the you refuse to answer the questions. Your terms of service does not address that question. If it did, I wouldn't be asking.
 
I am glad that you investigate child pronography...it's disgusting, why you chose to address that specific item in regard to my question is, however, somewhat of a mystery.
Kirk

Hi Kirk,
 
   Thanks for the note. It should be fine to post their official addresses and   phone numbers on your TypePad weblog.
 
   Please let us know if there is anything else we can do for you.
 
   Thanks,
   Kymberlie

That’s helpful. We already assume there is never a problem publishing a public official’s name even if the official would file a complaint, public official’s names are, by definition are ‘public’.  If Typepad holds a different view then please let me know otherwise we will assume the federal court ruling on that subject is the standard you adhere to.
 
Sorry for all the questions but we want to be sure we don’t do anything wrong by accident and create a problem.  I’m sure you understand.
 
   Kirk

Hi Kirk,
 
   Thanks for the note. As I mentioned, you should be fine with mentioning only   official information, but please let us know if you need anything else.
 
   Thanks,
   Kymberlie

Farewell

I am ending The Pennsylvania Progressive.  Over the course of 23 months we published about 3,800 articles and 435 more at Berks Democrats.  I attended many campaign events, read countless books and websites and too many public meetings than I care to count.  I'd like to thank our readers and the commenters who made this a virtual community of sorts.  I particularly want to thank our writers. 

The blog has died because of one woman, a Democratic Committee woman from Pike Township, Berks County who filed a complaint with Typepad, my host, that I used her name without permission.  I use people's names all the time, it's impossible not to.  These are public figures with no legal expectation of privacy.  This woman was angry that I exposed the treachery she and her husband used to smear several Democratic candidates and officials.  She objected to my linking her to her blog even though, when she created it, she sent an email announcement to several hundred people.  That identity was no secret.

To continue The Pennsylvania Progressive I would have to cease using anyone's name, as subjects, sources or any other reason.  I won't write half assed articles that way.  The only other alternative is moving the blog and beginning anew.  After two years of work and effort on this that's devastating to face.  It takes too long to build a blog and, at 56, I'm not prepared to do that again.  I could relocate to an offshore server where these issues would never arise again but that means hiring someone to create the website.  The business model and funds for that don't exist.  Not one paid advertisement appeared on this blog in 23 months.  Democrats and Pennsylvanians have not supported this blog and there is no prospect they will.  It doesn't make financial sense to invest money in such a venture even if I had it.

So this is farewell.  I loved doing this and will miss arising every morning and deciding what topics and news to discuss.  I'll miss driving around Pennsylvania covering the campaigns and supporting our candidates.  I was headed to the Pittsburgh area this week to work with a Congressional candidate there and to Gettysburg to finish an article on private development of the battlefield.  I regret not being able to continue my work.

I'll continue to write.  A friend suggested I do an anthology of the most important blog articles and I rather like that idea.  I also think I'll do a book about blogging, its trials and tribulations, the stories behind the stories.  I even have a working title for that one, "The Nefarious Blogger."  Aside from that there's a good bit of litigation ahead so that will also keep me busy. 

I want to close by thanking the family and friends who did support this blog financially.  It wouldn't have existed without your support.  It's a shame Democrats refused to join you in this.

Update:  Thanks for all the emails and invitations to join other blogs.  I now have an attorney working on this matter and I'm going to spend some downtime figuring out what to do next.  I have a lot of thinking to do and we're now fearful of what these Obama supporters might do next.  I've never seen a campaign breed such hatred and vitriol at those not supporting their candidate.  What is it about Barack Obama which is causing this meltdown among his supporters?

Update II:  My thoughts, as of Saturday, April 19, are that I will not continue The Pennsylvania Progressive.  After all I do, after all the work and expense I put into covering and promoting Democratic candidates I am not welcome at Party functions.  After all the support for organized labor, all the articles supporting labor, they treat me like shit.

Obama Volunteer Shuts Down Blog

In a serious free speech violation a volunteer for Barack Obama, a woman who has repeatedly smeared me because I won't support the Illinois Senator, has succeeded in shutting down The Pennsylvania Progressive.  This elected public official, a Democratic Committeewoman from Pike Township, Berks County, filed a formal complaint against me and my blog for using her name without her permission.  She told me she was blogging on January 26, 2008 along with two others, witnesses to that fact.  She never expressed confidentiality and never said the information was off the record.  Now she is claiming that two months after the fact.  She freely and voluntarily offered this information and openly disclosed facts about herself on her blogs which anyone could use to determine her identity.  In fact she made no attempts in her writings to conceal her identity.  Now that she has publicly disgraced herself she is claiming confidentiality.  Unfortunately that isn't a right an elected official can claim under the First Amendment.

Typepad informed me today of the following:

Dear Mr. Morgan,

If Ms. W---z did not give you permission to post her name on your blog, then it is still an invasion of her privacy to do so. I have consulted with Six Apart counsel and he does say that the full name must be removed. This is a valid complaint under our Terms of Service and is not criminal. Please comply with the request. Otherwise, we will need to edit the post and comments ourselves to remove the disputed content.

Thanks,
Laura
Six Apart, Ltd.

Because of this, we must ask that you remove the name from the above-mentioned content and not re-post it.

Please remove this material as soon as possible and contact us to let us know of your compliance. If we have not heard back from you within two business days, specifically by April 14, 2008, we will remove the disputed content.

Thanks,
Laura
Six Apart, Ltd.

Her harassment of me has been criminal and I intend to file charges against her to that effect.  Since Typepad is now prohibiting me from using the names of public figures I do not see how I can continue writing The Pennsylvania Progressive at Typepad.com.  As such I see no alternative but to suspend the blog pending relocation.  Meanwhile I am referring these free speech violations to my attorney.

So this is what the Obama campaign represents:  the stifling of voices which dare differ from theirs.  This campaign has done nothing, absolutely nothing, to my knowledge to restrain this lunatic's sabotaging of their campaign.  Interestingly she has a history of sabotaging Democratic candidates as I noted in my article about her.

I revealed the fact she is an elected official in one of my comments on this article.  Typepad has ordered me to remove that information but I dare not since it is a critical issue in a  civil rights case against them and Mrs. Carol Wentz.

I am not going to go about securing the written permission of everyone mentioned on this blog.  That is nigh on impossible.  As such I see no alternative to suspend the blog.  Remember this when you vote on April 22nd.  I know I will.

Update:  I worked all afternoon backing up the blog in case Typepad suspends my account.  I am moving it temporarily pending a new, permanent location with a host which believes in First Amendment rights.  Meanwhile if you would like to comment to Six Apart, Ltd. about their free speech violations, especially if you are a member of the media, legislator, Governor, Senator, Member of Congress, staffer or presidential candidate you can contact them here:

548 4th Street, San Francisco, CA 94107
Tel: 415 344 0056* - Fax: 415 344 0829

The hatred and vitriol being spewed by Obama supporters forced Tavis Smiley to quit his radio show this week.  I am hardly the only person who has been targeted by these people.  Meanwhile I suppose it goes without saying that I now endorse Hillary Rodham Clinton for President.  I cannot support a man whose campaign tolerates hate speech.

Update:  I've shut down the comments as part of shutting down the blog.  If I'm successful transferring it to a new host I won't be able to move the comments so why bother adding more?  They won't appear anyway.

Obama Adviser Calls Naomi Klein a "Whackjob"

Paul Bucha, a public figure and foreign policy adviser to a presidential candidate and Senator from Illinois, called author Naomi Klein a "whackjob" during a recent tour of Pennsylvania college campuses.  As he discussed the situation in Iraq this key adviser mentioned several facts about Iraq and its invasion and occupation which resonated with anyone who has read Klein's book "The Shock Doctrine."  He mentioned how we are attempting to remake Iraq in our own image along with other references which match Klein's theory.

I asked him if this meant he advocated the position Naomi Klein took and whether the Senator also did.  He denied that which seemed strange since he'd just said some of the very same things she wrote in her book.  After the event he told me that Naomi Klein is a "whackjob."

McCain Rhymes With Same

Republican John McCain is trying to find separation from the failed policies of the Republican Party as personified by George W. Bush as he heads into the general election.  The failed policies of the GOP go well beyond Bush however to all those Governors, state legislators and Members of the House and Senate in Washington who also aspire to class warfare, deregulation, smaller government and privatization of public services for private profit. 

John McCain was a maverick once but he abandoned that position when he decided to run for president this year.  He has embraces most of all of the Bush agenda.  Do you really want to put your Social Security trust fund in the hands of Wall Street?  Do you actually trust investment bankers with your retirement?  John McCain advocates this.  Do you really want massive tax cuts for the richest people in America while 18,000 Americans die every year because they don't have access to medical care?  McCain supports this.

Do you believe invading Iraq was a good idea?  McCain supported that.  Do you think attacking Iran is a good idea?  John McCain goes around the country singing "bomb, bomb Iran."  If you support the failed policies of George W. Bush then John McCain is your man.  Remember it this way:  McCain means more of the same.

Obama: Pennsylvanians Are Bitter

Update:  I regret to inform readers of this blog I have been forced to suspend it.  More information is in this article.

Barack Obama told a fundraising event in San Francisco that Pennsylvanians are bitter.   According to The Huffington Post:

"You go into these small towns in Pennsylvania and, like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and nothing's replaced them," Obama said. "And they fell through the Clinton Administration, and the Bush Administration, and each successive administration has said that somehow these communities are gonna regenerate and they have not. And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."

He could easily be talking about Northeast and Southwest PA and all the closed factories and lost jobs.  Saying these people are bitter though and implying they are turning to guns and God and against immigrants is insulting and simplistic.  I don't see these people as bitter.  Exasperated, but not bitter.  They are exasperated that their old ways of life are long gone, replaced by low paying jobs at warehouses and the service sector.

His message goes against the message of hope he's spent all these months conveying to voters:  that there is hope.   I've seen some pundits calling his comment elitist.  I'm not sure that's how I see it.  Perhaps out of touch with Pennsylvania is closer to the mark.  Pennsylvanians have always loved their guns and religion, especially in Pennsyltucky, is ingrained in these communities.  Lancaster Countians don't drive horses and buggies because jobs left 25 years ago.  The culture of hunting has been here for centuries.

The immigration hysteria hasn't been fueled by the economy as much as a demagogue from Hazleton who saw the issue as a ticket to Washington.  This issue is fueled by racism more than economics. 

Are Pennsylvanians bitter?  Not that I've seen.  Unfortunately many people here, like those elsewhere across the country, voted against the pocketbooks in 2000 and 2004 through slick campaigns based on fear.  These Republican efforts separated working people from their financial security by telling them they had more to fear from gays, lesbians and terrorists. 

No one I've met turned to guns and God because they lost their job.  It's tough to afford to hunt when you're unemployed.  It isn't cheap to buy ammo, gear and gas to go upstate to their hunting cabins.   I think it undervalues the mettle and intelligence of Pennsylvanians to accuse them of embracing guns and bitterness because of bad economic times.

The coal regions have been in bad shape for many years.  The former steel towns in western Pennsylvania got hurt badly.  A lot of our youth left the state looking for brighter futures and good jobs.  I was one of them coming out of college in 1974.  Many remained and built up new industries and new economies in these towns.  The mills sometimes were replaced by new firms like Arrow International.  The towns survived and survived without bitterness. 

I'm sad to see Barack Obama confuse bitterness with exasperation.  Exasperation that many politicians have failed them.  Exasperation that Washington forgot them.  Exasperation that their sons and daughters were sent to Iraq to die for a war based on lies.  Now there is bitterness about that.  Still, these folks haven't embraced guns or turned against immigrants.  The racists against the immigrants have always hated immigrants.

Hillary Clinton responded to the remarks this afternoon in her stump speech.

Update:  Here is Obama's explanation concerning his San Francisco comments.    This was given in Terre Haute, Indiana last evening.  Maybe it's just me but I think he needs to be in Pennsylvania, speaking directly to Pennsylvanians, to explain these statements.  I'm so darned bitter I'm going to grab a gun, go to church then shoot me some immigrants.

Hillary responds:

Cordisco, McCord Clash in Treasurer Race

One of the biggest races on the Pennsylvania primary ballot is the one for State Treasurer.  The post was vacated by Bob Casey when he was elected U.S. Senator.  Robin Weissman was appointed to the position temporarily on the condition she not run for the office.  This way Gov. Rendell was able to appoint someone qualified and be confirmed by the Republican controlled State Senate.

Four Democrats are vying to run against GOP candidate Tom Ellis, a man with a very questionable ethics record as Montgomery County Commissioner.  Jennifer Mann is seeking the women's vote but the State Representative's financial credentials don't compare with the three men running.  Dennis Morrison-Wesley is one of three candidates with an extensive financial background along with Rob McCord and John Cordisco.

All four are from eastern Pennsylvania which is unusual.  Statewide elections here normally split east/west.  Since western PA doesn't have a horse in this race it's harder to handicap.  McCord has raised $4 million from his Wall Street buddies (he's from the private equity, venture capital arena) and is the only one on television.  John Cordisco, a lawyer from Bucks County with extensive Democratic Party ties (he's the Chair of the Bucks County Democratic Committee), is challenging McCord's Wall Street connections.

Cordisco is claiming Rob McCord will have conflicts of interest when it comes to investing state revenues due to his many campaign contributions from investment bankers.  These people normally contribute to such campaigns in anticipation of getting business.  It's one of the areas where the Treasurer's office has been stuck in the muck and mire of politics.  McCord says he will recuse himself on investment decisions involving his contributors.  If he'll have to recuse himself why elect him in the first place?  The job of Treasurer IS to make these decisions and if we elect McCord he won't be able to do the job properly if he keeps to his promise.  If he doesn't has the Treasurer's position been, again, bought by Wall Street?