6 The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, September 5, 2001 EDITORIAL Only you can correct political leadership Judging by the way stories are played in area newspapers, you'd have to assume people love to read about local politics, particularly the worst examples of nepotism, corruption, in- competence and boorish behavior. If entertainment was the most important aspect of politics, we could all have a laugh, shake our heads and go on about our business. But there's a lot more at stake than chuckles, and we have a lot, more influ- ence than we sometimes give ourselves credit for, if we would only make our point in the voting booth. Political leadership is a key element in the quality of our lives and the security of our future. When public officials are con- cerned with raking in their own rewards from government in- stead of doing what's best for the most people, they can hold back progress that could bring greater prosperity. If an office holder is more interested in seeing his or her photo in the pa- per than in rooting out inefficiencies, our taxes are unneces- sarily wasted. If raising money for re-election is more important than responsible governing, leaders’ attention is focused on narrow constituencies instead of wide-ranging issues. It's easy to joke about political figures; it's harder to do any- thing constructive against a backdrop of entrenched interests that are committed to maintaining the status quo for the sim- ple reason that they, their families and their friends are living nicely off the public's apathy. But we can change that - if each and every one of us who thinks our town, county, state and nation can be better than it is makes an effort to pay attention to the issues and personalities, to register and to vote. Things may not change overnight, and there are still too many offices that go unchallenged, but that shouldn't keep us from taking the first steps in a process of improvement. : There's still plenty of time to prepare for the November elec- tion. The registration deadline is October 9, so it's easy to be- come a participant and not just a spectator. Just visit the Of- fice of Voter Registration at the county courthouse, fill out a simple application and be prepared to cast your ballot on No- vember 6. Publisher’s Notebook With the brand-new fall television season upon us, it's hard to escape the flood of "reality" shows peppering every net- work's schedule. What started with "Survivor" has mutated into shows about really creepy people sharing a house, greedy couples willing to make fools of themselves as they circle the globe and politicians eager to kiss the feet of every potential donor with a fat wallet. That last one is real reality, but it's not much for entertainment. In truth, most "reality" programming is about as authentic as Danny Almonte's age on a Little League roster. But we can take matters into our own hands. I propose any one of these themes to be aired on the public access cable channel for the Back Mountain: e Pizza Challenge. Contestants are not allowed a meal for two days, then must walk from Harveys Lake to Trucksville without stopping at one of the dozen or so pizza restaurants along the way. Those who fail to make it are banished to a health food store, where they are forced to eat five pounds of alfalfa sprouts. * Bike Hike. Competitors, chosen because they'll sign a waiv- er not to sue for injuries, must ride a bicycle from the center Dallas up Rt. 309, across Hildebrandt Rd., right on Lower De- munds Rd. to Offset Paperback and back to Dallas center. If they can complete the trip without being run off the road or squashed under the tires of a truck they receive a fully-paid accident insurance policy and a will kit. e Survivor III - the Fan. To win, participants must sit on the home side of Mountaineer Stadium and cheer loudly for the visiting team. The winner is the one who can convince Dallas fans that he's using reverse psychology on the visitors. Losers are obvious by the bruises. * Board Game. This one is for the more enlightened reality show viewer. A dozen contestants, selected for their ability to talk but not listen, must attend six months of Lake-Lehman school board meetings, and ask repeatedly about the mysteri- ous hidden fund balance. They are voted out of the game by members of the school board, who take obvious delight in turning the tables on those pesky people who put them into office. * Road Rage. Six contestants, chosen from among hundreds of hopefuls because they have the most speeding tickets, are sent down Rt. 309 at rush hour. First, they must make a left turn out of New Mart at 8:15 a.m. after downing six cups of coffee, just to keep them sharp. They return at 5:30 p.m., and must turn off 309 across traffic into Cook's Pharmacy while a driver coming in the other direction is turning into the Back Mountain Shopping Center. After a week, the winner is the driver who has caused the most fender-benders without‘dam- aging his or her own car. * Lawn Jockey. This is reality, folks. Everyone with a lawn can compete by spreading fertilizer on their very own grass. Winners are the ones whose lawns don't have a yellow stripe pattern a week later. They get to do it again next spring. The Dallas Post TIMES LEADER Cogmunity Newspaper Group P.O. BOX 366, DAL 612 « 570-675-5211 Ronald Bartizek GENERAL MANAGER Brenda McDonough ADVERTISING ACCT. EXEC. Heather B. Jones REPORTER Ruth Proietto PRODUCTION MANAGER Ron and Charlotte Bartizek PUBLISHERS EMERITUS Stephen Peterson PRESIDENT & CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER 1-800-427-8649 Darlene Sorber OFFICE MANAGER - Water flowing downstream made a beautiful welcoming site to the 17th annual Arts at Hayfield celebration. ONLY YESTERDAY 70 Years Ago - September 4, 1931 LOCAL MEN ARE TURNED DOWN ON LOCAL ROAD JOBS Petitions were circulated throughout the Back Mountain appealing to Governor Pinchot to. take action in the matter of having local men employed on local roads. Seven men, resi- dents of Idetown and taxpayers applied for jobs on the new rur- al road construction being done by the state. They were told no jobs were open due to the fact that men from Wyoming Valley and other districts had filled the positions. William A. Austin of Beaumont assistant principle of Monroe township Schools for the past two years, has been appointed principal of the schools to fill a vacancy left by the resignation of George Robinson who had been elected to principal of Mill City High School in Wyoming County. Construction of the First Na- tional Bank of Dallas is moving along rapidly. The workmen have experienced considerable difficulty with the creek that runs underneath the building. A pump is being kept continu- ally at work until waterproofing is completed on the walls and flume. 60 Years Ago - September 5, 1941 HOLIDAY CROWD TOPS 10,000 AS SEASON ENDS AT HARVEYS LAKE Harveys Lake ended its vaca- tion season Labor Day with a throng of 10,000. Most of the campers and cottagers have been packing up and moving out. Harveys Lake merchants had an estimated gross of $500,000 from the approxi- mately 175,000 people who have visited the resort since June. At the Acme Markets, some of the items you could get: chuck roast, 1llb., 25¢; hamburg, 1lb. 23¢; Glenwood pure jellies; 11-oz. glass 10¢; pretzel sticks pkg 14¢; pota- toes, 1lb. 4¢; onions, 3 lbs 10¢. Two local men carted off high- est honors in the second annu- al Labor Day Regatta of the Harveys Lake Boat Club. They are: Newell Wood of Harvey's Lake, who made a clean sweep of the open event, and Billy Woolbert of Shavertown, winner of the 30-mile class race in two straight heats. 50 Years Ago - September 7, 1951 MARINE PLATOON LEADER RELIEVES BROTHER IN KOREAN FRONT LINES Two brothers, Marine Lieu- tenants, have replaced each other on the Korean fighting front. They are Lt. George Guthrie Conyngham and Lt. John N. Conyngham, sons of Mrs. William Conyngham of Hillside Farm, Trucksville. Lt. Guthrie Conyngham left Quan- tico, Va., a month ago by plane to replace a platoon leader with the First marine Division in Ko- rea. When he arrived he learned that the officer he was replacing was his younger brother. The Mills Brothers Circus played to good crowds both afternoon and evening on the Goeringer plot along the Lake Highway at 42nd Street. The show arrived from Berwick. Dallas young- sters and members of Kiwanis and Back Mountain Y. M. C. A. had breakfast with the perform- ers. Among them were Clyde Cooper, daughter Priscilla, son, ‘Douglas and Joe Peterson. New building permits in the amount of $77,155 were issued at a postponed meeting of Dallas Borough = Council. Included were permits for three $6,000 homes to be built by Shaver- town Lumber Company. 40 Years Ago - September 7, 1961 OPEN HOUSE AT NEW HIGH SCHOOL DRAWS THOUSANDS Open House at Dallas High School drew a large crowd to inspect the new building. Thou- sands of residents from all over the Back Mountain and Wyoming Valley enjoyed a tour of the completely modern class- rooms, cafeteria, and the vast- ness of the double gymnasium was a matter for frequent com- ment. Back Mountain Memorial Library directors, according to announcement by Robert Bach- man, president, have selected a new librarian, due to the resig- nation of Miss Miriam Lathrop, who has been with the Library since its founding in 1945. Joe Hoeg, Shavertown, is the third Westmoreland graduate to win a four-year scholarship to Uni- versity of maryland under aus- pices of the National Fire Un- derwriters Association. 30 Years Ago - September 9, 1971 AMERICAN ASPHALT PLANT REDUCES POLLU- TION LEVEL According to a letter from James Chester, regional air pol- lution control engineer with the Dept. of Environmental Re- sources, American Asphalt now complies with state air pollu- tion regulations. Bernard Banks, American Asphalts trea- surer, told the Dallas Post that his firm had added a “wet radi- cal fan” and 100 foot stack to its existing anti-pollution sys- tem following a meeting with health department officials in Photo by Jim Phillips. June, 1970. College Misericor- dia welcomed 12 new faculty members for the fall semester. They are: Sister Agnes Thereseq, Brennan, RSM; Barbara: Brown; William Dick; Sister Ann Hor- gan; Patricia: > Lewis; b= Arthur Miller’ Dr. Eugene Miller; Edwin O’Malia Jr., Edward Roke, Vin- cent Smith, Sister Elaine Tu- ™ lanowski; and Jo | Anna Wentling. 79 members and sons of Gate of Heaven Holy Name Society enjoyed a bus trip to Philadelphia Veterans Stadium to see the Phils battles the St. Louis Cardinals. Presi- dent Bill Kalinowski and his committee: Bill Motyka, Bill Ta- bor, Tom Lynch, and Paul Williams, made all the arrange- ments and provided refresh- ments. 20 Years Ago - August 26, 1981 MILLION DOLLAR LOAN @& BENEFITS DALLAS Congressman James L. Nelli- gan announced that a non-prof- it Wilkes-Barre organization will receive $1,334,000 loan from the Farmers Home Admin- istration to construct a 120-bed health care facility for the el- derly in the Dallas Township. Ecumenical Enterprises, Inc. is a non-profit organization which@ provides low-cost housing for the elderly.” John Lemmond, son of Judge and Mrs. Charles Lemmond, Dallas, has enlisted in the U.S. Navy. John ‘is a 1981 graduate of West Side Area Vo-Tech, and he will un- dergo basic training at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center in Michigan. Luzernegy) County Commissioners have approved reconstruction of a Dallas Township road by Ameri- can Asphalt Paving Co. for $143.310. Dallas Nursery and Nutche Trucking Co. of Shaver- town have also received con- tracts for demolition work and site clearance projects. ® | Are you opinionated? The Dallas Post is always pleased to hear from good columnists. If you have what it takes, we guarantee you a regular forum to write whatever you choose. (Unless it’s libelous or tasteless, of course.) If you are the one person in 1,000 who can express ideas clearly and forcefully, send The Post a letter telling why you want to be a columnist. Mail it to : The Dallas Post, P.O. Box 366, Dallas, 607 Main Road, Dallas (across from Offset Paperback). PA ‘18612, or drop it off at our office 2g | ] | | | 1 |
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers