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Politics – Page 7 – Tom Borthwick
PA-112: This Race Is A Distaster
April 17, 2016

The race in the 112th legislative district (which covers the Midvalley, Dunmore, and parts of Scranton) has, in my view, been a lock for Frank Farina from the beginning.  He’s got Tom Lukasewicz, who was for the Landfill before he was against it.  And then there’s Kevin Haggerty, who probably definitely needs counselling. The solid political strategy for […]

Losing an argument?  I’m sure you’ve heard of this simple strategy: deny, and counter with false accusations.  It’s a great way to throw people off, since it’s a natural human tendency to respond to whatever train of thought you’re being presented with.  I see it at public meetings a lot when elected officials don’t want to […]

WNEP’s Disservice to Students and Teachers
March 19, 2016

Every year in my capacity as a teacher at Riverside, I take my AP Literature & Composition kids, along with another teacher and his AP US History kids, to State Rep. Sid Michaels Kavulich’s annual Youth and Government Forum at Keystone College.  It’s a wonderful experience. Check this video out and draw your own conclusions […]

PA-112: Bill Paid, But More to Come
March 15, 2016

After last week’s post about Kevin Haggerty’s large unpaid bill with Lamar Advertising, the Scranton Times has told us that he’s all squared up. Or is he?  (Yeah, that’s me being dramatic.) One of my favorite pastimes is looking at campaign finance reports (my life isn’t that exciting).  According to Haggerty’s campaign finance reports, which you can […]

When I was more active as a political blogger, I spent a lot of time writing about local races.  There isn’t really much going on locally in even-numbered years.  The School Board, Council, Mayoral, and Commissioner races are always during odd-numbered years (every 4 years, staggered), which means you’ll probably see me on fire in […]

Donald Trump, more persona than person, has demonstrated that style, not substance, is what Americans want in a leader.  Sure, there’s substance behind Trump.  He’s got positions on things.  But they aren’t really what we care about.  We care about spectacle.  It’s why more people tune into network reality shows than cable news.  Trump has […]

Dem Debate Recap: Yes, I Watched Despite No Trump
October 14, 2015

Right off the bat, viewers of last night’s Democratic debate realized it would be a snoozer compared to the Republican debate.  There were no insults.  No discussions of Carly Fiorina’s face.  No gifs of Trump reactions.  Instead, we were forced to listen to policy, constructive criticism, and substance. BORING. But what does that say about […]