Inspired by the groundswell of Occupy Wall Street, the cause now comes to our own city of  Pittsburgh on October 15th. While our city has been like a phoenix rising from the ashes over the past two decades, there is no denying that many problems which effect the country also impact Pittsburgh. People have lost jobs; unemployment benefits have expired; lay-offs continue; foreclosures still happen, yet the banks go on and Congress has been bought and paid for.
Not only do those seeking re-election need to raise funds for their campaigns, …

Over many decades the American electorate has become  increasingly concerned about the corrupting influence of unlimited  donations to political campaigns.   Although bi-partisan actions to limit political contributions, such as the McCain-Feingold Act, have been attempted, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that any laws limiting  political contributions were unconstitutional.  In essence, the Supreme Court has unwisely opened a floodgate  that  has allowed the corrupting influence of money to flow freely and without limitation.  The implications of the court’s ruling are staggering.  All Americans who believe in democratic principles, …

It’s been less than one week since former House Speaker Newt Gingrich announced his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination.  This has proven to be  about the right amount of time needed for Newt’s campaign to come unglued.  In a monumental act of political courage, Gingrich wasted no time in lambasting the Republican’s ill-conceived plan to do away with the government-run Medicare Program.   After he referred to the so-called Ryan Plan as “right-wing social engineering”, the party leadership, along with most of the conservative media,  repudiated Newt’s comments in no …