Molovinsky and The Second Amendment

A resident of North Catasauqua recently asked me how I feel about the Second Amendment. New York State is currently running a television campaign to attract new industry. The commercial promises numerous tax incentives for both start up and relocating companies. It does not mention Governor Cuomo's rant last year about pro assault weapon advocates having no place in the state of New York.   Alabama Governor Bentley and House Speaker Mike Hubbard both immediately responded to Cuomo’s comments. "We will protect the Freedoms of individuals and welcome any one or any company to Alabama to discover as so many have, that we are a pro-business state filled with good, hardworking people.” Remington has announced a new factory in Alabama, which will employ 2000 workers. The Remington factory, in Llion, New York, was started in 1816. While New York spends $millions trying to attract new businesses with taxpayer supported incentives, it's losing the benefit of a major company's growth.

While I fully support the Second Amendment, I also fully support every effort to keep existing companies up and running. Both Slatington and Northampton are case studies in lost industry and commerce. This State and it's Representatives have stood on the side lines as one business after another closed, while they have offered one incentive after another, for new companies to the valley. We subsidize a million square foot warehouse that only employs six people, while standing idle while an older business with 100 workers closes.

It's nice that Julie Harhart's staff helps people with their driver's license, and sends people birthday cards, but it's very sad that there's no jobs  for their children. Any representative can send birthday cards and support their Second Amendment rights, but the people of the 183rd deserve more; If they send me to Harrisburg, I'll make their jobs here my top priority.

Citizen Molovinsky's Candidacy

I kicked off my candidacy with a Meet and Greet at Darla's Ice Cream Parlor in Slatington on Friday evening. Although the young man shown above could not sign my ballot petition, his father did. Among those stopping by to meet me were none other than Marc Grammes, another candidate hoping to represent the 183rd District. Marc challenges incumbent Julie Harhart next Tuesday in the Republican primary. Harhart, using a playbook tactic, has chosen to ignore Grammes, and declined a League of Women Voters debate. Harhart will find my candidacy more complex. I don't own a copy of the playbook, nor do I want to. I will be everywhere throughout the district, offering the voters a new concept, putting their interests ahead of those of any political party.
photocredit: K Mary Hess

Harrisburg Is Broken

Harrisburg is broken, and both parties are responsible. It's time for something different.

The Guide of No Choice

The Morning Call, in conjunction with The League of Women Voters has published it's Voters Guide. It could also be called The Guide of No Choice. In the 131st District incumbent Justin Simmons will be unopposed in both the primary and general elections. In the 132nd District incumbent Michael Schlossberg will be unopposed in both the primary and general elections. In the 134th District incumbent Ryan MacKenzie will be unopposed in both the primary and general elections. In the 135th incumbent Steve Samuelson will be unopposed in both the primary and general elections. In the 136th District incumbent Robert Freeman will be unopposed in both the primary and general elections. In the 137th District incumbent Joe Emrick will be unopposed in both the primary and general elections. In the 187th District incumbent Gary Day will be unopposed in both the primary and general elections.

Tomorrow evening, between 5 and 8pm, I will be conducting a Meet and Greet and petition signing at Darla's, in Slatington. I ask readers who live in the 183rd District, or to ask friends or family there, to attend the petition signing, and help me battle another long term incumbent.

A Walk In The Park

On Saturday June 7, at 10:00am, in conjunction with Allentown Friends Of The Parks, I will be conducting a tour of the WPA structures in Lehigh Parkway. It's a slow paced walk, starting at the parking lot at Robin Hood, and circling back there, in less than an hour. This is a duplicate tour of the one I conducted last year, and hopefully will be an annual event.

UPDATE: The Discovery Walk has been rescheduled for 1:00 pm

Hardscrabble In Slatington

Main Street in Slatington is incredibly attractive, a true historic gem of Americana. Behind that charming architectural veneer are vacant storefronts, poverty and despair. Recently, a primary opponent of the incumbent State Representative appeared on Bobby Gunther Walsh. Gunther asked him why he was running against her, as if she was anointed for life. Over her long reign, she certainly has consolidated power. I learned that Monday evening, when my Meet and Greet at the Legion Hall was canceled. Yesterday, I spent the afternoon on Main Street, learning about the unemployment and rampant disability plaguing present day Slatington. This coming Friday afternoon I have scheduled another Meet and Greet. I look forward to being a voice for those living behind the historic facade, in the reality of Slatington.

Disenfranchising Democracy

We often hear of voters being disenfranchised. Supposedly, some voters were turned away in Florida during recent elections. Here, in Pennsylvania, voters currently do not even have to have picture ID to vote. Although we advocate for the electors right to choose, we allow the system to greatly reduce their choice. Locally, the Democratic candidate for state house in district 131 was thrown off the ballot yesterday. In most of the districts this year, the voters will have no choice, with only the incumbent on the ballot. Also yesterday, I was victimized by the political status quo. My campaign had made arrangement with the Legion Hall in Slatington to conduct a meet and greet. I was simply a tenant renting a room, and in no way being endorsed by that group. Details were discussed with long term officers, down to specific snacks that I would be bringing. Less than 24 hours before the event was to occur, we received a call that the event must be canceled. I will avoid disclosing details of that conversation, but will say that democracy is not on the menu at the Legion tonight. However, those hungry for choice will still find me in Slatington today.

Arena No Oasis

The Phantoms Arena is no oasis for those who live in a “food desert”. Congratulations Mayor Pawlowski, your city is a textbook definition of a worst-case scenario.
Definition as provided by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA): Food deserts are defined as urban neighborhoods and rural towns without ready access to fresh, healthy, and affordable food. Instead of supermarkets and grocery stores, these communities may have no food access or are served only by fast food restaurants and convenience stores that offer few healthy, affordable food options. The lack of access contributes to a poor diet and can lead to higher levels of obesity and other diet-related diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease.

The image is part of a map devised by the USDA to designate areas of the United States that are severely deprived of access to fresh food. The orange parts on the map are areas in Allentown with less than adequate access to fresh food. Green areas signify the worst-hit areas, called “food deserts” by USDA and other Public Health agencies. Light blue areas show very low income.
The orange dot in the middle of all of this need is the heralded Phantoms Arena. Yes, “the beacon of hope of Allentown” is sited like a feudal lord’s castle, surrounded by people who are being ignored, inconvenienced, and oppressed like so many peasants. Starved for attention you could even say, but are The Players in the middle of this moneyed deal noticing at all?

Grocery stores anchor neighborhoods. Grocers hire, train, offer career paths and not only improve community health but increase the value of housing. Grocery stores attract other businesses, such as dry cleaners, clothing merchants and drug stores. Grocery stores need to be part of an essential development scheme for Allentown and Bethlehem, and that development needs to begin apace with the arena and all of the other City Center plans being touted.

K Mary Hess

guest post by K Mary Hess, a public health consultant

William Allen's Color Change

When I graduated from William Allen in the mid 1960's, the school was lily white. Yesterday, the district attorney filed charges against two juveniles for ethnic intimidation, against a minority there, a white student. This is a story most bloggers would stay away from, especially one running for Harrisburg as a state representative. However, if Allentown is going to have success, beyond some new buildings being subsidized by state-wide taxpayers, it has to embrace it's diversity. The school district in the last fifteen years experienced significant white flight. It is now time, if somewhat overdue, to repackage the assets that Allen has to offer, and make the school attractive to students of all colors. The unfortunate bullying incident should be used as an instrument to begin that lesson plan. Like the school system, the communities of Lehigh Valley, and their elected representatives, have been reluctant to discuss real quality of life issues. While unspoken despair conquers one block after another, in one town after another, their representatives offer little more than a handshake and smile. Yesterday, I had the pleasure of attending the ribbon cutting for what would have been called a new minority owned business years ago. Who is now the minority no longer matters. What does matter is a frank discussion and assessment of the problems facing our communities. If it's a major grocery store needed for downtown Allentown, or better public transportation for Slatington, it's time Harrisburg concentrates on quality of life issues.
UPDATE: ASD Press Release

Allentown School District’s IBEAM Academy

Receives “No Place for Hate” Distinction

Today, Friday, May 2, at 2:00 p.m. the students and faculty at the Allentown School District’s (ASD) IBEAM Academy will celebrate the school’s designation as No Place for Hate, having completed a year of anti-bias and anti-bullying programs. Jeremy Bannett, No Place for Hate Assistant Project Director, will attend the ceremony and present the school with its official designation banner. To earn this distinction, the school formed a No Place for Hate committee, adopted a resolution pledging to create a more inclusive school, and implemented a number of projects promoting respect for differences.

I can only assume that the above press release, issued only 3 hours before the event, is damage control. The IBEAM Academy, conducted at the Jackson School, is the districts alternative school, for students already identified as having discipline issues.

Trouble In Mayberry

Sources close to City Hall say that Mayor Pawlowski is furious over the commotion that occurred last Friday at the soirée to celebrate Allentown's arena development. Supposedly, the pursuing police officers were told to stand down by a captain, before they reached the accident area by 6th and Linden. The defendant was a minor drug dealer, and the cops had already secured his license plate number. The story goes that the officers ignored the command, for whatever reason, and continued the chase. Had the police car not been stopped by the encounter with the telephone pole, it might have well plowed into the tent full of dignitaries. While the defendant has been charged with reckless endangerment, should the police also face the same charge?

Bullying In The Allentown School District

Last month I posted about a young lady who was victimized by both bullies and the Allentown School System. When she complained to the school principal about the bullying, his solution was to throw her, in mid term, into the advanced honor's class. While this didn't protect her from her antagonists, she still had to walk to and from school, it did interrupt her scholastic accomplishment. She had been only one marking period away from making the Jr. National Honor Society, in regular classes. Her mother feels that her daughter should be allowed to retake the finals for that marking period, but the school administration refuses. I share the mother's pride in updating you about her next marking period. This remarkable girl, named Jalonda, tutored herself on the internet for the advanced math classes, and once again made honor roll, even in the advanced honor class. A college professor told me that the school district's decision is defective. Putting the girl into the advanced classes, instead of dealing with the bullying problem, was the school's decision, not the girls. She has since proven to be a true honors student, who deserves the opportunity to retake those exams, and restore her scholastic record.

The Express Times informs us that some bullies at William Allen picked on the wrong kid, the son of an Allentown School Director. I wish the best solution for the director's son, but also want the District to do right by Jalonda, even if her mother isn't a school director.

An Independent Comes Home

My voter registration has changed back and forth between Republican and independent for several decades. Although most of the candidates I have voted for have been Republicans, independent reflects my mindset. Periodically, I became frustrated at being disenfranchised in the primary elections, and then re-registered as a Republican. As previously noted on this blog, I have decided to run for the State House, against long time incumbent Julie Harhart. She is being opposed in the primary by Marc Grammes, and is also opposed in the general election by Democrat Terri Powell. Pennsylvania has become a mess. It is for that reason that current Governor Corbett faces a stiff challenge this fall. Our legislators are now scrambling to fix the electric deregulation mess that they had created. It should be no surprise that these new electric companies, in name only, which have no generation or transmission infrastructure, raised their rates. They are only gloried post office boxes, with fancy literature. The take away lesson from this electric fiasco is to leave the State Store liquor system in tact, rather than to need more regulations and bureaucrats, to deal with new problems created by another privatization.

To Whom Do The Park Features Belong

There are those of us who remember the greenhouse in Trexler Park, but that does not include the current mayor, the park director or his predecessor. Unfortunately, there's a tradition in Allentown of park directors making unilateral decisions, which effect generations to come. The Trexler greenhouse was understandably the pride of Mrs. Trexler. It was a lush tropical paradise, complete with a full grown banana tree. About 30 years ago, the park director decided that it should go, as part of a cost saving measure. A couple years later, the same director planted the wetland area by the intersection of Cedar Crest Blvd. and Cetronia Rd.. That planting cost $750,000. I recall the price, because Longwood Gardens built a new greenhouse for that same amount, and we had just lost our greenhouse and only had some new creek weeds to show instead; Even back then, I was an advocate for the traditional park system. Recently, visitors to Trexler Park have noticed that this Wetland area has been cut down, although very few know that they had also lost a beautiful greenhouse.

The current issue of the park magazine mentions that an engineer has been hired to plan some restoration on the stonework at Fountain Park. I take pride in knowing that my efforts and this blog are behind that long overdue attention to the WPA structures.

Allentown's Reality Show

On Friday afternoon there was a collision between political spin and reality in downtown Allentown. As  Governor Corbett and Mayor Pawlowski toasted The miracle that is Allentown, a police cruiser crashed right outside their gilded tent, while chasing a drug suspect. Pawlowski had said "I want to thank the state, this unique tool has created unprecedented investment in the City of Allentown." What he should have said is that he wanted to thank the taxpayers of surrounding communities, who are subsidizing Allentown's miracle. Although the state income tax rate may not increase, that money is being made up one way or another. If it's more tax on gasoline, or higher fees on renewing their driver's license, the state budget reaches out in many ways to make up for this unprecedented investment in Allentown. Allentown's State Representative wasted no time spinning the fiasco by restricting his comment to the Allentown police. Although the police acted heroically, the representative should have also thought about the residents in his district. While they were not invited to the banquet tent, every day they live with the drug violence. If I'm fortunate enough to be elected to represent the citizens of the 183rd District, I will not be attending such banquets of self praise, but will be out in the district, fighting for a better everyday quality of life.

photocredit:The Morning Call

The 183rd Legislative District

The new Pennsylvania Legislative Districts were postponed for a year, while modifications were made to the map. The final map going into effect for the upcoming election is never-the-less still convoluted. The 183rd District resembles a question mark. The primary change between the current and former map effect the southwest and northeast sectors. While the district loses the north Allentown neighborhood south of Rt.22, north of Tilghman Street and east of Cedar Crest Blvd., it gains the South Whitehall neighborhood west of the Cedar Crest, between Rt.22 and the municipal golf course. The northeastern sector extends closer to, but not including, the town of Bath. It is my intention to provide the residents of the 183rd District a new independent voice in Harrisburg, not mired in convoluted partisan politics.

Shortchanging The Neighbors

The arena machine was held up for several months two years ago, when the smaller municipalities balked at giving up their share of the earned income tax to further support Allentown's mega-project. Rather than endure the time delay of a court case on that attempt to overreach, Allentown backed off, and the neighbors still got their earned income tax share. But do the neighbors get their share of benefits from state taxes? That's a rhetorical question, because the answer has always been a clear no. When Allentown's NIZ is completely built out in several years, the small neighbors like Slatington and Northampton will be subsidizing a $billion dollars of development, but what do they get? Their current Harrisburg representatives will tell them that Allentown endures the problems of a the low income transient population, and then say something about rising tides and all ships. The residents of Slatington and Northampton know better. It's not the life of Mayberry there anymore. Although the tax dollar benefits seldom come their way, Allentown's problems of poverty and crime found their way up route 309. It will be my honor to advocate for their fair share.

photograph by K Mary Hess

Buddy, Can You Spare a Dime?

On the entire square block of the arena complex, only two former buildings were spared, the Farr Building and The Dime Bank. The former Farr Shoe building, currently loft apartments, has been continuously occupied since being constructed. The Dime Bank has spend most of it's 90 years vacant. The bank closed in 1931, only six years after being built. It remained mostly vacant until the early 1990's, when the monumental 1st floor room was restored, and housed an antique market for a few years. Since then, ownership changed hands several times, but the building remained vacant. Because of a leaking facade, the arena owners decided to strip the brick off, down to it's steel structural skeleton. Lost was the iconic attic story, in classic art deco style. Also lost was the beautiful ornate ceiling in the monumental banking chamber.

As I begin the mission to provide residents of northern Lehigh and Northampton Counties with a new kind of representation in Harrisburg, this blog will continue to scrutinize the Allentown area. Please follow the campaign on my Facebook page,  Mr. Molovinsky Goes To Harrisburg.  If you live anywhere in the 183rd District, from now on,  I'll be looking out for you.

Mr. Molovinsky Goes To Harrisburg

Actually, the title should be Mr. Molovinsky wants to serve your interests in Harrisburg. Early this morning I decided to enter the race for the 183rd Legislative District, as an independent. The district, covering Northampton and Slatington, has been extended by the new redistricting map to include a section of South Whitehall. Although there is not one independent in the state house, and the incumbent has held the seat for 18 years, Pennsylvania is in dire need of remedy. We are victimized by ingrained partisan politics, always putting special interests ahead of that of the citizen. We keep adding new revenue streams; lottery, casino, fracking, but never providing the homeowner with the promised tax relief. I have established a facebook page, Mr. Molovinsky Goes To Harrisburg, which will be dedicated to the campaign.

The Sunday Drive

My family wasn't much for recreation.  My father worked six days a week, from early morning till early evening.  We did go for a long car ride on Sundays.  Back then gasoline was cheap, and having no destination wasn't thought of as wasteful.  Children were more content to sit in back seat and look out the window, now they want a video screen in the vehicle.



Even children's play then involved more imagination and interaction.  Howdy Doody was just a puppet on strings,who spend most of his time talking to an adult, Buffalo Bob, can you imagine?

 Sitting in that back seat in the mid fifties, I might well had



my "coonskin" hat with me.  Fess Parker was a genuine American hero.  It mattered little if he played both Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone, both were king of the wild frontier.  The ride probably lasted for two hours and then we would go to a restaurant to eat dinner.  Compared to now, there were very few restaurants.



My mother would cook all the other meals that week, and we probably ate out more than most.  Supermarkets were the new rage in food shopping, but the butcher, baker and candle stick maker were still going strong.  If my father headed west or south, chances are we ended up at Shankweiler's Hotel, famous for chicken and waffles.   They were at the intersection of Old 22 and Route 100.  The building still exists and currently is a bank.  The family also owned another hotel on Route 309.  Both locations also operated adjoining Drive-In movies.



If my father headed north or east,  we would end up at Walp's, which was on the corner of Union Blvd. and Airport Road.  Walp's was a much more urban place.   While Shankweiler's was an old country inn,  Walp's was built as a modern restaurant.  I enjoyed those rides, they were a learning experience.

reprinted from February 2013

Gethsemane 1934

Maria Magdalene (Mary Magdalene) is the Russian Orthodox Church located on the Mount of Olives, in the Garden of Gethsemane in Jerusalem.
The church is dedicated to Miryam of Migdal, a follower of Jesus. Maria Magdalene was the first to see Christ after he was resurrected, and was a crucial and important disciple of Jesus, and seemingly his primary female associate, along with Mary of Bethany, whom some believe to have been the same woman.
The church was built in 1886 by Tzar Alexander III as a commemoration for his mother, Empress Maria Alexandrovna of Russia, in the traditional tented roof Russian style, including seven onion shaped golden domes. Photograph dates from 1934

reprinted from March 2013

The Fighting Ramos Brothers

On Friday night I caught up with Steven Ramos at a local hotel. Steven was there to support his brother Robert, who was making his fourth showing as a professional fighter. It was a tough fight, with Robert and his opponent battling to a draw. Before the fighters had even exited the ring, the promoter hinted at a rematch. As tough as that fight was, Steven has a tougher one coming up this November. He will battle the winner of the Democratic primary, either Tatiana Tooley or Peter Schweyer, for the new 22nd State House seat. Steven Ramos is a Republican Hispanic running in a Democratic stronghold. If Steven loses, look for rematches down the road, the Ramos brothers are tough.

The Main Event, a photo by molovinsky

A History Lesson from Ukraine

The famous photograph above is called The Last Jew in Vinnitsa. It was taken in Ukraine in September of 1941, when the Nazis shot every Jew in that city within five days. The flyers ordering Jews to register, distributed in Donetsk the other day, harken back to the Holocaust. All together, over 750,000 Jewish men, women and children, were shot to death in Ukraine during the war. Out of a population of 4.3 million, Donetsk currently only has 17,000 Jews. The flyers were a provocation of unknown origin, as opposed to a real threat, but they did make world news.

In Jerusalem, The Evangelical Sisterhood of Mary, a small order of Protestant nuns formed after the war in Germany, is closing it's retreat for Holocaust survivors. The order originally had come to Israel to work in hospitals as repentance for the Nazi crimes against the Jews.  Although the last of the  survivors is passing away, hatred is alive and well.

Jeopardizing Your House for Ocean Spray

Unknown to Lehigh County residents, one of the reasons Ocean Spray moved here was to avoid costly upgrades to their pre-sewer treatment plant. When you're in violation of New Jersey environmental standards, what do you do, you turn to Donny Cunningham. Here in Sap Valley, we invited Ocean Spray with incentives and called it progress. They, along with the other new bottling industries attracted by Cunningham and LCA, will now jeopardize your home. Rather than expand the sewer treatment plant, homeowners are being forced to block their plumbing safety net, their floor drains. Up to a decade ago, floor drains were mandated by code so that if a pipe broke, your home was protected against flooding. Although nothing has ever gone down my floor drain, I must now block it to comply with new regulations. The thinking is that a drop saved here, and a drop saved there from thousands and thousands of homes, can spare the LCA the expense of enlarging the sewer plant, or building an additional one, and still meet EPA standards. Hell, there's even enough capacity left to invite Ocean Spray. Now, if your hot water heater springs a leak, it's tough sh*t for you.

Sitting Down with Bennett

                                                                           photo by K Mary Hess 

Subscribers of this blog may recall that recently I profiled two people who hope to succeed Ed Pawlowski as mayor, Siobhan Sam Bennett and Charlie Thiel. Yesterday, I sat down with Bennett at The Benner Mansion, her bed and breakfast, and she elaborated on her thoughts about Allentown. Although she benefits from being the first and only bed and breakfast in Allentown, she knows that distinction signifies a stagnate tax base.  She recognizes the NIZ for the boost that it will provide, but she believes that it will not be a silver bullet by itself, and that many more small businesses need to be cultivated. She has no doubt that the perception of the school district and the city's future go arm in arm. While the perceptions of both are currently negative, she knows that there are many positive assets, which can be branded for success. She cites the many cultural institutions, such as Symphony Hall,  the art museum, the historical society and the Allentown Band, which are unique for a city this size. The school district's gifted and honor programs, along with it's rich music and art tradition, must be featured. The demographics must be viewed as an opportunity for preparing for the diversity in our changing country. Recognizing these assets, and branding them to middle class home buyers, is part of her formula for revitalizing Allentown.

Photography by K Mary Hess

When Kahane Came to Allentown

He told the Jews gathered in Allentown that their leaders were worms, that's how the controversial rabbi spoke. When Meir Kahane came to town in the summer of 1990, none of the Jewish institutions would give him space to speak. Before emigrating to Israel, he had formed the Jewish Defense League in NYC in 1968. He lectured that turning the other cheek was a Christian concept, and that the minimum take away from the Holocaust was that American Jews should own a gun, and know how to use it. His views in Israel about nationalism on the West Bank were much more controversial, and he was jailed there for incitement. As of yesterday, the authorities in Kansas City were not prepared to call the shootings there a hate crime. Kahane would have no doubts about that. His speech in Allentown was one of his last. He was assassinated later that year during a speech in NYC.

Passover Libel

German Nobel Literature Laureate and former SS officer Gunter Grass, has been banned from Israel, not that he wants to go there anyway. In a new poem published last week , he wrote "the nuclear power Israel is endangering an already fragile world peace." Israel and world Jewry no longer suffer this sort of distortion well. "The Germans will never forgive the Jews for Auschwitz." The sentence is attributed to Israeli psychoanalyst Zvi Rex. He believes that Germans are filled with pathological guilt and shame about the Holocaust, and turn Israel " into a punching bag to purge their guilt complexes. " Grass believes that Israel is a threat to Iran, and Germany could be a “supplier to a crime” in connection with it's decision to supply Israel with a sixth Super Dolphin-class submarine. Emmanuel Nahshon, deputy chief of mission for the Israeli Embassy in Germany, said, “what must be said is that it belongs to the European tradition to accuse the Jews of ritual murder before the Passover celebration.”

reprinted from April 2012

UPDATE: Yesterday's Kansas City attack against Jewish institutions show how much anti-semitism is alive and kicking in United States. While Israel's enemies are known and confronted by a strong national defense, American Jews will depend upon municipal police forces for protection. Although the municipalities will cooperate for the next several weeks, American Jewish liberal attitudes toward gun control will contribute to their vulnerability.

Pawlowski's CaddyShack

Spinning as hard as they could, neither Pawlowski or city spokesman Mike Moore could make the golf course restaurant debacle sound credible. Emily Opilo, The Morning Call reporter, clearly pointed out that Pawlowski's recent chosen tenant, the Noti family, had either paid late, or not at all. Pawlowski had chased out a good paying tenant, the Fegley Brewpub,  to supposedly  increase the annual rent by 10k. He will now ask 10k less than even the Fegley's were paying, for a third tenant in three years. Truth is, he has used that golf course restaurant as a political plum and football since taking office. In 2009, he gave a responsible tenant the boot to accommodate the Fegleys. Although they did a excellent job, in time they too lost favor with the mayor-for-life, and got the boot. Right now you can get a hot dog and a pretzel stick from a temporary vendor.

When 6th Street Was West Allentown

In 1903, the 600 block of 2nd Street housed one Russian Jewish family after another. They built a small synagogue there, which was kept open till about ten years ago. My grandfather, who then worked at a cigar factory, had just saved enough to bring his parents over from the old country. They lived in an old house at 617 N. 2nd. The current house at that location was built in 1920. By the time my father was born in 1917, the youngest of five children, they had moved to the suburbs just across the Jordan Creek.

My grandfather lived on the corner of Chew and Jordan Streets. He butchered in a barn behind the house. The house is still there, 301 Jordan, the barn is gone. He would deliver the meat with a horse and wagon. On the weekends, when the family wanted to visit friends, the horse insisted on doing the meat market route first. Only after he stopped in front of the last market on the route, would he permit my grandfather to direct him. excerpt from My grandfather's Horse, May 13, 2008

Allentown has just designated the neighborhood west of the Jordan to 7th Street, and between Linden and Tilghman Streets, as Jordan Heights. The area encompasses the Old Fairgrounds Historic District. Allentown's old fairground, in the years between 1852-1888, was in the vicinity of 6th and Liberty. It was an open space, as is the current fairground at 17th and Chew Streets. When my grandparents moved to Jordan Street it was a modern house, just built in 1895. Many of the Jewish families moved to the suburbs between Jordan and 7th. The Jewish Community Center was built on the corner of 6th and Chew, today known as Alliance Hall.
I wish the Jordan Heights initiative well. There's a lot of history in those 24 square blocks, and hopefully much future.

reprinted and retitled from 2010

The photograph above, from the early 1900's, shows the circus coming to town. It would arrive by train at a siding on Front Street, then proceed up Linden Street toward the fairgrounds.

Child Abuse in Allentown

Like the adults who run with the bulls once a year in Spain, every afternoon children run with cars across the 15th Street Bridge. When Governor Pawlowski dedicated the bridge with pomp last December, southsiders assumed that the contractor would proceed to finish the pedestrian walkways.It's four months later, and our children are still playing dodge car. Allentown's $billion dollar arena transformation started after the bridge construction began, and will apparently be completed before children can safely walk home. We all understand that the arena is Pawlowski's priority, but are we not a city which needs to do more than one project at a time? Where is the protest from Peter Schweyer, southside City Councilman, hoping to be State Representative. Where are the questions from The Morning Call, after writing one arena promotion after another. It isn't very pretty, what a town without proper priorities, can do.

photocredit:Chris Knight/The Morning Call

The Barbarians of Progress

Those empowered to bestow so called progress upon the dirty masses often lack historical and aesthetic appreciation, casting aside cultural treasures. This blog is proud to have documented the treasures of the former arena block, before the bulldozer arrived. Sometimes, because of curmudgeons such as myself, treasures find their way back home. The current cast iron water fountain in West Park is a reproduction of the original, after it was replaced by a modern monstrosity during a park improvement. Members of the Rose Garden Neighborhood Association inquired about the beautiful metal girl fountain, removed from the garden during an improvement. Through their diligence that fountain was relocated and returned. John Marquette is now on a quest to locate the Harry Bertoia sculpture that was removed from the airport,  when it was recently remodeled. Unfortunately, this city has lost numerous treasures over the decades, perhaps we need more curmudgeons.

The Litter of Allentown

On Monday mornings, from the amount of litter on 6th and 7th Street, you would think that there was a parade over the weekend. Back in the day, Allentown was known for it's cleanliness. Women in babushkas would compulsively hunt out any errant scrap of paper, and remove that offense to their pride. Allentown has changed. In 2006, the SWEEP program was put into place to milk center city property owners, fining them for tenants putting the wrong color container on the porch, at the wrong time. In 2011, the program burped $228,000.00 from the hapless owners. Now, with Allentown's Transformational arena coming, Allentown passed an ordinance quadrupling the littering fine from $25 to $100. "It's really difficult to see someone littering and actually catch them in the act," said Ann Saurman, director of recycling. "You see litter on the street, but you don't often see people littering." Actually, you can see them littering. Park near any center city market, and watch the wrappers drop like leaves off a tree in the fall.

photo:Denise Sanchez/The Morning Call

reprinted from June 2012

UPDATE:  Mayor Ed Pawlowski's 8th Annual Cleanup Day will occur this coming April 26th.  He once again asks that Allentown's conscientious volunteer to clean up after those who could care less.  Bless the eager beavers, but considering the progress in the last eight years, perhaps a better strategy is in order. The Parking Authority should give tickets for littering.  Although it's more confrontational to ticket a person,  than to sneak away after ticketing an empty car,  it would give the city a more positive result than we now achieve from that agency.

Allentown's Hapless Meter Users

It was a rough winter for Allentown meter users, who are mostly the urban poor, concentrated in center city. Although the Parking Authority charges to park, little amenities like removing the snow, are not part of the package. The city has turned into a one trick pony, with every thought only focused on the arena. As part of that obsession, residents will now be pugging the meters till 9:00p.m., pending approval by the Council of Rubberstamps. We are being told that the intention is to potty train the projected arena patrons into using the parking decks, leaving the metered spaces available for other businesses. The Fegley brothers, who are trying their best to get with the city's program, have a few doubts. Ce Ce Gerhart, who lives on metered Walnut Street, knows that she's being penalized. Actually, so are the Fegleys. The arena, which will be used less than half the nights of the year, is making free parking for restaurant patrons a thing of the past. Easton now charges a buck an hour for evening parking, remind me not to eat there.

Flash From Past

Occasionally, some of the older boys in Lehigh Parkway would get saddled with taking me along to a Saturday matinee in downtown Allentown. We would get the trolley, in later years a bus, from in front of the basement church on Jefferson Street. It would take that congregation many years to afford completing the church building there today. The trolley or bus would go across the 8th Street Bridge, which was built to accommodate the trolleys operated by Lehigh Valley Transit Company. Downtown then sported no less than five movie theaters at any one time. Particularly matinee friendly was the Midway, in the 600 Block of Hamilton. Three cartoons and episode or two of Flash Gordon entertained our entourage, which ranged in age from five to eleven years old. We younger kids, although delighted by the likes of Bugs Bunny, were confused how the Clay People would emerge from the walls in the caves on Mars to capture Captain Gordon, but our chaperones couldn't wait till the next week to learn Flash's fate. Next on the itinerary was usually a banana split at Woolworth's. Hamilton Street had three 5 and 10's, with a million things for boys to marvel at. The price of the sundae was a game of chance, with the customer picking a balloon. Inside the balloon was your price, anywhere from a penny to the full price of fifty cents. The store had a full selection of Allentown souvenirs. Pictures of West Park on a plate, the Center Square Monument on a glass, pennants to hang on your wall, and picture postcards of all the attractions. Hamilton Street was mobbed, and even the side streets were crowded with busy stores. Taking younger kids along was a responsibility for the older brothers, the streets and stores were crowded, but predators were limited to the Clay People on the silver screen.

reprinted from January 2013

Jewish Republicans, Two For One Special

As a group, it's hard for the Democrats to find one that they can count on more than the Jews. In 2008, Obama received 78% of their vote, and still received 75% of their support in 2012, after bashing Israel for four years. Last week, the Republican Jewish Coalition held their meeting in Las Vegas, at Sheldon Adelson's Venetian Hotel. They certainly didn't need such a large facility, Jewish Republicans could barely fill the small banquet room at a local Holiday Inn. Jews are less than 2% of the population. Allowing for independents, Republican Jews are less than 20% of that small number. Never the less, the press was climbing over each other to cover the event. Two of their favorite targets were in one room, Israel supporters and Republicans.

Big Brother Is Watching You

In 1949, when George Orwell published his sci fi classic 1984, the ideal of surveillance cameras were considered as oppressive as a society could get. Here in Allentown, in 2014, they are being touted as our guardian angels. The Morning Calls reports that City Center, the private development company owned by J.B. Reilly, will outfit all their new buildings with both cameras and private security personnel. These cameras will be supposedly monitored 24/7, providing the arena area with it's own de facto police force. Apparently, Allentown's reputation precedes it.

Allentown Student Victimized By Bullying

Good evening Mr. Molovinsky,
      I have read some of your blogs and am reaching out to you that maybe you would be able to write a blog on how bullying is handled in the Allentown School District. I have a 7th grade daughter who attends (redacted) Middle School. She was a Honor Roll student until she started getting bullied in October. Not only has she been bullied, but the Assistant Principal claims to have lost all of the incident reports that she and her witnesses have turned in, with no kind of explanation of how this could happen. Then instead of dealing with the two children who were bullying her in class, and out of class, they moved her in the middle of the semester from basic classes to Advanced Honors classes. In this move they gave her no support at all to learn the lessons. Well of course her grades went from Straight A's to 2 D's, 2 B's and a C. I have had meetings with the old and new principal, and even sent emails to Mr. (redacted) at the district office. My daughter has worked so hard to make sure she had honor roll 6 marking periods so she could make National Jr.Honor Society and to keep a promise that she made to a teacher from last year. And this was taken from her. The school has not even given her any type of Restorative Justice. My daughter is now saying that if it was to happen now, she knows the children will have other students come after her. I can't afford to put her in private school, and shouldn't have to. The District has a policy 249 that they didn't follow at all in this case. It is time for someone to stand up and advocate for the children of the ASD. If this could happen to my child, with me being involved and going to Board Meetings, PGA meeting, and school programs, then I can only imagine what is happening to other students?

I wish the above note was a hypothetical situation, but it's very real. I spoke to the woman this evening, both she and her daughter are very distraught by the school's inaction on this situation. She would like her daughter to have the opportunity for scholastic credit recovery, and most importantly, to feel safe at school.

The Morning Call's Asian Premise

Morning Call readers were just treated to an epic two day, two part, nine page story on what may well be a false premise. That premise is that somehow, Asians from New York City are being victimized into riding the bus endlessly, between the big apple and Bethlehem, to make about $20 a day selling their free $45 slot machine pass for $40. The article painted them as modern day coolies, who must wander around south Bethlehem for hours, waiting for the bus to return them to Chinatown. Now, as you can tell by coolies, I'm not as encumbered by political correctness as our daily paper. A Facebook friend, who I never met, as is typical with Facebook, is offended that the paper used the word Asians. In his progressive circle, ethnicities are no longer mentioned. In my world, the bus passengers should have been called Chinese, since they are Chinese. The paper's headline said that Asians ride the bus to live. Actually, these Chinese live to gamble. Most people who live in NYC, especially Chinatown, do not have a car. The casino is crowded with Chinese gambling, most of whom came on those buses. The Sands Casino in the Macao district of China is the most lucrative casino in the world.

photocredit:April Bartholomew/The Morning Call/March 11, 2014

UPDATE: As little as I thought of The Morning Call story on the Asian bus riders, I apparently gave it too much credit. It's a rewrite of a story that appeared last year in The New York Times.

Changes In The Allentown School District

In a comment submitted to the previous post, somebody referred to the change in the student demographics. In that respect, the district certainly has changed. When I graduated Allen in the mid 1960's, I do not recall one minority student. The quickness of this change is somewhat of a sociological phenomenon, but beyond that observation, such discussion does not benefit our current students. There certainly has been some white flight because of these changes, but then again, that's just another frank observation. Although Allentown's total numerical population hasn't changed much in the last 100 years, it now has the same problems of much larger urban centers. As the previous post reveals, there's quite a difference of opinion on the school board on how to process the tight school budget. I applaud all nine members for their dedication.

photo courtesy of Sandy Paul

Emotion vs. Reason at School Board

Last night the school district went through it's annual gnashing of teeth. One again the budget realities dictated that there be layoffs. Once again the teacher's union president filled the chamber with distraught teachers and students. Once again those school directors who accept the reality of numbers were vilified by those playing for acceptance and popularity. Come June, the system will once again allow one of our elected officials from Harrisburg to be a white knight, and announce that he has secured so many more $millions for the Allentown School District.

UPDATE: Allentown School District Launches ASD Virtual Academy The Allentown School District has launched their new ASD Virtual Academy offering students online academic opportunities with a personal touch – the support of our high school guidance teams, face-to-face time with their teachers, and technical support and assistance. ASD Virtual Academy students residing in the Allentown School District in grades 9-12 may enroll in these online program options and receive high-quality online courses through three cyber or virtual educational experiences: · Full-Time Virtual High School Program · Credit Recovery Program · Virtual Supplemental Courses This is an exciting for the Allentown School District. It allows the district to compete with cyber schools, and keep both students and student financial allotments within the district. Hopefully, even the obstructionists will voted against the budget last night can appreciate this development.

The Last Fight

When Abe Simon stepped into the ring at Madison Square Garden on March 27, 1942, it would be his last fight. He had been recently married, and promised his wife that he would stop fighting. One year earlier he had fought Joe Louis the first time, and endured a tremendous beating for thirteen rounds. Fighting since 1935, ranked 6th by Ring Magazine, a shot at the title was something a fighter cannot pass up. Many fight historians consider Louis the hardest hitting heavyweight of all time. Because of the publicity Simon gained from these Louis fights, he was offered a lucrative cross country boxing tour, which he declined. It was also Louis's last title defense for four years, until fighting Billy Conn in June of 1946. After the Simon fight he joined the U.S. Army, where he would fight 96 exhibition bouts at bases throughout the country. Shown above, Simon got knocked out in the sixth round.

reprinted from December 2012

March 27, 1942

Guest Post by Mike Casey
Before 18,220 fans at Madison Square Garden on March 27, 1942, big Abe Simon stepped into the ring for the final fight of his career. Scaling 255 1/4lbs, he was a massive, bear of a man who had once used his considerable size and muscle on the gridiron. Abe outweighed Joe Louis by nearly 48 pounds, but already knew the dangers of duelling with the Brown Bomber. Just a year before at the Olympia Stadium in Detroit, Joe had decked Simon four times and stopped him in thirteen rounds.Coming back for seconds was never a good idea against the prime Louis. But Abe had heart, pluck and a big punch and everyone knew that anything could happen in heavyweight boxing. Simon had knocked out Jersey Joe Walcott in six rounds, beaten Roscoe Toles and drawn with Turkey Thompson. Abe had also waged a thrilling battle of the giants with Buddy Baer, in which he had beaten Buddy severely in the opening round before being stopped in the third.......Louis finished the fight quickly in the sixth round, sending Abe down and out with a final left-right blast. Perhaps Joe had been riled after first snapping Simon to attention with a quick-fire combination in the second round. Big Abe had laughed at him....
copy courtesy of Mike Casey Archives
photograph(added by molovinsky): Abe Simon in corner after fight, with manager Jimmy Johnston

reprinted from December 2012

Heavyweight Championship of the World

On March 21, 1941, my mother's cousin Abe Simon, son a of Jewish egg and butter salesman, fought Joe Louis for the title in Detroit. Lasting 13 rounds, he earned another title shot against the Brown Bomber a year later in Madison Square Garden. After retiring he acted in several movies, including On The Waterfront and Requiem For A Heavyweight.


Administrator's note: I'm reprinting these photo's and captions in a much tighter time frame then originally posted, to give the viewers more of a feel of the Louis era.

reprinted from December 2012

Arena Food Vendor Headlines Paper

A picture of french fries and an article about the chosen food vendor for the arena is the headline today in The Morning Call. The latest arena promotion was again written by Matt Kraus. Actually, there are two seasoned reporters writing these puff pieces, Scott Kraus and Matt Assad. Since the editors of the paper have allowed them to combine their work load, I have decided to combine their names. This way they can better share the fame, or shame, depending on your point of view. In the entire feature story there was one relevant observation, in the last sentence of the article. Albert Abdouche, owner of the Americus property, observed that the arena wants to capture as many of the food dollars as possible, spend on an evening in Allentown by their fans. No surprise there.

The Weigh-In

                                            Madison Square Garden, March 27, 1942
When they met for the first time the previous March, Abe Simon battled Joe Louis for 13 rounds. The Detroit crowd went wild that the Jewish giant from New York could absorb Louis's punches. Louis had the power of Mike Tyson and the finesse of Muhammad Ali. When it was revealed that Simon had fought with a broken hand, the Madison Garden rematch became a big ticket. Louis knocked Simon out in the sixth round. It would be Simon's last fight.
click on photo to enlarge

reprinted from December 2012

Environmental Tokenism Depreciated Bethlehem

Once upon a time the fortunes of Bethlehem were tied to the Steel, now they reside on it's historical appeal. The current flavor of the month with the green crowd is demolishing dams. Regular readers of this blog know how would be governor Pawlowski allowed the Wildlands Conservancy to destroy the Parkway's Robin Hood Dam, and deposit it's rubble around the bridge piers. The dam on the Monocacy creek suffered the same fate last year. While the dam destruction cost Allentown park goers both beauty and sound, Bethlehem lost it most valuable commodity, history. The top photo shows the original Broad Street Bridge, before it was replaced with the current one,  about 100 years ago. The bottom photo shows the same vista, but minus the historic dam. In addition to the lost history, the loss of visual impact is staggering. Bethlehem has suffered a permanent loss from former boy mayor Callahan's poor decision. Three cheers for Easton's Mayor Panto, who told the Wildlands Conservancy to look elsewhere with their dam removal and grant seeking agenda.

the top photo appeared in a Karen Samuels Facebook page. the bottom photo by John Marquette is from the same page. neither one intended the photos as used here.