This is what we're up against in Central PA when it comes to HCR.

[Altoid_Cyclist]

The candlelight vigil scheduled for last night in Altoona PA was cancelled due to death threats and monetary threats.
This is truly stomach turning hatred. The worst part is that I've known Greg Morris almost my entire life AND he's run for public office as a Democrat.
Read more and be glad that you don't live here.

http://www.altoonamirror.com/page/content.detail/id/522184.html?nav=742

[Duke Newcombe]

1. ALMOST enough to make me believe in Eugenics for stupid people.

[Altoid_Cyclist]

3. Speaking of stupid people, we have more than our quota around here.

I would be very happy to share them with other parts of the country. Maybe you can educate them better than the local school districts have done. I should mention that we also have an extremely active racist base in this area. Even some of the Democrats here refused to vote for Pres. Obama because of.... you guessed it. He doesn't look like us so he just has to be evil. I should mention that there does seem to be quite a lot of inbreeding taking place so that explains some of it.

[Critters2]

2. What is a "monetary threat"? nt

[Altoid_Cyclist]

5. Crackerbarrel officials asked him to move the vigil somewhere else.

Greg owns so many businesses around here that I think that he was afraid he'd lose too much money if he allowed the vigil to take place on his property.

[thecrow]

4. Unbelievable

This is terrible behavior.
Truth must really scare them.

[struggle4progress]

6. There must be somebody in Altoona sympathetic to such events. The town must have

been a hopping union center fifty or sixty years ago when the rail yards were more important; there was a nice old Central Labor Council building there when I passed through; surely some folk with those tendencies can still be found. And Penn State has a small but attractive campus: isn't there a friendly prof or student organization that could reserve campus space? Or how about a city park?

[Altoid_Cyclist]

7. There are some more progressive people that might be willing to help.

Right now, I'm not sure what the plans are but I'll try to find out.
The unions have been reduced because of all of the manufacturing jobs lost here. We did have a huge SKF plant that is now being turned into another shopping center. Almost all of the factories here have closed and been replaced by fast food joints and retail locations. The city decided long ago that the way to make this area prosperous was to switch everything from manufacturing to industries that provide low wage, non-union, part time and seasonal jobs. A handful of people (including Greg Morris) own most of the businesses in the area and have become very wealthy while most people seeking real jobs have left the area. The Norfolk Southern shops are hanging in there, but they're one of the few leftovers from the manufacturing past of this town. It's funny that you mentioned the union hall and Penn State Altoona (which by the way is expanding so fast that they are buying up a lot of the old downtown properties because they've run out of room to expand) since I live a few blocks from both. You're right, the campus or a park might be a better location but I'm afraid that the trouble the other night will make it even harder to obtain the permits. I should mention that the Reptilians have a 2 to 1 advantage in this county but we'll do our best to be heard.
I don't know if they'll print it, but I did send a LTTE this morning. I might post it later if I get a chance.

[struggle4progress]

8. Yeah, any place that would elect Bud Schuster is nutso conservative. And when he stepped

down, of course, you got his son, Bud Lite

I knew some of the health care workers union folk in PA back in the 1199P days; many of those folk supported progressive causes. Of course, John Black is dead now, and IIRC 1199P went with SEIU. But you are concerned with health care issues, and if you can link up the union folk, you'll probably find a crowd that knows how to organize and has real local political savvy

Altoona Regional Health System Nurses Win First Contract!
http://www.seiu1199p.org/hospitals/Altoona_Regional_Health_System_Nurses_Win_First_Contract_.aspx