Wedding bells and newspapers, a match made in heaven

Something happened at the wedding of Nik Bucha and Amanda Culp that brought a smile to my face, and no I didn't catch the garter belt. Find out what happened right here!

Stall tactics won't work with property tax reform

If you were a betting person, where would you put the odds of property tax relief actually happening this year? I am a betting man, and I'm will to go out on a limb and say it will happen this year. There is more support for reform now than there has been in the past decade, so we need our elected officials to get it done this year. In this week's rant I talk about how we all try to get out of doing things, like taking out the trash. This is one issue we should not let our state legislators get away with not doing. That is, if they want to be our state legislators next year.

Advice to graduates; wear sunscreen...and vote

There's a lot of good advice floating around for seniors just getting ready to either make their way in the world or make their way into college. In this week's rant I dispense what I believe to be some very sound advice, with one specific admonition...vote!

What's the difference between a pension plan and a Ponzi scheme?

As I wrote in my column, don't answer. It's a trick question. In this week's rant I talk, half jokingly, about the differences between a Ponzi scheme and our taxpayer funded state pensions in PA. Personally, I think we're all being hoodwinked. What do you think?

Now's the time to bring the property tax reform heat in PA

With the primary in our rear view mirror, it's time to start demanding answers from those who want to be elected, and from those already in office. When and how will property tax reform take shape? That's it. Nothing else. Not if, when. In my latest rant I'm sounding the bell. It's not personal. It's business. Let's take care of it now.

What do you fret about?

When you stop to think about it, there are very few of life's major events that we actually have control over. In this week's rant I talk a little bit about my daughter's graduation and the primary election. Two events that I have little control over, so my advice is pretty solid. I tell myself and anyone who will listen...don't fret about it.

Column took a backseat to daughter's graduation

I missed writing my column last week. It would have been in today's print edition as well, but I had bigger fish to fry. My daughter graduated from the University of Georgia last week. I know I make part of my living putting words to work, but I really can't think of any nouns, verbs or adjectives good enough to express how proud I am of my daughter. Since words are failing me at this particular time, which is highly unusual for me, as most of you know, I thought I would just post this photo and let it speak for itself.

I have a couple of reasons for voting, how about you?

While I would normally be all on board the property tax reform train when it comes to pounding the drums to get everyone out to vote in the upcoming primary, there's just one little catch this year. There's only one district on the state level that has a competitive race, and that's only on the Republican side of a House race. In this week's rant I look at the upcoming primary, and mostly at the fact that we're not going to make one bit of difference with our votes this time around.

How well is the Affordable Care Act doing?

Honest opinions only. I mean, I was all for the concept. Everyone should have access to healthcare. Who wouldn't be? That's like saying you don't like kids. Who does that? OK, some people actually do say that. But I was ready, willing and able to give the Affordable Care Act the grade it deserved. And while the Obama administration is touting the 7-plus million people who signed up as achieving their original goal, there's a couple of key points that were left out. I take a look at the act in this week's rant. So, I'll ask again. How well do you think the Affordable Care Act is doing?

You reap what you sow

We've been talking about property tax reform for so long, another season is upon us. Planting season. In this week's rant, I talk about the idea of planting your garden while planting the property tax reform seed with your local legislator.

Unbolting from our 'normal' way of doing things

When you do things the same way for so long, they just become normal. Sometimes you don't even think about why you do something they way you do, it's just that you've always done it that way, so... In my latest rant I talk about an ongoing experiment at The Times Herald. We're unbolting our journalists from their 'normal' routines. We want them to think digital first in everything they do when it comes to reporting, editing and publishing. Last week, we ran a story on the front page of The Times Herald because, and only because, it was incredible popular online. My question is whether our print readers found it as interesting. If you happen to be one of those people who read print and digital. Let me know that you thought of the story about the vanity plates PennDOT refused to issue.

The Great Huskey Compromise of 2014

We've been pushing for property tax reform for two years, at least. Property tax reform has been an issue for more than two decades. The latest round of bills don't seem to have what it takes to get it done, so in my latest rant I've come up with a solution. It will take a couple of years to get it done, but in the end, it will be worth it. Let me know what you think.

Honesty, integrity and Voter ID

When you spend months ranting and raving about an injustice, shouldn't you make sure your own house is in order first? I was absolutely blown away when I saw a letter from the Montgomery County Democratic Committee inviting everyone to their nominating convention, because about two thirds of the way down the letter, it basically stated that members will be required to show ID if asked. Isn't this the same group that went ballistic when the Republican Party attempted to bring a little order to the voting process by asking for identification? Check out this week's rant for the rest of the story.

Putting a real face on property tax reform

I have been ranting about property tax reform for more than a year now. I would say now is the best time we've ever had to get it done, but I've been burned before. In my latest rant I try to put a real face on property taxes and what they're doing to our senior population.

I don't know which is more difficult, property tax reform or tiling your in-laws' house.

I've taken on a lot of big projects in my life, and in my latest rant I talk about the not-so-clear thinking I displayed in taking on the latest. But the real question here is whether it is a project worth taking on. You tell me.

Property tax reform from a different perspective

Since I've been beating the property tax drum for what seems like years now, I thought I would look at it from a different perspective...literally. I wrote this week's rant standing up!

Competition makes me want to push harder on property tax reform

Competition makes us better. No doubt about it. The hyper local news site, Patch, was sold last week. The sites are still up, but they're basically running canned copy through. I'm guessing they're holding them together for the new owner to decide what to do with them. Patch made us a little bit better because they beat us to the punch on more than one story. Nothing huge, just your run of the mill stories that most people don’t pay a whole lot of attention to, but as a former police reporter, I didn’t like getting beat on any story. Just for the record, I still don’t. When they first launched a few years ago they did their hiring right through our ranks. I believe every local Patch site was started with a journalist that was at the time working for our company, so it wasn’t your typical hyper local site started by someone who thought it would be cool to have their own news outlet. These were real, workaday journalists, some with more experience than others, but trained journalists nonetheless. And when I thought about that, the original “I’m glad they’re gone” feeling started fading away. Anytime colleagues, even former colleagues, are left without a beat to cover, it leaves a bit of an empty feeling. In this week's rant I talk a little bit about Patch, but the focus is on journalism. Hopefully, people will realize, someday soon, that local journalism is their voice, their eyes and ears on government.

Another 'Breakfastgate' brewing in Montco?

Who knew what when is always a pertinent question to ask, especially when a subpoena is involved. In this week's rant I look at the sale of Parkhouse, the Montgomery County geriatric center, and why a subpoena has been issued in connection with the agreement of sale. The whole mess, thus far, reeks of some kind of back door dealings, but we're not quite sure if it will rise to Breakfastgate status. We do know we'll keep digging until we find out exactly what is going on with the sale of the building, and perhaps just as important, the sale of the adjacent land.

What will your legacy be?

We have all have dreams of leaving behind a legacy that will carry on for years to come. In this week's rant I pose the question of whether what we believe we're leaving behind is actually what people will remember us for.

Change is good...when it comes to property tax reform

While we've been changing a few things in the print edition of The Times Herald, they haven't been as well received as, say, asking for change in the way we fund public education. In my latest rant I try to smooth things over with a fix for the puzzle players by making them a little bit larger, while using the opportunity to push for property tax reform yet again.