PA in the WSJ

Sen. Specter hogs the political spotlight in this week’s list of PA-related articles in the Wall Street Journal. However, Pennsylvania-based experts were present in abundance. We have lots of smart and pr-savvy people in the state.

PA Politicians

Arlen Specter is letting no grass grow under his feet after his recent announcement that he intends to run again in 2010. He met this month with deep pockets donors at Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump’s swanky golf resort. Read more in “Lawmakers Join Hunt to Bag Big Donors Early,” by Laurie P. Cohen on 3/28.

Arlen’s dustup with Attorney General Albert Gonzales is noted in “Gonzales’s Stance Suffers Another Blow,” by Evan Perez and Gary Fields (3/30)

PA Businesses

In “Lennar’s Outlook Adds to Housing Gloom” by Michael Corkery in 3/28, there is a note that Toll Brothers of Horsham has a low number, 1%, of buyers who used subprime mortgages.

More discussion of a possible Hersheys / Cadbury merger in “Cadbury Plan Attracts Partners,” by Julie Jargon, Deborah Ball, and Jason Singer, on 3/31.

The Vetri restaurant in Philadelphia is apparently difficult to get into. I’ve learned that Monday is the easiest night to get a table. For this and other tidbits see “The Ungettable Table,” by Katy McLaughlin and Sarah Nassauer (3/31)

Briefly noted: AmerisourceBergen of Chesterbrook, PA, and their proposed merger with Kindred Healthcare (3/27)

Not exactly a business, but we’ll put it in this category anyway, Philadelphia’s Please Touch Museum sold $60 million in bonds. This and other similar events are discussed in “Museums Learn to Love Debt,” by Sally Beatty (3/30)

The Phillies (baseball, yes?) are included in an article on the decreasing number of opening day tickets available to regular Joes in “Opening Day,” by Katherine Rosman (3/30)

Other PA

Penn State labor and womens’ studies professor Robert Drago is quote in a brief article on “Adjunct Jobs, Female Faculty and the Pursuit of Tenure,” on 3/29.

Warren Suss, a consultant in Jenkintown, PA, is quoted in “Is U.S. Government ‘Outsourcing Its Brain’?” by Bernard Wysocki, Jr. (3/30)

There is a photo of economist Alan S. Blinder speaking in Philadelphia in “Pain From Free Trade Spurs Second Thoughts,” on 3/28.

U Penn prof Aaron Beck, a found of cognitive behavior therapy, is quoted in “’CBT” Advances in Treatment of Some Mental Illnesses,” on 3/27.

Emily Farrell, a teacher at Strath Haven High School in Wallingford, PA, is quoted in “Teen Books Are Hot Sellers, But Formula Isn’t Simple,” by Jeffrey A. Trachtenberg (3/30)

Mention of Hazleton, Reading, and Harrisburg, as well as a quote from Penn State prof Leif Jensen in “Save out Cities,” by Julie Vitullo-Martin on 3/30.

John A. Addleman of Messiah College’s psychology department is quoted in “Growing Christian Shrinks,” by Cara Marcano (3/30)

Other Interesting Tidbits

Jeff D. Opdyke writes about a subject near and dear to my heart in “Parents Rebel Against School Fund-Raisers,” on 3/29. As state and federal funding decreases parents are expected to pick up more and more of the day to day costs of school activities. This is in addition to scouts and other types of fundraising activities that cross our doorstep. I would rather do a “buy out” than actually hawk wrapping paper, cookie dough, candles, and the like. You end up buying things you don’t want or need with only a percentage of the money actually going to the school or organization.

Austin, Texas is looking at a very intriguing plan to use people’s electric car batteries to store electric power in non-peak times and then tap into it during the day when those cars are sitting in parking garages. I’m not doing the idea justice. Read more in “In Quest for Cleaner Energy, Texas City Touts Plug-In Car,” by John J Fialka (3/26)

John Fund has a very interesting editorial, “Earmark Cover-Up,” on 3/26, discussing the political pressure on the Congressional Research Service to no longer provide in-depth information on congressional earmarks.