PA in the WSJ

This is a list of articles regarding Pennsylvania in this week's Wall Street Journal. Chances are I missed something, but these are the articles that caught my eye.

It should be noted that I routinely do not read the editorials in the WSJ. So any discussions of the state, its elected officials, businesses, or citizens, in editorials will not be mentioned here.

Also, I couldn't find my usual highlighter and had to work with a new one. Somehow I'm certain this has led to me missing things that I had thought were marked.

This is the second or more week in a row that I didn't see a Mark Zandi quote; he is usually in at least once a week. Is he sick? Out of town? Should we be concerned?


PA Politicians

Rep. John Murtha does the honors this week. In “Weapons debate puts China in focus,” by August Cole (2/19) we find this:

”I’m trying to look beyond Iraq and Afghanistan. I’m trying to look at what is the threat down the road,” Pennsylvania Rep. John Murtha, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee’s Defense Subcommittee, told an audience at an industry conference last week.

Mr. Murtha said that he recently spoke with Mr. [Robert] Gates about the F-22 program and that his committee is negotiating with the Air Force about adding more of the jets in the supplemental budget.

In the politics in Pennsylvania category we find “White men hold key for Democrats,” Jonathan Kaufman (12/19), which says that in Pennsylvania working-class men make up 27% of the population.

Pennsylvania is mentioned again in “Clinton looks to regain support Obama eroded,” by Amy Chozick (2/22)

PA Businesses

The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center is the focus of “Auction-rate turmoil hits Pittsburgh Medical Center,” by Randall Smith (2/19), and “Auction-rate headaches,” by Randall Smith, Tom McGinty, and Liz Rappaport (2/21)

I started humming the Beverly Hillbillies theme while reading “As oil prices soar, prospectors return to Pennsylvania,” by Neil King, Jr., (2/19) on the commonwealth’s oil industry.

Amelia’s and Sharpshopper, two discount stores in Pennsylvania selling expired or slightly damaged foodstuffs, are highlighted in “One store’s old food is other’s bread and butter,” by David Kesmodel (2/22)

“How Hershey went sour,” by Julie Jargon, Matthew Karnitschnig, and Joann S. Lublin focuses on our favorite candy maker (2/23)

Other PA

“Grading neighborhood schools,” by Walter S. Mossberg (2/20) compares three websites that provide information on schools. Philadelphia or Pennsylvania are used as search examples in two of them. The sites are education.com, greatschoos.net, and schoolmatters.com.

An alarming legal maneuver, “civil recovery,” is allowed in Pennsylvania, among other states, as pointed out in “Big retail chains dun mere suspects in theft,” by Ann Zimmerman (2/20) A 2005 Philadelphia case is mentioned.

A number of suburban Philadelphia examples are used in “The brat race: in diapers and on a day-care wait list,” by Sue Shellenbarger (2/21).

The University of Pennsylvania is joining the Ivy League schools that are offering better financial aid packages, as noted in “Stanford joins its elite peers in boosting aid,” by Robert Tomsho (2/21).

Kathleen Hall Jamison of Penn is quoted in “Two debates may be Clinton’s last, best hope,” by June Kronholz and Elizabeth Holmes (2/12)