Hits & Misses
MISS: We haven’t even reached Labor Day, the traditional end of the summer season, and the pumpkin spice onslaught is well under way. We guess it was inevitable. It seemed like school had been out only a couple of weeks this spring when the back-to-school ads started running on TV. OK, it was probably early July, but still. Once the kiddos were back in school, the stores had to start selling us something, and what they’re selling us is Halloween and all things fall. A quick look at the offerings at one local supermarket found that Kellogg’s is giving us both Pumpkin Spice Frosted Mini-Wheats and Special K Pumpkin Spice Crunch. Jell-O has pumpkin spice instant pudding, there are pumpkin spice-flavored teas and coffees, and even pumpkin spice Philadelphia cream cheese. Blech! And, of course, the department stores are stocked and loaded with Halloween and fall merchandise of all kinds, and the Halloween “superstores” are cropping up. So, if you’re already tired of hearing about pumpkin spice and Halloween, you’d best turn off your TV sets for the next 10 weeks.
HIT: Casino gambling has been celebrated as a harmless diversion and condemned as pathway to rack and ruin, but one thing is quite clear – having a casino within Washington County has been a boon to the communities within its borders. The Observer-Reporter’s Barbara Miller outlined in last Sunday’s edition how money generated by the Meadows Racetrack & Casino since 2007 has boosted local infrastructure projects, economic development and nonprofit agencies. As Miller pointed out, the Southpointe II project in Cecil Township, the Starpointe Business Park in Hanover and Smith townships and the Alta Vista Business Park in Fallowfield Township have thrived in the decade since the slot machines began blinking and whirring at the Meadows. And because of this we have all been winners.
MISS: Despite the fact that nearly 75 percent of teachers oppose the idea of arming themselves in the classroom according to a Gallup survey taken last March, the U.S. Education Department is reportedly considering a plan to let schools use federal funds to buy guns for teachers. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and other officials believe the money could come from a program that schools in less affluent districts use for such things as improved technology and mental health services. Furthermore, The New York Times reported, this would undermine efforts by Congress to prohibit federal money from being used to purchase firearms for schools. Educators are outraged. Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said that “to even consider diverting resources used to support poor kids to flood schools with more guns is beyond the recklessness we believed she was willing to pursue.” Will DeVos and other Education Department officials be as assiduous in, say, providing funds for the professional development of teachers? Or helping them get classroom supplies? We’re not holding our breath.
HIT: It’s time to break out the seat cushions, ponchos and tassel caps bearing school colors; time to put aside cash for the 50-50; time to see neighbors for the first time in months. Friday night lights are back. From Rogersville to Tunkhannock, Turkeyfoot Valley to Bradford, high school football teams across the commonwealth are kicking off their seasons this weekend. The games are more than games in many stadiums – they are community events that include players playing, coaches coaching, adults cheering, neighbors reuniting and students walking around a lot. The kids in pads aren’t the only ones playing, either, as marching band members get 15 minutes of fame every week in the fall. And where is there a greater sense of community – especially on a Friday evening, at the end of a conventional work week. High school sports are not as pure as they used to be, not with the apparent rise of recruiting and stunning increase in transfer requests, but football at this level is football at its best.