Tag Archives: Pennsylvania

West Penn Track Club: Good People

Stop Sucking

[stopsnitching.jpg] This must be one the stupidest, most asinine things I have ever encountered.

"PITTSBURGH — It was not the first time prosecutor Lisa Pellegrini had been enraged by the sight of the T-shirt with the traffic-sign message: STOP SNITCHING. But this guy was about to wear one into court, with matching baseball cap."

"Worse, he was a witness — her witness — and the intended victim in an attempted murder case that had brought him, her and the defendants to court that day last fall."

"This was Rayco 'War' Saunders — ex-con, pro boxer and walking billboard for a street movement that has sparked a coast-to-coast beef involving everyone from professors to rappers."

"Pellegrini, thinking 'witness intimidation,' told Saunders to lose the hat and reverse the shirt. Saunders, crying "First Amendment," refused. He left the courthouse, shirt in place. Case dismissed. 'In almost every one of my homicides, this happens: 'I don't know nothin' about nothin', ' the prosecutor says. 'There is that attitude, 'Don't be a snitch.' And it's condoned by the community.'"

"Omerta, the Mafia's blood oath of silence, has been broken by turncoat after turncoat. But the call to stop snitching — on other folks in the 'hood — is getting louder."

"Is it an attempt by drug dealers and gangsters to intimidate witnesses?"

"Is it a legitimate protest against law enforcers' over-reliance on self-serving criminal informers?"

"Or is it bigger than that?"

It's freakin' retarded is what it is. We're not talking about hiding innocent people from a police state. We're talking about covering up for street thugs and hoodlums – drug dealers, murderers, and the like.

Continue reading →

Pittsburgh TV News Rant

6 Replies

Pittsburgh TV news reporting sucks.

Why are Pittsburghers are so bloody obsessed with weather? Between that and sports there’s barely any real news reported. I really don’t give a flying fig about Super Mega Kickass Vibromatic Storm Chaser 6000 and how it can slice and dice and make julean fries. Just give me a simple 5-day forecast and a little detail about tomorrow and shut the hell up!

As for sports, I enjoyed watching the Steelers beat the Seahags in the Superbowl and all, but can the celebration please stop? Then there’s the plight of the Penguins. I’m getting really sick of all the speculation. Leave the issue alone until something newsworthy happens, like the team moving to another city or Pittsburgh spending millions of dollars it doesn’t have on a new arena. Lastly, if I have to hear the sob story of Pitt’s early loss in the NCAA tournament one more time, I might go postal. They lost. Get over it and move on.

After you’ve suffered through a half hour of weather and sports, what kind of news gets reported? We hear about 5 minutes of sound bites about important world events (Iraq war, genocide in Sudan, etc.) and the remainder is local interest crap. Reporting local news is fine in moderation, but one can only watch footage of a broken down PAT bus for so long.

I shouldn’t have to watch PBS (Zzzzz) or be lucky enough to get BBC America in order to get decent national and international news. Before you say it, I get neither CNN nor Fox News, nor do I care to. If I want biased news, I’ll stick to reading blogs.

*grumble*

Upcoming Newman Club Events

2 Replies

Hello everyone!

Hope everyone enjoyed their spring break. To keep you from getting bored so soon, the Newman Club has several up-coming activities which are definitely worth checking out:

~As this Friday is St. Patrick’s Day, our usual dinner and a movie will be Irish-themed. Steve Kesslar will be cooking us some delicious “potato stew” (meatless since it’s Lent), and if we’re lucky, perhaps some Irish soda bread as well. The movie this week will be a classic, The Quiet Man starring John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara. Dinner’s served at 6:30, movie starts rolling at 7:00. And wear your Irish gear (green t-shirt, shamrock stickers, Kiss Me I’m Irish pins, or whatever else you can scrounge up) if you want to be extra-festive. Which really, you should. J

~This Sunday, there’s Q+A and ice cream at 7:00 as usual. Joining us this week will be the Capuchin Sisters of Nazareth from Tunkhannock, PA.

~The sisters will also be hosting a special Holy Hour at the Newman Center on Wednesday, March 22 at 7:20 pm. This will include prayer, song, and a reflection on the Eucharist and Healing. Also, before the Holy Hour, we welcome students to a pasta dinner (to start at 6:00). If you plan to attend the dinner, please RSVP at the NC by March 21^st. To learn more about the Capuchin Sisters of Nazareth, visit www.penitents.org/capuchinsisters.html.

~We have another retreat coming up soon! The weekend of March 24^th-26^th, Fr. Mike will take a group of students out to Rednal, our retreat house in Ligonier, PA. The theme this month is “God is Love”, where we’ll reflect on the mystery of love and look into the new encyclical from Pope Benedict XVI. Transportation is provided – we usually leave around 6:00 on Friday, and return by 1:00 on Sunday. Retreats are excellent times both to learn about the Faith, and to get to know people better (and have a great amount of fun doing so). So I encourage everyone to consider coming! There’s a sign-up sheet at the front desk of the Newman Center, or you can e-mail Fr. Mike (mjdarcy@pittsburghoratory.org) if you want to sign up. $20 donation recommended.

~Fridays during Lent, there will be Stations of the Cross at Heinz Chapel at 12:30pm, or the Newman Center at 4:30pm.

~A reminder about our Bible Study groups:

This semester, we’re discussing The Bible and the Mass. Groups are always glad to have new members!

Grad students: Tuesdays at 6:00. Contact Cecilia at cey4@pitt.edu

Undergrads (co-ed): Thursdays at 7:00. Contact Jason at jgg4@pitt.edu

Women undergrads: Thursdays at 8:00. Contact Niki at ncb10@pitt.edu

Have a wonderful week, and Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Christine Winschel

Pitt NC Secretary

Also, remember to check back occasionally on our website, as pictures get updated after most big events! http://www.pitt.edu/~sorc/oratory/index.html

Christopher West in Pittsburgh

Ales Rarus

A Rare Bird, A Strange Duck, One Funky Blog