Mezzacappa Claims Otter Promised to "Thow" RTK Appeal

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Tricia Mezzacappa, the very same person who's accused me of kicking and poisoning her pet pig, is now making even more bizarre claims. In a pleading in Northampton County Court, she complains that the state Office of Open Records failed to "throw" an appeal in her favor. Of course, the Otter is involved.

Last time I checked, case-fixing is a crime. But Mezzacappa, in court pleadings, is fine with it so long as it's in her favor.

Here's how it went down, according to Mezzacappa. Larry Otter called her on the morning of April 4 to tell her that the Office of Open Records (OOR) would "very likely throw" a pending case in her favor. This is because he had a little chat (wink, wink) with a powerful state House member whose office just happens to oversee the OOR's budget. So that very afternoon, when an attorney with the state agency asked her for an extension to respond to her appeal, she magnanimously agreed.

But it didn't turn out that way. When the OOR came down with its decision, it denied her appeal.

I've asked this powerful House member, who I decline to identify, whether there is any truth to Mezzacappa's accusation. He didn't know what the Hell I am talking about, and has never even heard of Mezzacappa.

I've asked the state Office of Open Records whether they have any knowledge of this case-fixing scheme. I have not heard back from them and doubt I will. I'll bet they'd make me fill out a RTK request. They're funny that way.

Finally, I asked Larry Otter to fill me in on the case-fixing, and received a reply as bizarre as the allegations:

"Dear Mr. O'Hare

"I think you will find that the allegations are unfounded. Any conversation I may or may not have had with the [redacted] dealt with more interesting matters which are beyond your comprehension and are none of your business. I would also appreciate you keeping away from my Harrisburg clients.

"SINCE YOU ARE DISBARRED, I guess you are not an attorney of record in this RTK matter. As usual, you seem to take a perverse interest in all affairs Mezzacappa after she dumped you. I need not go into those sordid details here

"I also suppose you are still smarting from the Gracedale referendum and Mr. Angle's defeat at the polls last year. YOU ARE AT YOUR USUAL TROUBLE MAKING BEST WITH THIS UNFOUNDED CHARGE.

"By the way, are you afraid you might be on the receving [sic] end of a subpoena in a new matter? Questioning you under oath will be an adventure with the paper and blog trail of lies you leave behind.

"In the meantime, please go directly to HELL where you belong you creepy loser."

LAWRENCE M. OTTER
ATTORNEY AT LAW

I have one word for Larry Otter - valium. I have two words for Tricia Mezzacappa - Fifth Amendment. She's either outright lying or implicating herself, along with Otter, in an aborted case-fixing scheme that apparently back-fired.

Source: West Easton v. Mezzacappa, 2012-C-7973, Answer of Tricia Mezzacappa, Paragraph 21, filed 9/17/12.

Black Friday Strike at Walmart?

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A group calling itself Lehigh Valley Strike is organizing a strike at Walmart on Black Friday. The site urges local Walmart employees,

"Walk out or call in sick on Black Friday -- you won't be alone!

"Send a message: every customer not rung up, every shelf left unstocked, every inconvenience to upper management is a direct hit at the Waltons' pocketbook. That'll teach them to not pay poverty wages!"

More Naughty Emails

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Nothing like a good old-fashioned sex scandal. Everybody's in hot water. General Petraeus was certainly "All In" ... and out. And in and out. Paula Broadwell was definitely embedded. Now comes word that the FBI agent who originally investigated this matter pulled a Weiner and began sending shirtless pictures of himself to raven-haired Jill Kelley. Her sole offense, like that of many Lebanese women here in the Lehigh Valley, is that she is simply gorgeous.

I'm pretty sure I dated her. And Paula Broadwell. General Petraeus, too. And I've been getting shirtless emails from Ron Angle.

 

88% of Deely's Money Comes Wrapped in a Union Label

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Deely at Labor Day Parade in Bethlehem

State House candidate Kevin Deely, an Easton High School teacher and union activist, clearly derailed at the DeSales debate. After that, I wrote him off as a serious candidate. He is seriously uninformed on most state issues, and that became apparent very quickly. But I forgot that few people in the Lehigh Valley watch televised debates. Fewer still read the blogs. So quite a few Democrats in the 131st District, who had already decided to vote for Obama, voted straight party. As a result, incumbent Justin Simmons is hanging by a one-vote lead in Lehigh County, although he's still up by 430 votes in Northampton County.

In addition to the lever pullers, Deely's campaign was heavily funded by the unions. 88% of his $130,000 warchest is wearing that union label. His biggest union contributor is PSEA. After all, he was President of the teachers' union in Easton, where he's known for rejecting federal funding when tied to teacher performance. He also organized a rally when school administrators balked at an average 12.57% average raise for teachers in the height of the Great Recession.

That union label is apparent among his individual contributors, too. They include union activist James Schlener, who lost his job as a Bethlehem firefighter after being picked up for DUI while supposedly on sick leave. Schlener and other contributing union activists, like Jim Gregory and former LV Labor Council President John Werkheiser, live outside the 131st legislative district.

Simmons raised about the same amount of money as Deely. His largest contributor, by far, is $30,000 from the House Republican Campaign Committee.

But Deely does not list the $98,000 that state Democrats paid for TV ads. Maybe he forgot.

The Guy I Cut Off in the Voting Line

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A local nurse, who also maintains a blog to hone her writing skills, tells this heartwarming story from election night.

The day of voting, I went after a long day in class/work/orientation. I stood in line like many across the country did that day, and in front of me was an elderly gentleman. I noticed this man was on supplemental oxygen and was alone. He managed to either drive or get dropped off, but regardless made the effort to participate in the election. He then walked all the way into the polling center, and waited in line like the rest of us. What I was pleased to see was that other people in line (this was all happening ahead of me- the gentleman had gotten there before me), but the other people in line in front of him, all let him go before them. They also went and got a chair for him to sit in not only while he waited but during the process of actually casting his vote. Other people helped him carry his oxygen machine. The poll director helped him back down the stairs and to his car.

I'm pretty sure this is the guy I beat to the line by kicking his oxygen tank.

Roosevelt's Health Declines

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When Republicans ask me about Jewish voting trends, I usually reply that the Jews don't know that Roosevelt died, and that he didn't particularly like them anyway. They have been genetically programmed for the Democratic Party since their great-great bubas thought Roosevelt was helping them. Jewish support for Obama slipped from 78% in 2008, to 69% on Tuesday. Although that is a significant move of the needle, considering how important Israel is to the Jewish psyche, and how little affinity Obama has for that nation, genetics still prevailed.

Pawlowski's Freakout

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Although President Obama won handily in Allentown, there are a few polling places where Republican and conservative candidates are in play. One of those bastions is the 17th Ward, 3th District, conducted at Sons Of Israel Synagogue. Although one of highest turnout polling places in Allentown, Obama won by less than 30 votes. Voters arriving there witnessed an unusual sight, the mayor of Allentown trying to disenfranchise their right to petition. Pawlowski told the press that he was concerned that the water lease opponents were being deceptive about his proposal.

"We have gotten reports that circulators are telling people that the city will be selling the plants," Pawlowski said in a statement. "We have spent nearly four months educating people about a proposed lease/concession. We can't allow a distortion of the facts. We are seeking to make sure that individuals are getting the correct information."

I have no doubt that the petition circulators were following the letter of the law. They are well aware of the administration's scrutiny and actions against their effort. In regard to distortion, Pawlowski should tell the voters that the lease will not expire until their grandchildren need a nursing home.