It is always nice to get a little opinion-love from the fine folks down at the PG's editorial board.  They did not fail me in detecting the wafting odor of business as usual hanging over the City-County Building like the mill smell that has so deeply permeated my father's pores its become part of his essence.  And its just as corrosive.

As Post-Gazette reporters Rich Lord and Ann Belser discovered, the City-County Building, which has long been officially smoke-free, is a place where smoking bans are subjects of nods and winks and where the happy band of surreptitious smokers also includes some in top offices. Allegheny County police have no plans to enforce the ban on Grant Street, and so diehard smokers will continue to grasp their cigarettes like John Perzel hanging on to his chair.

Top offices would include the City Council President.  I think Barbara Harris' dismissive attitude is condescending and arrogant, but I don't expect much from her but bluster.  Doug Shields, on the other hand, is supposed to be one of the good guys.  So why does he not care if his nasty little habit ferments malignant tumors in the lungs of his associates and constituents?  I don't want cancer, Doug.  I also don't want to breathe in your disgusting second-hand smoke or deal with its smell lingering in my clothing and hair.  And I don't want the President of City Council to laughingly tell a reporter that he plans to break the law.  Its embarrassing and pathetic. 

The city employees that I know have told this sort of crap goes on all over the place --- any why the heck not?  If Doug Shields can smoke in his office, why can't the minions who toil away in the backoffices? 

I guess this just yet another way for Pittsburgh residents to clean up City Hall.  Perhaps we take comfort that our Mayor isn't old enough to buy cigarettes ...

What is it about smoking that still seems cool to people in this day and age?

In a classic example of the good old boy (and girl) mentality that keeps dragging us to the backwaters, the Post-Gazette ran a little article about illicit smoking in the City-County Building.  They refer to it as "surreptitious" but that's just fancy talk for sneaky.  

Apparently, our elected officials are already breaking the rules on smoking INSIDE the building.  Wink, wink, nudge, nudge ... all the kids are doing it giggles Student Body President Doug Shields.

"We're not allowed to smoke in the building, though I've been known to -- eh, heh heh -- in a closed room," said City Council President Doug Shields, an on-again, off-again smoker.

Is it just me or is Shields trying to sound ...cool?  First, "eh, heh, heh" is just an incredibly creepy and disturbing quote for a grown man in an elected position of power and authority. Second, its nice that Shields has such respect for the health and welfare of all his employees, colleagues and the residents of Pittsburgh (and the county) that he would smoke in a closed room.  Because we all know how effective that closed door is at preventing cancer.  Finally, it sort of gives support to the claim that Shields is firmly wedged up the ass of the powers that be if he doesn't have the gonads to set a good example on SMOKING.  What kind of leadership is that?  A "fuck you, I'm hanging with the cool guys like Luke" type. 

Our newest elected Councilwoman Darlene Harris' has solved the problem by spending tax payer dollars to purchase a smoke eating machine, the Trion Eliminator Series SE 800E.   Its to keep the office from being so stuffy.  Harris rationalizes that a long day in City Hall justifies breaking the rules b/c she's a hard working gal ...

Does she smoke in the office? "If I'm here until 10:30 at night, yeah, I'll have one," she said.

That's the kind of superior, self-satisfied Chesire Cat mentality you folks in our neighboring Northside communities have saddled yourselves with for the next term.  Good luck with that. 

Here's the best part --- Harris justifies the purchase b/c she took advantage of the county contract that got a better deal.  The same county that passed the smoking ordinance paved the way for Harris to say "fuck you" to county residents in the City-County building.  That's delicious irony. 

County Council President Rich Fitzgerald does a nice job of passing the butt, er buck, on enforcement.

"I'm sure we're going to get all kinds of reports about people smoking," said County Council President Rich Fitzgerald. "It's not up to County Council to arrest people. It's up to people to follow the law."

Does that include elected people who get paid by tax dollars?  Should they follow the law  Rich?  Will the PG article prompt you and Doug to call your members (and yourselves) to task on this bad behavior?  Or will you continue to wallow in the delusion that shirking the law somehow adds to your allure? 

Has the ascension of the boy who would be mayor dragged the entire city back to high school?  Or has it merely brought to light that we've been there all along?

Its a great time to be a North Shore dyke.  Our most high-profile neighbhors are harboring a stupid homophobe in their midst and feel no compunction about it.  Those same neighbors (The Rooneys in case you missed it) are concerned about the selection of the North Shore as home of Pittsburgh's newest folly, the C-A-S-I-N-O. 

Just what I am looking forward to ... even more drunken fools driving unfamiliar streets and spewing their suburban venom all over my neighbhorhood.  More mighty suburban white folks on the North Shore looking for drugs who now have yet another stupid excuse to offer up as to why they aren't polluting their own backwater with drug traffic -- trying to find the casino dude.  More big haired yinzerettes drawn by the classy lighting.  More free booze for everyone!  More reasons for the cops to stay out of my street and down somewhere protecting the mighty whites. 

What won't change will be the afterschool programs, summer youth programs, or anything else actually relevant to the quality of life on the North Side. 

They should have built it at Station Square right next to Philthy McNastys.  Not in my backyard.

The City Paper's DiPerna calls out the Rooney family on Joey Porter:

As far as the Steelers go, the Rooney family's non-response is disappointing. They're supposed to be the good guys, but they appear not to worry about what the gay and lesbian population of Steeler Nation thinks. They didn't have to fine Porter: Simply making a public statement decrying his statements would have been enough.

Too bad the media won't let it go.