St. Francis University is located in Cambria County, west central Pennsylvania.

In 1847, nearly fifteen years before the start of the Civil War, Pittsburgh Bishop Michael O'Connor invited six Franciscan friars from Ireland to establish a school and gave them the land for this purpose.

Soon after its humble beginnings, Saint Francis University was recognized by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and given the authority to grant educational degrees. Historically, the University ranks as one of the first Catholic Universities in the nation, the first Franciscan college in the country, and one of the first Catholic Universities to become co-educational in the United States.

http://www.saintfrancisuniversity.ed...

Yesterday, a mock convention was held at SFU. The results, over the hump.

This is a breaking story and kind of big news for the PA primary.

Centre County, squarely in the middle of Pennsylvania (and the "Alabama" region of Pennsylvania) is the home of Penn State University. It is a traditionally Republican, rural, and conservative county.

This developing story today, in the Centre Daily Times, says that all that is changing.

http://www.centredaily.com/...

The transition to a Democratic majority occurred Friday morning as staff members of the county’s elections and voter registration office keyboarded voter registration information from forms into the state’s data base.

The Democratic lead inched wider throughout the day until late afternoon numbers stood at 36,767 Democrats against 36,379 Republicans. A thousand or so forms remain to be processed. Registration office director Joyce McKinley said new registrations and re-registrations favor Democrats by about 95 to 1.

"These campaigns have motivated people," McKinley said. "They have motivated younger people."

Updated story: http://www.centredaily.com/...

Please use this thread to post your stories and pics about Obama's weekend so far.

Here is a good start:

Obama visits dairy center before State College rally

At about 12:30 p.m., a line of people waiting to get onto Old Main lawn to see Obama stretched about a mile, starting on Curtin Road and winding along Burrowes Road on its way to Old Main.

About an hour earlier, Obama led pool reporters on a tour of Penn State's dairy complex, off University Drive behind Beaver Stadium. That stop was just a drive down the road from where Obama and Sen. Robert Casey stayed overnight at the Penn State Conference Center Hotel.

http://www.centredaily.com/...

Here is a link to a discussion we had about his visit to Altoona last night:

http://www.dailykos.com/...

Live Blogging here:
http://www.pennlive.com/...

I never thought I'd do a "breaking" diary. But, this is too great to pass up the opportunity.

Moments ago, Altoona CBS affiliate WTAJ had a screen crawl during the tip-off of the NCAA nightcap game. The crawl announced that Obama had made a surprise visit to Altoona.

Obama was in Johnstown earlier today, and Altoona is in Blair County, along the route to State College, where a huge outdoor rally is scheduled tomorrow.

Why this surprise visit is especially sweet tonight over the bump....

Heck, Somebody's gotta do it.

I don't have a story for a diary. I just have the day off and want to see what our early birds are looking at here.

Please just pile on....

My own little snippet over breakfast...

I received a disturbing piece of mail from the Republican National Committee yesterday. On the front of the envelope, just above the address window, were the words "FINAL NOTICE."

"Oh my God," I thought. "The Republicans are giving me final notice." This is never a good sign.

Where had I gone wrong?

So, I opened up the envelope and found a single document with the heading: "FINAL 2008 MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL." Now, this got me to scratching my head. I just cannot recall being a member of the RNC in 2007, or 2006, or 2005, or any year all the way back to my first eligible year as a voter in the late 1970s. "Is my age begining to catch up with me?" I wondered. "Have I been a Republican all these years?"

The top of the document contained the standard tear-off-and-return contribution form, including lines for "2008 Sustaining Membership Dues" and "Additional Emergency Donation."

The body of the work dissected below the perforation....

I know this is a short diary.

However, I just saw a headline to an article on this magazine's web page that struck me a truly outrageous:

Obama's Rout Rejiggers the Race

Now, please: That CANNOT be an accident. In 2008, somebody DELIBERATELY put in a headline that contains a variation of a racial slur.

What? Do they think they are cute? Do they think they are smart? They PAY people to write this crap.

Again, sorry...I am just sick and tired of seeing this type of thing in what is supposed to be the "responsible" media.

http://www.time.com/...

Sunday morning update after a short "rejiggering"

You cannot make this stuff up.

Here we have the former Republican Governor of Pennsylvania, who is also a former Attorney General, defending an old school Democrat from western Pennsylvania.

Those following the issue of Republican prosecutorial abuse are gonna love this one.

http://www.post-gazette.com/...

WASHINGTON -- Former Attorney General Dick Thornburgh today engaged in a heated exchange with House GOP members over the federal prosecution of former Allegheny County Coroner Dr. Cyril H. Wecht, with one Florida Republican calling his suggestions of political motivation behind the case "pathetic."

"It's so far-fetched I'm almost embarrassed to be an attorney listening to it," said Rep. Ric Keller during a joint hearing of two House judiciary subcommittees.

snip>

Mr. Thornburgh, a former Pennsylvania governor and U.S. attorney in Western Pennsylvania, argued that many of the counts represent an overly broad use of federal power to criminalize inconsequential actions, such as the improper use of the coroner's fax machine for his private practice.

more....

As the site warns might happen, I have become addicted to www.anysoldier.com

For those that don't already know, the site allows us here at home to choose individual soldiers, airmen, marines, and sailors as recipients of care packages that we send. In turn, those individuals have made a commitment to share with their comrades.

I send CDs, but you can send anything.

The soldiers often include pictures and stories under their individual listings.

Below the fold, I am going to share a few stories that I found this morning.

Turns out that irony is not dead after all....

Remember how all the anti-UN wingnuts were so dang convinced that the entire oil-for-food scandal would expose the UN as Saddam-loving, anti-American turrists?

Well now, what have we here?

http://news.yahoo.com/...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Texas oilman David Chalmers and two companies he owns pleaded guilty on Friday to paying millions of dollars in secret kickbacks to Iraq in connection with the United Nations oil-for-food program.

Some choice bits after the gusher....

The right has been trying to make some hay the last few days over a report that Jack Murtha was at the top of the Congressional earmark list.

His hometown newspaper, the Johnstown Tribune Democrat, did a story on some of those earmarks today.

http://www.tribune-democrat.com/...

I thought it might be helpful to outline some of those for this community.

Take a look over the bump....

Not this one.

This one:

http://www.dailykos.com/...

The diarist is right: Too many people in America don't give a single damn thought to the debacle. It's a state of denial.

We have people over there putting their lives on the line every day, while folks at home ponder their next hairstyle.

Let somebody know you care.

BAGHDAD (AFP) - Eight more US troops died in Iraq on Saturday, mostly in roadside bombings in Baghdad, as the American military battled suspected Al-Qaeda insurgents in other parts of the country.

On Saturday, the military reported deaths of eight troops, including four in a single roadside bomb attack near their vehicle northwest of Baghdad during combat and in which their Iraqi interpreter was wounded.

http://news.yahoo.com/...

How many Friedman Units are there in a Last Throes?

http://news.yahoo.com/...

Army officer says Gitmo panels flawed

By BEN FOX, Associated Press Writer

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - An Army officer with a key role in the U.S. military hearings at Guantanamo Bay says they relied on vague and incomplete intelligence and were pressured to declare detainees "enemy combatants," often without any specific evidence.

I have nothing else to add except:

Why do these prosecuting officers hate America?

This day's breaking quagmire news....

http://news.yahoo.com/...

WASHINGTON - The co-chairs of the Iraq Study Group said Monday they were unsure whether the panel's goal of pulling combat troops out of Iraq by March 2008 remains valid.

Addressing a National Press Club luncheon, James Baker and Lee Hamilton said they believed the group's findings were still meaningful.

But the 2008 date "would, of course, be something different, in my view at least, because we were talking that date when we came with the report in December of 2006. This is now June of 2007," said Baker, secretary of state during the first Bush administration and Republican co-chairman of the group.

Hamilton, the panel's Democratic co-chairman and a former Indiana congressman, told a reporter he doesn't disagree that the goal might be outdated.

"But I'm not sure I want to retreat from that date," he said. "I would still push for that goal."

The most telling comment, over the hump...

This day's breaking story from the quagmire:

http://news.yahoo.com/...

MAHMOUDIYA, Iraq - An apparent suicide car bomber took aim at a U.S. convoy carrying demolition experts on Sunday, collapsing a major highway overpass south of Baghdad and trapping American soldiers in the rubble.

The vehicle detonated beside a support pillar, bringing down an Army checkpoint and a tent that had been on the collapsing span, dubbed "Checkpoint 20" by the U.S. military. The overpass, one of two crossing over Iraq's main north-south highway in the region, appeared to be closed to all but military traffic at the time.

more after the checkpoint....

http://news.yahoo.com/...

BAGHDAD - An apparent rocket attack Saturday at a U.S.-run detention facility in southern Iraq killed at least six detainees and wounded 50, the military said. No American casualties were reported.

The attack was launched against the internment facility at Camp Bucca, the military said in a brief statement. Lt. Col. Christopher Garver, a military spokesman in Baghdad, said the center appeared to have been hit by rockets.

It appears that our ability to protect the facilities that we operate over there is somewhat limited. At least we are giving the enemy some stationary targets. (/snark)

This story is just breaking. Maybe we will learn more about this.

Whatever, it's a quagmire.

http://news.yahoo.com/...

I can't find any mention of this from earlier today....

(By ANNE FLAHERTY, Associated Press Writer)

WASHINGTON - Lt. Gen. Douglas Lute, picked by President Bush as his White House war adviser, said Wednesday he had been skeptical of Bush's decision to send thousands more U.S. troops into Iraq.

In a written response to questions by the Senate Armed Services Committee, Lute confirmed news reports that he had voiced doubts during a White House-led policy review that led to Bush's Jan. 10 announcement that 21,500 more combat troops would go to Baghdad and Anbar province.

Why am I thinking that....that question never would have been asked of him if the thugs were still in the majority?

Updated by special request: Lute is scheduled to testify tomorrow. Should be interesting. No? And, No.