My Thoughts

I wanted to make this a once-a-month column.  It looks more like it will be as I think of things to write about or have topics I want to get out there that I feel strongly about.

In the past 2 days on Facebook I read a bit about how Port lost the Christmas spirit we once had.  The lights were one thing mentioned.  Another thing I realized was how it has been years since Santa sat on the square and talked to the kids in that little house.  How about Toys For Tots?  I believe that is also a thing of the past.  What a shame.  It seemed to be a successful event.  I'm by no means downing those that took control of it for over a decade.  I know them and they are very community oriented.  It's just a shame more isn't done until we lose something and then everyone says something about this or that.

(I want this to be an interactive column.  I encourage input, and will not mention names of those that e-mail and comment on a topic.  Ideas may be shared, but names will not be made public.)

I've seen recent posts on social media of pictures of the past around town.  What a place to grow up in huh?  I am lucky to remember some of what is posted...but saddened to see some of what once was before my time.

As I write this "Small Business Saturday" is being celebrated in many places.  What can Port do to take part in this?  I don't know if any local business is holding longer hours as part of this event.

Remember when businesses in town stayed open until 7:00pm or so on Friday and or Saturdays during the holidays?  Does that still take place?

To shop local and help out your neighbor, friend or family, do you shop local and ask store owners to order what you can not find?  Try it some time.  I, although it has been awhile, have done this.  Surprisingly, they are very accommodating in most cases.  Try it next time you shop local and are unable to find something.  Last time I asked, it was something simple - laundry soap.  Within a couple weeks they had what I was leaving town to purchase.  All I did was ask.  Granted it wasn't a Mom and Pop store like it could have been, but it was very much LOCAL.  Someone I know waited on me.  And it wasn't at "that big box store" everyone talks about.  And yes, had I been able to purchase the detergent at a Mom and Pop, I definitely would have.

Those are My Thoughts.  What are Your's?  E-mail us.

Gator Girls Varsity Basketball Schedule

1/2	Otto-Eldred	Home
1/6	Sheffield	Home
1/8	Coudersport	Away
1/10	Northern Potter	Home
1/14	Oswayo Valley	Away
1/16	Cameron County	Home
1/20	Austin	Away
1/22	Smethport	Away
1/24	Galeton	Home
1/28	Austin	Away
2/3	Coudersport	Home
2/5	Northern Potter	Away
2/7	Oswayo Valley	Home
2/11	Cameron County	Away
2/13	Austin	Home

Gator Boys Varsity Basketball Schedule

1/2	Otto-Eldred	Away
1/7	Coudersport	Home
1/9	Northern Potter	Away
1/13	Oswayo Valley	Home
1/15	Cameron County	Away
1/17	Austin	Home
1/21	Smethport	Home
1/23	Galeton	Away
1/27	Otto-Eldred	Home
1/31	Coudersport	Away
2/3	Kane	Away
2/4	Northern Potter	Home
2/6	Oswayo Valley	Away
2/10	Cameron County	Home
2/12	Austin	Away

To Fill A Backpack 12 Days of Christmas

You are running out of time to get your tickets for the To Fill A Backpack’s annual 12 Days of Christmas raffle.  Once again we have a nice variety of prizes for the raffle that were donated by local people, businesses and the Backpack program.  Tickets are $1.00 each and are available in almost every local town.  The first ticket will be drawn on December 1^st, another ticket being drawn daily with the last ticket to be drawn on December 12^th.  If you are interested in purchasing tickets please contact us as soon as possible so that we can put you in contact with one of our sellers.  You can also mail your payment to To Fill A Backpack – Attn: Raffle – 81 Burleson Avenue – Roulette, PA  16746.  You can reach us by calling (814) 544-2612 and leave a message if no one answers.

Lady Gator Returning Letterwinners

Returning letterwinners for the 2013 - 2014 Lady Gator basketball season are pictured (front row, left to right) Somer Buchsenschutz, Shania Jones, Krista Miller; (back row) Lynae Delacour, McKenna Johnson, Brooke Roys and Becca Lathrop.  Head coach for the Lady Gators is Kristina Francis.  Pam Fischer Photo

If You Ask Me / By Martha Knight

We remember where we were when JFK was shot. Well, those of us who are 55 or  older probably do. What we remember the most clearly about those cataclysmic days varies from one person to another.

What was it for you? I remember Cronkite in shirtsleeves, his glasses off, his voice breaking as he struggled for that professional composure so steady he was called “Walter Concrete.” His shock and grief were palpable, and seemed to demonstrate that this news was very bad indeed.

In the days that followed his was among the voices we heard as all the networks devoted non-stop coverage to that one general topic, the assassination of our President, with the other related topics.

There was the body lying in state in the Rotunda, and there were the widow and the children, the farewells, the casket being carried down the steps, the riderless horse, the caisson, the muffled drums. And the salute by John-john (he was saluting the flag, as his father had taught him)—probably the most poignant image for millions of us.

Throughout that long, sorrowful procession, three classical funeral dirges were played, in rotation, or as we say now, a loop. There was “Asa’s Death,” from Grieg’s “Peer Gynt Suite”; there was Chopin’s “Funeral March,” equally familiar; and there was “Marcia Funebre” from the A-flat Major Beethoven Sonata, Opus 26, adapted for band. The third was the one Cronkite did not recognize or announce correctly. That detail stuck in my mind. Now when I play that movement, I always hear the band playing it to accompany that sorrowing march toward Arlington.

It is clear now that there has not been closure. At least not to the point that we who remember “then” are convinced we know all we would like to know about the event. So much has never quite made sense.

Three assassinations  have left us more security conscious than before. President Kennedy late in 1963, then five years later, Martin Luther King, followed by Senator Robert Kennedy just weeks later.

It had been a long time since Louisiana Senator Huey Long, “The Kingfish,” had been assassinated in the state capitol—since 1935, in fact. And there are still unknowns about that.

•    •    •

Rumor has it that the long awaited response to Liberty Township’s application for a PennWorks grant is negative. As I write, there has been no official notice to that effect.

It would have been a boon to the township, and to Port Allegany too, for it was not only a “matching grant” but a triple-matching grant. That is, instead of matching the local funds dollar for dollar, the Department of Economic and Community Development would have matched local funds $3 for $1. Grants like that are very scarce indeed.

Last time I applied for funding like that, it was in Allegany County, N.Y., and it was for money to open a sheltered workshop for post-school handicapped persons. First-year costs would be $40,000, of which the county would put up $10,000, to call forth $30,000 in state funds. (The local funds were supplied by the Allegany County Chapter of the Association for Retarded Citizens.) TREE Workshop was the forerunner of Piecework Industries and other programs of Allegany Arc, which now has an annual budget of many millions.

Here, recently, a Keystone grant was earnestly desired to help fund the library building project. It would have been a “straight match.”

The borough has utilized grant funds in its sewer line replacement efforts—nice to have, but not triple matches.

Both the township and the borough would have benefitted from this PennWorks grant, if it had been forthcoming. The borough had collaborated in the application, and would have received some funding if the application had been successful. The borough’s funding would have gone toward its next sewer replacement project.

No grant money, no project. Or so some people seem to think, based on the sighs of relief I seem to be hearing. But I think there may be sighs of longing before so very long., and  murmurs: “If only we had received that nice grant that would have paid for three-quarters of this project!”

It is true that Liberty Township would have borrowed the local share of the cost of the project, and plans were predicated on the success of the grant application. If the grant does not come through, the township is not committed to carry out the project.

But it is not true that the project, or one like it, and probably others with similar purpose, will not be undertaken at all. It is only a matter of time before the Department of Environmental Protection clamps down. Sanitation will continue to be a need, and, increasingly, a requirement. Safe water will be a continuing necessity, and one that cannot be satisfied entirely on the basis of existing wells and springs.

Some existing sewer customers in Liberty Township were alarmed by plans to extend lines to an additional portion of the township. Local amortization costs would be spread throughout the whole, enlarged service area, with all users paying the same rate and that rate probably rising.

Once the project’s local cost had been paid off, and debt service no longer was a component of sewer costs, rates would go down. The fixed operational costs would be spread among more users, and might be lower than before the project had been undertaken.

Failure to win approval of the PennWorks grant this time around also means a needed boost for industrial development will not be forthcoming in the near term. Lacking municipal sanitation and water service at the Portage Industrial Properties sites, would-be tenants may have to look elsewhere for locations for their enterprises. Those enterprises represent jobs, and eventual tax revenues.

No grant this time around means the entrepreneurs and municipalities are in try-try-again mode. The need is not going away.

Peace.  

Tech Talk / By Martha Knight

LG Electronics make lots of things—appliances and office machines and entertainment gear. Their logo is clever, and features a circle with a G, a nose like an L, and one eye looking, the other (the G’s “knee”) winking. Their slogan is Life’s Good.

LG’s prices are very competitive. Comparable Samsungs cost more, as do many other brands. And LG’s quality is rated as quite good, in most reviews I have seen.

Samsung and LG both have a line of Smart TVs. LG’s are smarter than we knew.

Gazing into the countenance in the logo, the broad and knowing smile, the open eye round and unblinking, the winking one broad and amused, I feel like Red Riding Hood. “But LG, what big eyes you have!”

“The better to spy on you, my dear,” murmurs LG reassuringly.

Here is New Egg’s blockbuster deal of a 42-inch Smart TV, coyly offered as “See price in cart.” They don’t want to brag, you know. So I put one into the website cart, and see that it costs $529, down from $599, and only today.

Not today. That TV would be too dear for me. And too smart.

In the past few days the South Korean company has admitted that its smart TVs have phoned home with info about what viewers view.

You thought the CBS eye was spooky? These TVs have tracked what we watch.

Who knew TVs could look back at us? Okay, you knew, Smarty, but the rest of us never suspected. Even after we learned a few years ago that some laser printers put a code on every sheet, one we would not see, that could be decoded to tell the feds (and who knows who all else) what printer, whose printer, at what location, deposited the toner on each page and melted the polymer beads to keep the toner on the paper.

Cue Bob Seger. They lookin' back, They lookin' back. Too many people lookin' back…

Who, the NSA? The CIA, the FBI, the IRS? For whom does our very own TV collect data about us?

Cue Jim Ed and Maxine Brown’s song from a century or two before Bob Seger. Or however long the 1950s were before the 1970s.

I was looking back to see
If you were looking back to see
If I was looking back to see
If you were looking back at me.
You were cute as you could be
Standing looking back at me
And it was plain to see
That I'd enjoy your company.

And what all is that !!#@%^$&*!! TV looking at, and reporting? What we are eating? Who is with us? What we are wearing? They say they are recording only our viewing habits, but how do we know? They weren’t going to tell us anything, What does “viewing data” include?

What channel is selected, how long we watch it, for starters. Something like the Nielson reports we viewers used to fill out when we were selected for that privilege. But now our TVs may be connected to lots of other “smart” gear. A smart TV can report the names of  the files stored on the connected USB drives.

What is that, or are those, data used for? The Smart TV platform is supposed to deliver more relevant commercials and give us insight as to what other smart viewers are viewing.

That’s what LG told Graham Chuley in an email. He’s a security researcher who saw another researcher’s blog post. DoctorBeet, as that other researcher styles himself online, noticed and posted about this curious application of curiosity on the part of LG.

LG promised to release a firmware update that would respond to owners’ opt-out requests. If an owner notified the company, “I am not a narcissist. And if I want to post about myself and what I am doing and watching, moment by moment, I can use Twitter. I can take selfies with my cell and send them to all my friends. If I need to learn about other people’s fascinating habits, and have them apprised of mine, I can join Match.com”—LG would respond. Wouldn’t it?

So when users opted to deactivate the Smart TV’s voyeur features, how did that work? It hasn’t, yet.

Chuley says LG should apologize for tracking viewers, even after claiming that the company deeply respects its customers’ privacy.

Besides, says Chuley, LG’s surveillance arrangement was so lame it sent viewing data over the Net in plain text.

Smart TVs’ spying features are on by default, and most owners and viewers of LG’s Smart TVs didn’t (and probably still don’t)  know about those features. It seems LG does not plan on telling them, even now. Users will have to be proactive, and check for firmware updates once they are available. LG won’t provide them wirelessly, so owners will have to connect to the internet with Ethernet cables.

Doctor Beet also uncovered a “creepy corporate video” that told potential advertisers about LG smart TVs’ data collection capabilities. That video has been taken down. Heck darn! We wanted to look back to see how LG was going to exploit what it learned when it was looking back at us.

Life’s Good, LG, but sometimes folks are watching you when you least expect it—even when you have an expectation of privacy, or at least of being able to get away with violating that of your customers. Someday you will look back on all this and laugh. But for now, just quit looking back.

Paul Harris Society

Tom Chelgren of the District Foundation Committee is pictured with Port Allegany Rotarian J. Michael "Ki" Bayline.  Chelgren said, "Paul Harris once said, "Perhaps dreaming is not so bad if one dreams good dreams and makes them come true."  In Rotary, we make dreams a reality through extraordinary projects and activities here at home and around the world.  These projects would not be possible without the generous support of Rotarians and friends of our Foundation.  The Rotary Foundation recognizes those individuals who contribute US $1,000 or more annually to the Annual Fund, PolioPlus, or approved Foundation grants by inducting them into the Paul Harris Society.  Today we honor a dedicated friend of our Rotary Foundation whose annual generosity distinguishes J. Michael "Ki" Bayline as a member of the Paul Harris Society. 

Paul Harris Society gifts enable Rotary's worldwide network of dedicated humanitarians to implement projects that address pressing needs in communities around the world.  Because of these contributions:  Children are vaccinated against polio and other diseases; Adults and children alike can learn to read and write; Women are given micro loans and vocational training that enable them to support themselves and their families in a healthy and dignified way; teachers and school children have access to toilet facilities and clean drinking water; scholars are able to study ways to prevent maternal and child mortality; professionals from around the world convene to discuss strategies for resolving conflict and fostering peace.

Today we recognize Ki Bayline, a Paul Harris Society member, for enabling Rotary to make an impact on individuals, families, and communities.  On their behalf, I offer our sincere appreciation for your ongoing generosity."

Chelgren then asked for a round of applause for the newest Paul Harris Society member.  Pam Fischer Photo

Potter-McKean Players Donate

Dave Fair and Marty Moses are pictured as they presented a check for $550 to PACS (Port Allegany Community Services).  Representing PACS was the program's director, Judy Taylor.  Proceeds from the fall performances of the Players went to the food banks, $500 each, in Coudersport and Port Allegany.  Pam Fischer Photo

PAWC birthday banquet

Ron Ebert, representing the E. O. Austin Home Historical Society was the guest speaker at the annual Port Allegany Womans Club Birthday Banquet held November 14 at St. Gabriels Parish Hall.  He is pictured here with club president, Mary Mensch.  The E. O. Austin Home Historical Society is located at One Town Square in Austin.  It is a visible symbol of perseverance and hometown pride.  It's also an important storehouse of memories, preserved for future generations.  A group of local citizens with a keen interest in the region's past gathered in March of 2001 to form a local historical society.  The group decided there was no better place to showcase the many photos, artifacts and memories of the past than in the home of the town's founding father, Edward O. Austin.  Austin's original home had been gone for years but the local leaders had an extensive collection of photos and written descriptions. A complete replica of the structure, right down to the fancy scroll work and spacious porch was rebuilt and is now the headquarters for the new Austin Historical Society.  Under its roof, visitors can step back in time to gain a better appreciation of the struggles and the triumphs of previous generations. Hours of operation are 1-4 Monday, Wednesday, Friday; Thursday from 3:30 - 7 p.m.; Saturdays from noon - 4 p.m.  Hours are also available by appointment by calling Mr. Ebbert at 814-647-8650 or 814-647-8448.  For further information call 814-647-8358; or go to  eoaustinhistsoc@zitomedia.net; or www.austinhistoricalsociety.com.  Past presidents were recognized at the banquet.  A delicious buffet featuring a mashtini bar was prepared and served by Ed Vicic of the Port Freeze.  The next event is the club's Ding-a-Ling celebration to be held December 1 at the Inn on Maple Street.  Pam Fischer Photo