PGHIMC - Pittsburgh Independent Media Center

Public transit riders pester legislative party goers.
by stephen donahue Thursday, Jan. 06, 2005 at 3:28 PM

How gauche! How inappropriate!

They were grossly under dressed. They were sporting bright sandwitch boards saying, “Shame on our state law makers” and “We weep for our public transit” and they walked right into a big fat legislative feel good party being held at the State Capitol building in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

As required by the state constitution, Pennsylvania law makers gathered with family, friends and rich lobbyist benefactors on January 4, 2005 to get sworn in and to begin another two year session. As they do once every two years on this day, after the swearing in ceremonies in the Senate and House chambers the legislators and their invited guests partied down with super spreads of meat, shrimp, cheese, breads sweets and more.

Into the big party on that day walked 15 Save Our Transit members from Allegheny County. They came to crash the party and to tell the state law makers that they have no right to celebrate while thousands of their fellow citizens are worried sick about how they will get to work, school, the doctor, the grocery store and yes, even to some recreation for themselves every once and a while. (Given that bus riders should be working and not re-creating, all work and no play makes even a poor working smuck a dull girl/boy.)

Against the advice of some progressive activist gate keepers, Save Our Transit members decided to send a group to Harrisburg, with the clear intention of irritating state law makers and crashing their party. “We are here to be seen”, they said. They also told law makers that during the 2003-2004 legislative session that they had hit a new low in irresponsibility by refusing again and again to consider legislation that would have given public transit the dedicated and reliable funding that it needs to keep running.

They almost got tossed out of the office of Senate Floor Leader David Brightbill after being told that the good Senator was “aware of the [public transit] situation.” “If he is aware then he must not care” shouted back one angry bus rider.

The Save Our Transit party crashers stuck out like a bunch of sore thumbs in the hall ways and the great rotunda of the State Capitol. Many state legislators when coming upon them offered a sheepish grin. Some guests of these law makers were heard to say that the Save Our Transit party crashers were “inappropriate.” These bus riders beg to differ as they think that their actions that day were most appropriate.

Save Our Transit is demanding that the state General Assembly pass legislation that will provide public transit systems all across the commonwealth with the revenue needed to prevent the service cuts and fare hikes that will otherwise be implemented in March. They want the lazy and uncaring law makers in this state to act now.

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