Not only is there a Moms for Liberty group, but there also is a Stop Moms for Liberty organization.

We

had a taste of the animosity between the two groups when a Pike County District Justice last week fined Nicole Prussman of Albrightsville, who has been identified as either the chair or former chair of the Monroe County Moms for Liberty group, $200 plus court costs for harassing a Pike County woman whom court documents did not identify other than to indicate that she is a member of Stop Moms for Liberty. The victim told the judge that she feared for her safety and that of her family because of continuing harassing Facebook threats from Prussman.

Debt-limit bill

In a rare case of unanimity, all three local members of the U.S. House of Representatives voted in favor of the debt-limit bill that passed the House last week 314-117. Democrats Susan Wild (7th District - Carbon, Northampton, Lehigh and part of Monroe counties) and Matt Cartwright (the rest of Monroe), along with Republican Dan Meuser (Schuylkill County) were on the same page to support the compromise bill agreed upon by President Joe Biden and Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Of the 17 members of Pennsylvania’s House delegation, just two voted against the measure - Republicans Scott Perry (10th District) and Summer Lee (12th district). Meanwhile, the U.S. Senate passed the same bill 63-36, but Pennsylvania freshman senator John Fetterman was one of just four Democrats to vote against the bill, saying that he disapproved of the changes that will be made to the SNAP. The other Democratic senator, Bob Casey Jr. voted “yes.’’

Nomination petitions

You may recall that I cautioned about the importance of accuracy when it comes to filling out and signing nominating petitions to run for elective office. Democrat-now-turned-Republican Northampton County Council President Kerry Myers handed in defective nominating petitions which resulted in a successful challenge on behalf of his opponent which kept Myers off the Democratic ballot as he sought re-election.

Because he accused the Democrats of treating him shabbily, he changed his party affiliation as ran as a GOP write-candidate in the May 16 primary, but he did not get enough write-ins to secure a ballot position in November. Unless he runs an almost certain doom-to-failure write-in campaign in the fall or has some other rabbit to pull out of a hat, his term will end at the end of the year. Myers, the first Black official to hold this top leadership position, represents District 2, which includes Easton and some of its suburbs.

Memorial Day

As I enjoyed the annual Memorial Day parade while sitting on my niece’s porch in my hometown of Summit Hill, I thought of the continuation of this tradition over the decades and all of the side benefits it provides for area residents as we pay our respect to our fallen heroes. Greeting and chatting with townspeople as they passed by, seeing the community come alive in red, white and blue flags, bunting and other patriotic displays was a welcome counterpoint to the political bickering and anger that seems to have settled over some of our communities and nation. I thought to myself: If we could only bottle this feeling and atmosphere of neighborly good will and have it become the norm rather than the exception, what a wonderful world we could have.

Driest month on record

According to meteorologists at the National Weather Service station at the Lehigh Valley International Airport, we had the second driest May on record. A mere 0.24-inch fell during the entire month, ranking it behind the driest, which occurred in 1964 when just 0.09-inch fell.

The Fairness Act

In a recently published op-ed column, newly elected State Rep. Joshua Siegel said he was proud to add his vote that helped the state House of Representatives pass the Fairness Act, which expands the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission’s oversight against anti-discrimination to include sexual orientation and gender identity. The bill has an uncertain future in the State Senate where it is now in committee awaiting action. If it passes, Siegel said, Pennsylvania would become the 24th state to support the LGTBQ community by prohibiting discrimination when it comes to housing, education, employment and public accommodations. “For me,’’ Siegel wrote, “this vote was more than just an act of solidarity and a stand for equality and equal treatment; it was a vote for my family,’’ as he noted that his father is a gay man and his sister is a trans woman. Siegel’s district includes parts of Allentown and Salisbury Township.

By BRUCE FRASSINELLI| tneditor@tnonline.com

The foregoing opinions do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board or Times News LLC.