https://www.pgc.pa.gov/InformationResources/GetInvolved/HowardNursery/Pages/TreeSeedlingIndex.aspx

It's good that hemlocks are growing, they're being hit hard by the Hemlock woolly adelgid.

You can get Northern Red Oak seedlings for cheap from the PA Game Commission (25 for $12.50). I just checked their index, most species are already sold out, but not Northern Red Oak. They have Sawtooth Oak too, but that's non-native/invasive, they shouldn't even be selling it. I wish more people would only purchase/plant PA natives.

Sounds like discrimination.

Exactly, you can be a professional boxer or MMA and you're not going to win 5 on 1. Not to mention they may have weapons on them.

> That said, something should be done if windows are getting broken. That is way too far. Guy should be more selective with his word choice though.

It goes beyond windows, a girl was gangraped in the bathroom of a neighboring business.

I didn't know that was proposed, he's buried in nearby Calvary Cemetery.

> OK, so what is the alternative to gentrification? You let the neighborhood decline until it's so bad that everyone who can get out, leaves?

The solution is providing middle class jobs such as manufacturing, which some local politicians chased out. Detroit is a perfect example of what happens when there are no blue collar opportunities. Clinton sold out to the corporations and signed NAFTA, which was a Republican proposal, that offshored all of the blue collar, particularly autoworker jobs. Sure Detroit had other problems, but this was the nail in the coffin.

You can attract high tech and other white collar positions as well but there should be diversity in employment. Not everyone is going to work in tech or another white collar field. Sure some Braddock residents may pursue a career in these fields but at the end of the day the majority probably will not, it's not practical. So instead of having the opportunity of a decent job with US Steel or a similar position they have the option to work at some lousy paying service sector "career" where you'll probably have to work two jobs just to get by, collect welfare or get involved in crime. That's the case in all of these blighted neighborhoods. The "new money" who were against the proposed plant are often the same people that fly BLM banners etc in their front yard while the local community (both black and white) is priced out and sent down the road, it's hypocritical.

Union USW and building trades jobs provide good pay and benefits without having to pay school loans. You'll serve an apprenticeship but it's essentially free, financed with union dues. Sure, someone working for Google might have a nicer house and car, but the locals could still live in the same community with decent living standards. The middle class continues to struggle in America, it's like a third world country.

Once again, this plant could have secured thousands of jobs so the unions would have all been willing to take in local Braddock youth and even middle aged people looking to start a new career.

I'm sure that part could have been negotiated or a contract could have been made where if water contamination became an issue they'd not only be held responsible for the repair and cleanup but Braddock could sue them. A project that large should have enough oversight that US Steel would be wise enough not to cut corners.

Perhaps you could have gotten a deal to provide Braddock residents discounted gas prices, or Braddock could get royalties which could then be transferred to residents. Most fracking wells are on rural properties, usually owned by farmers, they collect royalties and are provided free gas. A similar deal could have benefited the entire community.

Gentrification more often than not pushes the locals out. Have you seen the home prices in Lawrenceville lately? It's nice to see an area improve, but the locals are usually an after thought. They'll get priced out unless they're fortunate enough to secure a six figure salary.

If you welcomed that steel plant, you could have struck a deal with the USW to have local youth go through apprenticeships. They'd of had good salaries and benefits.

U.S. Steel had proposed a $1 billion upgrade to its Edgar Thomson Plant in Braddock, political opposition played a role in their decision to build elsewhere. Ultimately they chose a site in the southern United States and built it with non-union labor. Fetterman was very supportive of the project, which I respect him for.

>Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, Jones’ predecessor as mayor of Braddock and current U.S. Senate candidate, said the news was “absolutely devastating,” and blamed unnamed local elected officials for the project’s failure.

>“We had the opportunity to make some of the greenest steel in the world right here in Braddock and secure the future of thousands of good paying union jobs,” Fetterman said, in a statement. “I will never understand why I was one of the only elected officials who pushed for this major project proactively and enthusiastically, while so many others turned their back on the working men and women of the Steelworkers and Building Trades in Allegheny County.”

We'll probably see another shopping plaza development with low paying service sector jobs. Perhaps some high tech industry will move in, sure it will generate some tax revenue but it won't do much to help the common people of Braddock.

I like the idea of building solar plants, that's a step in the right direction. It's too bad Pittsburgh/Braddock wasn't selected for one of the new chip production plants being built across the country. Arizona, New Mexico and Ohio were selected. [1]

UPMC may be the most cutthroat "non profit" the health sector has ever seen.

Everyone should be treated equal, but this current woke movement looks at everything through the lens of race, it's shallow and insincere. It's almost racist in itself. I judge a person by the content of their character not by the color of their skin. "White privilege" is a bullshit term exploited by certain influential groups to keep the lower and middle classes divided.

For example, if you're Jeff Bezos you'd much prefer having culture wars than for blacks, whites, Hispanics, etc. working together to fight for better working conditions at Amazon warehouses. Look at Starbucks, they're very progressive and inclusive until it comes to labor issues and their profits. Foreign adversaries, particularly Russia, exploit these divisions with active measures and disinformation, both on the right and left. It sows discord and weakens us as a society.

Money is what gives you power in the United States, if you have money people "give a shit." All these cultural wars and race issues just further divide us while the middle class slowly disappears. A lot of corporations promote "woke" issues in the United States, then they turn around and use slave labor overseas.

> White privilege

Give the "white privilege" crap a rest. If you're white and poor nobody gives a shit about you. In 21st century America you're only privileged if you have money.

Aeillo's up from Mineo's used to sell t-shirts, I haven't been there in a couple of years though.