Mass shootings, public attacks spur security upgrades

Trump to campaign in Philadelphia for 2nd time in a week

Here are the stories for this week's Pennsylvania Member Exchange package. If you have any questions, contact the Philadelphia bureau at 215-561-1133. For use anytime: EXCHANGE-EDITORIAL RDP Editorials from around Pennsylvania. For Saturday, Sept. 10, 2016: EXCHANGE-BOXING BOOM PITTSBURGH — They often hide in plain sight, at times difficult to find even with an address, a working GPS and a keen eye. One is a converted fire station, a two-story brick building south of Brookline with a musty, low-ceiling basement and a garage door that, when opened, provides an exit for pain-induced grunts rather than firetrucks. Another is a 100-plus-year-old, three-story barn on a grassy hill in Plum, where it once housed a police station inside its chipped, white painted walls. But while covert, Pittsburgh's boxing gyms display the tangible heartbeat the sport still has for many in the city, a pulse felt across neighborhood, racial and socioeconomic divides. Some see the sport as their opportunity to get rich. Some pursue a professional career to merely make a stable living. For others, it's a ticket out of a troubled neighborhood. The sport, however, is not for everyone. Andy Wittry, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. EXCHANGE-RESCUING ANIMALS NORTHAMPTON — More than a dozen dogs, cats, rabbits and reptiles were caught in a fire in Northampton recently. Some of them died in the blaze. Others succumbed to smoke inhalation, and first responders were ready and able to save them. The firefighters used special oxygen masks for animals, which had been donated by an animal advocacy group, to give some of the dogs and cats oxygen. And members of the Tri-Hampton Rescue Squad transported four dogs to Center for Animal Referral and Emergency Services for treatment. "It was unheard of what they did," said Denise Bash, founder of Animal Lifeline, based in Warrington. "They went out of their way to deal with numerous pets and handling animals at a time like this can be difficult. They did an outstanding job." Other local first responders said they will do what they can to save animals at a fire — as long as it doesn't risk the safety of any of the human inhabitants or firefighters. George Mattar, Bucks County Courier Times. EXCHANGE-UNIVERSITY SPINOFFS PITTSBURGH — Universities such as Pitt and Carnegie Mellon are great places to develop technological and medical advancements but not to commercialize them. Faculty, students and the universities depend on spinoff companies and licensing agreements to take the latest innovation from a lab in Oakland to market. Faculty and students either develop startup companies to license the technology they have worked on at the universities or the university helps them find an existing company to license the product. The process brings advancements to market, creates prestige for the university and generates revenue. But, unlike the world of business, the bottom line isn't the bottom line for university technology and advancements. Aaron Aupperlee, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. EXCHANGE-LANDMARK LABOR RULING BEAVER — Many battles have been fought in western Pennsylvania in the last 300 years, but one in particular had far-reaching consequences that forever shaped the labor and workers-rights movement in the United States. Indeed, workers' rights might not even exist today if it weren't for a U.S. Supreme Court case that unfolded in Aliquippa in 1937. The case was the last to challenge the legality of labor unions, mostly because the Supreme Court had the final word and deemed the practice constitutional. Generations of workers have benefited since, but many have forgotten the significant role played by Beaver County workers to ensure those rights. While residents celebrate Labor Day, it's important to remember and pay homage to those who came before us, those who fought for their rights and won them in the highest court in the land. Jared Stonesifer, Beaver County Times. EXCHANGE-SECURING PUBLIC SPACES POTTSTOWN — The circumstances are so horrible, we all know, with just one word, what happened there. Columbine — 13 dead. Sandy Hook — 26 dead. Orlando — 49 dead. Mass killings in public places have become a reality in this nation that have changed the way we see the world, live our day-to-day lives and even interact with our local government. Sensational attacks that capture the public's attention — that's almost always why they are perpetrated in public — are often followed by a call for increased security. It is now a common occurrence for police to stage "active shooter" drills in public buildings; and in addition to the four "Rs" our school children are being taught the basics of "run, hide, fight" when a stranger causes a school lock-down. Evan Brandt, The (Pottstown) Mercury.

AP-PA--Exchange,Advisory, PA