Dr. Joe in print

Dr. Joe Leonardi was the GOP nominee for the 11th CD in 2006 but got blown out of the water by Paul Kanjorski. Since then he has sworn off politics for the most part and has focused on his own health and helping people improve theirs. Joe is a pretty good back cracker and has fixed me up on more than one occasion after I over did it after a snow storm and couldn't walk straight.

He has struggled with his weight throughout his life then decided to get it under control and shares his tips to lose weight in his new book.


Local chiropractor pens weight loss book


Dr. Joe Leonardi’s self-published book, “Fat Then Fit Now: A Life Beyond Weight Loss” hit the virtual bookshelves of Amazon’s Kindle store this past week. A paperback version is forthcoming.

It's available on many outlets.

Now available from Amazon's Kindle Store

Fat Then Fit Now; A Life Beyond Weight Loss [Kindle Edition]


If you don't have a Kindle don't worry, you can download a free reader for your:

PC

Iphone

Android

BlackBerry

Ipad

You visit his website.

Fat Then Thin Now

“We are the children of coal!”

This is a guest post from my friend Dr. Joe Leonardi about the coal miner stamp. For the life of me I don't understand why this hasn't already been done. There are stamps with Elvis and Love, etc.



Coal miner mentality
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By Joe Leonardi
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“Coal Miner Mentality” is a phrase that is boorishly bandied about to describe many here in Greater Pittston and to a larger extent all of us who reside in Northeast Pennsylvania.
Along with hard scrabble and coal cracker, this terminology is not meant to compliment, congratulate or commend.
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It is most often intended to demean, deride or dismiss the good people of, as Steve Corbett extols, “Hard Coal Country.” How little those outside of the anthracite arena know the offspring of the miners whose labor fueled the industrial revolution.
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My grandfather was an owner/operator of a few mines here in the valley.
Unfortunately for my bank account he was not a coal baron. However, fortunately for my character he was a coal man.
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We, all of us, are the heirs to the throne of king coal – we are the ones responsible to maintain the legacy of those who took from the ground the hard black carbon.
Yet, inexplicably, many look down upon us and our ancestors.
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How is it anything less than an honor to be descended from those who sacrificed so much, but were recognized by so few?
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How can we not revere those that left the sunlight behind and ventured below the earth’s surface to bring forth the precious anthracite?
How can those whose lives, by comparison are easy and risk free – not swell with pride when we recall the men who risked not solely simply injury, but often instant death or worse the slow, suffocating strangulation of black lung to provide a home and life for their families.
The coal miner was not formally schooled, he was educated by the cold realities of a harsh dark world.
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The coal miner was not selfish, he did without, so his children would not need to inhale cancer causing coal dust.
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The coal miner was not weak, through the strength of his spine he provided food for his family.
When I think of a coal miner, I see a strong hardworking individual. One who came to this area looking to improve not his life, but the lives of his children. I see individuals of deep faith, honesty and integrity.
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When I teach a class and look upon the faces of my students, I see the realization of the dreams of those miners who so long ago shortened their own lives so my generation and the following ones, would not have to.
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There is a movement afoot to prod the U.S. Postal Service to issue a commemorative stamp honoring the coal miner. This effort has gone on for many years with zero success.
This is an initiative that yearns for our support.
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I say we wear with pride the badge of honor our coal miner roots inspire. We must look to the terms coal miner mentality, coal cracker and hard scrabble and take them back.
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We must, with pride – own them.
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I demand we proclaim; “We are the children of coal!”


If you are interested in the Coal Miner Postage Stamp I have petitions at my office, please email me DocLeonardi@mac.com for more information.

My last 10th CD post

For this week.

Chris Hackett said a few things in Towanda that we didn't cover in my interview last week.

Daily and Sunday Review

"The French have rolled out a new program which I think is intriguing," said Hackett, explaining an idea for tax reform that he indicated might make sense for the United States. Under the proposed French program, the French government wouldn't tax a person's income if he worked more than 35 hours per week, Hackett said."What a great way to reward people for their hard work."

"We really need to protect our borders, and support the sanctity of this country... For example, he said, "If an individual wants to wire money out of this country - and they are an illegal alien - they should be required to show proof of citizenship if they try to wire money out. It would be a sure way to stop them from wiring money out."

We've had a spirited discussion in the comments and 2006 11th CD Republican nominee Joe Leonardi asked me to post this comment:

The back and forth riping on each candidate, form within the party, must stop. There is currently a strong anti-republican sentiment in the country, including the 10th. The Dems are motivated and are mobilizing. The RNC and NRCC are taking in less money than the DNC and the DCCC. There is a reason for this.


Most middle class Republicans are not that supportive of the party because they feel the President is not a genuine conservative. Outside of the war, under this administration, we have had one of the largest spending sprees and expansion of government since LBJ. People are making less real money, real estate prices (some folks largest investment) are falling. People are taking home less money. College tuition is increasing. People are paying more for health care and receiving less. These are the issues that every day voters care about. These are the concerns middle class conservatives care about. They are upset at how government intrusion, big government, negatively impacts their lives.


The top of the ticket will have a huge influence on Congressional races this time out. Perhaps if the party gets a conservative at the head of the ticket republicans will have a chance. Since there are no conservatives presently running for president, the overwhelming motivation to get the conservative base to the polls will be diminished.


One of the factors that will hurt us the most is the bickering I have seen on this blog and others. While I understand the reasons to push "your" candidate, it does not have to be done by tearing down the other. This sniping, innuendo and rumor mongering will hurt the eventual nominee. If the Carney camp doesn't have "ammo" all they have to do is scan these blogs and they can get all the they want. Remember the Massachusetts furlough program that led to the Willie Horton ad campaign, was brought up in the primaries by Al Gore.


I wish all the best to whomever the nominee is. The ideal time to beat an incumbent is after the freshman year or after the 20th year. If Chris Carney is to be beat it must be done now. But there is a realistic possibility that we may have lost the seat for the foreseeable future. We must not let that happen.


A strong primary based on what each candidate will do, what qualifications they hold and their ability to put forth a positive message may change the negative views many have toward our party. It may also help alleviate the apathy felt by many within the party.


The registration is in favor of republicans, but that won't do any good if registered republicans stay home on election day. If we tear each other apart in the primary, the bridge building, the necessary unifying behind the nominee will be that much more difficult. And if that can not be done and there is bad blood after the primary, the republican voters will stay home, or worse --- they will vote for the status quo.


Let's debate issues and vision and leave the petty infighting off the table and behind closed doors. To win, in November, a united front will be necessary. That front will have to be more than smoke and mirrors. It will have to be genuine, it will have to be solid and it must be strong to demonstrate the resolve necessary to get the job done. The primary sniping will devalue your candidate in November. And it will help return Congressman Carney back to the Congress instead of the classroom.

The money primary: Carney and Kanjo edition

With all the attention on the gazillions of dollars that the Presidential candidates have raised the first quarter fundraising totals of our local Congressmen show they have also been raking in the bucks.

My favorite freshman Chris Carney pulled in almost a quarter of a million according to the FEC. At this pace he will have $2 million by the next election in 2008. He'll need it as the 10th disrtict of Pennsylvania is top target of the GOP. No Republican filed a finance report but there is plenty of speculation on who will challenge him. The latest name I hear is US Attorney Thomas A. Marino and the Joe Peters boomlet seems to be petering out. Retired Honesdale state rep Jerry Birmelin may take a shot at it and David Madeira spends a lot of energy writing to the local papers attacking Carney. I don't think former Lt Governor Bill Scranton lives in the district but you don't have to according to the Constitution. Anyway, the 2008 Republican primary should be fun.

And Luzerne County's own Paul Kanjorski added over $100,000 to his war chest and has a cool million in the bank. That might scare Hazleton's Mayor forever Lou Barletta into running for statewide office. But the GOP has another attractive candidate waiting in the wings.