Last night congressional candidates Kathy Dahlkemper and Phil English held a debate on the campus of Allegheny College. WSEE will broadcast the debate later this week, and C-SPAN will have coverage as well. An hour after the debate was over, we received a press release from the Dahlkemper campaign claiming victory. Not once during the primary or general election cycles have we received one piece of information from the English campaign.

The first distribution of gaming revenue has been allocated to eight local organizations. The include the Erie Zoo, the Erie Philharmonic, the Erie Playhouse, the Erie Art Museum, the Arts Council of Erie, the Mary D’Angelo Performing Arts Center, the Erie County Historical Society and the Experience Children’s museum. The Zoo will receive the largest amount at $390,688. The overall pool of money was reduced by $200,000 as the county needed additional funds to pay for debt service on the airport runway project.

Gregory Williams, the former foodservice manager at the women’s state prison in Cambridge Springs, is appealing his conviction stemming from his sexual relationship with a former inmate. Williams will remain out of jail while he appeals his conviction in which he was sentenced to 4-16 months in jail and given 8 months of probation.

County Councilperson Fiore Leone has accused controller Sue Weber of improper use of county funds related to travel reimbursements. Weber was taking courses she says were related to her position. Leone says he has further accusations for Weber. The PA State Ethics Committee is still investigating County Executive Mark DiVecchio.

Edward Gingerich will be spending some time in prison for using a gun while deer hunting last fall. Gingerich is barred from using firearms due to being found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the death of his wife in 1993. He was found guilty but mentally ill.

Governor Edward Rendell and his wife Judge Marjorie O. Rendell led a virtual class using two-way interactive video and Classrooms for the Future technology with high school students across the state. Topics included a number of issues important to Pennsylvania including transportation, the cost of higher education, and energy use. Locally, Iroquois high school took part in the virtual class.

A principal and librarian have come down from the rooftop of their northwestern Pennsylvania school in a stunt to encourage student reading. Erie First Christian Academy principal Pam Hanisek and librarian Amanda Barko made a bet and lost. The pair dared the school’s students to read 1,000 books over the summer. The students did and Hanisek and Barko made good on their promise–they slept overnight on the school’s roof.

Bankruptcy filings in Western Pennsylvania are up 7 percent this year compared to last, which amounts to an additional 500 filings when compared to the same period in 2007.

Just like the stock market, gas prices in the area are falling to an average low of $3.29. You can see for yourself using the ErieBlogs Gas Price Finder.

Sports

A film crew for the Nike High School Football Road Tour is coming to this weekend’s McDowell high school football game. The game is this Friday at 7 p.m. with McDowell facing the 6-0 Gateway football team, who is ranked #3 in the nation. Adam Spencer, a 23-year-old from Massachusetts, will be filming the event as one of many high school football games as part of the Five Days to Friday series.

The Erie Otters are on the road tonight in Peterborough.

Events

The Friends of the Rice Avenue Community Public Library will hold its annual spaghetti dinner the evening of election day, Tuesday, November 4, 2008 from 5 – 7 p.m. The dinner will be held at the Girard High School the cost is $7.50 for adults, $5 for kids ages 6 – 12, and kids under age 6 eat for free.

Mercyhurst College will welcome Joan Rosenhauer, associate director of the United States Catholic Bishops Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development, to campus on Thursday, Oct. 9, when she will speak on “Faithful Citizenship.” Her talk, slated for 8:15 p.m. in Taylor Little Theatre, is free and open to the public.

A cast reunion of the classic horror film “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” will highlight the fifth Eerie Horror Film Festival, October 9-12, at the historic Warner Theater in Erie, Pennsylvania. Cast members Gunnar Hansen (Leatherface), Ed Neal (The Hitchhiker), Marilyn Burns (Sally), John Dugan (Grandpa), Allen Danziger (Jerry), Teri McMinn (Pam) and Bill Vail (Kirk), will be reuniting for only the second time since the movie was released nearly 35 years ago.

The Halls of Fear, a haunted house attraction located in Wesleyville, is gearing up for another year of Halloween fun. The Halls will begin Thursday, October 9th which is designated as a kids night. And beginning Friday, October 10th, the Halls will be for adults. Parking is located at the corner of Shannon & Station roads in Wesleyville. Unlike previous years, the Halls will be open for Halloween night. Here’s the full schedule: October 10, 11, 12, 17, 18, 19, 24, 25, 26, 30 and 31. Open 7 – 10 p.m. weekdays, 7 – 11 pm on weekends, and open 9 – 12 Midnight on Halloween night.