The approximately 200 people who showed up at the Butler Township Building Feb. 12 for Congressman Mike Kelly's first town hall meeting merit praise for the interest they showed in the important issues facing the nation.

The most-discussed topic was Social Security; among the other issues discussed were federal spending — and the efforts to cut it — as well as health care and education.

But despite the strong turnout, there was nevertheless a reason to be concerned. As the meeting photo in the Feb. 14 Butler Eagle showed, the crowd consisted of few young voters — the part of the electorate that will be impacted most over the long term by what the federal government does or does not do to correct the problems that are now plaguing the nation.

Younger voters shouldn't leave the task of keeping up with the goings-on in the federal government — or in the state and local governments, for that matter — to their parents or grandparents. They should get involved whenever possible, at least by attending meetings involving their elected officials.

Kelly will be holding such sessions in the future. It is to be hoped that he will be greeted by even-larger citizen turnouts — people not just content to listen, but with questions and comments and ideas about the direction in which the nation is moving and how they believe it should be moving.

A trip to the Super Bowl in Dallas last month earns a state lawmaker a jeer, with greater criticism targeting the lax state laws that allow corporate interests to lavish lawmakers with such gifts.State Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati attended the Super Bowl at the expense of Consol Energy, a major oil and gas company.There's nothing illegal about Scarnati accepting such generous gifts from a company that is sure to have business issues before the state Legislature. The fact that Scarnati could legally accept those gifts, so long as they were reported, is where the bigger jeer is targeted — at Pennsylvania's weak state ethics laws.Scarnati earns a lesser jeer for accepting the trip, game tickets and hotel room. After the story was reported by a Philadelphia newspaper, Scarnati said he was planning to repay the money out of his own pocket, but would use campaign funds for the airplane ticket because he said some campaign issues were discussed during the flight.According to Barry Kauffman, executive director of Common Cause Pennsylvania, a number of other states have laws that ban such gifts.It would be encouraging to see Harrisburg lawmakers follow that lead, but given Harrisburg's legacy featuring both an entitlement culture and self-serving actions, it seems unlikely such a move will be considered in the General Assembly.Scarnati, R-Jefferson, will play a key role as the state considers Marcellus Shale gas regulations and the possibility of imposing a gas-extraction tax, as all other nearby gas-producing states have done.While Scarnati says he is not swayed by corporate gifts such as the Super Bowl treat from Consol, it's hard to see how he could avoid being at least slightly biased toward the company's position. Even if Scarnati is not swayed by corporate largess, the practice of such gift-giving by special interests sends a troubling message.It would be better for Scarnati, and the state's taxpayers, if such gifts were not allowed.

The Butler County Sheriff's Department deserves praise for its determination in tracking down a cocky Jory Carl Melik, 21, of Butler Township, who was wanted for missing a court hearing on charges of theft, possession of drug paraphernalia and driving under the influence.But there was more important news than that involving Melik in the Feb. 10 front-page article (“Facebook page boast leads to arrest”) providing details of Melik's capture. That news dealt with the commendable statistics that this county's Sheriff's Department has compiled since Mike Slupe became sheriff in January 2010.Under Slupe's leadership last year, 1,644 warrants were served — more than double the 807 warrants served in 2009 under former Sheriff Dennis Rickard.Those 1,644 warrants translated into $158,685 in fines and restitution being collected, whereas in 2009 only $71,484 was collected.The latest statistics indicate the commitment and aggressiveness that Slupe and his deputies have employed in carrying out that important Sheriff's Department role. The attention Slupe is giving to that task must continue, and every year at this time Slupe should provide a new report regarding his department's numbers on the warrants-serving front for the prior year.The department's statistics for 2010 deliver the important message that those wanted on warrants have good reason to feel less secure regarding their ongoing freedom than they might have felt in the past. That is as it should be.Meanwhile, Melik might be rethinking his arrogance in bragging on his Facebook page that law enforcement officials couldn't catch him.They could and they did.