Crime
The Inquirer had a Page One story Friday that reminds me of a column I did in 2019 that started with mail being stolen from U.S. Postal Service mail boxes, but ended with stolen checks being “washed” with chemicals. Your ink is removed, and the counterfeiters fill in a
Crime
You’ve probably heard that journalism is the first draft of history. The first draft, not the last, and it is often flawed for several reasons. Reporters are rarely eyewitnesses to breaking news events, such as crime. They gather information from witnesses, and from authorities, such as police. Reporters might
Crime
Update: 6 ABC reported Wednesday night police took three suspects into custody in the armed robberies. The family took no notice as they passed the gray Honda Accord parked at 19th & Cuthbert in Center City, but the occupants of the car took notice of them. Drew Williams, his parents,
Crime
It’s 40 years and counting, and it won’t go away -- because supporters of cop-killer Mumia Abu-Jamal won’t let it. Not because their cause is right, but because it is left. Decades before defunding the police, we had dishonoring the police. One of the more famous celebrity
Crime
After hearing on Action News Friday there had been eight point-of-gun robberies in Center City in recent weeks, I asked the Philadelphia Police Department for the dates and locations of the six not detailed by the TV station -- 2300 Sansom and 18th and Cuthbert. The cops told me they
Culture
It’s been a long time since I was a TV critic (Daily News, 1980-’85), but I like to follow the “art” form, and I especially like to keep eye on shows with a Philly slant. I did that with “Mare of Easttown” and wasn’t particularly impressed. More
The Good News: All you subscribers here may be seeing more posts from me in the weeks ahead. Why? The Bad News: I have been kicked off Facebook for 30 days for violating its mysterious “community standards.” Take a look at this: Can you read the comment? It followed an
D.A. Larry Krasner
Some days you really have to work hard on this job, to do hard digging, research, and interviews. Other days, it just drops into your lap. (Following are stats from the 22nd Police District. Citywide was not available) Such as the day tone deaf Philadelphia progressive D.A. Larry Krasner
Christmas
I sometimes think I am the last person in the world who sends out Christmas cards (also Hanukkah cards). But since I get cards from friends and relatives, I know that’s not true. Christmas is the largest “card time” of the year, with about 2 billion being sent. That’
Television
Jake Tapper let me down on Sunday. The guy who grew up in Center City, and broke through into the national consciousness after he wrote about a date with Monica Lewinsky before she became a national disgrace celebrity, has usually been an honest broker on his Sunday-morning CNN show State
Abortion
In reality, both sides have valid arguments. About abortion. The two sides are pro-abortion or anti-abortion, but since the A for abortion is something of a scarlet letter, the two sides organize themselves as pro-life or pro-choice. Because being pro sounds better than anti. The problem is another A-word — absolutes.
Philadelphia
I’m an old-fashioned kind of guy, the kind of a guy who researches facts before forming an opinion, and before I start writing. Yes, there are a few of us left. I also have something of great value to reporters -- a bullshit detector. Not to brag, but not