Journalism
At this time of year, columnists and essayists have a choice of three hackneyed traditional topics to write about -- year in review, predictions, resolutions. They’ve been done to death. Always a trail-blazer, I am going to combine all three. I expect Loyal Readers will be able to recognize
Immigration
Let’s talk about lies, and where some lead. “There are three types of lies,” said Benjamin Disraeli, “lies, damn lies, and statistics.” I disagree, at least as far as the media is concerned. I think there are black lies, white lies and casual lies, the last being the most
Culture
Long ago -- when Halloween was for kids, not infantile adults — costumes were home-made, at least in my low-income South Bronx neighborhood. No one had money for store-bought costumes, had they existed. At most you could get a cardboard face mask — a witch or a goblin or a ghoul or
Police
It looks like “bait and switch.” What started out as Philadelphia City Councilman Isaiah Thomas’ “driving equality” bill was castrated, transitioning before passage into a “break the law with impunity” bill. The original bill, written in 2020, had language about how so-called “secondary offenses” -- such as expired registration stickers,
Jim Kenney
If this report on a lack of diversity in hiring had put a Republican mayor in the spotlight, I believe the Billy Penn headline would have been, “Controller’s report proves mayor is a racist.” But since Mayor Jim Kenney is a Democratic, and a weepy, woke one at that,
D.A. Larry Krasner
There are two reasons incumbent District Attorney Larry Krasner won’t debate faux Republican challenger Chuck Peruto. (Chuck has been a Democrat his whole life.) The first is smart: With a 7-1 voter registration edge in deep blue (and high homicide Philly), Krasner has nothing to gain, and possibly something
Jim Kenney
I know there are slow news days, and no-news days, but it is staggering to me that any political pundit worth their salt would have taken seriously Mayor Jim Kenney’s supposed interest in higher statewide office. Yes, yes, if reporters hear Kenney has had a meeting with supporters to
Jim Kenney
Ernest Owens is a smart guy, very smart. He’s probably smarter than I am. I know he is better educated. He got a full ride to the University of Pennsylvania. I know that because he has written about it, about how Penn is racist, and Penn is homophobic. Owens
Politics
Sometimes, without meaning to, Philadelphia’s city government stumbles into doing something right. One thing last week was the approval of a new citizens advisory board to oversee the police department. Philly has had one for a while, but it was underfunded, understaffed, and had few teeth for enforcement. It
Racism
When Lord Acton wrote that power corrupts, he could have had Lori Lightfoot in mind. If the name doesn’t ring a bell, no, she is not a supporting character on a zany teen TV series carried by some obscure cable network. She is actually the mayor of Chicago, she
MOVE
There’s the right way, the wrong way, and the Philadelphia way. Health Commissioner Tom Farley got fired for giving the order in 2017 that human remains — bone fragments, mostly — of victims of the May 13, 1985, MOVE disaster should be cremated. This did not seem to be out of
Police
Below you will find the text of a letter from Mayor Kenney to Philadelphians, concerning city plans for what happens after the Derek Chauvin verdict is announced. That letter preceded by a weepy, wokey statement sprinkled with his sweet confection of white guilt. “Systemic racism” and inequity are endlessly repeated,