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TODAY I SAW…
BY JEFF DEENEY “Today I saw…”is a series of nonfiction shorts based on my experiences as a caseworker serving formerly homeless families now living in North and West Philadelphia. I decided not long after starting the job that I was seeing so many fascinating and disturbing things in the city’s poorest neighborhoods that I needed to start cataloging them. I hope this bi-weekly column serves as a record of a side of the city that many Philadelphians don’t come in contact with on a daily basis. I want to capture moments not frequently covered by the local media, which tends […]
NPR FOR THE DEAF: We Hear It Even When You Can’t
FRESH AIR Michael Hearst, a founder of the band One Ring Zero, put out his Songs for Ice Cream Trucks CD mostly for fun. But he’s been getting calls from ice-cream truck drivers who want to use them; the titles include “Where Do Ice Cream Trucks Go in the Winter,” “The Sprinkle Twinkle,” “Tones for Cones,” and “The Popsicle Parade.” Some of the instruments you’ll hear on the collection include glockenspiel, electronic chord organ, melodica and theremin. RADIO TIMES Gov. Rendell has suggested using revenue from the privatization of the Pennsylvania Turnpike to pay for the maintenance of the Commonwealth’s roads and bridges. […]
All Of This Happened While You Were Sleeping
JESUS SHAVES: Entrance, First Unitarian, Last Night BY SIMONE SECCI FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT No way that you can’t recognize the members of the Entrance Band into a room, first because last night at the first Unitarian there weren’t that many people also because they are the only ones that are dressed like we are in the 1970. And what happens when they start playing? You feel like we are in the 1970. I have to say it’s not a bad thing at all because the incredible power of the guitar and voice of this really skinny, modern hippie — that I […]
KILLADELPHIA: One More Dead Since U Went 2 Bed
At 10:38 last night, police on patrol in the Northeast heard gunfire and found a young man lying on the ground with wounds to his chest and a hand. Rakeem Bailey, 19, of the 200 block of West Tioga Street in North Philadelphia, was taken to Einstein Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 11:24 p.m., according to Officer Beth DiDonato. The shooting — the 172d murder this year — took place in the 1000 block of Van Kirk Street, she said. As of this morning, police had no witnesses or suspects and knew of no motive. INQUIRER: 172 Dead […]
Tierney To Bid On Dow Jones — If There Is Bidding
The company that owns The Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News and Philly.com, has expressed interest in joining with outside partners to buy Dow Jones & Co., the publisher of the storied Wall Street Journal. “If there was a formalized bidding process, it would be our intention to participate,” Brian Tierney, chief executive of the company, Philadelphia Media Holdings said this evening. “We would participate as Philadelphia Media Holdings along with other investors. We wouldn’t do it it alone.” Dow Jones has been the object of a $5 billion takeover bid from media baron Rupert Murdoch. Dow Jones has been under siege […]
JUNK SCIENCE: The Bottle And The Damage Done
[artwork by Alex Binnie] BY ELIZABETH FIEND LIVING EDITOR Booze — it’s intoxicating, complicated stuff. Light drinking can extend your life, heavy drinking will end it prematurely. Consuming a small amount of alcohol prevents platelets in the blood from sticking together and forming clots, thus preventing heart attack and certain types of stroke. (Aspirin helps prevent blood clots in a similar way.) But anything more than one drink a day for women and up to two a day for men is a bummer for your health. Drinking more can cause stroke and heart disease, and also messes up your liver […]
Technically, It’s Not Against The Law To Marry A Bear
[Courtesy of Married To The Sea]
NPR FOR THE DEAF: We Hear It Even When You Can’t
FRESH AIR Journalist Scott Shane writes for The New York Times about terrorism and the CIA’s interrogation techniques. His article “Soviet-Style ‘Torture’ Becomes ‘Interrogation’” describes how the United States has adopted interrogation techniques that it decried when they were used by the Soviet Union. PLUS, author Tara McKelvey interviewed former prisoners from Abu Ghraib for her book Monstering: Inside America’s Policy of Secret Interrogations and Torture in the Terror War. McKelvey is senior editor at The American Prospect and a research fellow at the NYU School of Law’s Center on Law and Security. RADIO TIMES The foie gras dilemma. Animal activists […]
GAMBLOR: Anti-Casino Appeal Craps Out In Court
Neighbors of the proposed Foxwoods Casino had no legal standing to challenge the state’s decision to build a slots-parlor near their homes, the state Supreme Court ruled yesterday. In a ruling that augurs ill for similar challenges by City Council, anti-casino activists and neighborhood groups, the Supreme Court yesterday dismissed an appeal from four civic associations opposed to the licensing of Foxwoods Casino on Christopher Columbus Boulevard in South Philadelphia. The Philadelphia casinos still face other legal and political obstacles, including four remaining appeals before the Supreme Court, and a casino-restrictive ordinance to be considered by Council next week. INQUIRER: No […]
Seal Stranded In The Delaware — Cute, Loveable, Bitey
A 7-foot gray seal eluded an attempt to net it and splashed back into the Delaware River, where sightings have been occurring since Saturday. Bob Schoelkopf, director of the Marine Mammal Stranding Center, in Brigantine, attempted to throw a net over the 300-pound male seal Tuesday in an area of woods and marshes in suburban Philadelphia, about 50 miles upriver from where the river becomes salty. Schoelkopf said he had to release the net before the seal dragged it and Schoelkopf into the river. He said the animal was “very strong,” with “not a very good disposition.” “He doesn’t like […]