THE DAILY NEWS: THE 30-YEAR reign of state Sen. Vincent Fumo has both blessed and cursed the First Senatorial District. His 139-count indictment has badly stained the bags of money that he brought home to his district and to the city. And as the architect of the seriously flawed gaming act, he unleashed an unending and unresolvable battle between casino operators and communities, and between the city and the state. Three contenders for his seat are running in next week’s primary. Who is best to take over? Not union leader John Dougherty. For many, Dougherty is the local equivalent of […]
EX-CELEB SCIENTOLOGIST: ‘Destructive & A Rip-Off’
FOX NEWS: Ruggedly handsome actor Jason Beghe was best man at the wedding of “X-Files” star David Duchovny (his childhood pal) and actress Tea Leoni. In 1998, he starred as Demi Moore’s love interest in “G.I. Jane.” He’s been featured in numerous TV dramas such as “Criminal Minds,” “Numb3rs” and “CSI.” In 2005, Beghe appeared in promotional spots for the Church of Scientology. But now, Beghe has escaped the church after taking courses since 1994. He’s made a video that’s up on YouTube. This is what he has to say: “Scientology is destructive and a rip-off.” He also says: “It’s […]
NPR 4 THE DEF: Giving Public Radio Edge Since 2006
FRESH AIR From a martial-artist mother in Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill to dewy-eyed ingenue in Stephen Frears’ Dangerous Liaisons to a mobster’s employee in John McNaughton’s Mad Dog and Glory, Uma Thurman has played all kinds of characters. She joins Fresh Air to talk about her background (she’s the daughter of noted Buddhist scholar Robert Thurman), about her varied career and about her role in the new independent film The Life Before Her Eyes. The film, directed by Vadim Perelman and based on the book by Laura Kasischke, is the story of a troubled woman, Diana, who years before came […]
NEWS CLUES: Like A ‘Sweetheart Deal’ With The Truth
Union Dude Pleads Guilty To 98 Fed Charges, Denies ‘Illegal Payments’ To Doc A Philadelphia electrical contractor pleaded guilty this morning to 98 federal charges – but not to two counts alleging that he made illegal payments to union leader and State Senate candidate John J. Dougherty. The case against the electrician, Donald “Gus” Dougherty, has been closely watched because of the forthcoming election and an FBI and IRS investigation of John Dougherty that sources said remains active. But it was Gus Dougherty in court this morning, pleading guilty before U.S. District Judge Eduardo C. Robreno to tax evasion, filing […]
WORTH REPEATING: Can You Say ‘Dickipedia’?
DICKIPEDIA: John Sidney McCain III (born August 29, 1936) is the senior United States Senator from Arizona, the presumptive Republican Party nominee in the 2008 presidential election, an angry old man, and a dick. In the Republican Party, there are two kinds of dicks: those that support the Iraq War but were too cowardly to fight in a war when they had the chance, and, much less common, those that support the Iraq War and did fight in other wars when they had the chance. McCain is the latter kind of dick. During the Vietnam War, McCain became a naval aviator. […]
PEARLS BEFORE SWINE: Live & Direct From The City Democratic Committee’s Jefferson-Jackson Dinner
[illustration by ALEX FINE] BY JONATHAN VALANIA Talk about a confederacy of yutzes: Harris Wofford, bless his heart, has completely lost it, and I am not just talking about his voice, which was in short supply when he took the lectern to introduce the guy who would introduce the guy who would introduce Barack Obama; next up, Chaka Fattah is hands down the LEAST inspiring speaker I have ever had the displeasure of suffering through; and Bob Brady is a great party cheerleader, and the guy you want doling out the patronage goodies, able to keep a vast running ledger […]
TONITE: Sing The Body Electric
[Click image to activate Internets] WIKIPEDIA: Who Is Walt Whitman?
HEAR YE: Joy Division The Best Of
Now playing on Phawker Radio! Why? Because love you, ya big dummy! “Because ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart,’ a weirdly tranquilized effervescence, the pain of love, filtered, forced, dreamed through a deep love of melody, the pop song as a kind of salvation, and all this actually happened, in real life, and then in a recording studio… Because of ‘Atmosphere,’the stunning durability, the lonely sensation of monstrous fatigue, the way the pattern of a dream fades when you wake, but the aura, ambience, timbre and tonality remain, the singer’s uncanny gaze following the awesome trajectory of his voice… Because of […]
NPR FOR THE DEAF: We Hear It Even When You Can’t
FRESH AIR With both the cost of and demand for oil rising, nations with large energy reserves are redrawing political and military alliances, and oil-rich countries like Russia and Venezuela are enjoying greater influence. Michael Klare, author of Rising Power, Shrinking Planet, calls it the “new international energy order.”Klare is the director of the Five College Program in Peace and World Security Studies based at Hampshire College in Amherst, Mass. He is the author of several books, including Blood and Oil, which examines the danger of American’s dependence on foreign oil, and Rogue States and Nuclear Outlaws, a study of […]
WORTH REPEATING: Goddamn Right We’re Bitter!
BY JOHN BAER OF THE DAILY NEWS As a native-born, small-town Pennsylvanian, a son of native-born, small-town Pennsylvania parents — one from the coal region, one from Lancaster County — let me assure you that the so-called offensive, condescending things Barack Obama said about the people I come from are basically right on target. “Bitter” perhaps best describes my late mother, an angry Irish Catholic who absolutely clung to her religion. Dad, also a journalist, wasn’t really bitter as far as I know, but he sure liked to hunt. So, despite carping from Hillary Clinton and annoying yapping from her […]
I, POLLSTER: Phawker’s Hilariously Un-Scientific Pennsyltucky Primary Keystoned Cell Phone Poll
BY JONATHAN VALANIA A long time ago, in a Clinton campaign far, far away, James Carville famously declared that Pennsylvania is Pittsburgh and Philadelphia and Alabama in between. Aw, yeah: Pennsyltucky. We know thee well. It’s sort of like watching the Dukes Of Hazzard after smoking too much kielbasa. Like sweat socks with a Sunday suit. Like the Deer Hunter costumed by Wal-Mart. It’s the long dark Chicken Dance of the national soul. Lord help us all. Anyway, with the national press are already converging on the Keystone state to get some local color on their laptops, we feel an […]
UP AGAINST THE WALL: Cops Begin Stop n’ Frisk
INQUIRER: The Police Department began preparing officers last week to respond to Mayor Nutter’s promise to step up stop-and-frisk tactics to help rid the streets of illegal weapons. Department officials insist there is really nothing new to stop-and-frisk — the courts have long-established rules that set limits on pat-downs to protect the public from unreasonable searches. But Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey wants officers to increase the number of legal searches they conduct as part of a strategy the department calls “aggressive but intelligent policing.” “We’re not asking you to do anything illegal or unconstitutional in any way,” Lt. Francis […]