TODAY I SAW…
[Photo by RACHAEL SHIRLEY] 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 […]
We Need A Pitcher Not An Underwear Stitcher
The Phillies, not that surprisingly, followed their recent stretch of good play by losing two of three to the Tigers over the weekend, and packed their bags as a third-place team once again for the road trip that began last night in Cleveland with Cole Hamels on the mound. As always with the Phils, things could be better, things could be worse. INQUIRER: Always Keep Your Eye On The Ball Not The Other Way Around
KILLADELPHIA: Stop & Frisk? You’re Soaking In It
What nobody mentioned is that stop-and-frisk — in which police stop people suspected of criminal activity and pat them down for illegal weapons — is already used by police in Philadelphia. “The idea of giving officers training to recognize [illegal] guns? That’s already in place,” said Lt. Fran Healy, a lawyer for the Police Department. Last year, Philly cops stopped 132,765 pedestrians, according to department data. Some of those stops would have involved a pat-down or an arrest. A rough analysis shows that Philadelphia averaged nine stops per 100 residents last year. New York City averaged six stops per 100, […]
KILLADELPHIA: Shooting The Messenger
It’s true, says Christopher Pearo. When you think you’re about to die, your life really does flash before your eyes. Pearo, 36, a newspaper-delivery driver for the Daily News and Inquirer, had just been robbed of $15 by two assailants and shot in the neck as he deposited papers yesterday in a locked drop-box at a deli at 64th Street and Buist Avenue, Southwest Philadelphia. DAILY NEWS: Stand And Deliver! RELATED: A 27-year-old man, who police said was one of the group, was beaten to death sometime early yesterday and left for someone else to find. Police found his body […]
FORT DIX SIX: 3 Surefire Ways To Get Bail Denied
Agron Abdullahu, one of the Fort Dix Six, scratched graffiti into the door of his jail cell that included an AK-47 assault rifle firing bullets at the letters “FBI,” prosecutors charged yesterday. They said he also etched the name of a town in Kosovo, his homeland, along with an Albanian acronym for the Kosovo Liberation Army, which prosecutors called a paramilitary organization with a history of war crimes. “The subject matter of the etchings alone is disturbing at best, and at worst demonstrates the volition of an individual predisposed to violence,” prosecutors wrote in a brief filed in federal court […]
GAYBO: Philly Radio Is Gayer Than Ever!
BY TOMMY ZANE GAYDAR EDITOR Is the buzz true — does Philly have a new “gay” radio station? Their name and slogan sound gay enough: “My 106.1 — Feel the energy!” Sounds like an ad for a Miami circuit party, if they could just cut the energy with GBH. A recent peek at an 11 a.m. weekday playlist includes ultra-’90s gay club hit “Show Me Love” by Robin S., equally queer ’90s diva Cathy Dennis with “Touch Me (All Night Long),” No Doubt’s “Hella Good,” and the unofficial overplayed song of 2006, “Unwritten” by uber gay Natasha Bedingfield. However, as […]
KILLADELPHIA: Two More Dead Since U Went To Bed
A 22-year-old man died this morning after being shot in the stomach in North Philadelphia. Police have also released the name of man fatally shot on Saturday. Today’s shooting took place shortly before 12:30 a.m. in the 3400 block of Huntington Street, Officer Beth DiDonato said. The victim was taken to Temple University Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 3:03 a.m., she said. The shooting raises the city’s homicide total for the year to 185. On Saturday, Pablo Hernandez 3d, 33, died after being shot in the thigh in the 500 block of Moore Street in South Philadelphia. Police […]
THE EARLY WORD: The Valerie Project
BY DAN BUSKIRK FILM CRITIC Next week Philly will reprazent at the Jarvis Cocker-curated Meltdown Festival, to be held in London’s prestigious Southbank Centre. After a week featuring resurrected rock acts Roky Erickson, The Stooges and Devo plus Beth Orton singing Disney tunes with Pete Doherty & Shane McGowan (for sake of their health please keep those two apart) the week will climax with with the Philadelphia conglomeration known as The Valerie Project sharing the bill with the former Pulp frontman’s closing set. Originally formed for a screening at UPenn’s I-House last year, The Valerie Project will tune up for […]
TODAY I SAW…
[Photo by RACHAEL SHIRLEY] 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 […]
“There’s a hole in Daddy’s arm where all the money goes/Jesus Christ died for nothing, I suppose.”
BY JONATHAN VALANIA FOR THE INQUIRER Funny how the more wars change, the more they stay the same. In 1968, at the height of the Vietnam War, John Prine, quintessential Americana songwriter, then fresh out of the Army and well-acquainted with the FUBAR Catch 22s of a soldier’s life, wrote “Sam Stone.” You may not recognize it from the title, but you have heard this song. Detailing the post-traumatic stress of a Vietnam vet all but abandoned by the country he nobly served, the lyric goes: “There’s a hole in Daddy’s arm where all the money goes / Jesus Christ […]
INFANTICIDE: Abortion By Commode
Sometime overnight, a 20-year-old woman squatted over a toilet, gave birth to a girl and left the infant submerged in the commode for an undetermined duration, said Lt. Philip Riehl of the homicide unit. “She gave birth to the child while seated on the toilet, but she did not immediately remove the child” from the toilet, Riehl said. The woman’s grandmother called 911 shortly after 7 a.m., and the baby was declared dead at the Hospital at the University of Pennsylvania at 7:20 a.m. The mother remained in stable condition there yesterday. DAILY NEWS: It’s Gonna Take A LOT Of […]
THE ANTI-WAR SONG MTV WON’T PLAY…
Because The Donuts gave it to us first! Take that Martha Quinn! Eat our New Media dust Viacom! Anyway, it’s called “Justice In The Desert” and the ‘Nuts insist this is the catchiest song about Haditha you will ever hear. We sure hope so. Catch ’em tonight at the Underground.