[Hat tip to SCOTT COLAN] NEW YORK TIMES: It is a sorry fact of American political life that campaigns get ugly, often in their final weeks. But Senator John McCain and Gov. Sarah Palin have been running one of the most appalling campaigns we can remember. They have gone far beyond the usual fare of quotes taken out of context and distortions of an opponent’s record — into the dark territory of race-baiting and xenophobia. Senator Barack Obama has taken some cheap shots at Mr. McCain, but there is no comparison. […] We certainly expected better from Mr. McCain, who […]
CINEMA: A Comedy Of Terrors
VARIETY: Oliver Stone’s unusual and inescapably interesting “W.” feels like a rough draft of a film it might behoove him to remake in 10 or 15 years. The director’s third feature to hinge on a modern-era presidency, after “JFK” and “Nixon,” offers a clear and plausible take on the current chief executive’s psychological makeup and, considering Stone’s reputation and Bush’s vast unpopularity, a relatively even-handed, restrained treatment of recent politics. For a film that could have been either a scorching satire or an outright tragedy, “W.” is, if anything, overly conventional, especially stylistically. The picture possesses dramatic and entertainment value, […]
PETTY OFFICER: The Dimming Of John McCain’s Halo
PHAWKER: Why not just call him ‘boy’? WALL STREET JOURNAL: Obama spokesman Bill Burton sent a one-line message to reporters after McCain made the comment that said, “Did John McCain just refer to Obama as ‘that one’?” And again at the conclusion of the debate, the Obama campaign emailed reporters, “Did John McCain refer to Obama as ‘that one’?” Obama campaign manager David Plouffe also referenced the remark in his post-debate statement. “John McCain was all over the map on the issues, and he is so angry about the state of his campaign that he referred to Barack Obama as […]
TONITE: Get Up, Old Man! Get The Fuck Up!
[Artwork by FLYOVERSTATE] Tune in tonight for the snarkiest bi-coastal debate coverage on the Internet! You may not learn anything, but it will make you feel better. Tonight’s analysts will be JONATHAN VALANIA and JEFF DEENEY on the East Coast (Philadelphia, to be exact) and CITIZEN MOM who will be watching from the West Coast (Portland, to be exact). Starts around 9 PM. You betcha! UPDATE: The insta-polls, which provide viewers with a somewhat skewed but important insight into how each candidate fared say, by and large, that Obama scored a victory in the second debate. MORE deeney: whaaaaaaaaaaaaaa?????? HE […]
NPR FOR THE DEAF: We Hear It Even When You Can’t
[Illustration by ALEX FINE] FRESH AIR Author and activist Antonia Juhasz argues that the oil industry’s grip on policy and government has never been stronger. What’s more, Juhasz says, the business and politics of oil’s production pose such grave implications on so many fronts — the environment, human rights, the economy, worker safety, public health — that the current state of petroleum-industry affairs is fundamentally antithetical to democracy. Juhasz, a fellow at the petro-critic organization Oil Change International and at the Institute for Policy Studies, documents her concerns — and lays out proposed remedies — in her new book, The […]
HEAR YE: Bob Dylan Tell Tale Signs
DAN DELUCA: Bob Dylan’s new album isn’t exactly a new Bob Dylan album. Instead, Tell Tale Signs: Rare and Unreleased, 1989-2006 (Columbia ***½), is one of those alternative-history compilations, like the Beatles’ Anthology series or Bruce Springsteen’s Tracks, that considers a major artist’s career from an off-center angle, using unreleased cuts and little-heard gems to take a fresh look at a musical titan who, in this case, has been hiding in plain sight for decades. Tell Tale (a.k.a. “The Bootleg Series, Vol. 8”) is the most prominent of a clutch of new releases hitting stores today. It covers the startlingly […]
PALIN LAND: The Gloves And The Hoods Are Off
WASHINGTON POST: CLEARWATER, Fla. — “Okay, so Florida, you know that you’re going to have to hang onto your hats,” Sarah Palin told a rally of a few thousand here this morning, “because from now until Election Day it may get kind of rough.” You betcha. And the person dishing out the roughest stuff at the moment is Sarah Palin. “I was reading my copy of the New York Times the other day,” she said. “Booooo!” replied the crowd. “I knew you guys would react that way, okay,” she continued. “So I was reading the New York Times and I […]
SMELLS LIKE JOURNALISM: How The Justice System Killed A Woman For The Crime Of Schizophrenia
[Photo by LINDA DG] INQUIRER: Sandy Morgan didn’t have a receipt when she walked out of the Boothwyn Wal-Mart with more than $500 worth of dolls, toys and girls’ clothes. In her mind, she didn’t need one. She owned Wal-Mart, she told a manager who tried to stop her. Sandy knew things others didn’t. She knew she owned many stores and she knew the television transmitted demons. She took care to protect her family: She threatened the demons with knives and a broken mop handle; she threw away food she was sure was poisoned. It was a strain, fighting things […]
ROAD RAGE: Dad Shot In Head As Daughter Watches
DAILY NEWS: Thomas Timko, 40, remains in critical condition at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania after being shot in the head by an enraged motorist shortly after 8 p.m. Sunday. Timko, of Lebanon, N.J., had just passed over the Walt Whitman Bridge and was traveling westbound on Interstate 76 into Philadelphia with his 8-year-old daughter when he pulled his Toyota Highlander over to the shoulder for an unknown reason, said Lt. Frank Vanore, city police spokesman. Soon after, he merged back into traffic and engaged in an argument with another motorist near the Passyunk Avenue exit, Vanore said. […]
Top 5 Reasons Death Cab Was Better Than Whatever Post-Emo Casino Floorshow You Caught Last Night
TAXI TO THE DARK SIDE: Death Cab For Cutie, House Of Blues, Atlantic City, Last Night 1. Death Cab for Cutie invited the ever-charming St Vincent to open the show, and she succeeded in charming the very skinny pants off the entire skinny pants collective that was the crowd. Smart pickin’s by the Seattle quartet! 2. Death Cab for Cutie’s latest record, Narrow Stairs, translates exceptionally to the stage–something 2005’s painfully boring “Plans” cannot say. The upbeat new single “No Sunshine” and “Long Division,” along with the full ten-minute version of “I Will Possess Your Heart,” were standouts of […]
CONCERT REVIEW: Untucked At Tuxedo Junction
BACK IN THE DAY: Philadelphia Orchestra, March 2nd, 1916 BY DAVE ALLEN I though that jeans and an untucked dress shirt might fly at a new-music event: the kickoff concert for Orchestra 2001’s 20th-anniversary season, held at the Perelman Theater on Friday. Nope. Suits and ties ruled the night, even by the few age-group peers in the crowd (I later found out they were students of one of the evening’s performers). But no matter: even if formality held sway in the audience, the evening’s program, including two world premieres, was bound to shake things up. The concert opened with a […]
GRIM: Inky/DN Owners Miss Second Debt Payment
STANDARD & POOR’S: New York, Oct. 2 (LCD) – Philadelphia Media Holdings earlier this week missed a Sept. 30 deadline to make interest and principal payments due on its senior loans, sources said. The company had been operating under a loan forbearance agreement that ran through Sept. 10. That forbearance was not extended.The newspaper concern has not been able to access its revolving credit due to a covenant breach. The RC was reduced to $35 million as part of the waiver agreement. Philadelphia Media in early June did not make an interest payment on a mezzanine loan after senior lenders […]
BYKO: Who Let The Dawgs Out?
BYKO: Curious: Who took the revealing vacation pictures obtained by Cole and lovingly posted on the station’s Web site? All 14 pictures show [City Councilman Wilson Goode Jr. and legislative aide Latrice Bryant], in casual clothes — down to a skimpy sundress and a bikini for her — during an August 2005 trip to Jamaica. Did they work on legislative affairs day and night? Or just affairs? Several City Council observers were stunned by the pictures. “It’s the first time I’ve ever seen him smiling,” said one. And, boy, was he smiling. Hell, even I’m smiling. In six shots, Bryant […]