Sanctuary City
Is Philly still sanctuary city? Inquirer misses a key point
Like it or not, illegal immigration is against the law, no matter how some try to deny it
Soda tax
Predictably, the soda tax failed to deliver
When the tax was enacted, it was projected to generate about $91 million a year. Can you say pipe dream?
Justice
Closing chapter on my one-time friend, Josh Kruger
I come to bury Josh Kruger, not to praise him. Save the hash about not speaking ill of the dead. Kruger was a child molester who groomed a 15-year-old boy. I wrote about him twice before. Briefly in March 2022, when I explained that the Philadelphia Weekly alternative publication was
Frank Rizzo
Update: Frank Rizzo statue deal set to close
Updating a story published on Jan. 24, 2024: Crusading lawyer George Bochetto, who brought suit against the city on behalf of the Frank L. Rizzo Monument Committee, tells me a deal to return the statue to its rightful owner will be signed “within the next few days.” The city will
Middle East
Some good news about campus protests
As we wallow in the bad news about pro-Hamas demonstrations on campuses, there is good news. The campus encampments have a ‘sell-by” date: The academic year is almost over. Even if nothing is done, the encampments will melt away in the summer heat. But that does not mean that university
Cherelle Parker
Mayor Parker busting the personnel budget
While Cherelle Parker — Philadelphia’s 100th and first Black female mayor — promised no new taxes in her first budget address, she did not mention that she was more than doubling the mayor’s budget, a move that even the friendly Inquirer described as “unusual.” Her budgeted staff is exploding from
Cherelle Parker
Parker offers a no-nonsense city budget
By tradition, the legacy media waits 100 days to assess the performance of a new president, governor, or mayor. I’ll jump the gun with my assessment of Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker who is (say it all together now) the city’s 100th mayor and first female mayor and Black
Education
Stats show the Philly soda tax was a fizzle
There it was, on Page One of the Inquirer’s local section, the unsurprising headline: “Philly tops in cities that saw beverage sales drop with soda tax.” Other soda-tax cities reported similar results. Not surprising because anyone who has mastered Economics 101 knows that the more heavily an item is
Mummers
The Mummers: Get the facts straight
I wake up this morning to two predictable items — the Mummers Parade, and the Inquirer throwing shade. Does the “paper of record” celebrate the nation's oldest folk parade, and the #1 winter festival, according to USA Today this year? It does not mention either. Demonstrating its menstrual cramps,
Politics
Kenney’s somewhat dented crowning achievement
It’s a jolly time of the year and the holiday spirit infuses the Philadelphia Inquirer’s series evaluating Jim Kenney, Philadelphia’s 99th mayor. Cherelle Parker thinks she’s Philadelphia’s first female mayor. Some think Kenney, that oft-blubbering mass of emotion, beat her to it. The Friday Inquirer
Politics
Why elect Chicken Cherelle, when we could have reformer Oh?
I’ve got a new recipe for you, although not for your oven. It’s called Chicken Cherelle, and it’s for your political pot. Cherelle Parker can’t hear calls for more debates. (Photo: CBS News) The dish is named for Cherelle Parker, the entitled and privileged Democratic candidate
Jim Kenney
Correction
In a previous post, I reported that Mayor Jiim Kenney made no statement about the atrocious attack on Israel by Hamas. My search turned up no statement, but I was wrong. He did tweet this statement on Oct. 9. I regret the error and I apologize. I have deleted the