Signs of fall

I used to love this time of year. Falling leaves. The crisp morning air. The breathtaking colors. This year, of course, is an election year and so my favorite fall colors are interspersed with process reds and blues and whites springing up in great profusion all over my neighbors’ lawns and I’m sure yours as well. I guess that’s to be expected now.

But I’ve noticed this year those colors have also spread to the business district and now my local dry cleaner, beer distributor, hairdresser and gas station proudly tout their party choices right on their front lawns.

There were a few things Mother used to say should never be brought up in polite conversation and politics was one of them. Oh, sure, over the years, a business person or two with whom I had dealings would let slip some political remark or favorite candidate. Somehow that was okay.

But now the business community seems to flaunt their choices in my face and the faces of us all. And I for one don’t like it one bit. Business people should be more careful. Their front lawn advertising campaigns could have a negative effect on their customers. I mean what does one beer distributor offer that another doesn’t? Or a dry cleaner? Or a gas station? I’m not a loyal shopper and I don’t suppose too many of us are. I could easily see changing where I do business to someone whose political views are more compatible with my own. I could just pick another sign and start going there instead.

Maybe I’ll call my local merchants this week and tell them what I think about their signs and give them a day or two to remove them. If they don’t, come Election Day, I’m going to make my vote count. And, oh yes, I’ll be going to the polls as well. You might think about doing the same.
Eric M. Boswell
Lafayette Hill

The tale of two Philadelphias

There are many currents that flow through the body politic philadelphie; honest dialogue about race is not one of them. I see that lack of discussion predicated by the fact that criticized black politicians without fail use the race card when faced with honest and forthright questions about their actions / political / personal lives / and most important to me, their integrity.

Almost daily we are bombarded by accusations on the racist motivation of the federal probe. We all are well aware of how the FBI was used against Martin Luther King and others, both black and white during the 1960s. That was a shameful period that hopefully will never be revised. Equally as shameful and repugnant is how John Street and his Mt. Airy/Germantown bourgeois intelligentsia lackeys wrap themselves in the afterglow of Reverend King’s righteous struggle to deflect questions that should make everyone livid.

Are only white people supposed to be disgusted/upset with his “hiring” of his wife to a cushy job where she spent $60,000 on cherry furniture so that “people would leave with an impression of Philadelphia?” What about the million dollar contract that his brother received and that was later rescinded, yet he had the gall to deny that he used his influence to attain.

This election will define whether or not blacks in Philadelphia can look past their tumultuous relationship with Philadelphia and go with what is best for Philadelphia or continue with their myopic, narcissistic self-centeredness.

Whoever wins this election will inherit a massive crippling debt, one that is severe enough that conceivably could send Philadelphia into bankruptcy. Where has the surplus John Street started out with disappeared to? The one area that everyone across the political spectrum agrees the next mayor will have to do is to drastically slash the city work force from 25,000 to perhaps 20,000 or less. That is a fact, not political rhetoric. Is there anyone who honestly thinks that John Street has the leadership and fortitude to gut his political base?

Whether Philadelphia moves forward and embraces the future, or is shackled to the past because one part of Philadelphia is more concerned with “getting theirs,” is up to the voters of Philadelphia. I lived through Frank Rizzo, James Tate, etc. I understand and empathize with why blacks circled the wagon politically, but that was then and this is now. I also lived through the murderous criminal administration of Wilson Goode and watched with disbelief and utter complete amazement with how blacks and their intelligentsia lackeys voted and continue to do so.

I've always considered myself a Philadelphian.

Never was it my city, it was always our city. I wonder if selflessness toward the city and what is best for it is an indulgence of a middle class, middle-aged white man? Do blacks really care less about what is good for the city any more so than anyone else? Why then does it feel like the perception may be reality, but one must draw a different conclusion.

Race has defined and divided this election more so than any other in my memory. Yes, Virginia, there are two Philadelphias, one where half of the city wants the other half to acknowledge that their king has no clothes, whilst this other half furiously tries to wrap him up in an equally non-existent robe.
James Kelly
East Oak Lane

Pay to play

It strikes me as odd that some believe Sam Katz to be the perfect candidate to lead us away from “Pay to Play” politics. I don’t believe for a minute that Mr. Katz has ever broken the law in this regard. (Nor has Mayor Street.) But it is common knowledge that Mr. Katz is a highly successful businessman who is enormously well connected in political circles. He makes very generous campaign contributions. His friends in public office provide, on occasion, legislative favors.

The Philadelphia Inquirer, in its June 29, 2003 edition, reported on the California Indian Casino adventures of Mr. Katz and a group of anonymous investors. The story involved heavy-duty lobbying in Washington, helpful legislation from Senators Specter and Santorum, followed a year later by fulsome contributions from the Katz family to the senators ($10,000 to Santorum, a 10-fold increase from the year before, and $5,450 to Specter in both 2001 and 2002).

Mr. Katz himself speaks of his powers of political access. In the October 16 issue of the Philadelphia Public Record, during a campaign stop at a homeless shelter, he said, “Ed Rendell can’t deliver you a pizza. The relationships I have built with my friends in Harrisburg are more likely to bring money to our city.”

Are we to believe that these relationships were nurtured solely by chummy rounds of tennis or attendance at each other’s children’s birthday parties?
Elizabeth O. Olson
Chestnut Hill

Website helps

For almost a month now, coverage of the mayoral campaign has been filled with allegations and sensationalism.  Some have blamed the media, but frankly that’s not fair – it would be irresponsible of the media to ignore a story this big.

But the greater tragedy might be that the voters of Philadelphia elect one of these candidates without truly knowing what they stand for; what John Street and Sam Katz are actually proposing should they win the office.

With the circus atmosphere appearing as if it will continue right through to November 4^th, voters need somewhere to turn for good, solid, non-partisan information about where the candidates stand. I’d like to invite all your readers to visit www.IssuesPhiladelphia.net.

The website is an easy-to-read way to become informed about the key issues facing the city.  It offers critical information, and allows you to view the candidates’ views side-by-side. 

In a campaign season that has been very distracting, it allows voters an opportunity to move beyond the distractions and zero in on what truly matters – what the winner will do when he takes office.
David Thornburgh
Executive Director
Pennsylvania Economy League