inquirer: Philadelphia Metropolis

Sleight of Hand

It's early in the year, but I feel confident in predicting that the biggest political train wreck in Philadelphia in 2012 will be the AVI, the city's plan to reassess all properties to more closely reflect market value. AVI... (Comments)

Wretched Excess

We all end up with adjectives attached to our names.  Penn State football Coach Joe Paterno had a number of them -- beloved and legendary are two. He added another on Sunday, when he died at age 85.  He is... (Comments)

New-Wave Street Gangs: Armed and Violent

Longtime anti-crime activist Greg Bucceroni wears a three-inch-long scar on his forehead, a souvenir from the June 5, 2008 evening when more than a dozen members of the heroin-dealing "Bart Simpson" gang - named after the brand of dope they peddled - backed him against a concrete wall in West Kensington. Bucceroni wore a blue polo shirt inscribed with the words, Philadelphia Police Youth At-Risk Program that night as he walked toward the home of a troubled teenage boy he was mentoring. (Comments)

Guess Where I Am

Best of VoxPop» The other day when I was on the SEPTA R5 everyone was on the phone but me. The train car was filled with the cacophony of blather. All my fellow passengers were talking at once, each one-sided conversation more insipid than the last. Some typical remarks: "I'm on the train!" "The second apartment we saw was even smaller, but I loved the kitchen." "I'm on the train!" "You found the document? Great! Now make five copies and give them to Mark." "I just got on the train!" "The podiatrist was out of the office, but when the nurse saw my bunion, she..." "I'm on the train!" Okay. So you're on the train. Now, can you possibly shut up about it for two seconds? (Comments)

Whose Willie Was It?

My favorite story of Christmas week was about the Philadelphia Traffic Court judge escorted off the premises because he allegedly showed photos of his genitals to a female court employee. The appropriately named Willie Singletary was relieved of his judicial... (Comments)