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Why did Dougherty's media consultants tell Ann Dicker to stay in the race? Anyone with half a brain knew it was to hurt Farness. Why is Dicker consulting with Dougherty's media consultants anyway? Isn't corruption something she is sworn to oppose? No one is more corrupt than John Dougherty! It was obvious that Ann Dicker was in bed with the Dougherty campaign. I am so happy that she was exposed for the fraud that she is and I hope this is the last we hear of that "Has Been" Ann Dicker let me rephrase the correct term is probably that "Never Was" Ann Dicker!

“I know it’s been a tough year,' wow gold said, as he thanked fans for helping vote him onto the Eastern Conference All-Star team. “But it won’t last forever.'’

It only seems that way.

J.R. Smith made a career-best eight 3-pointers and scored 28 points, Kenyon Martin added 24, and the Denver Nuggets edged the Miami Heat 114-113 in overtime Tuesday night — sending the 2006 NBA champions to their 23rd loss in 24 games.

Carmelo Anthony scored six of his 22 points in overtime for Denver.

“We finished the game out,'’ Anthony said. “That’s what matters.'’

Wade had game-highs of 29 points and 10 assists,power leveling but missed a 22-footer at the buzzer for the Heat, who led by 14 in the first half before seeing it slip away.

“It would have been fun,'’ Heat coach Pat Riley said. “But it didn’t go in.'’

Wade dove over the first row of seats in a futile effort to grab a loose ball late in overtime, but he came up just short — a harbinger of what awaited Miami.

On that possession, Anthony Carter made two wow power leveling?free throws, putting the Nuggets up by two with 1:26 left. Anthony added two more free throws with 54.1 seconds to play, before Ricky Davis’ 3-pointer with 33.6 seconds left got Miami within a point.

Anthony missed with about 10 seconds remaining,logo design Miami controlled the rebound and Wade dribbled up the left side of the floor to one of his favorite spots — with Riley not electing to call time-out.

But the shot rimmed out, and Miami left disappointed once again.

Comic Energy, the winner of MyFoxPhilly Hot List for #1 Comedy Club in Philadelphia continues their awesome 8th season in Philly on January 26th with their most exciting production to date.

The troupe is going back to the 80's in 100 percent 80's fashion. The show which runs an hour and a half is total nostalgic from the costumes of the cast to the sketch parodies which range from Night Court to Golden Girls.

"And don't forget The Karate Kid and Back To The Future", says JD Daly producer of the show.

Comic Energy has been a very busy crew the past few months. After opening their season at Doc Watson's in September, they have been performing a brand new sketch comedy show every Tuesday night on South Street as well as performing a monthly themed show at Doc Watsons.

"Every month we have been doing very well at Doc Watson's. I give a lot of credit to the cast and crew for not only their creative input but the talent, so much talent to take these ideas off paper and make them come to life", says Daly.

There is no doubt that this performance will be an exciting one as the troupe gears up for their first sketch a parody and a Back to The Future opening.

Tickets for "Back To The 80's" are only $10 and are available by calling the Comic Energy ticketline at 215-397-3040, or by reservation at www.comicenergy.com, also visit the website for more production and troupe information.

I went down to watch the fans down at Citizens Bank Park as the Rockies came to town to take on the hometown Phillies. Philly has some of the craziest fans in the country and I was wandering through them for about 90 minutes.

As you can see by the photo above, fans made all kinds of excuses to make it down for the 3p game. Unfortunately, the Phills didn't come out on top. But tomorrow, at 3p again, is another game. Let's see if the Phillies can bring a nice parade down Broad Street. This city needs it.

What did you think of the game? Were you there? Where'd you sit? What's going to happen in Game 2?

Click here to see the gallery of photos.

I am so very behind the times when I need Rolling Stone to tell me that a tune from PJ Harvey's forthcoming piano-based record Under The Chalk has leaked onto the internet a month ago.

What the hell?

Luckily, the internet forgives and provides. Check out a rather transfixing performance of "When Under Ether" on YouTube or stream the leaked track at CK, and then head to Philly-based mp3 blog Some Velvet Blog to check out the cover and tracklist of Chalk.

I really like it. I'm looking forward to the huge number of Tori comparisons her record draws, as if PJ is suddenly a pianist - the entire point of her is that every album is completely different.

(Also discovered in my mad PJ hunt - The Yellow Stereo. Very good music writing, and taste.)

This blog was excerpted from Crushing Krisis. You can also read the original version. Or, subscribe to the Crushing Krisis RSS feed via your favorite feed reader (or, friend it on LiveJournal).

It was Wednesday night and what better thing did I have to do than to head to a potluck dinner with 2007 Philadelphia mayoral candidates Al Taubenberger (R) and Michael Nutter (D)? Pictured above are eight of the ten Philadelphians who made it out for the potluck dinner/discussion with the candidates at the center of the shot. But how did we all get to this South Philly home for the dinner? Let's back up a sec.

Great Expectations is a joint venture between the Inquirer and the UPenn Project on Civic Engagement; the full project description here. After the primaries back in May, then editorial page editor Chris Satullo ran into Democratic primary winner Nutter at a restaurant. Nutter brought up the idea of a series of get-to-know-you dinners in neighborhoods all around Philly. Great idea, but one condition, Satullo said, Taubenberger's gotta be there too. And thus the potluck dinners were born. How'd I end up in the fray? Well, you write 3,100 posts over the course of three or so years, you piss some people off, you make some people happy and maybe, just maybe, you get noticed by someone with some juice and maybe, just maybe, those someones have someone send you an email asking you to trot down to South Philly with your gear and have some free grub. Who could say no? Back to the dinner. Satullo segued into South Philly by quoting colleague and Philadelphia legend, and South Philly native, Acel Moore, that there are two kinds of people: those from South Philly and those who wish they were from South Philly. Since I don't wish I was from South Philly, I guess I'm from South Philly. Go figure, I thought I was from NY -- I learn something new from the Inky almost every day.

It just gets better and better! We were lucky again to have a beautiful day for the July 7th Canvas Clash, and the turn-out this time was double what it was in June. We had Dave Mass, John Fitzpatrick, and Dewey Saunders composing a green roof theme on a 10′ x 4′ canvas, and Bob, Nose, and Toro were getting down on two steel tanks. Big thanks to all of our sponsors, and to all the nice newspaper write-ups we got.

Don’t miss the final Canvas Clash this Saturday, August 4th - we have Leon Rainbow, Kasso, Vorcan, Todd Marrone, and SAGAMOOR painting, a whole bunch of new art vendors, and FREE burgers and hot dogs from Flexcar! With the help of Mural Arts Program, Pose2 will be there, starting a mural on the back wall where the canvas was in July. So, gather some friends and come check out the art, grab some food, and maybe even some sun!

The cast will look much different come Season 8.

Comic Energy is using the offseason to revamp their cast and
organization for season 8, opening in September.

"Expect many changes", says director JD Daly.

The changes are already apparent as the South Philly group has
been filming many sketches as of recent, and have plans to
participate in upcoming sketch festivals all over the country.
Among these include the Toronto Sketch Fest, The Underground Comedy
Festival in NYC, the Los Angeles Sketch Comedy Fest, and some
undisclosed film festivals.

The troupe is also excited about the production of their first
feature film, "Reminance of School Days", slated for production
in November 2007 in Philadelphia.

"There is a lot to be excited about from a directorial stand point,
this is the first time that I will have the opportunity to mold what
I believe will be the cast that will have the ability to shock the
country", says Daly.

The only cast members confirmed to be part of this new cast is Daly,
Mike Ford, Frank Fral, and Fluffy Locke. The troupe has also brought
back a few names from the past including Norman Schultz and Kim Daviss.

Daly hinted at the possibility of being re-united with some other old faces
from the past. Some names being mentioned by the Comic Energy
creative team include Louis DiSalvo, Nick Deluca, Katie Boyer and
most notably Comic Energy favorite Walter Threadgill.

"The summer is all about improving, and accomplishing our list of
goals we have set forth for the offseason, and I believe we are on
track to getting to where we need to be", says Daly.

With season 8 only 2 months away the troupe has much to do. Comic Energy has
been filming since the beginning of summer and has entered in video
compeitions including Jim Biederman's Sketch Comedy Showdown on dailymotion.com,
and various pilot competitions from Comedy Central and NBC.

"We have been filming brand new sketches I would day on average 4 nights a week.
And many of the ideas we have comeup with has been through a group process."

The troupe is consistently updating their myspace account with new sketch material.
Most recently their sketch on the Phillies 10,000th loss which occured Sunday
night in South Philadelphia.

To view some of Comic Energy's latest sketches, please visit them on myspace
at www.myspace.com/comicenergyphilly.

Coming off last months very successful "MarchAmania!!!", Comic Energy continues their 7th season with a very exciting show surrounded by a money theme titled, 'Comic Energy's On The Money!".

The show begins with President Bush (JD Daly) worriesome and sad about leaving the office (when his term is up), he is comforted by Vice President Cheyney (Patrick Reber), after pondering a way to mark his legacy President Bush comes up with a historical tribute to his presidential terms.

The show also features the return of crowd favorite "Patches the $#%&in'" Clown. In this installment of the Patches trilogy, he is hired to perform at a 32nd birthday party, lets say theres more than balloon blowing on his mind!

Mystery also fills the air, as Jim has been killed and the cast doesn't know who would do such a horrible thing. Riddled with questions and ineasiness the cast calls on Sherlock Holmes...only one problem Sherlock is dead, so Comic Energy called on "MarchAmania!!!" favorite Billy...Billy(Frank Fral) starred in MarchAmania as Peter Pan, and plays Sherlock Holmes in this delightful 2-part mystery sketch that will keep you guessing and laughing at the same time!

The show also has some very funny commercials including "No-O-Hair Creme", a sketch written by Caroline Simmons, and the always witty Comic Energy News.

The very talented cast of Comic Energy includes: Jonathan Bissett, Jillian Dain, JD Daly, Mike Ford, Frank Fral, Patrick Reber, and Caroline Simmons!

"Comic Energy's On The Money" will be performed THIS Saturday night April 28th 9pm at DanceAdelphia (11th and Snyder Avenue) in South Philadelphia. Tickets are only $10! Call 215-514-7508, or visit us online to see videos and reserve your seats at www.comicenergy.com,spaces are limited, reserve your seats today!

Comic Energy: Come see what the fuss is all about!

Coming off last months very successful "MarchAmania!!!", Comic Energy continues their 7th season with a very exciting show surrounded by a money theme titled, 'Comic Energy's On The Money!".

The show begins with President Bush (JD Daly) worriesome and sad about leaving the office (when his term is up), he is comforted by Vice President Cheyney (Patrick Reber), after pondering a way to mark his legacy President Bush comes up with a historical tribute to his presidential terms.

The show also features the return of crowd favorite "Krunkie" (Mike Ford), who played a telemarketer (who sold cocaine, instead of the circus tickets) in the "MarchAmania!!!" installment. In 'Money' Krunkie returns as a guest on American Idol.

News Item:
English-only cheesesteak fight goes on.

That's right, we're not in Baghdad, not in Mozul, or Tikrit, we're at 9th and Passyunk Avenue in South Philadelphia, where early last summer, Joe Vento, the owner of Geno's Steaks, made national news by posting a sign on his sandwich shop.

If you've never been to that particular corner of the city, two steak shops, Geno's and Pat's, sit opposite each other at the intersection, and each does a landmark business. At any time of the day, in almost any kind of weather, the lines at the order windows can be half a block long, or longer. Vento posted the sign in question at about the same time illegal immigration started gathering headlines. It's more than obvious the sign was meant to make a statement. It reads -

This is America.
When ordering, please speak English.

Plain, simple, and to the point.

When the sign hit the news, it caused a national debate, and the Philadelphia Human Relations Commission got involved. Why? We're guessing the city wasn't all that pleased with the kind of publicity the sign was bringing. This is the City of Brotherly Love, after all. Maybe it was Be Kind to Humans Week too, we're not sure, but in any event, the Commission charged Vento with discrimination.

There's no doubt that the sign itself was the basis for the charge. The Commission couldn't really expect a bunch of kids taking orders at a fast food joint to understand customers who didn't speak english. Could they? Sounds silly, right? I mean, human relations and all aside. So it had to be the sign, and more likely than that, Vento's refusal to take the sign down.

Eventually, the media hoopla and nightly news coverage faded, and things went back to normal on 9th street. Customers kept ordering their steaks 'with' or 'without' [cheezewhiz, that is]. That's the way the ordering process goes, "One wit', two wit'out", and yes, there is a another sign, explaining the procedure, which customers will hopefully adhere to. Now don't get me wrong, the folks working the counter aren't as strict about the rules as say, the Soup Nazi from Seinfeld, and placing your order as outlined on the sign does keep the line moving. You order, you eat, you burp. That's what 9th and Passyunk is all about.

On January 31st of this year, a full six months after the story first broke, Vento was notified that the Human Relations Commission is going to proceed with the case. They apparently have decided that he, and his sign, are in violation of the city's Fair Practices Ordinance, a law which prohibits discrimination in employment, public accommodation, and housing, on the basis of race, ethnicity, or sexual orientation. On that basis, as it's outlined, there should be no case here at all. There is no record of any of Vento's employees ever filing discrimination charges, there's no evidence that any customers have been turned away, and they certainly aren't housing anyone behind where the sandwiches are made.

It's all about the sign, and political correctness, there's no other logical explanation, and if political correctness does happen to win out in this case, that could set an ominous precedent for business owners. Will employers, in the future, be required to hire employees who cannot speak english? Will employees, existing and new, who deal with the public on a daily basis, have to be fluent in more than one language? How many languages will be required in order to appease? Which languages will be 'correct', and who decides?

I know, I know... that all may sound a bit far-fetched, but is it, in today's political climate? Every snowball I ever made, back when I was a kid, gathered weight, and momentum, as it rolled down the hill.

Link: Courier Post

Cartoon from Sid in the City

News Item:
Philly Mummers - Clear Skies - 70 Degrees

Tradition was set back one week this year, because of the rain on New Years Day, but tradition dies hard in South Philadelphia, and the gods smiled on Broad Street today. If you have to have a parade, in Philly, in January, this was the day to have it. The Mummers have strutted their stuff in the snow, in the sleet, and in sub-freezing temperatures. Today they marched on City Hall like it was the first day of spring, and they had a lot of company. The crowds around Broad and Snyder, Broad and Oregon, and in other neighborhoods as well, overflowed the sidewalks. Balmy winter days will do that.

If you're not from the Philadelphia area, and are wondering what the heck a Mummer is, there's parade info linked below. Judging from the faces we saw, as we wandered the streets for 5 or 6 hours, a good time was had by all, and that goes double for Sid :)

Parade Info: Mummers.com

Cartoon from Sid in the City

Ciao a tutti e felice anno nuovo!
We are adding to our website a new section that describes the settlement of italian immigrants from that area of Abruzzo into Philadelphia. I hope that my blog will reach those with information, images, memories, etc to share that we may use on the website (http://torricellapeligna.com/)

Our website is the most comprehensive for researchers of family history from Torricella; it has a huge collection of genealogical records, music, art, poetry, phptographs of people and scenery, recipes, links to other Torricellani, etc etc.

If your family is from that area, you can learn and you can help us grow this new section with your memories, stories, and photos.

a presto!
Felice anno nuovo!
...Albert Porreca

News Item:
Woman wishes others a very miserable season.

Kelo vs City of New London. Heard of it? It was a very high profile eminent domain case that was decided in June of last year. Susette Kelo was determined not to move from her little pink cottage to make room for a waterfront project in Connecticut, but the Supreme Court voted against her, so she gave up her homestead, assessed at somewhere around $100,000 dollars, for a settlement of $442,155.00.

While she did lose her ground, Susette didn't lose her house. As part of the settlement, it's being moved to a new location. From the old spot, she apparently had a nice view of the river, and it seems she still misses that. A special Christmas card was sent out to those who opposed her in court, and the message was less than jolly.

Your houses, your homes, your family, your friends.
May they live in misery that never ends.
I curse you all. May you rot in hell.
To each of you I send this spell.

Now whether or not the recipients of the cards deserved such holiday greetings, we won't get into right here. I'm just glad we never get those kind of wishes. Although, there was that one card postmarked North Korea, and the other one with the Iranian stamp, then there was that box of cuban cigars that that tasted kind of funny, and...

Full Story: Philly.com
Case history: Kelo vs New London

Cartoon from Sid in the City