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or How I Got a New Mic Stand Great writings need no preface, so I figured I'd need one for this (har har). I suppose you'll notice that in the editorial below, I refer to the events of the last week in August using the present tense...I'm not on drugs, I promise. It's just that I wrote this little piece during the epic Siege of the Republicans, aka the GOP Convention, here in Philly. Thought you all might enjoy an honest (modest) point-of-view of what went on there, as it happened. But, I promise to use more interesting tenses in the future...like future-perfect...now, THERE'S an interesting tense. Anyway, here's my bedtime story: "Hide your women and children!" warned the front of the 7/26 issue of Philadelphia Weekly, "The Republicans are coming!!" This cover of the free periodical, which also depicted a disgruntled street sweeper cleaning up a vagrancy left behind by an elephant with the caption "GO HOME!" seems to reflect a major faction of sentiment towards the Republican National Convention that is (more or less) amicably holding our city hostage as I write this. Philly has been a predominantly Democratic town for as long as I can remember. Democrats don't like Republicans. Therefore, Philadelphia wants this thing over, right? Is it really that simple? Can the source of this city-wide angst be this simple to pinpoint? Is it really city-wide? Well, with an trip of errands towards the convention center already planned, I was in a perfect position during my lunch hour to uncover the mysteries and apparent infamy of the Republican Empire. To understand this urban tension, perhaps we should examine our current events. For those of you not watching the news or not in tune with Philly's happenings, it has been a rocky month to say the least. Well, I'm sure you're tuned in to the beating of Thomas Jones by police as they tried to subdue him for arrest. Debate still lingers on public sidewalks and in the relative safety of coffee break rooms as to who was at fault, who deserves what, etc...easily a source of tension. Add upon that a recent incident in which a homeless man was shot to death by transit police in a subway terminal, the announcement of a strike by the city's trash pick-up services, and the mounting tension stemming from the city's proposal of a new stadium that would practically turn Chinatown into a parking lot. Of course, all of these issues are met with the prospect of an estimated 50,000 people entering Philadelphia for this convention, and countless forecasts of gridlock and doom for public transportation as a result. Add |