The school swaps deal: in which the Philadelphia School District participated in interest-rate swaps with some big banks, including Wells Fargo, and lost big when the 2008 crash hit. Ironically and obviously, the deals were supposed to save the district money. And, of course, here we are. Today. There’ve been multiple protests across the city against the swaps and a recent Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center report saying the total cost to the school system was about $331 million. Councilman Jim Kenney now wants to hold hearings on what happened and whether Philly can get some of that money back.
Landlords: There’s a loophole in City code that says you can still get a landlords’ license if your previous investments aren’t up to code. Councilman Bill Greenlee wants to close it.
There’ll be more hearings on the deteriorating conditions of the city police and fire stations, too.
The U.S. Department of Energy enacted a rule last year that’d require all new homes in 30 U.S. states to install high-efficiency furnaces. The rule is set to go into effect in May 2013 and Philadelphia Gas Works is not happy about that. The federal government says the rule will save everyone money in the long run.
Here’s a fun human interest story on why Philadelphia cabs are dirty and smell like very, very strong pine/bubble gum flavorings.
A man named Joel Blumer, of Holland, Pennsylvania, was opening up a check cashing business in North Philly on Saturday morning at 9 a.m. when he was shot twice in the neck and robbed. He later died at Temple Hospital.
Former Congressman and current Attorney General candidate Patrick Murphy is being criticized by CeaseFirePA for comments he made while receiving an endorsement from the Fraternal Order of Police and his pro-gun record in Congress. The above-linked article states that Murphy co-sponsored the federal ban on assault weapons during his four years – and that’s good, according to CFP – but he also voted to repeal Washington DC’s local firearms regulations after the NRA apparently got a hold of him. He recently told the Daily News, “either you believe in the Second Amendment or you don’t” — and that’s bad. He’ll get that ‘Tucky vote if it’s the last thing he does! That’s, well, it’s something all right.
Sad: Before he died, Andrew Breitbart promised a revelation about President Barack Obama that’d bring down his presidency. Many on the right have wondered if this is the reason he died, because the Obama Administration was so worried about the revelation, they went ahead and assassinated him. Well, the Breitbart media empire released the Obama info, and it’s a dud. This is it: State Senator Barack Obama went to a play 14 years ago that was about Chicago community organizer Saul Alinsky. The end. Seriously. That’s why the president of the United States had him killed. I, for one, will choose to remember Breitbart who told the media to go to hell when he exposed Anthony Weiner exposing himself. Not for this huge letdown.
Here’s a quote from an article about Traffic Court Judge Willie Singletary (the local guy who exposed himself): “At one point, Judge Willie owed $11,427 in fines for 55 traffic violations, including motoring without a license and reckless driving. His license was suspended until 2011, because he hadn’t paid his fines.”
Chaka Fattah Jr.’s life has not gone very well for quite some time, despite what he told people. Here’s an article about how he eventually became the subject of an FBI investigation. And then there’s this: “Agents are now asking about Fattah Jr.’s ties with politicians – including his father, Chaka Sr., the ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee.” There is now one mention of this story on NBC 10.com.
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