The West Philly Housing Crisis That Was Utterly Avoidable

The UC Townhomes fiasco features a wealthy, easy-to-blame institution; fact-challenged protestors; an elected official who may be in over her head, and a compromise solution everybody seems hell bent on ignoring

By Larry Platt

God $!%# The Queen!

By all accounts she was a lovely woman. But why is mourning her passing the only thing Americans agree on? Didn’t we kinda fight a war to escape the trappings of royalty?

By Larry Platt

John Fetterman and the Politics of Hypocrisy

Progressives who dismiss the lingering speech issues from the candidate’s stroke run the risk of embodying what they decry

By Larry Platt

Announcing Kenney 2.0

Jim Kenney can still reverse his legacy as a mayor who quit on his city. Here, the “Quality of Life” speech to Philadelphians he needs to make now.

By Larry Platt

The Enlightenment Is On The Ballot

Media needs to cover the values underpinning the gubernatorial campaign of Doug Mastriano, because business as usual “objectivity” won’t capture the looming threat to pluralism

By Larry Platt

New Blood: Matt Wolfe is Mad As Hell and Not Going To Take It Anymore

The longtime Republican gadfly has been tweaking the establishment of both parties for years. As an at-large candidate for City Council, he has declared war on the status quo

By Larry Platt

Joe Biden’s Master Class in … Politics?

Does the Biden administration’s recent winning streak, including the Inflation Reduction and CHIPS and Science Acts, contain an object lesson for Philly?

By Larry Platt

Is Democracy in Peril … Or Not?

There’s been a lot of handwringing over Democrats like Josh Shapiro trying to choose their MAGA general election opponents. But maybe we need a nationwide referendum on Trumpism, once and for all?

By Larry Platt