The world’s most famous convicted cop-killer will be spared the death sentence, as reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer.A federal appeals court refused to reinstate his death sentence, but didn’t reverse his murder conviction in the 1981 shooting of Philadelphia cop Daniel Faulkner.The convicted killer, who has earned world-renown for his activist past, having been a member of the controversial MOVE organization, and tested intellect, having written books and taped speeches from prison.He was convicted of the murder in 1982 by a Philadelphia jury for the killing of Faulkner, who was shot to death near 13th and Locust Streets early the morning of Dec. 9, 1981.He has found friends and supporters around the world, among them black nationalists and intellectuals, as well as social activists and death penalty abolitionists of all races. (For his part, Officer Daniel Faulkner has a Web site in his own name. His wife wrote a book with Michael Smerconish called “Murdered by Mumia“)That number may include Marc Lamont Hill, a self-described “public intellectual” and professor of hip hop and education at Temple. His well-trafficked blog published yesterday a surprisingly timed column by Abu-Jamal on the controversy Barack Obama has faced regarding Obama’s former pastor Rev. Jeremiah Wright. The column was dated March 15.According to the Inquirer article, the decision, which gained widespread attention as all Mumia news does, may be just another in a long line of court appearances.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled that Abu-Jamal must be sentenced to life in prison or get a chance with a new Philadelphia jury, which would decide only whether he should get life in prison or be sentenced – again – to death.

*Photo courtesy of Lou Jones for the Internationalist Amended (3/28/08 @ 11:18 a.m. EST) 

Last weekend, comedian Paul Mooney came to town to perform at Helium comedy club. Mooney portrayed Negrodamus on Chappelle’s Show. He also wrote many of Richard Pryor’s well known bits and also wrote for and performed in television shows and movies over the years. He performs racially charged material, offending many. It is a great show, and I would recommend for anyone to see it.

During one routine, Mooney talks about growing up in Louisiana and race relations in the South. In particular, he talks about how Southern white folks look upon their family trees with pride, the joke being that they only look. If they shake the tree, a person of mixed race will fall out, referring to the high incidence of the enslavers raping the enslaved; and, as Mooney puts it, post Civil War segregation being restricted to the daytime. Mooney’s words recalled a visit I took to a plantation outside New Orleans.

I visited four or five plantations during my time in Louisiana. For my Southern Literature class, we had to visit the Laura Plantation as a group. The eponymous Laura Locoul Gore was the last female owner from the original plantation family. The tour revolves around life as described in Laura’s memoirs. At one point, our tour stopped in a rooms so that the guide could answer questions. There was a large portrait of Laura hanging over the mantle. This was the first picture we had seen, and it seemed to clearly portray Laura as a person of mixed race. A fellow student decided to raise this point, asking if Laura had been a person of mixed race, shocking the tour guide. She began to answer the question, confabulating as she responded with a broken voice and averted eyes. She explained that the painting was older and not well maintained. Apparently as paintings age, white subjects have their features change to those of a mixed race person. We were all incredulous that she was trying to honestly tell us that the race of portrait subject changes over time. It was the highlight of our plantation tour and was more telling about racial issues in the area than any book I could have read.

Did anyone check that news story on our own Frank Baldino Jr., a Board of Trustees member who founded Cephalon Inc., a biotechnology and pharmaceuticals company, as reported by The Temple News?

The dude is getting sued by the Federal Trade Commission for what it calls “anti-competitive conduct.” Allegedly, Cephalon made an agreement with other companies to delay generic (*cheaper) production of the company’s Provigil, a sleep disorder drug.

Sounds a little peculiar, something that might originate behind closed doors in South Philly. Check this editorial cartoon video by TTN staffers.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-QGRKu_-xU 350 292]

After the Virginia Tech massacre, universities across the country, including Temple, saw the need for improved security. Last November, a trespasser allegedly assaulted a female student in Anderson hall. Building security became more strict. I visited Anderson four days later, and foot traffic had slowed as the security personnel inspected everybody’s ID. This was true in other buildings, as well.

I spend most of my graduate student life in Wachman Hall. At first, security was not exactly stellar. The jolly security guard on the ground floor rarely checked entrants. Last summer, he was finally replaced by more diligent personnel who became more strict after the assault. Would this tightening be permanent, or was it just for show? I was not optimistic; after the Anderson assault, I had observed a sign posted on the back door of 1810 Liacouras Walk (still there today) reminding entrants to check in with security. As a test, I entered that door on a couple of occasions and managed to get upstairs without anybody noticing.

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Some people seem to go out of their way to be offended. In recent letters to the editor, a number of readers express offense over a photograph from a rally supporting the Palestinian people. The reason: a lady in the scene holding a sign stating that “Zionism is racism.” A blurb below the picture explains setting and context of the photograph.

Let us be clear; this picture is a representation of something that did actually happen. A discussion about the nature of Zionism is beside the point. This lady held that sign on that day. Yet, judging by the reactions, one would think that Temple News had published a story titled This Just in: Jews Are Terrible! I read comments implying that Temple News is anti-Israel and careless for not allowing the Zionist folks to respond in defense. However, these readers miss the point. That picture does not represent a written opinion submitted to the paper. It is simply a picture of an event.

This whole micro-brouhaha reminds me of a story from my childhood. The best school near our neighborhood was Episcopalian. There were two Jewish families in our neighborhood; my family and our next door neighbors. At school, everyone had to go to chapel on Friday, but nobody was compelled to actually worship in any way. One day my father was chatting with the other Jewish father. The other father complained about talk of Jesus at the school and that making everybody go to chapel was anti-semitic. My father reminded the man that they had both chosen to send their kids to an Episcopalian school, and that he could always send his kids to the Jewish day school or to public school.

My point in telling this story is that our neighbor was actively seeking out imaginary slights against his Jewish identity, and that led him to make a ridiculous assertion. Stating that Temple News’ photographic documentation of this event is somehow an endorsement of an anti-Israel position is absurd. Furthermore, expending energy in a search for imaginary discrimination of any group distracts from recognizing those individuals who actually pose some real threat. The people who mean to do harm rarely advertise that fact or twiddle their villainous mustaches in public. Case in point: would anyone have expected to read allegations that Temple students committed an anti-semitic hate crime last week?

It was tough, moving here from Texas. I made a clean break from my Texan roots. I do not walk around wearing spurs, boots, or large cowboy hats because I felt I should blend in with the local populace. I hung up my buttless chaps because I did not think people here would understand. I also decided that I would have to part with my horse. So, I shot Mr. Sparkle and

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I am not from Pennsylvania; I am from Texas. So I can only write about this as a transplant citizen. I would like to recount an experience I had in South Philly recently. As the reader likely recalls, Geno’s Steaks generated controversy in 2006 with the sign stating to customers that “This Is America: When Ordering Please ‘Speak English’.”

I live just north of Geno’s; and, to me, the sign seemed to be a response to the burgeoning Hispanic presence in the area. In 2006, the Philadelphia Daily News quoted Joe Vento, proprietor, as stating “This was a predominantly Italian neighborhood, and for some reason it’s turning Mexican…They’re not speaking the language. It’s a big problem, and it’s getting worse.” This was in reference to a complaint about the sign from Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations. That is as much as I know about the controversy.

Last week, my friend Jose and his wife came town for a visit. They were excited to try some cheesesteaks from Pat’s and Geno’s. We initially ate at Pat’s. Jose and his wife ordered incorrectly, and the server made fun of them unmercifully but in good humor. Later, we went to Geno’s for comparison. Jose received cold, unfriendly stares. He ordered the sandwich incorrectly again, and the server snapped at him, telling him to order it “whiz wit!” The situation was a bit tense. I was surprised at the unexplained hostility, especially considering the cheerful demeanor of the Pat’s server. To top it off, the Geno’s cheesesteak was dry and flavorless. Pat’s had won that round in both quality and lack of hostility.

This situation was ambiguous and odd. My native Philadelphian friend, McMillain, reminded me that South Philly is known for that type if brash attitude, which might be mistaken for hostility. However, when comparing our experiences at Pat’s versus Geno’s, I felt this story was worth recounting. It seems to me that Geno’s does itself no favors by treating patrons with hostility and serving sub par cheesesteaks. I have ordered from Geno’s previously and never encountered that type of attitude.

Vento, like others before him, argues his position is simply a push for assimilation. That is fine and I understand that position; but why, then, do we repeatedly see these same people adopt a hostile posture towards the children of assimilated citizens who speak fluent English?

Apparently, a cop with the Philadelphia Police Department wanted his own little reminder of how he felt about half of the people living in Philadelphia. Scott Schweizer, who served on the narcotics team, is under investigation by the PD’s Internal Affairs after a white supremacist poster was found in his locker. The poster apparently showed a half cop, half Klansman figure with the caption “Blue by Day, White by Night.”

This should be an interesting test of new commish Charles Ramsey, and how he handles embarassing incidents. Ramsey could show that he takes community relations seriously by sacking Schweizer, if the investigation shows that he did indeed put up the poster, which tests show that he did. Community relations are probably the most important issue facing Philadelphia cops today, and this just might be the chance the Philly PD could use.