Grrrr!!!!! I usually give these bleeding heart types a dirty stare when I see them whip out their bill folds and dump money into the hands of these bums. Of course they're too busy rejoicing in thier "good deed" to notice. I can't believe how naive these people are. Don't they know that there are homeless shelters for the people who are trully homeless? Don't they know that many of the bums on the street are addicts just hitting people up for money? I was once told by someone that he witnessed one such "good samaritan" whip out his wallet and give a bum $25 dollars (even counting it out in $5 increments) and then ask the bum "is that enough?". I guess this is one thing I'll never understand about Philadelphia. For a tough town where people are supposed to be street smart there are way too many bleeding heart "good samaritans" who are way too easily conned by these bums. I guess its all in the name of "brotherly love".

>>"Is that enough"

That seals it! I'm quitting today and setting up shop on avenue of the wackos. I'll be the guy with the three legged dog, an eye patch and a beat up old accordian. Please give as you see fit.

__________________
Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want and deserve to get it good and hard. - H.L. Mencken

I'll give you my foot up your a$$.

__________________
Jason
Lynn Swann 06'

"Individualism is absent when other peoples' standards, not reality and reason, are ones primary guide."

five,
I'm not so sure it is as bad as this board sounds but I think you'll have to figure that out for yourself. I spend realtively little time on market so I can't say for sure (there isn't much on market that is worthwhile anyways.) but I have relatively few problems. Most of the wackos I've seen are on Market or the sparsely inhabited/used North Broad St. I love walking down Walnut/Pine to Rittenhouse Square (I'm hoping once the St James is done that Washington Square will start to take on some of the characteristics that make Rittenhouse so enjoyable.) My girlfriend rarely has any problems though sometimes she feels uncomfortable (she is not an ex-New Yorker.) I also have a little hope that things may change come Nov. 4. I'm not a Republican but it is these sorts of things that Street has done a terrible job. Under Rendell/Timoney it seems that these things were getting better. Under Street/johnson these things have gotten worse. I've learned that Johnson doesn't use crime stats nearly as much and arrests are down. I read in the CP that any homeless person that wants a place can get it. They are out there b/c 1) they are crazy or 2) they are not homeless and are just making money. I don't know if more of the blame goes to Street or Johnson but we need change. I also have hope that if the convention Center can recover, that area will be better policed. As I said though, please make your own opinions and be sure to share them with us.

El -

I am definitely one to form my own opinion. Heck, the crime stats I read about were enough to give me pause before I even started packing. :lol:

But as a New Yorker (New Yorkers are never ex-NYers, by the way), :wink: I have a pretty thick skin about most of these things.

Not crazy about finding 'questionable characters' on my stoop occasionally, but as long as they're not violent or bothering me, I can live with it. Not crazy about the porno bookstore across the street, but I can live with that too. If people mind their business and leave me alone, I'm more than happy to do the same. It's become apparent to me that I somehow moved into what seems to me to be one of the few 'questionable' blocks in this area.

I feel sorry for the restaurant and store owners here, though, because I'm sure they're not crazy about having all these characters hovering around.

As for Republicans, they don't generally do much for me, either -- however, if Market Street is the way it is because of the current mayoral administration, then I hope you're right about November 4.

I've had to go back to Jersey City occasionally to take care of business and the one thing that has struck me is how unattractive a city it is. Don't get me wrong -- I knew that when I lived there. It's just that Philadelphia is so much prettier -- and being a tourist attraction, it's a shame that the mayor doesn't think that cleaning up the streets is a priority.

From what I've seen, it's apparent that many of these 'street types' don't live in the immediate area, so why are they allowed to roam the streets all day and night, bothering people?

__________________
- We must be the change we wish to see in the world -
Mahatma Gandhi

hmm, bookstore. trying to picture it. walnt, bookstore. as i said, 13th street used to be the red light district. the are you moved into is sort of in transition. if you walk up 13th bet/ locust and chestnut you can see it. ther are a number of shops that hve black storefronts. they are all owned by Goldman properties, most famous for their SoHo work. Two years ago they were mostly empty. On the corner of 13th and sansom is a coffee/gelato bar. That opened last summer. Across from that used to eb a spot called Trust. It was a cool lounge but the restaurant half wasn't up to par. set to open soon in its place is a Steven Star Mexican restaurant. If it is a hit, you will see very different types frequenting the area. not wackos either. I used to go to Trust and it was an odd mix. trendy folks, goyborhood locals, local med students, and outside were the occasional transgendered hookers. Across form El Vez/Trust is the sansom st. adult bookstore and theater. It's a shame, they were renovating that place and looked to be putting apt's up top until they had a fire in Nov. haven't seen any work since. Still, if El Vez is ahit it oculd be a noticably improved area. Moreover, there are some lofts filling up with residents that could make a difference. Still, the mayor is repsonsible for pushing quality of life issues and he has not. I think on a local level party affiliation has a different meaning. Katz came out and said, I have no future in the Rep. party. I'm a Philly guy and I plan to stay that way. Didn't Jersey City have a Republican mayor? The Democratic Party here is a machine. Machines need to be ousted from time to time. I would say the same if the parties were reversed.

My theory is that this is Center City and Center City has become a sort of political pariah over the years. The focus of politicians in this city has generally been towards the "neighborhoods" as opposed to CC since that's where the votes come from. Center City did not support Street during the last election and won't support him this time. Plus, with relatively few votes as compared to the rest of the city, it won't swing much. Street probably figured that he stands little to gain by paying attention to Center City issues. In fact, the only recent mayor who did care much for Center City was Rendell but even he didn't have the will to really take care of the bum issue (many of these characters were roaming the streets back then). To the extent that Katz needs Center City to win and most Center City residents and business are absolutely fed up with the wackos wandering the streets, maybe he'll do something if elected. Quite honestly, with naked people, drug addicts, flashers, and masturbators roaming busy streets like Market and Walnut, the city has a pretty anarchic look nowadays. The current administration isn't doing anything so it needs to go.

when I was taking a night course at West Chester Univ. they had someone called the "Midnight Masturbator." He would be seen at night whacking off the girls passing by or following them home whacking off. for new residents, West Chester is 45 min west.

The last ousting was back in the 50's when Clark (Democrat) ousted the Republican machine and the city has been under Democratic mayors ever since. Now the Dems are becoming stale. They should have been ousted after the first Rizzo administration. Instead they went on and gave us Wilson Goode among others. I guess Rendell was ok but I was dissapointed in that he kept on talking about quality of life issues but did very little in that regard. I mean this is a top button issue for Center City and Center City is the face this city shows to the world. Rendell gave it only lip service. Anyway, I'm holding out hope for Katz.

That's Capogiro. That place is really hot. Despite selling gelato that costs between $4 and $10, it is crowded all the time. That's living proof that 13th Street is on its way up. In fact, 13th, while still crappy, is 300% better than just two years ago. It used to be an open air drug market with people coming up to me asking if I wanted to buy some (of coruse I didn't but still). There are still some weirdos out there but I think the presence of Capogiro and Trust (RIP) have sort of scared them away. I guess this harkens to the old broken window theory.