The Larry Kane Report

Memo:

To: Tom Knox, Chaka Fattah, Michael Nutter, Dwight Evans, Jonathan Saidel, John Dougherty, and maybe Bob Brady

Subject: Stand Up To Crime

You have got to give a lot of credit to Men United For A Better Philadelphia, the civic group that has declared its own war against crime, a neighborhood effort to spread the word that the current level of violence in Philadelphia is unacceptable.

If only the government would react with such passion! The effort announced yesterday was a classic case of a myth shattered. That myth is the big lie that the people of Philadelphia don’t care about the crime that has once again become the biggest issue on the streets of the city.

With the murder rate soaring toward 400 this year, one would hope that solutions to battle the murder epidemic would be top of mind to the six people who have expressed an interest in becoming the next Mayor.

So far, all we hear is ambition. My guess is that the next Mayor of Philadelphia will be someone who understands that safety in the neighborhoods is more important than safety in just one neighborhood – Center City. The next Mayor of Philadelphia will be someone who is tough on crime. Being tough on crime requires more than just slick commentary. It requires ideas. It requires innovation and a restoration of respect for the undermanned police department. It also demands that organizations like Men United Against Crime need all the support they can get, before its too late, and before the current crime wave erodes the confidence of big and small businesses, and before more jobs are lost in the city.

It may already be too late. The folks at City Hall can point to new construction, new stadiums, and special attractions. That is just a lot of window dressing.
But until someone provides the leadership to find what it takes to stop the murder rate, Philadelphia is destined for an uncertain future.

So, gentlemen, stand up and give us your plan.

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Information at this date on the Philadelphia Mayor’s race could be old news in one hour, but here’s the latest from a variety of sources, most of whom are somewhat reliable, depending on the story.

Chaka Fattah and fellow Congressman Bob Brady are still on the fence, although Fattah is more inclined to run rather than not to run. Now that is really a reporter’s hedge, isn’t it? Bob Brady, the insider’s favorite, is still on the fence, although labor and business leaders are hoping he leaps quickly off the fence and into the race. Both men have something to consider: in a Democratic controlled House, their committee assignments may be too good to pass up. I can assure you that the phones are in a state of high use between Fattah, Brady and the Democratic leadership.

State Representative Dwight Evans may move up in the Democratic leadership position in Harriburg. That will be a factor in his determination to run.

Former City Controller Jonathan Saidel is waiting on Brady. If Brady stays out, count Saidel in.

Businessman Tom Knox shows no apparent signs of pulling out of a race he has committed millions to, nor has the aggresive and savvy Michael Nutter. Of course, if Fattah or Brady quits, Nutter could run for Congress!

And Electrical union powerhouse John Dougherty is still like a tiger waiting in the grass. Sources say that Democrats are unhappy that the building trades supported Republican Rick Santorum for Congress. Don’t count Dougherty out. He’s smart and he has a lot of power.

Do not take any of this to the bank. After 40 years of watching these battles, there are a lot of scores to settle, numerous backroom meetings and a race for fundraising. All of these factors will determine who will run, and who has the guts to run.

As far as the Republicans: Councilman at Large Frank Rizzo is telling people he wants to run. He may. But he won’t give up his prized seat, unless he thinks he has a real chance.

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Some newly released polls show President Bush’s approval rating at its lowest yet – around 31 percent. That, in itself, is not a shocker, but the insides of the surveys find a trend of public opinion that the Democratic Party needs to seriously consider. First of all, the Democratic tidal wave was less a reflection of the party’s ability to fix what needs to be fixed, and more a repudiation of the Republican leadership from the White House to the Congress.

Most post-election surveys suggest that the voters are looking for practical voices of moderation, the kind of moderate voices that can solve problems without going to extremes. This is a cautionary story for the Democrats. The voters have had six years of a form of political extremism: no input welcomed, a shutoff of any major oversight, and an iron-fisted leadership style that stifled any debate.

The Democrats should push for an investigatiion of Iraq war profiteering. They should promote their own legislative program including a national increase in the minimum wage. Democratic leaders, as promised, should seek a definitive review of how the war is being waged, and should demand that the intelligence comunity charged with fighting terrorism, should and must sharpen its techniques. There are many issues, including the validity of the tax cuts, that must be addressed.

But any hair-brained ideas of the extreme left, like impeachment proceedings, should be thrown in the waste bin. Any overt negativism without results would be a terrible mistake.

Americans have just rejected extremism and arrogance on the right. They will not hesitate to do the same thing to the Democratic party if it too finds the lure of power so appetizing that it doesn’t understand how to exercise it.

This is a serious issue for the Democratic party as it assumes the awesome responsibilities of running the House and Senate. If viewed as obstructionists, the Democrats would have little chance of winning the White House in 2008.

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This is a day to remember those who have served in the past, and the men and women currently serving in dangerous places around the world.

When we travel through our daily tasks and pastimes today, it is important to reflect on where we would be without the veterans of war and peace, but it is also imperative to revisit some of the horror stories that are coming out of veteran’s hospitals and homes across the nation.

I first encountered Yvonne Laddy’s book, “In Conflict,” five months ago. Yvonne has uncovered some extraordinary lapses in the after-war treatment of Americans wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan. Her first TV appearance with me on the Comcast show “Voice of Reason” brought all of us closer to the healing process, not just the mending of wounds, but the emotional impact of war. Some of the stories are difficult to take, but we here at home, the soldiers of comfort not combat, can at least open our eyes and our hearts to the suffering that is going on. When your day job is one of manuevering through the streets of hostile territory, anything can happen. You can kill and you can be killed. The sound and fury of warfare and its affect on human emotions can be incalculable.

The biggest story that the Philadelphia author has uncovered is the failure of some, but not all of the bureacrats, to comprehend the long range affects of post traumatic stress disorder. PTSD can last months, even years, maybe a lifetime. The effects can range from depression to violence, and even to an inability to have any social relationships.

Tomorrow night on Voice of Reason (9:30 on CN 8), Yvonne returns with another guest, a man you will remember. Jack Jacobs is the winner of the Medal of Honor, two Bronze stars, and the owner of mental encyclopedia of facts and memories of the military life. Colonel Jacons, a civilian professor at West Point, is also an outspoken critic of the way society treats returning soldiers. He feels that part of our problem is numbers  — 1.6 million active duty troops defending 300 million Americans. He calls for national service for all young people. His arguments are strong, considering so few men and women really serve our country.

So, Veteran’s Day is more than just honoring the veterans. It should be a time for reflection on how the nation treats those who serve, and a commitment that we owe them more than just medals and parades, but a sense of responsibilty toward their own challenges.

As Americans, it is the least we should be doing for them.

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Ed Bradley, who died yesterday, was a man who embodied a dramatic changing of the guard in the broadcast industry. This Philadelphia native and Cheyney alumni was a man who almost singlehandedly changed the face of broadcast news. Ed was the first African-American to gain a major spot on a national program, but he was much more than that.

Bradley, on a fast track at CBS News, became the gold standard for great interviewing. A great interviewer is also a great listener. Ed learned the nuances of a great conversation, listening to his subject and bearing politely but firmly. Ed could make any interview fascinating – from an ordinary person with an extraordinary story to a person of fame and fortune, whose story would be illuminated by Ed’s insightful questions.

Unlike many broadcasters who become stars, Ed Bradley never forgot his roots in Philadelphia, returning here often to visit his friends and honor the people who helped him along the way.

Ed and I got to know each other well at the political conventions he covered, he for CBS News, and me for the stations I worked for here. He was as enjoyable to be with as he was to watch, the genuine article who brought so much clarity to the people of America.

I learned late yesterday that Gene McCurdy had died. Gene was the Vice President and General Manager of WFIL TV, which became WPVI TV, and later the chief at WPHL TV. He was a broadcast legend who brought television into the modern era in Philadelphia, and was one of the most decent men I ever met.

Gene McCurdy was also the man, who along with Lew Klein, George Koehler and a news director named Mel Kampmann, who launched a new format in 1970 called Action News. A few months earlier, they gave the anchor job to a 26 year old reporter who had covered the news in Philadelphia for three years.

Yes, Gene was the man who gave me my chance to become anchor of Channel Six Action News. It was a risk to hire such a young man, but it worked out. Frankly, his decision changed my life, and his careful crafting of the Action News format, changed the way the news was done across the nation.

I owe him the chance he gave me and others, and I will always remember him for his service to our industry.

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