The Senate Needs To Be Fixed – Mark Bowden’s Airport “Scoop” – And End Beach Fees!
Camp Kagan is over in the U.S. Senate. The usual suspects showed up. Just like the Democrats before them in the Bush days (remember Roberts and Alito bashing?) the Republicans this time tried to find some good dirt on Elena Kagan, with little success. The story brings a good question to mind. Why is the Senate process so long ? It took the Senate one day to confirm General Petraeus. Over the years, the Supreme Court nomination process drags on with much-too-much show and tell. The Senate is the slowest legislative body in the free world. It’s systems are archaic and unruly. It needs to be fixed, and the first phase : limit the perks, and force more real work-time!
AIRPORT BLUES -
Mark Bowden’s report Sunday on the Philadelphia Airport parking mess was so incredibly timely. The INKY piece by the award winning writer pinpointed the screwed-up electronic parking signs that simply do not work! Period! Flights are often missed because of this system, but most of all, there is no backup. Many of the service phones do not answer. The people who answer them cannot tell you where spots are available. Linda Miller, the PPA executive who deals with many communications issues, is a fantastic executive, but she can’t run the airport system by herself. The system is flawed, and the people, the people who pay for parking, are getting hosed.
On the airport itself: bathrooms are filthy, there is hardly a sense of “welcome” by some of the people at the information desks, and the airport is simply not bright and cheery. Philadelphia needs a better welcome environment for visitors. And this is a must.
NOTE TO GOVERNOR CHRISTIE – FIGHT TO KILL BEACH FEES
The gutsy New Jersey Governor should fight to end the nastiest taxes of all -beach fees. Beach fees are clearly not ethical, because the people own the beaches. Beach fees are a sad excuse for keeping people away. The communities without beach fees are doing just fine. Wildwood comes to mind. Beach fees are a terrible, maybe unintentional form of discrimination. Who says that Americans should be restricted from their beautiful natural resources? It’s an old argument, but it remains a good one. Florida doesn’t have beach fees. Neither do most of the Carolina’s.
Comments(26)
The airport problems don’t end at the airport.Coming back from the West Coast on Monday the dispatcher at the remote site didn’t answer the phone so I had to flag down the driver as he went by.Wrong lot though & his radio (North lot )didn’t reach the South lot.Once on board the right bus & upon arriving at the lot the gate wouldn’t open & was forced to walk a half mile with two bags.The driver graciously helped Ms.YAP so points for that.The final blow was the attitude of the cashier,way over the top.End result is Fastrack just lost a customer.This by the way occured after waiting 45 minutes,along with 6 others, for my second bag to come off the carousel.Good old PHL & USAir.
Beach fees ? Go to Rehoboth,no fees,better restaurants & of course there’s always Dogfish Head.
LK – You nailed it again! I only fly Southwest. They are the best. Always full of smiling faces and cheery perky go-getters at the gates and on board.
They have some svelte young men there too who have caught my eye, in all honesty ;)
See you for fireworks I hope?
~~WB~~
As an African American I don’t find beach fees disrimatory. Keeping black people away from water saves lives. We drown at the drop of a hat, and if beach fees cause fewer blacks to be near water it’s a plus. Beach fees also protect whites from having to deal with blacks at the beach. White people alreagy know how miserable it is to attend movies with blacks, how they call out at the screen and bring in babies. Imagine how terrible Cape May beaches would be with blacks running wild on the sand and drowning daily.
I am Larry and I have a problem. I am a chronic procastinator. I do not like change. I go to the beach one time a year. Schlepping all that stuff through the sand is for mopes. I don’t like sand between my toes or in my bathing suit ball sack. I don’t like that sticky sun block. The water is too cold. I don’t like jellyfish. Why do I care about beach fees?
I am Larry and I have a problem. I am a chronic procastinator. I do not like change. I do not like homosexuals despite my very liberal and PC attitude. I would not go to Rehoboth. I can not look at other men in tight speedos. I am surprised the Air Pirate goes to Rehoboth. I do not want men checking me out. I do not stuff my bathing suit with socks or a banana. Why do I care about beach fees?
I am Larry and I have a problem. I am a chronic procastinator. I do not like change. I like to eat seafood, especially whitefish. I can get good seafood in Philadelphia. Why would I schlep all the way to Atlantic City to eat seafood. I don’t gamble. I do not pay for prostitutes. I don’t not eat cotton candy. I do not like to walk or ride a bike. I wear black knee socks and a straw sombrero. I look like some 80 year old in Boca. Why do I care about beach fees?
Larry
Thank you for being such an inspiration to me, and other young apsiring progressive journalists. You carry the torch. You are a true beacon in the ocean for me.
“You’re the meaning in my life, you’re my inspiration”
Always and Forever
~~W~~
Larry, this is more preposterous nonsense. Thank you for sharing
Kagan is a long time Obama associate nowhere near qualified for the Supreme Court. An overtly liberal tool that you can love but that can upset the balance of power in the highest court. She belongs in the Civil Liberties Union, not the Supreme Court.
General Petraus is a proven leader. He is a no brainer for that posisition. It’s hard for me to believe that even you can’t see that distinction.
If your real point is that the Senate has so much partisanship and can’t get out of it’s way, then no duh. The only solution is to clean house starting in 2010, set up a single term limit and eliminate pensions. This was never intented to be a career. It was intented to be public service.
I travel considerably and Philadelphia is no better or worse than 90% of the airports in America. Useless Air and PHL have a national reputation for extensive delays, missed flights and lost luggage. Part of that is being tucked in between NYC and Washington. Part of that is weather in other parts of the country. I’m surprised Southwest ever came here.
It’s always sunny in Philadelphia, or so the tv show says. The airport hires people at low wages for mindless jobs. What do you expect. If people don’t have pride in themselves, how can you expect pride in their airport or city? PHL has tried to emulate the look and feel of other Useless Air hubs like Charlotte and Reagan with rocking chairs and large windows. Even the cheesesteaks at PHL suck. Hire better people. Get a friendlier airport. It is directly relatable.
Finally, if Conservative Chris Christie was focused on beach fees instead of reducing the massive state deficit, you’d be chiding him like you do Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh and the rest of the conservative crowd. He should scare you. If he is successful in cutting waste and deficits in the pork barrel Garden State, he will become a national leader with a demonstrated record that will pose a serious threat to Obama in 2012. Afterall, Obama has not accomplished anything in 1 1/2 years except significantly increasing the deficit, spending trillions with nothing to show for it and polarizing a nation over a socialistic agenda that few want. Beach fees should not even be on Christie’s radar screen just like Cap and Trade should not be on Obama’s radar. Christie is committed to real fiscal change. Obama has his own agenda.
YAP, Remohomo? Will may be but you? WTF?
I am Larry and I have a problem. I am a chronic procrastinator. I don’t like change. I rarely fly but complain about the airport. If I got out more maybe if I travelled more I would feel differently. I don’t like the people at the airport because there is a caste system and I am a Philadelphia aristocrat. I think the airport bathrooms are dirty but I would not use anything but the urinal. My bum would not touch those seats (sorry Will if you are waiting for me in a stall). I would not eat airport fast food. I may have a winecooler while waiting for a flight. Rocking chair would make me look older than I already do. No thank you. They are for Deliverance. I never fly anyway.
I am Larry and I have a problem. I am a chronic procrastinator. I don’t like change. I rarely fly but complain about the airport. I like business travellers. They know the drill. Families flying are the scourge of the airways. They don’t know the conventions. Their babies scream. They carry on too much shit. They delay takeoff and getting off the plane. There should be an airline just for families. Let them all be miserable together. Do not subject the rest of us to their disruption. I have a sweetheart deal with USAir. I am a Philadelphia aristocrat. I am treated differently. Except on SEPTA of course. Maybe SEPTA could run a line to Disneyworld so all those families don’t fly. I never fly anyway.
I am Larry and I have a problem. I am a chronic procrastinator. I don’t like change. I rarely fly but complain about the airport. I had a pretzel at the airport the last time I flew. I was constipated for 2 weeks. Don’t eat the pretzels. Why is my gate always the last one in the terminal? Why can’t cabbies speak English? Why are cabs so dirty? Why does it cost $25 to get downtown? Why is parking so expensive? Why do we put up with this? I never fly anyway.
I am Larry and I have a problem. I am a chronic procrastinator. I don’t like change. I vote and I’m politically active. I am liberal and proud of it. I vote for Ed Rendell. I vote for Arlen Specter. I vote for Josh Shapiro. I still vote for Frank Rizzo. I digress. Congress is wonderful. They represent us well in Washington. The longer congressmen are in Washington, the more effective they become. The 20 year lions are my favorites like Byrd and Kennedy. I am pleased with their performance unless their is a GOP majority.
OOOJ-Rehoboth is a cool town & while there are a lot of ‘mos around they generally stay north of Baltimore Ave.,I happen to stay south of Baltimore (with Ms.Yap I might add).And,there’s always Dogfish if you’re thirsty.
Okay, YAP, stay north of Baltimore Ave and away from Will. No speedo and no hair gel. Have a cold one at the Dogfish for me.
Larry – Can you shed some light about the “roots” who are playing the July 4th event?
I dont know much about these gents. Are they of colour?
~~W~~
Why is it that everthing is not free to
Larry Kane? Those new baggage fees must get
his goat. The bathrooms are dirty because the
Airport is run by the City of Philadelphia.
They don’t know how to maintain clean public
toilets. That’s the problem Larry, you are
complianing about incompetant government, yet you
see it as “the Airport’s” promlem, its a city
problem and Michael Nutter is ultimately
responsible for dirty toilets at the
City’s airport.
no beach fees.free air.no fees for air or seaside air.ill take my lexus there.
Larry – I had one of those ah-hah moments earlier today. While I was at the salon getting my bi-monthly pedicure, it hit me.
You were a meterosexual well before we had meterosexuals.
In looking back, you were always dressed to the nines, dapper, and had your hair impeccably groomed.
Its yet another reminder to me of how captivated I am by your mere presence – be it in person or online.
You are a real American legend, an amazing man, and one fine hunk ;)
Warmly,
~~W~~
Ohhhh Punkie! I miss that old queer man that use to take care of me.
I wish Todd Bridges would give me a call. We were of the same era, and we were explointed by the same Hollywood industrial complex.
If the latest allegations against Mel Gibson are true, then everything Larry Kane has ever said against him is true and correct. He may be scum and a hypocrite of the highest order. Let’s see if the tapes are true before we jump to conclusions, but it doesnt look good for Mel.
Now you complain about the Philly airport. They should have let my brother Milton run the maintenence department. Who better to check on cleanliness than a former hotdog vendor. Larry, I hope you appreciate the brothers’ and sisters’
ability to run the city.
Yeah I know that I’m dead but my wife controls half of the operations at the airport. I made it happen with all my underhanded dealings but that’s besides the fact. You gotta “pay to play” as I always said. If the brothers and sisters could run SEPTA they would have buses with flat tires and rail systems with bent axels all over the place.
Larry, you caught me. I am a bigot and anti-Semite of the greatest degree. Sorry for pulling the wool over many of your readers’ eyes. I hate Jews and resent blacks. What can I say, you got me. I also hate women but I do need them to clean my pipes, if you know what I mean. Could this spell the end of my movie career, I suppose so but Larry I’m worth millions and millions and millions of dollars. Who gives a fuck?
oh Mel, you are just an old rascal- right? I heard those tapes and you are a misogonist. Some might understand why you have issues with blacks and Jews, but Punkie draws the line with hating woman and disrepecting the mother of your child. You are a piece of shit and an embarrassment to Catholics around the world. Why don’t you pull a David Caradine and put your self out of your own misery.
Larry
I was driving home today and heard your ad on Sports Radio 610-WIP for an upcoming Israeli fundraiser – but the date said April 21st!
This is still airing! Suggest you call the station and have them update their ad decks
Shalom!
Saul R.
The heat wave is so bad and Hurricane Schwartz is so excited about scaring old people about it that he squeezes one off in his pants right before going on air.
A black man drown last night in Atlantic City, if they only had steep beach fees there he would be alive today.
There was a flash riot after the fireworks last night in center city, and three teens were shot leaving fireworks at 34th and Haverford. There were no white citizens involved, but I can tell you there will be fewer white citizens attending these events and spending their money in center city if it cannot be made safe.
Mayor Nutter needs to take agressive action, it is going to be a long hot summer. The city could devolve into a series of 1960s style riots if he does not get his act together and start policing the Philadelphia ghettos in an old school kind of way.