Hyperspace Clusterfuck: Rendell Accidentally Finds Backbone After Losing It In The Last Place He Left It
Over the holiday weekend, when no one was looking, this huge massive story broke about the casinos, and hmmm, really, what strange timing indeed. Now, we don’t wanna throw on the aluminum foil conspiracy helmet, because what exactly would that even achieve? But just give this a look-see and try and tell me that everything to do with this casino stuff isn’t just so rigged with fuckery that even when people Finally Stand Up And Do The Right Thing, even that feels wrong and sleazy. My point: Ed Rendell is going to sit down with SugarHouse and Foxwoods and ask them if maybe they might really wanna build those casinos somewhere other than Delaware Avenue. This is political theater of the highest order, of course, but still: Ed Rendell, whose baby this whole thing was. Ed Rendell, who just months ago, called City Council a bunch of pussies for not going along with the whole deal. Ed Rendell, who’s been showing the Casinos-on-the-Delaware pipedream-turned-concept-turned-very-real-threat his O Face since the mid 1990s. And why? “No longer politically viable,” sayeth the Duke. (And for this, we thank you, Vincent Fumo and Dwight Evans for forming the unlikely but awesome Fuck These Guys Coalition that has made it all possible. Fumo, we always knew you had that “We’re Getting The Band Back Together And TAKING IT ON THE ROAD!” vibe somewhere in that pretty little head of yours.)
It’s kind of amazing, really, with levels of irony so rich we don’t even need to itemize them here. Anyone can see them. Best we can explain it is this: Know that friend you have who endured that painful High Fidelity-esque breakup with The Guy Who She Thought Was The One? You know, because she loved him and all, agreed that he was a genius and soooo charming and wonderful, but she just couldn’t see him ever, like, you know, taking care of her? And how he responded by breaking up with her, and then finding a new girlfriend, becoming The Man Her Ex Always Wanted Her To Be, but then marrying the new girlfriend?
This is kind of like that. Pardon me. I have to go feed my cats now.
DN: Baby Just Give Me One More Chance, I Can Change I Swear
July 7th, 2008 at 11:18 am
Somewhere other than Del Ave? Where? Roxborough? Mayfair? Chestnut Hill? University City? No. It’s going to be Hunting Park, Mantua, Olney or some other less, um, Philebrity-friendly neighborhood.
But don’t worry…once it happens your wage tax’ll go down too.
July 7th, 2008 at 11:48 am
it will be by the airport.
July 7th, 2008 at 12:08 pm
Isn’t that all Delaware County? (except the airport)
July 7th, 2008 at 12:44 pm
When I read about pending legislation, I tend to look for quotes from broader spectrum of legislators besides the lead authors. I know it must be hard to make phone calls to the Harrisburg house/senate summer diaspora, but at least the DN/Inky do a good job putting some skepticism between the lines on the viability of this passing. Even if it went through, I don’t know if the Fumo/Evans “stick” will work. This would just wind up in the casino-friendly courts, argued as legislation purely to let the state back out of a contract, right? My guess is if Rendell’s is at all persuasive to Sugarhouse and Foxwoods, he’s got to offer them some sort of “carrot” incentives for relocating. I don’t know what that might be, but I wonder if we’ll wind up paying for the relocation in a fashion that might cost more than the current arrangement.
Both should have been placed around the airport. Heck, if the two franchises were placed right next to each other, they’d actually have a competitive relationship and would be forced to work out something more creative than simple slots shacks.
July 7th, 2008 at 1:05 pm
Thanks for pointing this out. I only wish Fast Eddie had been on the right side of this whole thing in the first place, instead of waiting until it was politically necessary.
July 7th, 2008 at 1:58 pm
That chick´s rack on the left could convince me to let them knock down my own house to build their damn casinos.