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The Bulletin
Vol. VI No.091
R
ES
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PSA
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OQUITUR
Friday,8 May— Sunday,10 May2009
25c /
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HILADELPHIA
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AMILY
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EWSPAPER
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VERYBODY
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ULLETIN
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EACHING
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HILADELPHIA
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ISCERNING
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EADERS
FOR HOME DELIVERY: CALL US AT 215-735-9150 OR VISIT ONLINE ATwww.thebulletin.us
CULTUR
EM’BR
AINSNATION
Business. . . . . . . . . Pages 10-11Crossword. . . . . . . . . . Page 20Culture. . . . . . . . . . . . Section 2Editorial. . . . . . . . Pages 22-23Herb Denenberg. . . . . . Page 2Local & State. . . . . . . Pages 3-5Monkeybrains. . . Pages 18-21Movie Listings. . . . . Section 2Nation & World . . . Pages 6-9Society. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 24Sports. . . . . . . . . . . Pages 13-17TV Listings. . . . . . . . Section 2 Weather. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 2
INDEX
oneiric(adj., oh-NYE-rik)
: of or relating to dreams : dreamy
WORD POWER
P
OOR
R
ICHARD
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S
A
LMANACK
He that would live in peace & at ease,Must not speak all he knows, nor judge all he sees.
BULLET LIST
A PostwarRemembrance
A local writer read a new World War II tome by Richard J.Evans — and saw his own mem-ories stirred.
See Section 2
Philly Voices From AIPAC Conference
About 6,500 people, includ-ing those from the Philadelphiaarea, attended the AmericanIsrael Public Affairs Committeepolicy conference.
See Page 4
Abp. Wood Student Wins Art Contest
Archbishop Wood junior Allison Sims won the Seventh Annual Dad Vail Regatta ArtContest on Tuesday.
See Page 5
Obama: Repeal BanOn Tax-Funded Abortions In DC
President Obama urged arepeal of the ban on taxpayer-funded abortions in Washington, D.C.
See Page 7
Philly Native JoinsObama Admin.
Philadelphia native EdwardDeSeve was named senior advis-er to the president for recovery and reinvestment.
See Page 7
Stocks Drop As Bank,Technology Shares Fall
U.S. stocks slid from a four-month high as declines in finan-cial, telephone and technology shares snuffed out an early rally.
See Page 11
Junk-BondRally Premature
Junk-bond investors whohave spurred the biggest rally onrecord are getting ahead of therecovery.
See Page 11
PROVOCATION
“
Being a full-time mother isone of the highest salaried jobs... since the payment is purelove.
”
— Mildred B. Vermont
Happy Mother’s Day!
Page 21
Federalist Society,Kristol WinBradley Prizes
Page 6
Visco’s Art ShowsMarian Devotion
Section 2
Ridge Will NotRun For Senate
By BRADLEY VASOLI
T
HE
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ULLETIN
Former Homeland Security secretary and formerPennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridgesaid Thursday he does notintend to run for U.S. Senatenext year.His decision comes asRepublicans bustle to find a can-didate after U.S. Sen. ArlenSpecter left the GOP to run forreelection in 2010 as aDemocrat. National Republicanleaders had discussed Mr. Ridgeas a possibility to take on Mr.Specter. That apparently won’thappen this year, but Mr. Ridgepledged to remain active in pub-lic life in various capacities.“Public service has longplayed a significant role in my life,” he said in a statement.“That service does not end here.There are causes to which Iremain intensely committed,including my work on behalf of the disability community, ournation’s veterans, our nationalsecurity and the GOP — theparty I enthusiastically joinedmore than four decades ago.”Mr. Ridge’s decision againstrunning might seem precipi-tous, given that he’s only
Continued On Page 4
Philly.com Boss Leaves For Comcast Sports Group
By JOHN P. CONNOLLY
T
HE
B
ULLETIN
The president of Philly.com,the Web site of
The Philadelphia Inquirer
, has left the newspaperfor Comcast Sports Group,according to a report on
Editor & Publisher’s
Web site.Eric Grilly, who ran
The Inquirer
’s Web site for two years,said that he was not leavingbecause of any dissatisfaction with
TheInquirer
, but because of the favorable offer he got fromComcast. He is expected to bethe Comcast Sports Group’sexecutive vice president andchief digital officer.“They’ve got their footprintin 10 markets, and if you look where Comcast is going, they have an aggressive expansion
Continued On Page 4
By JOE MURRAY
T
HE
B
ULLETIN
Archbishop Charles J.Chaput received the BecketFund for Religious Liberty’sprestigious Canterbury AwardThursday night in recognitionfor his commitment to preserv-ing moral values and his outspo-ken advocacy for religiousrights.Every year, the Becket Fundgives the award to a leading voice in the debate over religiousliberties. Traditionally, therecipient, according to theorganization, is one who refusesto render to Caesar’s what isrightfully God’s.The Becket Fund thought Archbishop Chaput was a primecandidate for the award becausehe has earned a reputation of actively engaging the market-place of ideas.“We are especially proud toadd Archbishop Chaput to thisdistinguished list,” says Becket
Continued On Page 6
Members Adamant To Save Vesper Club
E
D
A
NDRIESKI
/Associated Press
Denver Archbishop CharlesChaput was honoredThursday by The Becket Fund with the Canterbury Medal.
By MICHAEL P. TREMOGLIE
T
HE
B
ULLETIN
The Philadelphia FireDepartment is a racially polar-ized one. Reverse discrimina-tion lawsuits have been filed by white firefighters claiming thata hiring quota forces theappointment or promotion of African Americans who do notscore as high as white appli-cants.The hiring quota began in1975 by a consent decree the city signed with the federal govern-ment to correct racial discrimi-nation in past hiring. It subse-quently enacted several policiesto correct this — the hiringquota being one.But the white firefighters say the current administration haszealously exceeded this quotaand has engaged in blatantreverse discrimination. They spoke to
The Bulletin
on condi-tion of anonymity.Their official position is rep-resented by the Philadelphiachapter of the Concerned American Firefighters Association (CAFFA). According to CAFFA, what wasonce an understandable effort to
Continued On Page 3
RescueMe
Discrimination Claims Inflame Fire Dept.
S
AMUEL
S
OKOL
/For The Bulletin
P
OPE
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S
A
RRIVAL
M
EETS
H
OSTILITY
This sign is one of two that hang in the plaza outside of theChurch of the Annunciation in Nazareth where the Pope isscheduled to appear next Thursday. According to one of thesigns, followers of religions other than Islam will not see thenext world. For more coverage, see World on Page 8.
Decision Opens GOP Door For Toomey
Religious Liberties GroupHonors Denver Archbishop
By JENNY DeHUFF
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HE
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ULLETIN
Philadelphia —
Members of the time-honored Vesper Club, tucked away onSydenham Street in Center City,are opening their wallets to savetheir club, which has been inexistence since 1941.The club is facing financialhurdles. Long known for itsaffordable membership fees, the Vesper Club has never asked itsmembers for any additionalcosts, beyond the annual dues.However, economic woes areforcing the club to charge itsmembers, for the first time, aspecial assessment, to pay forback taxes, rent, maintenanceand food costs.Many members of the VesperClub said they are willing to pay more than necessary to keep theclub alive. Allan Domb, Philadelphia’slargest luxury condominiumrealtor and 30-year member of
Continued On Page 5
R
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EED
/The Bulletin
R
EADY
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OR
T
HE
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EGATTA
Saint Joseph’s University women’s head crew coach Gary Quinlan takes in the scenery along the Schuylkill River on Thursday from the dock of the Hawks’ boathouse on Kelly Drive. Friday marks the beginning of the 71st running of the Dad Vail Regatta.The recent weather and hard economic times have taken their toll on the regatta, which will once again welcome teams from 100-plus universities this weekend to Philadelphia. For more coverage, see Sports on Pages 15-17.
R
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/The Bulletin
A BLOCS S
UCCESS
S
TORY
Reggie Redding speaks on Thursday at the BLOCS ScholarshipDinner at the Loews Philadelphia Hotel. Mr. Redding attendedSaint Martin de Porres School in North Philadelphia on aBLOCS scholarship before playing basketball for Villanova. Formore coverage, see Local on Page 3.
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