Pay Up

Mayor Nutter can't be getting much love these days. If you're not upset about the libraries closing, you are upset about the pools. If you don't care much for the pools than you certainly must care about the fire houses. The fact of the matter is that like so many cities out there, Philadelphia is broke. Just like the rest of the American public, we spent more than we had and our line of credit ran out. The city is spending less and tightening it's belt just like everyone else. It's also coming after everyone that owes it money. I'm sure in these times you've been thinking about that guy who borrowed $20 from you last month and how you'd really like it back. Well, the mayor is thinking that too.

The mayor held a press conference outside of a lawyers' office on South Broad Street demanding that they pay up. Amongst the three of them they owe about $300,000. Instead of hanging his head in shame, this angered one of the men inside enough for him to come all the way downstairs and yell at the Mayor for using his name. He demanded to know if he was the only person in the city owing back taxes. (For your information, he's not the only one, but you can find out who else made the list here. He could spend the next year doing press conferences and still not get through the list. This guy just happened to be a block away from city hall.)

The mayor replied: "I'm not going to argue with you on the sidewalk - you owe the city money, pay your taxes," The guy then asked why Nutter was getting "upset," and Nutter took it all in stride. "Oh, you've never seen me upset," Nutter said. "So I'm not upset. Just pay your taxes and everything will be fine." Love it! The best part--after the press conference wrapped up, sheriff's deputies went in to serve the three lawyers with notices that if they didn't pay up their property would be sold at auction on April 2.

It is in moments like these that Mayor Nutter goes from being a political figure to a father figure. He gets picked on for wearing nerdy sweaters. He cuts back when times are tough. And, most importantly, he goes after the bullies who aren't pulling their weight. This is a man who took over the job from the incredibly corrupt Mayor Street (brother of Milton on page one of the back taxes list) and if that wasn't bad enough, the economy went into a tail spin. I like my library as much as the next guy, but lets all cut the mayor a little slack.

If you ever want a little insight into exactly what the mayor is going through right now, read the book "A Prayer for the City" by Buzz Bissinger (who also wrote "Friday Night Lights"). In this book, Bissinger follows around then Mayor Rendell as he deals with unions, crime, economy and everything else that goes into running a city. I always figured running a city would be complicated, but until I read this book I really had no idea. With every criticism should come a bit of understanding. And this understanding and sympathy is a little easier to stomach when you see the mayor yelling at rich guys on your behalf.