Nathaniel Popkin has been writing about cities for 20 years. He sees Philly — its mix of history and post-industrial struggle — as a fecundating matrix for people who can't walk down the street without wondering "what if?"

Facing certain defeat at the hands of the guy conservatives (jealously) call the "Obamamessiah," McCain tried to do what Rowengartner did — use a gimmick to win even when the odds are hopelessly stacked against him. It would have been a great strategy if presidential politics were a Hollywood fairy tale.

This is the first time I'm going abroad and bringing the nagging baggage that perhaps I shouldn't return. Maybe it's time for me — like several of my friends — to move on, and out.

"It is time that the museum leaders live up to the moral values of the rest of the city and the more than 2,000 supporters who prayed for this change from more than 20 churches."

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