Cook Calls For Man’s Execution During Football Broadcast

When a Philadelphia sports team has a nationally televised game, the broadcast always includes at least one camera shot of Pat’s and Geno’s. (This is either an FCC rule or sports producers are too lazy to come up with new ideas. Hmm, I think it might be the latter.)

CBS obliged during Sunday’s Eagles-Steelers tilt, and what did we see at Geno’s? That’s right: The famed official Daniel Faulkner shirt calling for Mumia Abu-Jamal’s execution. (For more fun, check out the whole selection of tacky gear available on the Daniel Faulkner Online Store. They even co-opted the “Never forget” slogan.)

I’m fairly certain this isn’t the first time I’ve seen this shirt on a football broadcast, at Geno’s. That shirt might even be the uniform. You do have to hand it to the cops (and, um, cheesesteak cooks). There aren’t too many people who are semi-regularly told they should die on national TV. I’m not sure if that bodes well for the Domelights/Geno’s/Michael Smerconish crowd, though: Nobody was all that successful in killing the other guy I can think of who got that kind of treatment (Osama Bin Laden).

Vandalism Running Wild Locally

A few incidents of recent vandalism are sure to have people angrily writing on messageboards and blogs. Let’s go over the recent attacks on inanimate objects and how they show the downfall of America, or something.

• The vandalized item: Daniel Faulkner’s memorial plaque at 13th and Locust. The time: Sometime between Saturday night and 10 a.m. Sunday. The damage: “Fuck him” written across the late officer Faulkner’s plaque. The culprit: Uh, Free Mumia people were in town over the weekend, so them. Or could it be a set-up attempting to demonize the innocent (but annoying) protesters? Yeah, I’vealready thought about this too much. The likelihood alcohol was involved: 100%.

• The vandalized item: About two dozen flags, part of a display of over 4,000, one for each solider killed in Iraq. The time: Sometime overnight. The damage: Two dozen broken flags, duh. The likely culprit: Unclear, but probably the Mumia people, or some right-wing warmongers. There’s also a chance it was a hard-up flag manufacturer. The likelihood alcohol was involved: 100%.

• The vandalized item: Mets fans’ dignity, as at least two fans of the New York National League club were arrested. The time: Saturday’s Phillies-Mets game. The damage: I’d say “clean arrest records,” but who knows if that’s true. Let’s say the price of a ticket and bail. The likely culprit: The Mets fans themselves, of course. Phillies fans are veritable saints. The likelihood alcohol was involved: 100%.

Wow, annoying people vandalizing heartfelt displays. Uhm, shocking.

Crucial Details In Abu-Jamal Murder Case

Today, the Daily News has a big package on the 25th anniversary of the death of Daniel Faulkner, with no less than six articles and a timeline spanning several pages of the paper.

The best part is this story about William Singletary by Valerie Russ. Singletary originally fingered Mumia Abu-Jamal as the shooter, later saying that the police coerced him into singing the confession, that they ruined his businesses, that they made him leave town.

But the amount of important detail in this particular piece is awesome. To wit, before he saw/didn’t see Mumia Abu-Jamal shoot Daniel Faulkner, here’s the story:

In 1981, Singletary was a part-owner of the Bombay Lounge, a bar and hotel at 1504 Catharine St.

Singletary had driven from his bar to the Whispers night club, at 13th and Locust, some time after 3 a.m.

“Business at my place was slow,” he said.

“Everybody was leaving my bar and going to Whispers. I wanted to know what was going on there.” When he got to Whispers, Singletary said the person at the door wouldn’t let him in.

Singletary started walking south on 13th street toward his car when Cynthia White, the prostitute who would later testify against Abu-Jamal, approached and said, “Hey, how you doing? It’s cold out here.”

As he approached his car, “a brand-new Cadillac Eldorado, 1982 model,” White said, “Wow, that’s a great car!”

“Then she said, ‘You ain’t that bad-looking either. But I don’t date black guys.’ ”

Singletary said he returned: “And I don’t date prostitutes.”

It’s good to know that, 25 years later, there still are prostitutes at 13th and Locust. Well, not this Dec. 9. It’s too cold.

Witness: Abu-Jamal didn’t do it [Daily News]