The same institution that charges us forty grand per year has decided that the University should start giving away its assets.

The University is donating an old pipe organ to the University of Oklahoma. This organ, which is considered extremely rare, was played in the Philadelphia Civic Center before the University blew up that historic structure to expand the hospital.

According to the director of the American Organ Institute, the organ is one of only three in the entire world and comparably-sized organs may be worth $6 million.

The orphaned organ fell into the hands of the almighty University of Pennsylvania Health System, which is so disorganized that they are still trying to bill me for a free study that I volunteered to participate in two years ago.

Rather than give the organ to another department at the University to
sell (the Music Department seems pretty logical to me) the hospital decided to try to sell the organ themselves.

According to Lori Doyle, the University’s spokesperson, “The
University did make a concerted effort to sell the organ. There were apparently no buyers, and no interest in restoring or installing it locally. At one point, the organ was listed with The Organ Clearing House, the premier broker for used organs. Apparently, a buyer could not be
found. We are delighted that the organ is now with a university with an active academic organ program–which Penn does not have.”

Well, Ebay might have been a good place to start to find some buyers.
And Freeman’s Auctioneers downtown is one of the most respected
auction houses in the world.

The University should have made more of an effort to actually get some money for this multimillion dollar organ. Six million dollars could provide free tuition for almost forty undergrads. Or better yet, maybe we could fix up Locust Walk? The possibilities are endless.

Where is the oversight for such sales of University assets?

Those of you who saw my recent (and controversial) video interview with Dan Savage might be interested to know that Savage apologized on his Web site today for his remarks about Carl Romanelli.

The apology comes after a number of blogs and message board posts compared Savage to Ann Coulter. Savage denies this comparison.

Tonight, I had the opportunity to hear Congressman Curt Weldon speak at Penn at an event sponsored by the Penn Israel Coalition (full disclosure: I am a PIC board member). The Congressman did not cancel his speaking engagement despite last night’s headlines that he is purportedly under investigation by the FBI. The source of this investigation has so-far been kept anonymous. However, when I hear the word “anonymous,” I usually become skeptical.

To my surprise, Congressman Weldon was quite open with his views as to why he is now front and center in the media only three weeks before the November elections. Weldon asserts that his sharp criticisms of the FBI, the CIA and other intelligence organizations have made them want to get back at him, namely by opening this investigation.

In my interview, Weldon alleges that the source of the news about him is Melanie Sloan, a former associate of John Conyers and Charles Schumer. She is currently the executive director of CREW. He also says that people such as Sandy Berger (former head of the NSA) and Mary McCarthy have donated to Sestak’s campaign and are working to bring him down as revenge for his criticisms.

You heard it here first on The Spin:

Weldon’s opponent in this race is Joe Sestak. When asked for comment, Ryan Rudominer, a Sestak campaign spokesman, said that “Weldon is crazy if he thinks that there is a left-wing conspiracy in association with the FBI that has created this investigation.”

Highlights from the video:

1:18- “I know who it is. It’s a woman who runs an organization called CREW. She used to work for John Conyers.”

2:24- “…Democrat operative [named] Melanie Sloan and slander a member of Congress, anonymously, three weeks before an election. It’s a gross abuse of the American electoral process.”

Note: If you embed this video in your blog, please include a link to The Spin.

Editor’s Note: Welcome to The Spin! As this video has made its way around the internet, many of you are probably new visitors. I hope you enjoy browsing the site and hope to see you back in the future. Feel free to direct questions or comments to me at Obenzinger@dailypennsylvanian.com. ~Eric Obenzinger

Note: If you have ADD or ADHD, you might want to skip to the video (below) and read this when you get confused.

Last night, I went down to the Trocadero Theatre at 10th and Arch Streets. I was prompted to go by Liz Spikoli’s Philadelphia Weekly feature last week about Dan Savage, who writes the nationally syndicated column Savage Love.

Thanks to Ray Murphy of the Philadelphians Against Santorum, I was granted a video interview with Mr. Savage.

Whichever side of the political spectrum you are on, I think that my video speaks for itself. This was by far the most insane interview that I’ve ever conducted.

For those who need a primer on the senate race before watching the film, here are the players discussed by Mr. Savage:

Sen. Rick Santorum: As the senate’s number three man, he is either hated or loved, depending on who you ask. Santorum is known as a quintessential right-winger.

Bob Casey: Son of former Pennsylvania governor Bob Casey Sr. and currently running against Santorum for his senate seat.

Carl Romanelli: Though he was tossed off the ballot two weeks ago by Commonwealth Court Judge (and former Democratic State Senator) James R. Kelley, Romanelli is still fighting a legal battle to get back on the ballot. Romanelli has little political experience. Democrats tend to hate him because ,should he be allowed back on the ballot, he could serve as a “spoiler” for the Republicans. It is widely known that individual Republicans provided the financial support to get Mr. Romanelli’s campaign off the ground.

From the interview:
- “Carl Romanelli should be dragged behind a pickup truck until there’s nothing left but the rope.” (2:41)
- “The Green party and its supporters are tools and fools for the republicans and the radicial right.” (2:50)
- “Any progressive who votes for a Green anymore after Nader and now Romanelli is a fucking idiot and should be beaten with sticks.” (3:05)
- “Romanelli may want to rim my ass three times a week, that doesn’t make him better for me. And it doesn’t make his presence on the ballot better for me than a casey victory.” (3:31)
- “Mr. Romanelli should go fuck himself.” (4:00)
- “If Carl Romanelli gets back on the ballot, someone should run him over with a truck.” (5:22)

You may link to this video as you please, but if you intend to use it for commercial purposes, please contact Stephen Morse at morse@dailypennsylvanian.com.

Facebook friends with benefits (Chris Poliquin, The Daily Pennsylvanian)

While struggling up that horrible seven degree incline from 30th Street Station to my home on Beige, I was panting like a nomad in the desert. But suddenly, at the fateful corner of 36th and Walnut, an oasis came upon me in the form of a pedicab.

Facebook and Chase bank are actually sponsoring free rides on these pedicabs for the next week from 9AM to 3PM. This is the first time in a while that they have managed not to mangle an idea.

Don’t think this moderately physically fit senior felt embarrassed to be paraded down Walnut in my very own chariot. With a range from 42nd and Baltimore to 30th and Market, everyone should be taking advantage of this free service. It kind of makes up for that damn Facebook News Feed fiasco.

But not all is fine and dandy with this promo and some people are smoking mad about Facebook’s attempt to extract yet more information from the general public. The solution is simple: Take the bicitaxi’s everywhere and don’t ever go to their Web site. Still, their Facebook group already has over 28,000 members so this marketing tool is doing something right.

(GoMobo.com)

There are so many times that I find myself hungry in class, just waiting for it to be over so I can whip out the mobile device and call in an order to any of the eateries around our campus.

I’m not in Wharton, but I do have an entrepreneurial spirit. I have often wished that I could invent a system to text message restaurants so that my food would be delivered or ready to be picked up after I sleep through a seminar. It turns out that my dreams are already a reality in the Big Apple. With Mobo, text messaging orders comes to life.

It’s too bad you Whartonites weren’t quick enough on your guns to think this one up. Campus Food and Eat Now need to keep up with the times.

While we’re on the subject of food, Allegro’s needs to change its awful sauce. Yes there are new owners, but the food still sucks–even Ragu is a far superior sauce.

But we’ll leave that one for another day.

Check back later today for more from The Spin!

For the past couple of years, the Undergraduate Assembly and Penn administrators have been working to provide Penn students with an alternative to illegal downloading.

Their decision to use the Ruckus service is nonsense, because Ruckus does not work with any Apple computer.

Based on an informal sampling of my housemates and friends, I suspect that well over a third of the Penn population uses Macs. And when you count the number of people who use iPods, I wouldn’t be surprised if some 75% of the Penn population is unable to use this service.

(umn.edu)

Thus, making this deal with Ruckus is an utter waste of energy and time on the part of the Undergraduate Assembly. Why use a program that excludes so much of the Penn population? Are there no Mac users on the UA?

Six out of my eight housemates are Mac users. The other two also have iPods. So there won’t be any ruckus coming from my corner, that’s for sure.

Though Penn didn’t spend any money on this program, the Undergraduate Assembly has surely wasted three years of its time debating this topic until deciding to make a deal with Ruckus. But what’s the point of a program that excludes so many students?

Looking north from 41st and Locust on October 1st-every car is gone (Eric Obenzinger) [click to enlarge]

While chowing down on some Greek Lady and watching a movie on Saturday, one of my housemates alerted me that Paramount Pictures was filming the movie Shooter on our block less than 24 hours later.

Paramount was kind enough to stick a note through our door. I’d mistaken it for a Chinese takeout menu or some new lame cleaning service started by a bunch of Wharton freshmen. But no, this was the real deal. Move over Hollywood, hello Phillyhood.

Now, my problem isn’t that West Philadelphia is being used to shoot movies–I’m sure it will be a great economic boost to the area considering that the cast and crew will be here for a whole 15 hours. And it’s not like they have catered lunches brought to the set from restaurants downtown. But that’s besides the point.

The notice placed inside my door informed me that residents were being given about 9 hours–until 11 p.m.–to move their cars. Otherwise the city’s Tow Squad was going to take matters into their own hands.

This short notice is totally unacceptable to people who:

A. Were already away for the weekend with their cars parked on the street.
B. Lived on another street but parked on one of the seven streets where cars were being towed (including 41st between Spruce and Chestnut, Walnut between 40th and 42nd and Chestnut between 41st and 43rd-all major thoroughfares).
C. Were visiting for the night who didn’t get notified of the impending production.

What kind of kickback did John Street get for this one? A quickie from Markymark or maybe a cameo in Season Four of Entourage? Because by 2006, we all know that the only way to get things done in this city is through corruption.

Though parking meters were emblazoned with signs announcing a temporary tow zone, these signs weren’t erected until 11 p.m. Saturday night, when the film crew started to get their hands dirty.

According to a police Tow Squad officer, a stunning 100 cars were relocated on Saturday night. When asked where the cars were moved, the officer informed me that they were now “All over the city.” Jeez!

To the 100+ folks who have to find their cars: I wish you luck, because we all know how well the Philadelphia bureaucracy functions.

The College Alumni Mentoring Series that I keep getting emails for is a complete joke…

Just check out the speakers - they are all involved in finance in some
form or another. Once again, the College is turning into Mini-Wharton.
As if encouraging us at every corner to participate in On-Campus
Recruiting isn’t bad enough, when they bring speakers like these
alums, it really showcases that the College has no infrastructure to
properly help students obtain the careers of their choice.

When I embarked to New York City yesterday to attend a rally for the people of Darfur, I planned to see a microcosm of the Big Apple condensed into a ten block by four block area of Central Park. I expected to see people of all races, religions, colors and creeds united for a cause that few would question.

Save Darfur Rally in Central Park, 9/17/06 (Click to enlarge) [Ruth Stein]

But after a lengthy bus ride from Philly, with some 35 other Penn students on a Hillel sponsored coach, I didn’t see the American melting pot I expected to see.

First, I saw a sign that said “Never Again, Again”–a clear reference to the Holocaust, and the UN’s creation of the Genocide Convention of 1948. But, it has happened again.

My problem was the sea of white faces who were rallying in Central Park against the injustices of the Sudan. In every corner of the field I counted no more than 20 minorities among the tens of thousands of people who were packed into the park.

I also observed (not scientifically, I must admit) that the majority of the crowd were Jews.

What does this say about our society?

I approached each black person I saw throughout the+A33 day. The scary thing was that I saw but one person the entire day who was African-American, rather than an immigrant from Africa.

This event was a disgrace. It was not a unified America. It was a majority of Jews and some Catholics from their faith-based organizations, and a contingent of hippie liberals from Amnesty International. There were no Muslims there.

Imam Talib Abdur-Rashid, 9/17/06 (Click to enlarge) [Ruth Stein]

When I asked people like Representative Chris Smith (R-NJ), headlining singer and Amnesty International supporter Suzanne Vega and former Canadian Attorney General and current House of Commons member Irwin Cotler about the demographics of the crowd, they each acknowledged that my observations were correct, but they could not explain to me why this rally turned out this way.

Cotler, the only Canadian speaker of the day is himself a Jew and the founder of the Save Darfur Parliamentary Coalition.

When the Save Darfur coalition announced Imam Talib Abdur-Rashid as a guest speaker, I initially rejoiced. However, the Imam turned a crowd that was previously cheering into a solemn group of individuals with no emotion. This is because he accused those trying to save Darfur of being “wolves dressing up as sheep” trying to convert the Muslims of Sudan to Christianity.

Not even a performance by OAR to end the event could help the crowd overcome such harsh and dismal words.

Save Darfur Rally in Central Park, 9/17/06 (Click to enlarge) [Ruth Stein]

This event was an utter failure. Chris Smith of NJ was probably the only Republican in the place, and there were no more than fifteen American blacks, Latinos and Asians in sight. The only Indian I met was a cop assigned to the outer gates. What will it take for people to actually put the phrase “never again” into practice?

American Jews stepped up to the plate this summer to help their brothers and sisters in Israel. When will African-Americans do the same for their brothers and sisters in Darfur?