Stay In Bucks County, Congressman

Apparently, 8th District Bucks County U.S. House Rep. Michael Fitzpatrick (I guess the whole “Pat” Murphy thing is because I and others have called him “Mike”? I have no idea.) believes that the issues facing the majority of residents in his district aren’t enough.

I suppose that holding hearings about flooding faced by residents of Yardley borough and Lower Makefield Township (which, of course, resulted in the STUNNING revelation that NOTHING IS TO BLAME) don’t consume enough of his time. And I guess passing his precious “Delete Online Predators Act” in the House and trying to do the same thing in the Senate isn’t enough to “fill his plate” either (though anything that draws resources from the attempt to pass that farcical legislation and get it written into law, thus heading off the likely legal challenges, is probably a good thing, I’ll admit). And sending out one of your minions to criticize "fat cat" Patrick Murphy is equally absurd.

No, Mikey has to do more, more, MORE I suppose to keep his name in the headlines (a canny political move, though it isn’t worth a lot when it comes to providing actual constituent service).

So he’s now speaking out on behalf of the Boy Scouts.

In Philadelphia.

(And I’ll give you a hint; if you guessed whether or not it has to do with “Hating The Gays,” then I’ll send a copy of “The Death of Outrage” by Bill Bennett to you as soon as I can.)

OK, I’ll be fair and note that Fitzpatrick’s congressional district includes two wards in Philadelphia, which is literally such a small area of coverage that it affords Fitzy just enough of an opportunity to stick his nose somewhere that it doesn’t belong (actually, Philadelphia lost wards to Bucks County in the last redistricting scam pulled off by the Repugs in the 90s, in an attempt to whittle away some of the city’s Democratic voters and submerge them into the heavily-Republican 8th district).

(I should also note that I’m AMAZED to actually find the content I need from the Courier Times web site, by the way.)

This link shows you where Fitzpatrick's Philadelphia wards are located (the 8th district is outlined in black).

And by the way, the office of the Philadelphia chapter of the Boy Scouts is located in the vicinity of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway downtown, which is NOWHERE NEAR the outline of Fitzpatrick’s district.

I found this excerpt from the story to be particularly amusing:

In a phone interview, Fitzpatrick said with gun violence and gang activity on the rise, the Boy Scouts' presence in Philadelphia was more needed than ever.

“This is a moment in time, in history, more than any other, when the city of Philadelphia needs the Boy Scouts,” Fitzpatrick said.

Uh, sure. With all due respect to the Scouts, I sincerely hope they never attempt to venture to “the badlands” of North Philadelphia near 3rd and Indiana (the site written about so hauntingly in Steve Lopez’s landmark book) in an attempt to convince drug dealers that their poison is ruining people’s lives. I’m not going to speculate regarding the unspeakable acts that could take place if that ever happened.

I realize that the Boy Scouts make valuable contributions in their communities, and for that they should be applauded and supported, but for Fitzpatrick to think that they could make a dent in the endemic poverty and violence running rampant throughout not just Philadelphia but everywhere in this country shows an uninformed naiveté worthy of Gomer Pyle.

And I get a kick sometimes when I read the inherent anti-Philadelphia attitude of many residents and public officials of Bucks County. They NEVER miss an opportunity to take a shot at the city where I grew up when it suits them.

Yes, Philadelphia has problems like most big cities, but if Fitzpatrick thinks issuing some sound bytes to be eagerly consumed by the lapdog Courier Times is actually going to solve real-world issues for the city’s residents, then he’s even more delusional than I imagined.