A few scenes from the Philly Thanksgiving parade:








You'd think there was some bulk to the balloons. Not really...

Big Bird unstuffed after the parade.

Spotted in a Philly cemetery:

Snow on the farm

It was a nice experiment, but the unbridled 'reader comments' had a few too many problems to work on our website.
Now readers need to register in order to leave comments.
A newspaper website is caught between two worlds; on the one hand you have the un-moderated anything-goes commentary found on many web groups and alt sites, and on the other side you have the print edition of The Reporter, where editors control what appears in the paper. Even the anonymous Sound Off is read by somebody before it appears on your doorstep.
So now we have a compromise...say what you want (within certain bounds of decency and libel), but we know who you are.
The hope is to foster a somewhat civilized discussion.
I'm not sure if our founding fathers envisioned a time when free speech meant no accountability whatsoever - even those at 'Speaker's Corner' standing on a soap box could be seen by their audience.
But those who fear retaliation for their views also deserve some protection and the right to speak their minds.
So in the end we strike a balance between accountability and invisibility. That balance has to be right for the forum, which in our case is the space below our news stories on our website.

Somebody told me there was a bald eagle hanging around the nature center at Peace Valley Park the other day. I didn't see that, but got a good sunset.

OK, not many posts the past few days, but there's good reasons:
- Phillies
- Election
- New web site

Phillies parade recap, in case you missed it:





Gotta talk about the Phillies: what a ride! I didn't get into any of the games, but was lucky enough to snag a parade press pass.
I don't think I have ever seen so many people, with the possible exception of the 100th anniversary Brooklyn Bridge fireworks twenty-something years ago. Most were happy and not too drunk (can't say the same for Chase Utley), with the exception of the 'fan' who lobbed a full glass champagne bottle into the media bus. No injuries, luckily.
Getting into the city wasn't bad, if you boarded the SEPTA train in Lansdale. I sincerely apologize to all the people that were stranded on the other station platforms as we rode by. We all tried to do the right thing by taking the train; some lucked out and others did not.
Getting home was a bit harder; I caught the Broad Street subway JUST before the mad rush and crammed into a pot-smelling subway car. Then I spent two hours in Suburban Station, but I actually got a seat on the train which was good because I wore out my knee and could barely stand. Made it home in time for trick-or-treats.
I also have to thank all the fans that showed up at Main and Broad Streets in Lansdale the night of the final win. It was a great crowd; no obnoxious, slobbering drunks or crime. Just alot of happy people enjoying the win together. I wasn't sure if anybody would even show up; it's good to see that something besides traffic wrecks and blizzards can bring neighbors together, even if just for an hour or two.