Would many LGBT folks actually support McCain in the first place? Not that we don't love an Obama presence at OutFest. Shame he won't be there himself, but if you have $2,300… A sad reminder that burying cops is getting to be mundane around these parts. The stealth economy of South Philly = ticket scalping. At least there are ways of working with them. We’re not too fond of Christine Flowers, and Isaiah Thompson's comparison......

Time for the Choice Awards for 2008. Check out the best A&E, news bits, shopping & style, sports & rec, and food & drink our city has to offer. (Though it sounds like the dessert section may be a little biased, but hey, who doesn’t like a free cupcake.) Some West Philly cops get out of their cars, some crime goes down. Coincidence? A run-down of Philly’s celebration of Park(ing) Day. Hint: there’s no cars.......

A girl fight escalated to a brawl at Sayre High this morning, ending when police intervened and arrested twenty-two students. Somebody got beat up, and they weren't an immigrant or in the vicinity of SEPTA? Man, this violence thing is getting out of hand.........

It’s PW’s time for a fall guide, and they got lots of stuff for you on the cheap. But don’t expect any PA favors. Pick up a book while you’re at it. Or just go to the movies. Does a headscarf get in the way of the line of duty? Does Philly not love our Muslim brethren? An update on what’s up with Upp. Can greener be cheaper? Fishtown finds out. Local TV star Butch......

Our very own state could actually be of key importance in the Democratic presidential primary, so the campaigns for both Clinton and Obama will be opening offices in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh in the coming days, and expanding their staff by recruiting local pros. The Inquirer takes a look at the battle going on over a proposed state-wide ban on smoking in Pennsylvania. A woman leaped from her third-floor apartment window on South Street near 2nd......

The Inquirer takes a hard look at the soccer stadium that's being proposed for Chester and whether it will really help the city as much as some people say. "The fate of the city's public golf courses is in the hands of City Council today in a hearing to examine a proposed contract to run them and, hopefully, improve them." Well, it's good to know City Council is taking care of the really important things.........

How did last night's debut of American Idol treat Philadelphia? The Inquirer has the analysis - and a horrifying picture. Two West Philadelphia High students were slashed during an argument on Monday, so a heavy police presence blanketed the area yesterday as students were dismissed for the day. A suspect on the city's 10 Most Wanted Fugitives list, described as a "one-man army," and who had eluded authorities for over two years while running a......

The saga of CBS 3’s Alycia Lane continues. She has been divorced twice, appeared on Dr. Phil, was romantically linked to WCBS anchor Chris Wragge, and of course infamously sent bikini photos to a married man. All of this seemed to make her one of the darlings of the New York Post’s Page Six column of late. So it is not a shock that she got into some trouble in New York, more specifically in......

Lower Merion High School is in the news for two things this morning: one good, and one bad. After all three judges in Delaware recused themselves, a judge in Philadelphia will now decide convicted killer Thomas Capano's federal appeal of his murder conviction. Nutter announced still more appointments yesterday, filling in key ethics positions with three veteran's of the US Attorney's Office. The special agent in charge of the FBI's Philadelphia division is leaving......

Protest over national vs. regional chains, the never-ending debate over the place of cars and bicycles in our metropolises, professional sports scandals, remembering a solemn day, and being issued a search warrant - it all happened across our sites this week! Another banner week at Chicagoist started off with daily reports from food writer Lisa Shames on her attempt to eat only locally grown and raised foodstuffs all week as part of a farmers market......

Irina Malinovskaya, a former University of Pennsylvania student, has already been on trial twice for the murder of the new girlfriend of her ex-boyfriend, but yesterday her third trial started because neither previous jury was able to come to a decision. A federal appeals court yesterday overturned a lower court's ruling and decided that Philadelphia police officers have immunity in the shooting of Jill Burella. Burella was shot by her husband, who then killed himself.......

Is N.Y.P.D. Pizza on South 11th Street across from Thomas Jefferson University Hospital going to be the next pizzeria to face the wrath of the New York City Police Department? Perhaps, given the fact that a similarly named chain of pizzerias based in Orlando has incurred the wrath of New York’s Finest and is getting sued for having a logo that is a doppelganger for the NYPD logo and selling faux-NYPD gear - all......

Our new author Lou is jumping right into the fray with a quick news post on the Penn shooting (gosh, we sure are Penn-centric!) that anonymous tipsters have been dumping links about into our contribute section - thanks for the heads-up, folks! We might give Lou more of a proper intro later, but for now we'll let his writing speak for him. Phillyist has heard a good deal about muggings, shootings, and other assorted acts......

Governor Rendell will be officially sworn in to his second term today at 11:45AM. The Inquirer has a run-down of his plans for this term and what challenges he's likely to face. Meanwhile, the AP points out that Bon Jovi, Frankie Avalon, and The Trammps will all be playing the inaugural concert, tickets to which are $100 each. Despite the promise of more revenue soon, the PA gaming board is in danger of running out......