August 2008

Are you following the DNC this week? Do you think Denver is a little too far away for you to get political? Kick off your holiday weekend this Friday at Tritone and watch The Shondes tackle some of the issues everyone’s talking about!

The Brooklyn quartet has been receiving a lot of hype since their record “The Red Sea” was released earlier this year. Check out what the media is saying about The Shondes:

“…a band bent on putting politics back in punk. Just a year out from their union in college, the foursome caught the crest of a foamy blogger-hype wave without so much as a single pressed.“ – SPIN

“Are The Shondes the next Sleater-Kinney?” – VH1 Best Week Ever Blog

“Seamlessly fusing art and politics.” – Punk Planet

“…an album rich in saw-tooth guitars, pummeling rhythms and an undeniably anthemic spirit. It’s haunting and it’s eerie, yet it’s rousing. The Shondes are a twisted carnival film noir come true.” – CMJ

Look out for a follow-up post filled with photos and video from the show. Hope to see you there!

The Shondes-Tritone (1508 South Street)-Aug. 29-10 pm-$7-21+

***Photo courtesy Fanatic Promotion

Private student loan provider Education Finance Partners will no longer offer student loans and students with EFP loans will be required to find a new lender, according to Drexel and EFP.

Drexel University’s Office of Financial Aid sent a letter to the affected students Aug 18 informing them they would need to find a new lender.

“EFP will not be able to process any of the loan applications submitted,” read the letter from Drexel.

For the 2008-09 academic year, 56 Drexel students had already been approved for loans through EFP said Melissa Englund, assistant vice president for enrollment planning and retention services at Drexel.

Englund said Drexel suggests students visit http://www.simpletuition.com/drexel/home for help finding a new loan. They should also contact the Financial Aid Office at 215-895-2537, she added.

EFP is the company that was cited by NY Attorney General Andrew Cuomo in 2007 for having a “revenue sharing agreement” with Drexel. The agreement led to a threat of a law suit against the University.

EFP paid a 2.5 million dollar settlement as a result of the AG investigation.

A spokesman for EFP could not be reached at the time of this post.

A federal judge has denied a Montgomery County lawyer’s attempt to prevent Barack Obama from becoming the Democratic nominee, according to The Philadelphia Daily News and wire reports.

Philip J. Berg, a former PA Deputy Attorney General and Hillary Clinton supporter, filed a temporary restraining order claiming that Obama was not born in the United States and is therefore ineligible to run for President.

Berg runs a web site called ObamaCrimes.com.

On the site Berg lists the following claims against Obama:

1. Is not a natural-born citizen; and/or
2. Lost his citizenship when he was adopted in Indonesia; and/or
3. Has dual loyalties because of his citizenship with Kenya and Indonesia.

Click here to read Berg’s memo of support for the restraining order

Democratic vice presidential nominee, Joe Biden, spoke with Barack Obama at a rally on Saturday in Springfield, Illinois (video below). Biden repeatedly praised Obama and criticized his opponent, John McCain - connecting McCain to George Bush several times in his speech.

Republican nominee John McCain was quick to respond to the news that Barack Obama had chosen Sen. Biden as his running mate. McCain released an ad using Biden’s own words against Obama (video below). House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) mentioned Biden’s criticism of Obama saying that, “it’s a tribute to Sen. Obama that he’s not just choosing a yes man but a person who will speak what he believes.”

Senator John McCain was asked Aug 20 how many houses he and his wife Cindy own …”I think, uh, I’ll have my staff get to you” McCain replied to a reporter from Politico.com.  It didn’t take long for Senator Barack Obama to use the comment to paint McCain as “living an outlandishly rich lifestyle” Politico.com said.

BarackObama.com posted an ad saying McCain has seven houses and then quipped “there is one house American can’t afford to let John McCain move in to,” while showing a photo of the White House. (see ad below)

The NYTimes ran a piece about Cindy McCain’s business and family wealth.

So what? What do you readers think? Does the wealth of a candidate mean anything when you go to the polls?

Obama running mate Senator Joe Biden is being touted as speaking “our” language — Agree or disagree?

Tell us!

The Politico.com interview with McCain

The Obama ad:

A few trees that have been taken down for construction in front of the DAC.

Two backhoes working on the DAC construction.

Democrat Barack Obama announced early Saturday that he had chosen Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware to be his running mate in his presidential campaign.

Biden is the Chairman of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and is currently serving his sixth term in the Senate, making him one of the longest serving senators. Biden was born in Scranton, Pa. and Democrats believe that Biden can help deliver the key swing state in November.

Gov. Ed Rendell said Aug. 20 that Biden is the “most experienced in foreign affairs, most experienced in terrorism and national security.” Rendell added that the voters of Pennsylvania are very familiar with Sen. Biden because they have been watching Biden’s senate ads for over 30 years.

After Obama announced his choice for running mate, a spokesman for Gov. Rendell said, “The governor thinks it’s a great pick and that it will help Obama in Pennsylvania.”

Obama’s Pennsylvania campaign spokesman, Sean Smith, called Biden, “Pennsylvania’s third sentor.”

Photo Media Credit: Brian Baer - Sacramento Bee/MCT

At the end of July the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that, “Since the end of the primaries, Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain have run more television commercials in Philadelphia than in any other media market in the country.”

Both candidates recognize the importance of Pennsylvania’s 21 electoral votes. Pennsylvania has leaned Democratic in the past, but the New York Times is reporting that economic concerns with voters have left the state open for a McCain upset.

The latest poll of likely Pennsylvania voters, conducted by Rasmussen Reports, shows Barack Obama with a five point lead over John McCain, 45 to 40 percent. When leaners are included, Obama’s lead shrinks to just three points, 48 to 45 percent.

Bloomberg.com is reporting that in July alone, McCain ran, “7,426 commercials in Pennsylvania while Obama ran 6,130.”

Photo Media Credit: Corey Lowenstein - Raleigh News & Observer/MCT

Last Sunday, Shy Child opened up for The Faint at the Trocadero. Before the show, we sat down to talk about the tour, the mid 90’s and their favorite movie, “Clueless.”

Drex And The City: To start off, how did you two meet and how did the band form?

Pete: We met at University in the mid 90’s. I said that like an Englishman. We actually met at Wesleyan University, which is in Connecticut, in the mid 90’s. And we’ve played in lots of bands together.

Nate: Don’t forget to mention that it was in the mid 90’s.

P: Yeah, the mid 90’s. I love mid 90’s as an era. “Clueless” came out.

N: We met actually at the movie theater where “Clueless” was playing. We were both big, big fans…

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The accident occurred at 3100 J.F.K at 12:47am this morning, according to Domenic Ceccanecchio, Senior Associate Vice President of Public Safety. Only the striking vehicle was occupied, however three vehicles were involved. All three cars caught fire after the striking vehicle caught fire as a result of the accident.

According to Ceccanecchio, “the name of driver and only occupant of the vehicle were checked and we found nothing that links him to Drexel.”

Photo credit: Mike Mazzeo, The Triangle