Phillies Opening Day Feature Story

By Christine Fisher
Temple University

PHILADELPHIA – Was the 4-1 score of a beanbag toss game played Sunday outside Citizens Bank Park a coincidence or a foreshadowing of what was to come a few hours later inside the stadium?

The beanbag toss games played between parking spaces, grills, and crowds of people proved to be a staple item in the Phillies tailgating festivities that drew fans Sunday afternoon. As the Phillies prepped for their first game of the season against the Atlanta Braves, hopeful fans prepped themselves for another successful season for the World Champion Philadelphia Phillies.

“We were here around 3:30, and the lot was already pretty full,” Greg Merrill of southern New Jersey said as he and three others the area took a break from barbecuing for a game of beanbag toss.

Merrill and his three friends played in teams of two taking turns tossing beanbags into the slanted boards seen dotting the parking lot. There were official Phillies beanbag toss boards, boards from TailGateToss.com, homemade Phillies boards and more.

One  of Merrill’s friends sunk all four of its beanbags through the beanbag toss board while the other team, chatting excitedly about the prospects of the season, only managed to get one bag through the board.

In this lighthearted tailgating game, the losing team was much less upset than they and other Phillies fans would be later Sunday evening when the Braves beat the Phillies with the same 4-1 score.

“We used to play beer pong,” TJ Emric of southern New Jersey said. “But beanbags don’t get blown in the wind like pingpong balls.”

These experienced tailgaters know that weather can be a factor in beanbag toss just as it can be in baseball.

Neither the many teams of tailgating beanbag toss players nor the Phillies were setback by the weather this Sunday. With sunshine, temperatures in the 60s, and only a light breeze, the forecast was ideal for baseball.

“There’s always hype for a game as big as this,” Brian Koenig, a fan of both beanbag toss and baseball, said. “Being champions and having such nice weather makes it even more exciting.”

Koenig and Merrill, who considered themselves experienced tailgaters, said that last season they learned other lessons about their tailgating games.

“Throwing beanbags is better than throwing metal rings or golf balls when you’ve been drinking,” Koenig joked.

Christine Fisher can be reached at fisher.christine@temple.edu.

Feature Crime Story

By Christine Fisher
Temple University

DUBLIN, Pa.- Baby Jesus will be arriving a few months late for some families. He will also be arriving at the state police barracks with nine twins.

Police are lining up 10 baby Jesus statues at 5 p.m. today and asking the rightful owners to claim their respective infants.

The 10 statues are some of the many baby Jesus statues that disappeared from front lawns in Bucks County during December. The statues recently recovered by police were anonymously dropped off Sunday and Monday in Richland and Milford, Pa.

State police Cpl. Paul Romanic suspects the thief was not a serial baby Jesus kidnapper but likely teens pulling pranks.

Romanic reminds people that the seriousness of this situation should not be overlooked.

“For some people, they’ve been in the family for years, and there’s a real sentimental value attached to them,” Romanic said.
For some of those who have lost baby Jesus statues, hope is never lost.

Neil DiSpirito of Bristol Township, Pa., who decorates his lawn with more than 200 figurines each year, hopes to find one of the four baby Jesus statues he has lost over the past 15 years.

“It’s been a long time since he’s gone missing, but maybe I’ll find him,” DiSpirito said.

Anyone who has lost a Jesus ornament may call Dublin state police barracks at 215-***-***.

Christine Fisher can be reached at fisher.christine@temple.edu.

Students and Politicians Divided after Obama’s 100th Day

PHILADELPHIA- One hundred days into the Obama administration, partisan attitudes are divided at both Temple University and Capitol Hill.

The $1.75 trillion projected 2010 budget deficit, two million jobs lost and 27 bank failures have pushed the economy to the forefront of Americans’ minds. Temple University students share anxieties over the economy, yet opinions toward the Obama administration follow distinct party lines.

Brian McGovern, President of Temple University College Republicans, and Elizabeth Hanson, President of Temple University College Democrats, stand on opposite sides of the aisle, but both express concerns over the country’s economic state.

“What is happening in our economy is unlike anything our generation has ever seen,” Hanson said. “Because there is no benchmark, it is difficult to know how exactly the stimulus plan will affect our economy.”

Hanson’s outlook, while cautious in regard to the economy, is noticeably more positive than McGovern’s.

“I am concerned with the massive amount of debt we are accumulating and planning to leave for our children, and at this point our children’s children, to pay off,” McGovern said. “It is generational theft like never before.”

Hanson and McGovern represent the two major, opposing sides of Temple University’s politically minded students. Much like Democrats and Republicans in Washington, Hanson and McGovern have very different attitudes toward the Obama administration.

Aiming to bridge the capital’s partisan divide was one of Obama’s major campaign points. Critics charge that Obama is focusing on his other goals at the expense of bipartisanship.

“While preaching bipartisanship and civility in his first months, Obama also has shown a willingness to push his priorities through Congress over Republican opposition, as with the $787 billion economic stimulus plan,” Liz Sidoti reported for The Associated Press.

“His quest for bipartisanship was an utter failure, which was no surprise because he hardly attempted any reach across the aisle,” McGovern said.

Both parties worry about the economy, but a major division exists in partisan attitudes toward Obama. Democrats, for the most part, remain optimistic in contrast to the majority of Republicans who are increasingly upset.

“President Obama has truly fallen short of the expectations he set for himself last fall,” McGovern said. “Although he is working with a difficult set of circumstances, I simply cannot accept that as an excuse for all the missteps he has taken.”

Nicholas D’Arecca, Democrat and Temple University political science professor, worries about the growing deficit and the burden it will place on future generations, yet his opinion of Obama’s administration is that of the majority of Democrats.

“He’s doing very well on the leadership part and the symbolic part of the job,” D’Arecca said. “He’s the best president I’ve seen since Reagan, maybe even better than Reagan.”

“The Republicans in particular have no other strategy than to oppose everything Obama does, hope he messes up and then say I told you so,” D’Arecca said. “It’s always easier to be in opposition than it is to be in power.”

Christine Fisher can be reached at fisher.christine@temple.edu.