Village Idiocy

The city's moral soul: Columnists.

by Isaiah Thompson

Last Tuesday, the Daily News' Catherine Lucey reported that the word "Christmas" was to be replaced with "Holiday" at the annual German Christmas Village outside City Hall in response to complaints. It was a great little scoop: quirky, provincial, its conflict simple. Too damned good, in fact, for the rest of the media to let it go. In just six days, Lucey's humble 370 words had generated 12,000 more between the Inquirer and the Daily News alone, handed from beat reporters to those guardians of the city's moral soul, the columnists, with politicos weighing in all the while.

Was it because the public demanded answers? Or did the media and politicos smell blood?

The first letter to be published on the matter in either of the dailies was written not by Joe Fishtowner but by union boss, political heavyweight and — huh! — onetime mayoral aspirant John Dougherty. Shockingly, he seemed to feel the entire episode reflected very poorly on the mayoralty of Michael Nutter. Dougherty bravely described Nutter's decision as "gutless."

Councilwoman Joan Krajewski took the opportunity to propose a daring resolution that Christmas be "celebrated and respected."

But no one liked the story better than the media itself. Within a day, the mayor's office had been "bombarded," reported the DN's Bob Warner, "with media calls."

Inquirer columnist Daniel Rubin, realizing that being Jewish was as good a peg as any other, authored an Oprah-worthy letter of conciliation. "Yes, it's the Christmas season. Get over it. I have," he declared, offering the teeming hordes of non-Christian Philadelphians who simply cannot get over it — not that we really heard from any — a plea to calm themselves.

But if ever a story were made for a columnist, this one was for the DN's Stu Bykofsky, who does his best work when adhering to a simple formula: Find a divisive issue that pits a minority group with a small voice against a healthy clamor of aging, white, middle-class, vaguely angry Philadelphians — and then side with the latter. Immigration, bicycles and now this: Talk about a Christmas goose! Those who opposed the word "Christmas" on city property were, Stu wrote, "anti-Christmas," "haters," and "Christmas-haters." Stu, who is Jewish, also managed to use the phrase "Prince of Peace." Someone give this man a crucifix, already!

By Friday, sadly, the "controversy" seemed to be over: Nutter had reversed his decision, then lit the City Hall Christmas tree. Not so fast: Enter Serious Columnist Monica Yant Kinney, not to be denied her share of the week's spoil.

This wasn't about some baloney Christmas scuffle, Kinney declared: This was about the mayor himself. In a column whose theme was "disappointment," Kinney called the Christmas Village episode "boneheaded," then went on to quote former Mayor John Street in this month's Philadelphia magazine making the highly specific accusation that "on the things that matter, Mayor Nutter has crippled the city." The death blow at last!

But Man Overboard! will get his say, too: The sign change was based in respect and sensitivity. Nutter's stance was principled, if not politique. His decision to backtrack was unglamorous, yes, but also practical. This time, Nutter was the grown-up.

Isaiah Thompson is principled if not politique. E-mail him at isaiah.thompson@citypaper.net.