Comments on: It’s a good week for…

By: Spencer

Spencer — Wed, 19 Jul 2006 20:30:42 +0000

Can you friggin Pittsburgh people give us a break? You’ve won 5 superbowls to our none. Have won I don’t know how many Stanley Cups.

Philadelphia is a significantly better food town than Pittsburgh – I know you guys want to compete there, but there isn’t a comparison. Sorry.

By: ME

ME — Wed, 19 Jul 2006 20:15:15 +0000

Pittburgh hoagies are way better than Philly hoagies, you need to go to the pizza shop in East Liberty

By: radiocynic

radiocynic — Wed, 14 Jun 2006 00:30:00 +0000

Hey, thanks Spencer. If I’m going to be mis-credited with something, it’s always nice to have it be something I agree with like that!

I’ve moved my official long-winded rant on this subject up to your “My Fellow Americans” topic.

By: Grace

Grace — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 06:13:00 +0000

Good points, good points. Good discussion overall. (Except the Pittsburgh thing… Yinz don’t know good samwiches!)

By: Spencer

Spencer — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 03:55:00 +0000

Sorry Randy, I gave you credit for an idea I read in the paper.

Take it anyway, you make a lot of excellent points that I never credit you for.

By: Spencer

Spencer — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 03:52:00 +0000

Grace – I agree with you. I wasn’t ignoring history, but if you re-read my post, I specifically worded my thought to indicate the official policy was to welcome everyone. Reality was indeed different. Blacks, Jews, Italians, Irish, Chinese, Russians, Mexicans, Germans just to name a few have all experienced bigotry when their groups came to this country in droves. I think my point is that it seems that now the official policy of the government and the will of the people have coalesced and now the goal is to make it as hard as possible. And it’s understandable. For all of our problems, this is by default the best country in the world. The advantages and freedom we have attract people from all over so therefore limits are necessary.

But I think the point I’m actually stealing from Randy is that if you make it overly hard for someone to come to this country, when they arrive they don’t feel any great desire to become a part of the great melting pot. The country didn’t want them anyway.

Oh – and only some one from Pittsburgh would think that the best cheesesteak is made there. ;)Remember, my only Pittsburgh food experience was the famous Permani Bros. sandwich; what a crock!

By: Grace

Grace — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 01:41:00 +0000

OH! And the best cheesesteak I ever had was in Pittsburgh. Sorry, Philly. But grease soaked buns and fake steak chop is kinda gross.

By: Grace

Grace — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 01:38:00 +0000

Spencer, I think you might be rewriting history a bit. If you look through the writing and rewriting of American laws concerning immigration, you might be unpleasantly surprised. And don’t forget that many early non-European immigrants weren’t exactly welcomed with open arms. The only reason the early Chinese immigrants ended up here is because white Euro-Americans needed laborers to build our railroads. Most African Americans can thank slavery. And how about just a mere 60 years ago when we rounded up all the Japanese Americans and put them in internment camps during WWII? Perhaps the “official” policy was to welcome everyone, but what was happening in reality was somewhat different. And that dates waaay back. Humans are comfortable in state of fear, and we fear what we do not know. I don’t expect that a resolution of the current immigration debate will alleviate the immigration debate for future cultures. Just choose a team and throw frightened looks at the other team! It seems to be the only way most sheep–I mean, people–know how to behave.

By: Spencer

Spencer — Mon, 12 Jun 2006 17:56:00 +0000

But in years past our country’s policy was to welcome immigrants with open arms – give us your weak and hungry and all that. Now we put up barriers both literally and figuratively to isolate ourselves. So when an immigrant does come to this country I’m sure they feel anything but welcome.

This guy has every right to serve whomsoever he wants to, and his heart is in the right place, being patriotic, but we need to remember the whole idea of a melting pot isn’t assimilation, but integration.

By: Cyn

Cyn — Mon, 12 Jun 2006 15:55:00 +0000

Ah, come on — the sign didn’t say you had to speak PROPER English.

It’s hamhanded, but I can kinda understand where it’s coming from — like this dude’s parents or grandparents came from Italy and they had to learn to speak English and assimilate…so why can’t everyone else?

It’s been repeated over and over in the course of this country’s history that earlier immigrants pick on more recent immigrants (like Irish – who came over in the late 1800s discriminated against Italians who came over in the early 1900s.) The oppressed become the oppressors. My grandfather’s family changed their Italian surname to a German one shortly after arriving in Philadelphia to escape discrimination…and my Italian aunt married a guy from an Irish family and never told him she was Italian because his family hated Italians!

But I digress…

Anyway, the owner was on TV this morning saying business has never been better, so he has no intention of taking the sign down.

And hey — Pat’s is somethin’ unto itself! I haven’t been for many years, but I remember loving “cheese without” — super-drippy whiz & the great hot sauce you added yourself. What a mess to eat, but it tasted so good…a unique experience.