by Billy Wharton The librarians at the Pelham Bay Park branch of the New York Public Library are really trying hard. When the regular volunteer at toddler story time couldn’t show up today, a librarian jumped in. When the budget cuts went through and library hours were reduced, they accommodated an early start for the parents of toddlers. And, when dozens of people burst through the doors at the... 

by Billy Wharton From the start, Barack Obama’s presidency has seemed like one big public relations campaign. Tonight’s State of the Union address did little to dissuade one from this view. Sagging under the weight of depressed dreams of hope and change, he desperately needed to appear as though he was doing something to address the growing needs of the American people. Emphasis on the “appearances,”... 

by Kristin Schall We have arrived in Pittsburgh after an approximately nine hour car trip. After leaving New York City at 12:30pm, we drove for three hours and stopped for lunch at a Perkins restaurant at a rest stop in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. One bowl of canned chicken soup, a plate of fried food, and a microwaved quesadilla later we were back on the road for the second half of the journey. This... 

A Call to Action from Pittsburgh Indymedia On September 24 and 25, representatives of the 20 richest nations on Earth will meet in Pittsburgh, calling themselves the G20. They will be meeting to decide the fate of all the rest of the world’s people, as the great capitalist powers desperately struggle with a new Depression that threatens their rule. They also say global warming is on the agenda,...