It has come as a revelation to me how much Philadelphians love Philadelphia. I know that is a startling assertion, given our reputation for relentless negativity, so I want to parse this carefully.

DENVER - I've never been a big fan of Joe Biden. The hair transplant, the perfect and I suspect pricey teeth, that plagiarism thing way back when and his long-standing participation in the World Windbag Club, aka the U.S. Senate.

DENVER - Don'tcha just wonder what to believe? Do you believe what Hillary Clinton said about Barack Obama during their long primary battle: He has not met the "threshold" to be commander in chief, his proposals lack specificity, he's not a Muslim "as far as I know"?

DENVER - For Pennsylvanians with memory, the irony is obvious. The same political party that banned the father from speaking at its national convention 16 years ago welcomes the son in prime time tonight at its national convention here.

DENVER - Maybe I shoulda stayed home. I mean, political conventions (this is my 12th) like the one Democrats start today are such costly, over-covered, often-meaningless exercises, I wonder whether they're worth it.

AMONG INSULTS your Legislature foists on taxpayers is the huge cost of protecting itself while under investigation. The tab already is in the millions of dollars, promising to go higher.

OK, SINCE John McCain and Tom Ridge shared a yellow-perch dinner (it's a tasty little pan fish they eat up there in Ridge's hometown, Erie) then made a couple of campaign stops together, there's renewed blather about a McCain/Ridge Republican ticket.

WHILE I TEND to buy H.L. Mencken's view that "All government is evil and trying to improve it is largely a waste of time," there is a move afoot to improve our sorry Legislature.

THE LEGISLATURE'S lousy, Bill DeWeese must go, Arlen Specter beats Chris Matthews and even though nobody likes Gov. Eddie's policies, everybody still loves Eddie.

A "TIPPING POINT" is that moment in any venture, trend or course of action when change becomes irreversible. State House Democratic Leader Bill DeWeese, already embattled by a spreading legislative scandal, might have arrived at his. Yesterday, a fellow Democrat, the deputy speaker and a leading voice for legislative reforms, Montgomery County Rep. Josh Shapiro, called for DeWeese's head.

HOW BAD IS the Pennsylvania Legislature? So bad, they're talking about it in Washington. The Brookings Institution, the oldest think tank in America, a centrist (leaning left) nonprofit, almost always referred to as "the prestigious" Brookings, held a daylong round table this week on our own beloved Legislature.

In summer, when creeks throughout Falls drift lazily and cicada sounds fill the morning, I'd take off on my orange Stingray three-speed bike to explore the woods behind Manor Elementary School.

It's just after 4 p.m. on Tuesday and Levittown psychic Joe Tittel is in the studio at WBCB radio in Levittown, fielding phone calls.

The first time I met Jen Dunckley it was on a raw and rainy Saturday in March 2003.

Yeah, I'm a boomer. But I renounced the title years ago, when boomers quit trying to save the world and said, "Let's make a lot of money."

If you haven't noticed, presidential contenders Barack Obama and John McCain are left-handed.