Remember those makeshift stables in Strawberry Mansion that animal cruelty investigators raided yesterday? Well, the owners of about 40 of the horses living there removed their animals yesterday, as ordered. About 20 more horses were allowed to stay in three garages on Fletcher Street near 27th that had been made into stables while owners of those properties made repairs. The other structures will be bulldozed today. Yesterday, City Council gave final approval to a lease......

Yesterday's New York Times ran a rather long piece called "How Do You Prove You're a Jew?", and while it may seem an unconventional topic for a manners column, I'd like to expound a bit upon it. Have no fear: even if you don't have the time or the inclination to read the original Gershom Gorenberg essay, I'm only using it as a jumping-off point for this column, and I promise not to allude......

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The Drexel hoopsters had a rough week. The men (9-12, 2-7) dropped an overtime game at home to William & Mary last Wednesday, then got whooped by VCU on the road. The women (10-8, 5-2) saw their nine-game winning streak come to an end with an overtime loss of their own, against Towson. Then they couldn't seal the deal against William & Mary, and ended up giving up a late lead to lose their second......

Hakim Glover, the cousin of the man who allegedly killed Officer Chuck Cassidy, pleaded guilty yesterday to charges of hindering apprehension and obstruction of justice. Glover is accused of helping his cousin flee to Florida. The Convention Center expansion project was halted on Christmas Eve when the Preservation Alliance of Greater Philadelphia obtained an injunction ordering wrecking crews to stop work. The preservationists want to save the two small but historic Broad Street buildings......

The best of the internet, chopped into tiny bits and grilled for your enjoyment. The Movie Blog has a pic from the new Death Race movie, and it's actually pretty cool. Some details on the casting and plot of Underworld 3: The Rise of the Lycans, in case you want them for some reason. According to Variety, the writers' strike has reached an interesting milestone: it's now cost writers more money than they were hoping......

Until tomorrow, at least.......

SFist saw Christmas Day turn tragic after a Siberian tiger escaped from her pen at the San Francisco Zoo, killing a visitor and mauling two others. Phillyist counted down the top ten items on Philadelphia's New Year's wish list. Gothamist looked at the wooden bikes being offered for NYC's first bike share program on Governors Island. LAist received a Christmas present in the form of a drunk Santa Claus in a g-string. Bostonist launched......

Dear Penn: Merry Christmas. (Or, perhaps more appropriately, happy belated Chanukah.) You get some nice gifts this season? Maybe an endowment or two? A couple of mentions in The New York Times? Some national accolades coming your way? That's nice. I'm happy for you. What's that? You want to know what I got for Christmas? A couple of very thoughtful gifts, and a couple of checks from family members who figured that I'd rather......

Every weekday of December (except for December 25, that is), Phillyist will be counting down to 2008 with our highlights from the past year and our predictions for the next. If you have a list you'd like to submit, let us know! 10. Alycia Lane moving to New York City 'kay thanks, bye! 9. Less extreme weather Give us a friggin' break, eh? 8. Trans fat in our cannoli Please, don't take it away! We......

A tall, icy glass of our favorite internet junk, just for you. Game|Life takes a look at recent comments from the presidential candidates of both parties on the subject of violence in video games, and comes to the conclusion that all the candidates are pretty much the same and voting is pointless. Woo hoo! Mega Man's creator says, barring a last minute intervention, old blue boy won't be appearing in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, but......

In the wake of the deadly tiger attack at the San Francisco Zoo, the Inquirer takes a look at the safety of the tiger exhibit at the Philadelphia Zoo. Seven state lawmakers, naming the city as the defendant, brought a lawsuit before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court yesterday asking that all construction of the proposed SugarHouse Casino be halted, "contending its license to build on submerged land beyond the river's edge is illegal." Chester Township......

Every weekday of December (except for December 25, that is), Phillyist will be counting down to 2008 with our highlights from the past year and our predictions for the next. If you have a list you'd like to submit, let us know! Y'all have a Merry Christmas? Good. I'm glad. Mine was nice, too. But I'm kind of glad it's over – just like I am every year. Because, you see, while I like Christmas......

Dear La Petite Mort, Something horrifying happened during sex last night. Maybe it was the macaroni and cheese. Perhaps it was all of that pecan pie. In the immortal words of James Brown, "I don't know, but whats it ever I play, its got to be funky." And last night, it was. Right at the end of sex. It wasn't a silent but deadly, or even a cute little toot. It was a straight......

The best of the internet, squirted out in flavorful neon globules, just for you. Let's round up some Christmas leftovers to enjoy this afternoon, shall we? The Movie Blog posted its All Time Top 10 Christmas Movies, and we agree with... six of them. Meanwhile, XPN had a bunch of free downloads of holiday-appropriate tracks by local Philly bands. Then there's a documentary on the making of Chuck Jones' animated How the Grinch Stole Christmas,......

First of all, we hope you had a merry Christmas! This morning, we have plenty of articles about what happened in town yesterday, not all of them merry. First off, Philly's violence problem didn't stop for Christmas; a man was found shot to death in the 400 block of North 60th Street near Haverford Avenue last night. On the other hand, the Inquirer also has a story about a baby being born on a Philly......

We're taking today off to be with our loved ones, and hope you're doing the same. But if you need a few minutes away from your crazy family, please enjoy Kiss covering a Christmas classic.......

Every weekday of December (except for December 25, that is), Phillyist will be counting down to 2008 with our highlights from the past year and our predictions for the next. If you have a list you'd like to submit, let us know! Wherever you stand on the “Putting Christ Back in Christmas” issue, the simple fact of the matter is that I’m a Jew who loves Christmas. I can easily chalk that up to the......

Last weekend, Ross and I headed to King of Prussia to do some last-minute shopping. As you no doubt know, King of Prussia ten days before Christmas is insane and unpleasant, and after a few hours, you just really want to take a break. That's how we were feeling when we decided to have a few drinks and some chowdah at Legal Sea Foods. It wasn't too long before the couple behind us was......

The best of the internet, chopped into tiny bits and grilled for your enjoyment. One way to keep up with the various presidential candidates is Red Lasso's Debate Tracker. You can check out debate clips based on location, topic, or candidate. (Via Kevin) The MST3K crew are back and riffing on movies again! You can read more on their first DVD offering, The Oozing Skull, and even order a copy, right over at CinematicTitanic.com right......

Okay, not really – but it's not quite what you'd expect, either.......

Congrats to Flickr user axiotheia for submitting the winning lolpet to our first-ever holiday lolpet competition. You'll see her sporting a sexy Phillyist shirt around town in the new year. Thanks to all who entered!......

Fun around town, for $10 or less: X-mas Eve Holiday Light Show: The famous light show at Macy's (1300 Market), every hour on the hour from 10AM to 6PM. Free (p.s. it will always be the Wanamaker's light show to us) And While You're There: Visit the Dickens Village on the third floor of Macy's (1300 Market), 10AM-6PM. Free See the Choo-choos: Holiday railroad display at the Reading Terminal Market (12th and Market), 8AM-6PM. Free......

What's new and/or interesting on TV this week. What Would Jesus Really Do? (Mon, 8PM-9PM, CNN) - A discussion of how Jesus might respond to various contemporary issues, like the war in Iraq, global warming, and the divide between rich and poor. Includes commentary from various "experts," including Jerry Falwell. Christmas Specials (Mon, 8PM-9PM, ABC; Mon, 8PM-11PM, NBC; Mon, 8PM-10PM, AMC; Mon, 10PM-11:30PM, WHYY) - Some of these have already played this month, and we......

"State Sen. Vincent J. Fumo (D., Philadelphia) has been nominated for a 'Golden Duke' award in the category of Best Local Scandal over at Talking Points Memo." *Sniff* We're so proud! (Via Sarah) New Jersey Transit's River LINE reached a grim milestone on Friday when it experienced its first fatal accident in its short history. A 50-year-old man, who was coming from a bar, was struck and killed when he returned to the tracks......

We would like to take a moment to thank this week's advertisers on Phillyist. UWISHUNU, because you wish you knew. Hoovers, where you can find company information for free. Busted Tees, where it may be too late to get your Christmas order, but you can get free shipping with three shirts. If you're interested in advertising on Phillyist or any other site in our network, check out our online mediakit.......

It's hard figuring out what to get for the people in your life who already have everything, and so you're usually stuck at the last minute, still trying to figure out what you're buying them after the rest of the shopping is done. And here you are, four days before Christmas, stuck for ideas. Fortunately, I come from a family of procrastinators – especially when it comes to buying gifts. As a result, I've mastered......

A steaming hot pile of our favorite things from around the internets. It's hard to tell yet if the movie's going to be much better than the first, rather disappointing, installment, but the trailer for Hellboy 2 is pretty cool. Some impressive Star Wars-themed cakes and confections. (Via) Check out the surprising and fascinating true history of Christmas (via Debbie). Or, if you prefer your Christmas slightly less true, check out NORAD's Santa Tracker instead......

We love Christmas Carols, too – but a few days before Christmas, we begin to feel a little burned out on them. Enter The Cars, playing in Philadelphia at Live Aid. Okay, we also put the video up to try to regain some of our dignity after running Hannah Montana yesterday.........

Every weekday of December (except for December 25, that is), Phillyist will be counting down to 2008 with our highlights from the past year and our predictions for the next. If you have a list you'd like to submit, let us know! With apologies to those readers who don't celebrate Christmas, I'm going to indulge myself a bit here. I love just about everything about Christmas. I actually enjoy Christmas shopping, stressful though it may......