Forget fun in Philly for the foreseeable future

Tuesday, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney announced there will be no large events for the next six months in Philly.

My family and I love going into Philly. It's only 30 minutes from our town in South Jersey and it's easy to get in and out of compared to New York City, which is two hours from us.

Of course, Philadelphia doesn't have all of the things NYC does. No city can compare to New York, but it's got a lot going on. Or it did. One of our favorite traditions, which still would have been five months away, is going to the Mummer's Parade on Broad Street on New Year's Day. That's canceled, along with a slew of fun events that drew large crowds to the City of Brotherly Love every year. No Broad Street Run. No Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Dennis Malloy photo

Perhaps city officials looked back in history and are trying to avoid repeating it. During the Spanish Flu of 1918, some cities like St. Louis took precautions, with residents wearing masks and with the cities discouraging large gatherings. Philadelphia, on the other hand, held a parade in late September of that year that is credited with spreading the virus. That was more than 100 years ago and a different bug, but political leaders don't want that kind of blame on their hands — and who could blame them?

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Dennis Malloy. Any opinions expressed are Dennis' own.