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Welcome to (fictional) post-pandemic Philly | Morning Newsletter

Plus, President Trump is visiting the Lehigh Valley today.

In a world without sports, what happened to Philly's mascots?
In a world without sports, what happened to Philly's mascots?Read moreAmy Raudenbush

    The Morning Newsletter

    Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter

In the real world, office spaces are facing an uncertain future and President Donald Trump is supposed to visit the Lehigh Valley later today.

But in a fictional, post-pandemic world, what might be going on? My colleagues asked local fiction writers to dream up the future.

— Josh Rosenblat (@joshrosenblat, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)

My colleagues in The Inquirer’s opinion department asked some local fiction writers to help guide us through what our futures might look like. The challenge: in fewer than 1,000 words, write about what our world — and Philly in particular — will look like about a year from now.

Though strong majorities of voters think that health care and safety are more important than reopening the economy, President Donald Trump is prioritizing a rapid economic rebound as he calls for coronavirus restrictions to loosen, specifically singling out Pennsylvania for moving too slowly. And today, Trump is preparing to visit the Lehigh Valley.

But despite the president’s critiques, a poll found that about 72% of Pennsylvanians approve of how Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf is handling the coronavirus crisis.

Both locally and across the country, corporate managers are weighing the value of their office spaces as employees have moved to working remotely. And the decisions they ultimately make about safely returning to their offices have the potential to reshape downtown office districts as we know them, writes architecture critic Inga Saffron.

Offices by nature are Petri dishes for germs, according to experts, meaning that keeping them clean will require daily specialized disinfecting. So employers could have a big expense to pay if they want to get their workforce back in one place at some point.

What you need to know today

  1. Thirty-five years after the MOVE bombing, some are seeing signs that the wounds caused by the tragedy are starting to heal. But there are other signs that they never will, reports my colleague Sean Collins Walsh.

  2. A ventilator wasn’t enough to save this coronavirus patient. Then he was connected to an external lung.

  3. A top Pennsylvania Republican said that the coronavirus only threatens children in poor health. That’s not true.

  4. Overdose deaths rose again in Philly last year, hitting black and Latino communities particularly hard.

  5. Voters in Atlantic City had the chance to change their form of government. It appears that they overwhelmingly voted to keep the status quo.

  6. Pennsylvania revoked coronavirus shutdown business waivers the night before it published the list of recipients.

Through your eyes | #OurPhilly

That’s right. We got this. Thanks for your inspirational message, @aimeebsiegel.

Tag your Instagram posts or tweets with #OurPhilly and we’ll pick our favorite each day to feature in this newsletter and give you a shout-out!

That’s interesting

  1. 🖍️My colleague Grace Dickinson compiled a guide to some great kid-friendly activities you can do at home, from arts and crafts to games and science projects.

  2. 🍲Your fellow Inquirer readers shared their picks for the top takeout spots in the Philly suburbs. And some top-notch spots in the city have started offering takeout, too.

  3. 🍹A bill that would allow cocktails-to-go passed the Pennsylvania Senate unanimously yesterday.

  4. 💩An “inordinate amount of urine and feces” is apparently being left in “water bottles” in New Jersey parks with now-closed bathrooms.

  5. 🦅If you’re still wondering why the Eagles drafted Jalen Hurts, just look at Dak Prescott and the Cowboys.

  6. 💸Don’t get your hopes up for a home office tax break despite the barrage of Zoom meetings forcing you to clean up your workspace.

Opinions

“Philadelphia owes an apology to its people — and not just for dropping a bomb that killed 11 people on May 13, 1985. Philadelphia also owes an apology to its citizens for allowing years of bitterness and anger to boil over into an action that put the lives of Philadelphians in the crosshairs of a law enforcement system hellbent on revenge.” — writes Solomon Jones for The Inquirer about the steps the city should take to apologize for the MOVE bombing 35 years later.

  1. Is calling someone “Karen” a slur? The Angry Grammarian investigates.

  2. New Jersey teacher Lauren Fedorko wrote a letter to her students with advice for how we can grapple with the coronavirus pandemic.

What we’re reading

  1. A commentary piece in Philadelphia Citizen examines Mayor Jim Kenney’s proposed budget cuts to the city’s arts funding.

  2. A Rust Belt city pinned its hopes on making a self-chilling beverage can. And after millions of dollars and a ruined neighborhood, no jobs have been created, according to a ProPublica investigation.

  3. A three-Michelin-star restaurant near D.C. is planning to plant mannequins “wearing vintage, 1940s-style outfits” at empty tables to make its customers in its half-capacity dining room feel less awkward when it plans to open for dinner later this month, Eater reports.

Your Daily Dose of | DIY Sushi

Sushi chef Ken Sze of Tuna Bar in Old City has been packaging sliced fish, rice, nori sheets, assorted sauces, wasabi, tempura flakes, ginger, a sushi mat, chopsticks, and gloves for $60. You can pick up a kit Saturday and Sze will get on Instagram Live at 7 that night to demonstrate how to make tuna, salmon, and California rolls.