Heard on the Street
“Heard on the street.” For years as a reporter I relied on that phrase as a catch-all to describe some news source that – for a variety of reasons – would best not be identified by name. “Heard on the street” could have been something whispered off the record at a coffee shop or bar or overheard at the next table at a restaurant or while waiting in line at the public library. Today, at least, it’s literally from the street, either heard or seen on one of my daily perambulations around town. Some snippets:
Who’s out and about? A lot of people, and almost all of them are practicing pretty good “social distancing,” a phrase that I now am replacing with “physical distancing.” There’s plenty of socializing possible at a six-foot (or even 20-foot) distance.

One day last week a friend and I chatted over coffee at opposite sides of a large outdoor table at Hinds Plaza in front of the public library. While there and chatting with other visitors at other tables, 20 feet away, we speculated on the possibility of Princeton University cancelling its annual Reunions weekend, the largest event of the year for both the school and the town, which relies on it as a major economic driver.
We thought about the curse that seems to have visited the college Class of 1970. Many schools’ graduations were curtailed or canceled that year because of the killing of four Kent State students by the National Guard and the subsequent campus protests. At Princeton graduation went on as scheduled, with Coretta Scott King and Bob Dylan among others receiving honorary degrees. But most of the class did not participate in the alumni “P-Rade.” Instead the class president marched alone with a protest banner. On the occasion of its 50th reunion the class could have marched in force, carrying all sorts of banners commemorating and poking fun at its senior year self. Could have, but will not – no Princeton P-Rade this year.> Read More …