Now Read This: A Philly singer-songwriter fires back at Philly Mag

As sure as Fishtown will never improve, Philadelphians must hate Philadelphians, right?

You feel so lost, so cut off, so alone, only you're not. See, in all our searching, the only thing we've found that makes the emptiness bearable is each other.

A week after The Times video went up on its site, Philadelphia Magazine, the self-appointed arbiter of taste in the city, despite the fact that its readership is largely suburban, rich, and white, posts the following:

“New York Times Video Inadvertently Reveals Everything that's Wrong with Fishtown.”

Within a day, it is the most popular article on Philly Mag's website. It has been shared over 750 times on Facebook. It has been tweeted around the country. I'm sure the editors and advertisers are very pleased. As someone who cares about Philadelphia's future, that is infuriating.

—Heather Shayne Blakeslee

Here's what you need to know: Not long ago, the New York Times posted a video called Urban Grit in Philly’s Fishtown. It's two minutes long and fashion-oriented and I'm told rubbed a number of Philadelphians the wrong way.

Philadelphia Magazine responded with a piece entitled "NYT Video Unwittingly Reveals Entire Problem With Fishtown." (The URL ends with "wish-go-work-new-york-times-slap-someone," I believe for comic effect.) "The problem with Fishtown now is that it’s boring dressed in interesting’s clothing," writer Liz Spikol wrote. I don't know anything about fashion, or whether it's true, but that's a funny line. Also:

[“In the Fishtown area of Philadelphia, Sarah Anderson, a boutique owner, says her style is inspired by ’70s B-level horror movies.”] This is a style vein that’s as tapped out as the one on a right-handed Fishtown heroin addict’s left arm. But plus ça change, plus c’est the meme chose in fashion. Surely Anderson will convey how she turns this exhausted-aesthetic dross into gold.

And:

Fishtown is still Fishtown — no matter how many pairs of vintage sunglasses you find next to empty Arctic Splash containers in a vacant lot.

So there. The Times came to one part of Philly and shot a video. Another part of Philly responded with dismissive snark. This is the way things have been done for thousands of years, Dr. Arroway. As sure as Fishtown will never improve, Philadelphians must hate Philadelphians, right?

Heather Shayne Blakeslee, a singer-songwriter who chooses to call Philly home (by which I mean: she moved here), wrote a lengthy response to Spikol's post. Here's a bit:

While The New York Times video does not even begin to address what's wrong with Fishtown (poverty, drugs, crime, racism, growing unease between long-time residents and newcomers), it does say an awful lot about what's wrong with Philadelphia (and the Internet). Or at least one big thing that’s wrong with Philadelphia: we just can't get out of our own way.

It's an interesting piece. Passionate, too. Not without its own snarkiness. It's definitely worth your time. Read it here.