Sitting in my karate studio in South Philadelphia, I heard a loud, repetitive sound that resembled firecrackers going off — except it lasted a lot longer than firecrackers. Looking outside the door, I heard the sound again but this time saw people ducking for cover on the ground and quickly sprinting in my direction. It was definitely not how I expected my Monday to go.
“He’s got an Uzi!” someone yelled.
HOW MANY PHILADELPHIANS MUST BE KILLED BEFORE THE CITY STOPS VOTING FOR DEMOCRATS?
In an instant, I slammed the door shut, locked it, and the instructor halted the children’s karate class occurring at the time. Parents and children gathered in the back of the studio, some staying close to the ground, and we all waited for the shooting to end. This is what life has become in the Democratic-controlled city of Philadelphia. Three people were shot and taken to a nearby hospital; fortunately, all the victims survived.
The shooting happened at a convenience store about 100 steps away from me. It would be an exaggeration to say anyone in my karate studio was in imminent danger, but it was a harrowing experience nevertheless. It’s also indicative of the horrific violence that many Philadelphians have experienced regularly for the last three years. And it’s the kind of violence the city’s Democratic-controlled government and Soros-funded district attorney refuse to do anything about. It all raises the question of how many more times must criminal acts like this happen.
The City of Brotherly Love has been anything but that. It has experienced a record number of violent criminal acts in the last three years, more than ever in the city’s three-century history. Philadelphia has had at least 499 homicides each year since 2020 and set a record for the number of murders in a year in 2021. Radical criminal justice reform policies District Attorney Larry Krasner implemented have contributed to the dangerous chaos. Krasner, and activist judges in the city, have made it a point to keep criminals out of jail and on the street, where they continue to do harm.
The desire of Philadelphia’s Democrats to protect criminals at the expense of innocent people has left the city reeling. On multiple occasions, criminals and suspects who were kept out of jail because of these radical and toxic criminal justice policies went on to murder other people. I contacted the Philadelphia Police Department to find out the details of Monday’s shooting and if the suspect(s) were repeat offenders. The department shot down my inquiry and provided that a weapon was recovered at the scene, no arrests were made, and the investigation was ongoing.
Philadelphia is a dangerous place, and many bad things do happen here. One of Western civilization’s great historical cities has regressed into little more than a real-life version of the fictional comic book city Gotham. The city desperately needs change. Sadly, even with the mayoral election coming up, little, if anything, will. Corrupt, inefficient, and morally compromised politicians will continue to wreak havoc, enabling the criminal underworld to run wild.