Bullets over Broad Street.

"I'm back at the club with a snub, twistin up dubs
Sippin on Crist', bout to snatch your bitch....When the bar's sold out and aint no Belvedere No crowd control and the cops is scared
You know, the, the Roc, the Roc was here
Catch Mac V.I.P., section of the place
With the weapon on his waist, weight, two steppin to the base
I don't dance, I just move the crowd
And keep a big ass tool that's loud, that'll move the crowd
Only play the club dog if the music loud"

Question for Beanie Sigel: Why can't you just enjoy the club and have a good time without having a weapon on your waist? I know you are from a rough neighborhood in South Philly, and you are rapping about your reality, but I think it's time to take it down a notch.

This is a tough time to be in certain neighborhoods here in Killadelphia. Kids get their first choppa before a baseball glove or a bicycle. Young shooters will split a total stranger's wig for little or nothing. It's that serious.

"Police are asking for the public's help after a wave of weekend shootings claimed seven lives and left 12 people wounded across Philadelphia.

The violence began about 10 a.m. Friday in the 500 block of York Street, where police answered a call and found James Hall, 58, with a gunshot to the head.
Police arrested Calvin Atkerson, 22, who they said was shooting at another man when the gunfire struck Hall, whom they described as an "innocent bystander who was just sitting there."

About 12:30 a.m., police responding to a report of a home invasion in the 1800 block of South Newkirk Street in the Southbrook Park section found Aaron Tucker, 20, shot multiple times. He was pronounced dead inside the home. Three other men, ages 27, 28, and 42, were also shot in the incident and hospitalized in critical condition.

Police said three men and a woman knocked on the door of the home and, when they were let in, brandished guns and demanded money. When they did not get money quickly enough, they began firing. The four fled on foot, police said.
On Saturday about 3:30 a.m., police were called to the 3300 block of North 13th Street, where they found Shari Harris, 22, who was shot once in the head and pronounced dead at the scene.

Investigators determined that Harris was killed during an apparent robbery. Police said that a gunman shot her and that when she fell to the ground, the man took something from her pockets and fled on foot.

About 3 a.m. Sunday, police responding to a call found Alfredo Santiago, 22, fatally shot inside a silver Honda Accord at Fifth Street and Girard Avenue. Police said Santiago was driving the car when an unknown man started firing at the vehicle.

About 4 a.m., police answered a call at a home in the 2700 block of Erie Avenue, where they found Kevin Underwood, 22, with multiple gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead a short time later.

Police said Underwood had been sitting in a chair at the address when an unidentified man walked up to him and shot him in the head at close range and then fled on foot.

In the 1600 block of North Lindenwood Street in West Philadelphia about 7:30 p.m. Sunday, police responding to a call found Christopher Lee, 22, shot multiple times.

Police said Lee had been walking with several men when two unidentified men approached, announced a robbery, and went through the men's pockets. Lee, who attempted to run, was shot several times, police said. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

On Sunday about 8 p.m., police were called to 52d and Master Streets, where they found Alonzo Dennis, 28, shot multiple times. He was pronounced dead a short time later at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, police said.
They Dennis had been walking from a store on 52d when he was approached by a man who announced a robbery. When Dennis began to run, the gunman shot him..." [Article]

You Negroes done lost your minds! It's as if you are living out a damn video game. The only problem is that you are shooting real people and you can't reset and start the game over. Of course these killers living among us could care less about another person's life. Why? Because they don't even care about their own. I visit correctional facilities from time to time, and the inmates there actually seem happier on the inside than when they are out on the streets. Most hardcore inmates don't want to leave prison because the conditions are bad or they are afraid. They want to get out to get back on the block because they think that they are losing money or valuable turf while they are away. Being away at prison for these young bucks is like being away at college for some folks. It's a necessary right of passage. It's just that, unlike a college curriculum, what they learn in prison can't be parlayed into a decent 9-5.

I wish I could give you some encouraging news and some answers, but I can't. The truth is that these killings are not going to be ending anytime soon. Knuckleheads kill for money;to retaliate; for respect;for love;or just to impress their peers. With all those different reasons to kill and guns so easily available, expect the killings to go on for awhile.

"Beef? C'mon dog who you think gon bleed
Not Mac, never slip in the club
4/5Th in the club, told y'all never slip in the club
Niggas hit like shit, how that get in the club
You think I'm playin when I'm sayin shit'll drip in the club?"

No Beanie, I am sure that you are not.

If a child falls in the hood and no one cares to hear about it....

..should we make a sound? Of course we should. We owe our children that much.

As my man Reggie Warrington [Dave Chappelle] told Buddy Love [Eddie Murphy] in the Nutty Professor; "it's time to attack black."

So here we go again. It seems like every now and then I have to go on one of these rants. My Killadelphia murder count on the sidebar of this blog is not enough. Black folks, unfortunately, have become numb to the senseless killing of our children by our children. So what if three more young men were murdered this past week in Philly? Or if well over thirty school aged children have been murdered in Chicago this year? (How come Oprah doesn't have a show about that? I guess Dr. Phil doesn't do grief counseling) We have come to expect it.

But every now and then there is a murder that shocks our collective conscience and plays itself into the national psyche. Instead of a line or two in the metro page of the local paper, it makes national news. Bryan Williams is talking about it, and middle A-merry-cas is watching it with their hands over their mouths. In the hood people are wondering what's the big deal. How come this one made the national news and all the others didn't?

Well maybe it's because this one played itself out on video like a twisted reality television show for all of us to see. -And in the president's hometown no less- Urban terrorist beating a young honor student to death. No remorse, no heart, and no hesitation. Like a pack of animals who have strayed far away from their human DNA. You have all seen the video by now. If you haven't maybe you should. And when you do, take a long hard look at those those urban terrorist and try to find something. Maybe a clue as to why they act the way that they do. Something. Anything. I looked. In fact, I am always looking.

Here is what I see whenever I look: Children-wait, I take that back; boys without fathers. Young men with no men in their lives. Young men being raised by the streets and all sorts of negative influences. Most of them are here compliments of some sperm donor who just kept getting up. Absent fathers who thought that mom had a fat ass and was a "hell a nice shot".

I never see those sperm donors in criminal court when the cases are being called and the defendant's are being led into the courtroom. Only girlfriends, grandmothers, and mothers. The only black males I see in the court rooms are the sheriffs. When I go into the home of a potential client, the only people I negotiate with are mothers and grandmothers. Again, there is never a sperm donor in sight. That is my reality, and it's better than any scientific study you can cook up from some fancy Ivy League school. Oh field, stop it, what do you expect these men to do? What about the women who hook up with them? What about them? I can't speak for the women. All I know is that more often or not she is the one left to raise the child by herself. The sperm donor is always long gone and nowhere around. Regardless of who zoomed who.

I am so sick of seeing the vigils, the teddy bears, and the prayer groups in front of crime scenes. Because the sad reality is that tomorrow, just like clockwork, some poor child will be snatched from us by an urban terrorist all over again.

Today, Al Sharpton,Newt Gingrich, and Education Secretary, Arne Duncan, toured the schools here in Philly. (Talk about strange bedfellows)They were here to praise the charter school system in our fine city and push for longer hours in school. That's all fine. But our schools could stay open twenty four hours a day and it wouldn't make a damn difference to the urban terrorist out here. The kids who want to learn will be there, and the others will keep doing what they are doing now: be disruptive, make it harder for the other kids, and create a poor overall learning environment.

But let's keep it real with each other. The schools can only do so much. Everything starts at home.

I know that I am preaching to the choir here, because most of you who read this blog with children don't need to here this. I am sure that your children are fine. But what about the rest of them? All of our children. A-merry-ca's children. (Well, black A-merry-ca's children, because I am quite sure that the rest of A-merry-ca would never claim them. They would much rather adopt a nice little Asian or Russian girl...let me stop.) How do we get to them? How do we stop the sperm donors? It's, for the most part, a question that is orotund in nature. Because as much as I have tried to figure it out, I swear that I don't know the answer.

The Killing Of "Ms. Kim".

There was a killing in Philly yesterday (So field, what else is new?) but this one was a little different. Killings are so common around here that they are usually just worth a line or two on my Killadelphia Murder Count. (See sidebar.) Still, this one had some elements to it that made me want to say a few things.

Ms. Kim (as she was affectionately called by neighbors) was a store owner in the East Mt. Airy/Germantown part of town. This is a fairly solid part of town, made up of primarily working class black folks. They have their share of crime, but nothing like West, North, or Southwest Philly. From all accounts, Ms. Kim was loved and well respected in the neighborhood. She ran the store with her husband and she was always known to let her customers slide if they owed money for their purchases.

Yesterday Ms. Kim lost her life, because she chose to confront one of her customers who had allegedly stolen a bag of potato chips. (Or a mop, depending on who you believe.) Ms. Kim, confronted the alleged thief outside of her store; the women struggled; and when it was over, the shopkeeper was dead. Again, depending on whose account you believe, the killer took a gun out of her pants and shot the shop keeper four times from point blank range in the face. After shooting Ms. Kim the woman allegedly calmly walked to the pay phone and called the police.

People in the community are devastated, and they all want to know how someone could have taken the life of "poor Ms. Kim."

So let's talk for a minute: Apparently the shooter had some mental issues, and everyone in the community knew it. When the woman tried to steal the mop (or the potato chips) should Ms. Kim have confronted her, or should she have called the police? And, what is it, exactly, that is preventing our people from starting or own businesses in certain neighborhoods? Is it because we don't have the financial backing or resources? Is it because we would rather work for someone else? Or is it because the risks are too great and we don't want to end up like Ms. Kim?

And finally, if this woman had mental issues, just how the hell did she get her hands on a handgun? (You don't have to answer that one, I already know) The shooting of Ms. Kim in East Mt. Airy yesterday will make the news for the obvious reason: A cold blooded murder perpetrated by someone of the fairer sex in the middle of the day. But the issues surrounding Ms. Kim's murder are troubling as well. Some of them are uncomfortable, so they will never be spoken out loud. Some of them we will talk about, but not until another tragedy that is so great and so unspeakable merits a pause at the water cooler.

And the beat goes on.

Here in Killadelphia we are used to murders and carnage. Usually the killings are relegated to the second or third page of the Metro section of our local paper. But every now and then we get a story that is so shocking and outrageous that it shocks the conscience of even the most jaded among us; and, as a result, the news from our little corner of the world goes national.

(The Lex Street killings come to mind.)

So the latest story out of Killadelph which became national news is the one where a thug took it up on himself to bike-jack a citizen and proceeded to try and get away on the bike while his accomplice drove a car. You all know the rest of the story by now: In doing so, they drove the getaway car into a crowd of children, killing three of them and a young mother.

Of course, now comes the usual finger pointing. The citizens of my fair city are outraged that these career criminals could be back out on the street. (Yes, I know the driver of the car was only 18, but he started young.) They want someone to pay for this unspeakable tragedy.

But.....well, here is a little sampling of what is being written in our local paper:

"..Cradock's stepbrother and alleged accomplice, Ivan Rodriguez, 20, was formally charged yesterday with murder and other crimes, and was being held without bail.
Cathie Abookire, spokeswoman for District Attorney Lynne M. Abraham, said Rodriguez had been scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Wednesday on four counts of murder, four counts of homicide by motor vehicle, conspiracy, robbery, gun charges, and other offenses.
As relatives and neighbors struggled to cope with the sudden carnage that claimed four lives, they vented outrage that two young men with troubling criminal histories had been free in their midst. Both had outstanding bench warrants for their arrests.

Cradock, who lived with his mother a few blocks away in the 300 block of East Rockland Street, had eight prior arrests dating to age 12, five involving gun violations, according to police.Cradock's most recent arrest was April 2, 2006, a case that involved the armed robbery of a pack of beer from a pedestrian near Cradock's home in Feltonville. Cradock was adjudicated delinquent and began the first of several placements through Family Court in juvenile treatment facilities, most recently at Summit Academy, a residential facility and school north of Pittsburgh.

Cradock had been granted a home pass by Summit in April but failed to return. Summit contacted Family Court and a bench warrant was issued by Administrative Judge Kevin M. Dougherty on April 15.

Yesterday, court officials rejected claims by Vanessa Cradock, who raised both boys, in an interview Thursday with NBC10. Cradock said that when her son failed to return to Summit, she called his probation officer and asked that he be taken into custody. No one picked up her son, Cradock said."

NO ONE PICKED UP HER SON? I know you all see where I am going with this. Vanessa Cradock and the piece of shit sperm donor who made a deposit and got up are to blame; no one else. I am sick of these people not taking responsibility for their own children.

Vanessa, when you bring a child into this world, it's not the "probation department" or the courts who should be charged with doing what you should have been doing for 18 years, it's you. Blaming the institutions whose job it is to keep the rest of us safe from your son is foolish.

So now, four people are dead, and your son will never live with the other people in society for the rest of his miserable life.

Today it's Vanessa Cradock and tomorrow it will be someone else. The beat goes on, and so do the killings.

Full story here.

Spare the rod......

Tonight I am blogging about two stories which are worlds apart in geography and what actually happened, but they are connected and similar in many ways.

I will start with poor Alma Harding of Devon, England, all she did was lay a royal smack down with a church program on some punk who was vandalising city and church property. The lady, as the story goes, had spent countless hours of her time and her own money to spruce up the area in question with flowers and hanging baskets, and these little punks saw fit to play target practice with soccer balls on it. The woman was returning home from church and she must have remembered that if she "spared the rod she would spoil the child". So she let the little punks have it with the church program. And for this the poor woman was charged and convicted of assaulting the little thugs.

Now my next story takes place right here in Killadelphia, Pistolvania, and of course it involves an incident far more tragic. In the middle of the day on a West Killadelphia street, a 16 year old boy walked up to a 12 year old boy while he was sitting in his mother's car and pumped 5 rounds into the child. This happened right across the street from a day care while people (including the victims own mother who was picking up his 3 year old sister) were picking up their children. This little thug was brazen and heartless, and he is typical of the urban predators that we are spawning here on our mean streets. If you thought Philly was known for only having the best cheese steaks you would be wrong. Nope, Philly is known for having the most violent juveniles in the country, and the stories you hear everyday around here justifies the label.

"...Police said the victim was sitting in the front passenger seat of his mother’s car, while she picked up his sister, when an unknown shooter walked up and fired five rounds into the vehicle about 3:30, police said. The youth was struck in the left hand and chest. Moments later, his mother ran after the gunman, who tucked the gun in his waistband, and fled on 60th Street, police said. She lost track of him about a block away, and ran inside a daycare center for help. “The bloodcurdling screams of the mother...I will never forget it,” said Monica Mason, who was inside the center when she heard the gunshots and screams.."

Yes folks this is how we are living here in Killadelphia. (Digression alert!) So field how are these two stories connected? I will tell you how: The little animal that shot the young man is still on the run, and any day now you will hear his mama and all his peeps tell you what a good kid he was. You will hear how he used to help old ladies across the street, and how he was just a neighborhood kid who used to just hang out and play basketball blah blah blah. But what you won't hear is that when he was running wild in that neighborhood if anyone dared to grab his little ass and try to tell him right from wrong his mama would be the first one in line to slap a law suit on them or call the po po and scream child abuse. Like the little punks in England, these punks in Philly are out of control, and there is no one like that good church lady to let them have it with a rolled up church program, or anything else for that matter.

So that's how these two stories are connected; little punks running wild and instead of society putting their asses in check, we are charging church ladies in England with assault. I don't know about society in general, but I know that in the black community we need to just declare open season on ass whopping little juvenile delinquents. And that means anybody can whop anybody else's child. If the little crumb snatcher is acting up, you lay a good old fashion beat down on his ass. We will trust your judgement no questions asked. Pookey, why was that strange man beating you with his belt? He caught me tagging Ms. Chen's store mama. Well turn your little ass over so that I can tear it up again.

Just another day in Killadelphia?

You all will excuse me if I feel like I am living in a modern day version of Dodge City. Consider the following story:

An off duty police officer is cruising down a busy city street at 3:30 PM yesterday. To his shock and surprise....I take that back, this is Philly, I am sure he wasn't that surprised. But anyway, right there on a busy street in the Logan section of town, he observed a group of young African Americans jump from a car and proceed to pump bullets into another young African American male who was standing on the sidewalk.

Of course the off duty officer did what any properly trained cop would do, he pursued the perpetrators. He followed them in his car until they jumped out and tried to escape. Then, tragically, one of the young men allegedly reached for a hand gun and was shot and killed.

So field, what's the big deal? You tell us about killings in Philly all the time. Yes, but here is where the story takes a little twist: It seems the perpetrator who was shot and killed is the son of two of Philly's finest, himself. Yes folks, in the city of "Brotherly Love", there just isn't that much love going around these days. Even the sons of those who are paid to protect us allegedly try to play Al. Capone. Sadly, for this family, this son won't be coming home, and they will have to live with the memory that one of their fellow comrades in blue had to take him out.

From all indications it was a justifiable shoot. But, as is always the case with these things, we will have to wait and see. What is it that Danish philosopher said about irony?

" Irony is a disciplinarian feared only by those who do not know it, but cherished by those who do.."?

Irony, I know you well.

Story here.

OAKLAND, WE HAVE A PROBLEM.

If you don't know who Oscar Juliuss Grant,III is, I am pretty sure that you will soon. Mr. Grant is the poor gentleman who lost his life at the hands of someone who was supposed to be protecting him. Mr. Grant was shot and killed by a Bay Area Rapid Transit Authority (BART) police officer who was allegedly trying to break up a fight. Shockingly, Mr. Grant, at the time, was unarmed.

Now I am going to answer the comments that I know I am going to get about what a tough job police officers have right now. Yes I know they have a tough and thankless job, yes I know that they are putting their lives on the line to protect us law abiding citizens, and yes I know that most police officers are good hard working people who want to do the right thing.

But.... (oh boy here comes field with the but) come on now, how can we blame folks for being outraged when an unarmed man who was in police custody, and clearly restrained, was shot to death? One of the beautiful things of living in the You Tube era is that we can see damn near everything that happens in the world right on our T.V. screens and computer monitors. And unless someone doctored the tape I saw, it was pretty clear to me that Mr. Grant was already subdued and the officers had the situation well in hand.

But as is always the case with these stories, the boyz in blue are rallying around each other, and cover ups and verbal deception rules the day. Now the authorities are claiming that Mr. Grant was not restrained at the time of the shooting, and there are still quite a few unanswered questions surrounding the incident. Yeah right, and Lark Voorhies could walk by me in the nude and I would never look at her. I mean am I missing something here? I SAW THE TAPE! Even if the man wasn't in handcuffs he was certainly restrained. I don't know about you people, but restrained to me means that the officers have the situation under control, and that the man is going nowhere.

"Several apparent witnesses have disputed that, saying Grant was shot in the back while in handcuffs.."

Oakland we have a problem. Well, actually, it's not only Oakland, seems right here in my hometown of Killadelphia we have this problem as well. So you will excuse me if I am not quite as shocked after watching this video and hearing about this story as you are.

I heard an expert on one of these news shows say that the officer clearly made a mistake and he thought he was reaching for his taser but pulled his gun, instead. If that's the case they need to just come clean and admit it. Yes, there will be a big fat law suit, and the man's little daughter and his family will get paid. But this is the price you pay for incompetence, or, god forbid, something worse . It's just sad that it had to cost someone his life.

Killing fields.

I was thinking about writing about a myriad of things tonight. Obama's former pastor, Reverend if loving Obama is wrong I don't want to be Wright. The Supremes making it alright to require picture ID's to vote (da fuck?). Miley Cyrus thinking she is 18. A world food shortage which is creating a serious crisis in some Third World countries, and here in A-merry-ca. And gas costing more per gallon than the cost of a good cheesesteak.

But then I picked up my hometown newspaper, and I realized that I was lucky to be alive.

I realized that the five murders that took place in my city last night makes all the other shit going on around me pale in comparison. I realized that my personal survival is more important than silly ass teen stars, and the first black man with a legitimate shot at occupying the White House, especially given the fact that he probably won't govern any different than those who came before him, and those who will come long after he is gone.

So let's see now, we are at 101 and counting ( I have to remember to update my Killadelphia murder count on my sidebar), and our new Mayor is starting to realize that talking and good PR is nice. But he might want to spend a little less time running around with Hillary and more time focusing on what is going on in his damn city.

So here is a quick overview: A 15 year old boy was shot and an 18 year old critically injured in a drive by that took place in the cities' Frankford section. A 50 year old man was found shot to death in the middle of the day in the hallway of an apartment complex in West Philadelphia. Then there is this story: A 26 year old lady was found at 4:02 a.m. beating a man in his mid sixties at a Sunoco gas station right on Broad Street. But it gets better, or worse, depending on how you look at it. According to my hometown paper, The Philadelphia Inquirer, the police stumbled on the beating as they were swarming the same neighborhood while investigating a double shooting which took place about a 100 yards away.

Then at about 1:45 in the morning a gunman opened fire in a jazz club on Broad Street. Marcus Davis, 37, was shot in the head and pronounced dead on the spot. Another man was shot in the neck and was seriously wounded. And in yet another killing, police found the body of Tyrone Miller, 44, at around 2:48 a.m.. Poor Tyrone was shot three times in the face and chest. As is usually the case in my fair city there were no witnesses. Or none that was willing to come forward.

These were the actual killings I am telling you about. The number could rise. At least eight other people were shot throughout the city last night, including a 16 year old boy who accidentally shot himself, and was later arrested and charged with various firearms violations. I am sure it was his hammer he shot himself with. The poor guy was probably just on his way to the shooting range when he forgot his NRA instruction pamphlet...yeah that's the ticket.

But surprise, I am not even going to rip the NRA this time. Although they bear some responsibility for this carnage as well. Nope, I am blaming some of the animals who live around me, and who don't understand the value of a human life. Everyday I step out the door I have to be worried about some knuckle head who can't shoot straight, or some motherfucker who has some issues with the field who shoots just straight enough.

So we are at 101 and counting. I know it could be worse, because last year this time we were at 130. But hey, there is still time to catch up. It's not even summer yet.

Fieldisms

"Field I think I would really like your blog if I understood what you were saying half the time. Like what the hell is WSZ?"

~~White colleague to the field~~

Okay, I understand that when it comes to writing, I am lazy, dyslexic, and selfish. And unless you are a regular to the fields, some of the words that I use can seem downright perplexing.

So in order to make my blog more readable to certain folks who visit the site, I have prepared a little list of fieldisms for you.

Let's start with WSZ-That would be a "white safety zone". I use this to refer to parts of Killadelphia that our city fathers really really want to keep crime free. This would be areas such as Center City, where all of our tourist tend to go. Another example of a WSZ would be Chestnut Hill, where there are some very expensive homes, and where some very important people live. Important meaning rich and white of course.

The frat boy-That would be our president. Because life seems to be one big party to him. While the world and our country goes to hell in a hand basket; all he does is grin and talk as if he is wasted all the time.

Mr. Morton-John McCain because he is always salty.

A-merry-ca-Is what I call this beautiful country we live in. I spell it that way because the pursuit of happiness and being happy is so important to us.

field Negro-Once again white folks, being a field Negro is not a bad thing to most critical thinking black people. Now of course some of us don't like that name; they would be known as house Negroes.

Patio Negro-A Negro who can't make up his mind if he is a house Negro or a field Negro. A Negro that can move between two worlds.

dumbocrat- A dumbocrat belongs to the party with the donkey in A-merry-ca's two party system.

rethuglican-A rethuglican belongs to that other political party; the one with the elephant.

The "O" man-That would be Barry Obama. This guy has achieved rock start status in A-merry-ca and is also *this* close to being the first black president of these divided states. "O" man just seems so rock star, and so popular culture. You know, kind of like K-Fed, or J-Lo.

Obamaholics-Just tune in to this site on any given day and you will see signs of these rabid devoted "O" man lovers. They have been injected with some kind of secret potion which has given them this laser like focus in getting the "O" man elected president. I know one thing, if he does win, he owes his presidency to them.

O-Aid-That's the secret potion that they give to the Obamaholics.

Mrs. Field-That would be the President and CEO of Field Inc.

Cousin-Black folks I know you already know this, but just hang with me while I explain it to my white friends. My cousin is every other black person in A-merry-ca. So if I say I went to a store full of my cousins....

12% rule-This is a little complicated. But I explained it in a post here.

Fam.-Again cousins, I know you know this one, but let me just explain it to the white folks. Fam. is short for family. And I usually use it to refer to one of my cousins that I like.

The bad perm lady has been retired-In the past I used it to refer to Condi Rice, (My current FNOTD) but after the Don Imus comments about the young ladies from Rutgers, I vowed never to refer to Secretary Rice that way again.

Fuzzy eyeball-This is an evil look or a hard stare.

That's just some of the fieldisms that I like to use. You will find that the regulars to the fields also bring their own unique words and expressions here as well. Pistolvania, and republi-klans comes to mind) I really can't help you with those. But I will say that they are usually pretty good.

**I want to thank James Collier over at Acting White blog for that illustration of the field. My man has some skills.

#47

It's rare that I feature one of the murder victims on my Killadelphia murder count sidebar for an entire post. But this one is different.

David Atkins was 43 years old. He was a doting and devoted father to his six year old son, who worked two jobs (as a glass cleaner and a security guard) to provide his son a proper home.

"He lived for David. It was just him and David...he gave him all the best of everything" This is what Atkins' sister said about his relationship with his son. By all accounts Atkins also worked two jobs to provide a Catholic school education for his son, and he also took care of his 83 year old mother before she moved in with one of his sisters.

David Atkins was one of twelve siblings who had been at alter boy growing up. According to his employer he was a "great" employee, and according to the people who knew him he was a "good friend." One of Atkins' sisters said that "He was a mother and a father to his son...the two of them would always be seen together." So what does that say about us as a society and as a people when we shoot a positive role model and father, and leave him to die like an animal?

David Atkins answered his door early Saturday morning, while his son was sleeping in his bedroom. The person that came to the door shot David Atkins at point blank range. After he fell, the gunman stood over Atkins' body and fired five more shots into his now lifeless body.

The Police are looking for a motive and a gunman . Sadly, as is usually the case here in Killadelphia, no one saw anything, and no one is coming forward.

This is the last time you will hear of David Atkins, because sadly, he is just a statistic to you. But David Atkins had a son, and a family who loved him very much. David Atkins was not just a statistic to them, he was a loved one.

Davis Atkins also had a killer. Someone (or should I say something) so cold blooded and callous that they could shoot another human being like a dog in the doorway of his own home. David Atkins was victim number forty seven in our city. And before this year is over, there will be at least 300 more people like David Atkins, people who we will never hear from or hear about ever again.

The things we do for love.

The murder rate here in Philly continues to rise. Four people were shot-one fatally-within several hours of each other today alone (Which reminds me, I have to update my "Killadelphia" murder count). And there is no end in sight.

But now as we approach Valentine's Day let me hip you to a very disturbing trend here in my hometown: It seems that many of our women here are buying their ex con boyfriends fire arms as gifts. Some of their par amours have three four and five criminal convictions, and because they are banned from owning hand guns, their sweeties take it upon themselves to get the ideal gift for the love of their lives.

If they just met, the lady in the former felons life might buy him a Walther P-22 semi automatic or some shit. But if that women really loves her man, she might get him a Glock-17 (9mm), just to show she cares. And if there might be wedding bells in their immediate future, I am sure a 45 ACP Luger would not be out of the question.

The sad thing is that a lot of these women are risking arrest and serious jail time. Straw purchasing of firearms (buying guns for the purpose of reselling them or giving them to someone else) is illegal, and given the climate of violence in this city, you can best believe that the DA's office and the feds are not in the mood to play nice.

So ladies, as Valentines Day approaches, if you want to get a nice gift for the love of your life; you might want to consider a watch or a nice piece of jewelry. It will keep your man out of trouble, and ultimately, you out of jail.

In cold blood.

The young man you see in this picture---John Lewis---might not be with us much longer. Sadly, there is a pretty good chance he will end up on the receiving end of a police officer's bullet, or he will become the property of the state of Pennsylvania for the rest of his natural life.

You see, the young man in the picture allegedly shot a Philadelphia police officer to death while he was robbing a donut store. And right now there is a massive man-hunt here in Killadelphia to bring him in. The Police Commissioner was all over the television earlier today ominously telling this young man to turn himself in before it's too late. There was also a number of his family members pleading for him do the same. They do it, because they too know what often happens to alleged cop killers in the end.

So I watched the news coverage today, and along with the Commissioner, there was this young man's grandmother, his aunts, his mother, and his neighbors; all pleading for the young man to call them, and to turn himself in to the police. His grandmother was actually crying and pleading with him to call her. She lamented about his life and how he loves to eat, and what a good kid he is. (Aren't they always) Then she spoke about how she had taken him job hunting just days ago, and how he was actually working on his GED after dropping out of high school. (Don't they always)

But this story is sad on so many levels that I don't even know where to begin. On the one hand, there is that poor police officer and his family who lost a father and a husband. Then there is the family of this alleged killer, and the pain they are going to have to go through. (His mother is actually a corrections officer) And finally, there is the three month old child he just fathered, what is going to happen to that little soul ? A child who will more than likely never see her father free or alive again. (Not that she would have seen him that much anyway)

Another thing that bothers me about this story, is that I saw no father, no uncle, or no grandfather pleading with this young man to call home. None! Why is that? Where is this alleged killer's father or male role model in his life? Honestly, I don't even know why I am asking, because I know you all know the answer to that.

This episode bothers me, because I have defended young men like this one before in criminal cases. And I can count the number of times on one hand that there was a father present when I talked to the family of an accused. Every time I think of what this young man allegedly did I shudder. The cold calculating way that he allegedly executed that cop, and the nerve he showed to go back and pick up the cop's service revolver after that unspeakable act. No remorse, no feelings, nothing. Just an empty cold heart cultivated by a life on the streets.

I have grown numb to all the killings now, and I have been in the belly of this beast a time or two. But when someone executes someone who is paid to protect me, it's definitely a cause for me to pause.

I know one thing, if this young man's father is absent, and if he was just another sperm donor who made a deposit and rolled; he deserves the same fate as whatever befalls this young man. Because If he did pull the trigger that killed that cop, they might as well have pulled it together.