Losing Philadelphia: What's Happened to the City of "Brotherly Love?"

As a lifelong Philadelphia resident who left the city nearly 18 months ago, for the warmer climate and laid-back atmosphere of the South, I can truly say that I am writing this column with a heavy heart.

After my trek to Myrtle Beach in August of 2004, I ventured even further into unknown territory by moving to Missouri only months later.
I recently made another trip back "home" only a few days before Christmas - and although I get daily reports of what's going on in the city from contacts young and old - I have to admit that I was totally shocked and extremely dissapointed to see and hear of the city's near-devastation firsthand.

Don't get me wrong, I still love my hometown as much anyone, but to see the abandoned homes and dilipidated state of a major portion of the city, I am quite bothered.

Yes, many sections of the city are slowly being renovated but at the snail's pace rate the city is moving at, many people will never see a beautiful Philadelphia in tier lifetimes.

As a man of color, I can say that I also wanted to see Mayor John Street do well when he first took office in what seems like an eternity years ago. Unfortunately, Mayor Street has been too preoccupied during his tenure with avoiding the Feds and removing listening devices from the underside of his desk to be concerned with trivial things like renovating a dilipated city or repairing the immensely dysfunctional school system and overall snese of dread that is hovering above the city these days like an ominous fog.

By the way, I haven't even began talking about the biggest problem currently plaguing the the city - the insanely high number of senseless murders that has a multitude of Philadelphia residents fearing for their respective lives each and every time they step outside of their homes.
One former Philadelphia resident, Marie Scott, who now resides in Montgomery County, commented on the huge amount of violence that is tearing both, the city, and an untold number of lives, shattered to pieces.