Open Letter to Police Commissioner Johnson re Concealed Carry.

Dear Mr. Johnson.



I heard a sound byte from you on 1210AM the other day to the effect that "If I had my way, there would be no concealed carry"



First of all, I would like to say that it is statements like that that drove me and my business out of philadelphia (lower case intentional) to the suburbs.



I would like to pose a series of questions which you or your staff can feel free to reply to

• Exactly how many concealed carry holders have committed crimes of violence? Can you give the numbers as a percentage of the total crimes of violence? HINT - the number is extremely low or is approaching ZERO. The law abiding citizens are NOT the problem.


• Many people have twisted the meaning of the Second Ammendment of the Federal Bill of Rights. However, the Constitution of our beloved Commonwealth, which you are duty bound to follow, reads "The right of the people to keep and bear arms in defense of themselves and the State shall not be questioned". The language of our Commonwealth's Constitution leaves no "Wiggle Room" in it's language. Deny the right of people to protect themselves and you are violating the rights of Pennsylvanians as guaranteed under the constitution.


• It is a well known management principle that trying to "solve" the problem by focusing on something that is not the cause of the problem is worse than doing nothing. Decent people exercising their rights under the law is not the problem. Taking away their rights while ignoring the real causes of crime will leave them unprotected while doing nothing to reduce criminal behaviour.


• If concealed carry is such a problem, can you explain Vermont? I vacationed there about 2 years ago. Any adult who does not have a criminal or mental record can carry without a permit. No paperwork required. No need to ask the Government for permission to exercise your basic rights. Would you care to compare the crime rates in Vermont with those of Philadelphia?? I thought not.
• Do you, or do you not, believe that citizens have a right to self defense? I believe that court decisions have shown that the police are not obligated to protect the individual, just the 'public at large'.

There are numerous causes for the decay of our society which contribute to criminal behaviour. Those will take a little bit of work to fix.

• The Decay of the family - Crime was much lower when we had traditional families. We have created a society where the traditional family is a pariah. When my wife and I attended childbirth classes in Philadelphia, I became aware that the instructor was twisting every possible way to avoid the terms "Father" or "Husband", instead using stalistic euphamisms such as "Labor Coach" and "Significant Other". Over a half century of liberalism has shattered the traditional family with predictable results.
• Revolving Door Justice - Criminals know that prison caps and liberal judges will ensure their immediate return to the streets for all but the most dastardly crimes.
• An environment hostile to small business - Guess what, Philadelphia is one of the worst places for a small business person. The taxes are staggering. You are driving small business and even larger business out of the city to the suburbs, other states or even overseas. You reap what you sow. With the loss of those jobs, there is a corresponding loss of opportunity.
• Corruption - Philadelphia --- Corruption??? Who would have thought. .. You need to clean up the mess in a manner similar to that of Theodore Roosevelt in New York City in the late 1800's. Weed out the bad apples. Have ZERO tolerance for corruption. Why is it that drug dealers can operate openly on the streets? Unfortunately I would think that some envelopes full of cash are going into some blue pockets.

Anyway, Mister Commissioner, that is just a beginning. They say that Republics generally only last for about 300 years. I see the that the foundations of freedom laid down by out Founding Fathers are crumbling. I see politicians such as yourself ignoring the God given rights of the people for political gain, or out of ingorance or to perhaps further some other agenda.

(and make no mistake, you are a political animal)

Respectfull,

Christopher G. Mendla

Philadelphia Expatriot.