The article goes out of its way to say that there weren't many people out

I don't take the El much, but there aren't junkies in every BSL station by any means.

It's better than transit in 99% of US cities. You can easily live car free in Philly as it's also one of the most walkable cities in the country. As a frequent transit user (mainly the BSL), I can tell you that I've never had any issues with safety. On the MFL, you might see some unpleasant druggies from time to time, but it's still safe to ride. Most of the people saying how awful things are in the city that are on this sub don't live here, have an agenda, and/or definitely don't use transit.

If you moved to Center City you won't even need to use transit much since it's so walkable. And the bus system is good too btw.

Here’s 1000 of these idiots in Times Square and riding through Manhattan last year, disregarding all traffic signals: https://youtu.be/NqQPrhKUeok

It really seems like this problem is here to stay in the Northeast :( Florida too.

I am obviously not an expert but that’s debatable, it’s been ruled in multiple courts that the 2nd amendment does not extend protection to firearm sellers: https://harvardlawreview.org/2014/04/does-the-second-amendment-protect-firearms-commerce/

Hence why I referred to current gun laws, as my understanding was that changing state legislation could potentially have an impact here.

It would be for sure, but maybe the 2nd amendment needs some updating too. As we are all aware it was written 250 years ago - with muskets in mind.

Which is what? That our country has too many guns and it’s laughable that we are so divided on such a simple concept? Look at us compared to every other high-income country in the world - at their rate of gun ownership relative to both their overall homicide rates, and rates of homicide by firearm.

The 2nd amendment is a right to have a gun for self-defense, it says nothing about anyone who sells firearms. I do think the majority of gun sales should be prohibited.

By no means do I categorize all gun owners as illogical gun-lovers. I grew up in a law enforcement family with guns and we aren’t.

If they weren’t available for sale, they wouldn’t have been there to steal. A fairly simple concept.

Nearly 30,000 'crime guns' recovered in Philly came from just 21 federally-licensed area dealers: https://www.phillyvoice.com/crime-guns-sales-philadelphia-brady/amp/

If they weren’t available for sale, there would be far less on our streets.

Yet another example of how our current gun laws directly contribute to the country’s crime/homicide issue, no matter how much gun-lovers try to deny the obvious.

From another article on this: “Students say while they feel safe on campus, they have serious concerns when they venture off campus.”

It’s safe to attend if you live on campus, but if you don’t - you may want to live in Fairmount, Center City, or South Philly.

Almost like there was an unprecedented global pandemic that had this effect (to varying degrees) on nearly all American cities. For example, over 20 cities set homicide records in 2021.

The question is whether you have the patience and desire to wait for things to hopefully return to normal - of which you of course have no obligation to.

From a more recent article:

“Overwise said neither of the drivers was speeding and there's a possibility rain may have been a factor, but he continues to say that does not excuse these drivers from leaving the scene of an accident.”

You said “can’t even ride your bike without someone fucking with you.” I responded because that’s not remotely true, as this was an anomaly.

Had you said “this is rare for Center City but our city should be doing better to address general safety issues”, I would fully agree.

That seems pretty extreme but I don’t know what you’ve experienced.

Thousands of people do every single day actually

It's always sad when I see the random posts on IG, Reddit etc. asking women "what would you do if men didn't exist for 24 hours?" and like half of them are saying they'd just walk around their cities at night.

I definitely don't count but I feel like in Center City, U City, and Grad Hospital I see a lot of women out at all times of night, old and young. Especially in Washington Square, there are senior citizens around at all hours lol.

Yes, awareness is always key when you're in a big city. I was more just saying that this doesn't mean it's unsafe to be out and about as there will never be zero risk anywhere. There are robberies all the time around Times Square for example (tourist from Maryland slashed last year, Ariana Grande's brother attacked/robbed in November, etc.), but I would still feel fine going there any time, day or night.

Unrelated, do you often hear gunshots while pooping?

It’s news because it almost never happens. There is never going to be absolutely zero crime, but personally I’d have no reservations about walking down Walnut at that exact time and place tonight. Especially because this fool is now off the street.

Yes though, everyone does deserve to go about their business undisturbed. I hope this person’s recovery is long and painful, there’s nothing lower than preying on innocent people.

Valid, but this is an opinion piece I happen to agree with.

Like you avoided a crime scene? Or you think you would've been stabbed?

i'm not telling you to delete it if you enjoy using it, just sharing my opinion that it's not helpful 99% of the time. If something shows up on the app it's already happened (if it actually happened). If you are already present on the scene where an incident is unfolding it's not going to help you - excluding a few instances of like an active shooter or something, or an ongoing traffic issue.

Interesting article on how Citizen creates a culture of fear: https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2019/08/it-creates-a-culture-of-fear-how-crime-tracking-apps-incite-unnecessary-panic/

That app is garbage. When I had it and lived at 13th and Chestnut, I would see unconfirmed reports of shots fired right outside pretty frequently. Not once were shots fired lol

Ubers aren’t safe because of one road rage incident? Please.

“According to state police, a 20-year-old woman from Philadelphia was in the rear passenger side of a Lyft, a white Hyundai Sonata, that was traveling eastbound on the Schuylkill Expressway (I-76) near the I-676 merge just after midnight Saturday.

At that time, police say a black Nissan Altima attempted to merge in an "unsafe manner" onto the Vine Street Expressway.

"The operator of the Nissan then engaged in a road rage incident," state police say.”