Another Death in P.G.

Another cabdriver was shot to death in neighboring crime-plagued Prince George's County the other day. Arshad Mahmood, a newly-legalized immigrant and father of a teen-age son, dreamed of bringing his wife to the United States from Pakistan.

But "Mahmood and his dream died on Oxon Hill," according to today's Washington Post. He was the seventh cabbie killed in P.G. County, known for its teen gangs, violence and high crime rates, since 2000. Police suspect robbery as the motive.

When I read this story my blood started to boil. Mahmood was making an honest living, working hard and trying to improve life for him and his family. Then some angry, low-life scum shoots him for a few dollars and to spread his misery to other people.

There were 131 violent gun deaths in Prince George's County last year, the highest statewide, according to a new report in today's Prince George's Sentinel. It doesn't help that the federal assault weapons ban expires this September.

The bulk of residents in P.G., which is pre-dominantly African-American, are God-fearing, law-abiding folks. But there's an element in this county north-east of Washington who have no regard for human life. They blame "The Man" for their low-wage jobs or for having no job at all, for not having enough money, for not getting the respect they believe they deserve.

They never take responsibility for how their lives have turned out. Instead, they turn their rage against innocent people.

Bill Cosby was right. In recent controversial comments that roiled the black community nationwide, he said many African-Americans who refuse to get a good education and take responsibility for their lives "are going nowhere" and that they have only themselves to blame.