It is a violent summer in Philadelphia. Drug-related gang violence plagues the streets of the City of Brotherly Love. But one of the most outrageous attacks comes from the office of Philadelphia Mayor John Street. It is aimed at the Boy Scouts.

That's not just bad policy. It is horrific.

Just what have the Boy Scouts done in Philadelphia that would justify eviction from their headquarters building? Well, they serve 40,000 youth in the city, many of whom would be left to gang violence and drugs without Scouting. They contribute hundreds of thousands of volunteer project hours to the city each year. They teach boys to become responsible citizens in the community.

No, the murder rate is a direct result of kids born into families in which there is nobody home to kick butt, kids who are uncontrolled and facing no future. The closest anyone in this town has come to addressing the real root cause was when Inquirer columnist Claude Lewis wrote recently about the need to give kids back their childhood.

Not only does the city not hear Lewis' wisdom, but it's about to contradict his logic by undercutting a private group that preaches ethics, values and morality to young people who could otherwise fall into the grip of urban violence. At a time when young black people are dying in the streets, the mayor has set his sight on the Boy Scouts.

Please, Mr. Mayor, you have less than two years left in your administration. The time and energy this issue will take from you, the rest of the government and the lawyers, is probably going to a losing cause. Right now, your time would be better used for other pursuits.

Look at the bigger problems. Focus on the violence that is running rampant this summer. If you want a project, why not ask your friend Gov. Rendell to push through legislation making it more difficult to buy a gun in this state. Think about the poor and elderly, who need help to survive in the heat. Drugs continue to be a scourge in this city. Heck, if you're looking for one other thing to do, how about our town's Olympic bid?

Leave the Boy Scouts alone. Find a way to cut your losses, and drop the subject. Of all the things that can be left to your successor, this one can be left on your desk.

At age 16, Michael Levin stunned his Bucks County family by announcing that he would settle in Israel after high school and join the military there.

First Sgt. Michael Levin, 22, who fulfilled his dream of becoming an Israeli soldier, was killed in action Tuesday in southern Lebanon. He was one of three Israeli soldiers killed that day.

Young burglars broke into the headquarters of Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation in Ardmore and stole donations and wristbands - and bottles of lemonade - sometime last Friday night.

"You can't get more despicable than that," Haverford Township Detective George Christake said yesterday.

The foundation was named for Alexandra Scott, the 8-year-old who died of neuroblastoma, a childhood cancer, on Aug. 1, 2004. When she was 4, she and her parents opened the first stand, which grew into a national fund-raising campaign for pediatric cancer research and treatment. Since 2000, the organization has collected about $7 million.

The juveniles knew who they were targeting when they broke into the charity, authorities also said. The office is not well-marked and sits on the top floor of a former commercial laundry. Inside, the office walls are painted a bright lemon-yellow and covered with photos and posters of Alex.

"They had to know we were here, obviously," Liz Scott, Alex's mother, said yesterday. "The fact that it is young people is more disturbing to me. We exist for kids..."

Each day, your socialist-communist rantings get dumber. From your support of a business-killing smoking ban to the eviction of the Boy Scouts, you and your fellow travelers on City Council are determined to make "the next great city" into a third-world backwater.

E.R. Kern, Philadelphia

The federal government keeps two sets of books.

The set the government promotes to the public has a healthier bottom line: a $318 billion deficit in 2005.

The set the government doesn't talk about is the audited financial statement produced by the government's accountants following standard accounting rules. It reports a more ominous financial picture: a $760 billion deficit for 2005. If Social Security and Medicare were included — as the board that sets accounting rules is considering — the federal deficit would have been $3.5 trillion.

Smiles don't come naturally to people who kill.

That's why it was such a shock when a man who had just shot and killed another man in a Port Richmond diner early Saturday flashed a smile at a cashier as he left.

Police identified the killer as Hector Maldonado, 20, a convicted felon, and issued a warrant for his arrest charging him with murder and related offenses in the slaying of Cesar Reyes. Reyes, a father of four and an entrepreneur, owned a hair salon and an after-hours club in his Kensington neighborhood.

The smile means evil, said Reyes' mother, Maria, after learning of her son's death. "He is with evil," she said.

On July 12, Tom Ferrick penned an oblivious opening salvo..

Is this a great country or what?

Where else can the son of an Irish mother and an Indian father rise to be a candidate for Congress and begin his campaign by playing good, old American racial politics?

But that's plucky, indomitable Raj Bhakta for you.

Northeast residents promptly responded.

These emails came after I did a piece this week about Raj Bhakta, the Republican candidate for congress in the 13th district, which straddles Northeast Philly and eastern Montgomery County.

I took issue with what I said was Raj's thinly-veiled racialist message in re the Northeast.

These readers took issue with me. One of them denied there was any racial basis to Raj's message. Another lamented how the Northeast has been harmed by neglect from City Hall.

Undeterred, Ferrick continued criticizing.

I have some advice for those folks in Northeast Philadelphia who bombarded me with messages and e-mails last week after I did a piece about the congressional race there.

Quit your whining.

Life is tough. Stuff happens. Change is the only constant. And you can't blame it all on John Street.

On July 21, Raj boldly challenged Ferrick.

It's tough to see what's wrong with the Northeast from I-76, from City Hall, or from a Center City newsroom.

I want to help Mr. Ferrick understand a little better, so I'm making an offer: I will rent him a house in the Northeast for one week so that he can get a good strong whiff of what Mayor Street's policies have meant to its residents. Spend a few hours going door-to-door with me and hear what the people say.

Today, another Philadelphian admonished Ferrick.

I don't agree with Mr. Bhakta that Mr. Ferrick is an advocate for the people. No, I think his agenda is that no Republican shall ever again win an election in that district.

Let's see if the challenge put forth by Mr. Bhakta is answered or ignored by Mr. Ferrick.

One hundred people packed the Bridesburg VFW Post #2, for an Emergency Crime Forum held by Raj.

Philadelphia Town Watch and a local Police Officer took part in a discussion of citizen’s concerns. Many people including a brave man I met named Nick had a lot to say.

Nick voiced his fears concerning the battle against narcotics on the street. I could just feel the scars within him as he talked to me. I really saw the pain in his eyes. Nick went clean after seeing many of his friends die of overdoses and suicides. He fears for his area’s future and the children who may become involved with drugs.

He called for more police and town watch to deal with the festering problem. Raj answered, “Philadelphia Town Watch is here and will help. Vote me into Congress and I will provide more funding for police and increase the federal funds allocated for programs such as Town Watch.”

Not one person left early and many approached Raj afterward to ask more personal questions. A few people even ask to be volunteers for the campaign.

Last night, I sensed a great energy in the air and a belief that this growing problem could be solved. I would like to personally thank everyone who came out, especially the members of the VFW Post #2 who allowed us to use their hall.

Ryan D.

For the last eight years, Philadelphia narcotics detective Andy Callaghan has spent his spare time working with adolescent boys.

"The parents, we, are fed up being labeled as discriminatory," Callaghan said. "The scouts are the original 'don't ask, don't tell' organization. I know for a fact there are gay people involved in scouting. It's our position that scouting is for everybody."

Losing the Cradle of Liberty Council's city headquarters would be a disaster, said J.R. Brockman, scoutmaster of Troop 133 in Philadelphia's Overbrook section, one of the nation's oldest African American scout troops.

"Regardless of where you stand on the issue, [losing the headquarters] will only be detrimental to the kids," said Brockman, scoutmaster for nine years. "It would have a devastating impact on youth."

Mayor Street’s Thursday evening speech on violent crime would have been amusing if it were not so frightening.

Here’s my second favorite quote from Street’s speech: “My Administration has made public safety its number one priority and we have fought crime successfully.”

Successfully? The experiences of residents across the Northeast and the entire city tell a different story. Aggravated assaults with guns are up in almost all Northeast neighborhoods, and murder is up 7 percent from this point last year. We’ve seen 222 murders already this year.

John Street has been an utter failure at preventing these senseless deaths.

But wait: Street has a plan! And here’s my favorite quote from his speech. He said, “Let me take a moment to personally appeal to our young people. Please take a deep breath before resorting to the use of guns to settle minor conflicts or perceived personal snubs which are inevitable.”

A deep breath!? How about saying ‘stop shooting other people entirely.’ How about ‘if you commit a crime you’re going to jail for a long long time?’ I don’t care if the guy who shoots me inhaled and found some sense of inner peace before shooting me.

This great Deep Breath Plan is simply another shrug of John Street’s shoulders and an attempt to throw the problem back at Philadelphians.

We need leadership to fight crime in the Northeast now. What Mayor Street has given us is just more talk. My suggestion to Mayor Street: “Take a deep breath and then hire more police officers and fund the fire departments.” Whew.

Raj Peter Bhakta

Mayor Street pleaded to the city's youth: "You are the future of this city. Lay down your weapons. Do it now."

Seems obvious that their goal of evicting the scouts would just add to the city's crime problem. Mayor Street ought to be finding ways to promote scouting...

This action shows that even though the Supreme Court has ruled in favor for the Boy Scouts' First Amendment right to assembly, the PC crowd wishes to ignore it and is punishing the group for sticking to its beliefs.

Two youths were injured in separate shootings in East Frankford and Oxford Circle last week.

A 19-year-old man was shot during an argument around 10:20 p.m. Thursday outside a home in the 1900 block of Bridge St. The victim, whose name was not released, suffered wounds to the left arm and hip. He was taken to Frankford Hospital’s Frankford Division, where he was listed in stable condition as the Times went to press.

One 17-year-old suspect surrendered to police on Saturday, said Lt. Mark Burgman of Northeast Detectives. The suspect, who is being held on $100,000 bail, is charged with conspiracy to attempt murder, aggravated assault, violation of the Uniform Firearms Act, possession of an instrument of crime, simple assault and reckless endangerment. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Monday.

On Friday, a 16-year-old boy was shot during a robbery at around 2 a.m. at Tarken Playground in the 1000 block of Levick St. The youth suffered gunshot wounds to the right arm and was taken to St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children. Updates on his condition were not available at press time.

No suspects have been arrested in the case.