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Until the last few days, any mention of the University of Georgia would probably have as its focus football and the awesome success of Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs. Not today.

            I haven’t been to the Classic City (Athens) in a long time, but I graduated from UGA in 1972 and worked in the city for another two years. It was so much fun and I’m not even talking about the football games. The college town, at that time, was much smaller and the university schooled less than 20,000 students. Its enrollment is twice that now and the nightlife and restaurants I enjoyed are Gone with the Wind.

            For example, I don’t believe you can get a Varsity chili dog, fries, and a big orange drink there. That’s a shame!

            It’s good to be in the news for the right reason, but in this past week, all the news out of UGA has been for the wrong reason. The brutal murder of a nursing student who was taking an innocent, athletic run is all one hears about the University of Georgia these days. And believe me when I say it, that’s an infinitely greater shame than not being able to get a chili dog!

            The name Laken Riley will be known for a long time in Athens; maybe it will never be forgotten. That’s appropriate, for what happened to her and the circumstances surrounding the event should not be forgotten. It might even be a catalyst for recognizing the storm that is on the horizon.

            Riley’s murderer was in the country illegally and is just one of millions. He did not seem to have a motive for his heinous crime and law enforcement has called it a “crime of opportunity.” I was not familiar with that term so I looked it up.

            A crime of opportunity is defined as a crime with no premeditation. It is a crime that is committed without planning when the perpetrator sees that they have the chance to commit the act and they simply do it with no rhyme or reason.

            Laken Riley was not known by this rogue. She was running, maybe singing a song or thinking about her career, and was seen by this criminal and he killed her for no reason. There doesn’t seem to be any question about “who did it.” There ought not to be any question about what happens to Jose Ibarra.

            I mentioned the storm that is on the horizon and how this brutal murder should be a wake-up call that has long been needed. It seems that every day, another crime committed by those who have crossed our southern border illegally, and with no questions asked, occurs. When are we going to answer the phone?

            This perpetrator who murdered an innocent young woman had entered the country illegally near El Paso in 2022, where he was “paroled and released for further processing.” He made his way to New York City and was arrested last year, but before he could be properly detained, he was released.

            Jose Ibarra, with no reason, except an “opportunity,” took the life of someone who was studying to be an asset to this world. Imagine the pain of her family and friends. The entire UGA campus shut down for a week. Students are afraid to go anywhere alone. There is no more carefree college for them.

            Wake up, America! The seeds that have been sown along our open borders are just beginning to grow. Seeds take a while to produce fruit, but make no mistake about it, the fruit of the folly of letting anyone and everyone just walk right in, with no judgment, is coming. A hard rain’s a-gonna fall.