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Originally Posted by David
Well, it's hard to argue with this. Still, i am sure that the Christian minister in my news story thought he was teaching his kid respect and morals and that kid turned around and commited what is probably the worst crime possible, killing his own mother and attempting to kill his father. I don't think we can count on this method for an answer.
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Its so difficult isn't it David, as you say, even kids brought in a strong and traditional moral family enviroment are not immune to the ills of modern society. Its such a complex issue, there seem to be so many factors.
theres no doubt that kids need strong example based 'leadership' from the adults around them, but they need to be taught to care about the people around them and feel a genuine fellowship with them.
Sadly we bring kids up to think of people they dont know as a potential threat now.
Instead of having hope for a future filled with technological wonders, colonies on the moon, space exploration, an end to disease, etc (like we did when we were kids) they are living in a world terrified of one global catastrophe after another.
Where is the future we planned?
Look at the role models kids want to grow up to be like now!
When I was a Kid I wanted to be Captain Kirk or Neil Armstrong!
If you'd have asked me what career I wanted it would have been things like Policeman or astronaut or Doctor!
What do kids want now?
To be like 50 Cent, get instant fame on some reality TV show or at best be some overpaid sports star.
We completely idolise the wrong people in society, focusing on the arrogant and selfish who hardly make a valuable contribution to society while ignoring those who strive for the betterment of those around them. The media glamorises criminals, from gangster rappers to the Sopranos!
Our whole attitude has been skewed to the point where kindness is too often seen as some kind of weakness or even a subterfuge to hide an ulterior motive.
The mantra today seems to be 'I'm alright Jack' and 'Might is Right'.
I remember the days when some people still believed 'Its nice to be important, but its more important to be nice'.
So we've got kids growing up, often in less than perfect environments, with no great dreams or ambitions for the future (in a world thats going down the tubes anyway) who are being constantly told by the TV (which lets face it is their main influence) that getting rich quick is the ultimate ambition and role models like 50 Cent.
And into that mix is introduced easily accessible guns!
I have sympathy for gun owners who don't misuse them..
Well, in honesty I would not shed a tear if people couldn't hunt anymore for lack of guns
But I think that there comes a point where regardless of the rights of people to own lethal weapons so long as they use them responsibly we have to realise that so many other parts of our society are f***ed that we need to protect people from themselves and each other until we can find a way to fix things.
Its strange how we are arguing over whether a 200 year old document can still be completely relevant today, when I hardly recognise the world we live in now compared to the one I grew up in in the 70s.
Regards
Gene