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Some
Causes of Lawlessness Where
there is no vision, the people perish, i.e. they throw off all restraint
but he that
keepeth the law, happy is he. Everyone is familiar with the terrible incident that
occurred on April 20, 1999 in Littleton, Colorado, at the now famous Columbine
High School, where two young men went on a search and destroy mission aimed
primarily against Christians, minorities, and so called jocks, those who
excelled in the sports programs (Others may be implicated in the plot as the
investigation continues). Certainly I am appalled at this sad waste of human
life, and my prayers go out to those who grieve over their loss. That tragedy is
now behind us, and I pray we never have another such destructive act to face.
But I am aware that unless something dramatic happens in our public school
system we are bound to have more carnage. If nothing changes then who knows what
the next headlines will be? What we
do know, is that there certainly will be headlines!
And although the "Trench Coat Mafia" will be hard to beat for
the amount of weaponry and ordinance they had and the amount death and heartache
they caused, someone will attempt to "break the record" established
during this incident. What has happened to our society?
Who is responsible for failing to intercept these killers?
What can we do to prevent this kind of dastardly deed from reoccurring?
These are the questions that are being asked of the professional
Psychiatrists, Psychologists, Police and Politicians, the Public and Preachers,
just to give recognition to the "P" portion of our alphabet.
My problem today, and the one I write about, is the
dismal response from almost everyone who spoke to the issue on television, on
the radio, and in the press. In the
days following the shooting, I heard and saw hundreds of answers to the
"What can we do to prevent this from ever happening again" question.
There was an evident lack of intelligent suggestions. The most trite and
stock answers came from the resident counselors in our school system.
The main objectives seemed to be to find fault with those who were only
secondarily involved, such as the parents and civil authorities, and then to
find excuses for the perpetrators based upon failure to "intercept these
troubled children." The litany
went like this: our children are "disfranchised",
"poverty stricken", "privileged",
"cliques" "latchkey
kids", "outcasts",
and "suffer inferiority complex" to name a few. Notice
that both poverty and privilege
are excuses as well as cliques and outcasts, a pair of mutually exclusive identities! Some of the answers given to facilitate future
prevention are: "listen to kids",
"take all threats seriously",
"provide more security",
"let kids know there is a tomorrow",
"spell love - T.I.M.E.",
"pay attention to your
friends", "schools need a
system in place for 'squealers' to squeal", "arrest
parents when children do crime", and of course the all time solution
for all crime, "get rid of all guns in America, starting with the law abiding citizens".
Now I am sure that all of these people are sincere,
and that some of their suggestions could help some children some of the time.
But I am also sure that all of the suggestions put together mean nothing in
the real world. This is
especially true when you want to "intercept" potential problem
children. Parents and the law often
stand in the way of those who really want to help the children. The very thought
of forcing them to seek help before the potential problems
manifest themselves is not even to be considered. Until you violate the law in
this country, you are protected by the law (and certainly should be). Hence,
under pressure to do something to prevent crime, government expands the scope of
the law to such an extent that innocent citizens become violators by those very
expansions designed to help them. This is seen all the way from gun laws to
recycle violations. The result is that only the law abiding citizens are
deprived of their liberty because the lawless ignore the law anyway!
The conclusion of this matter is that you must defend your liberty with
all your might against the government that is trying to take it from you. Example: They
want to remove your rights under the second amendment on the pretext that less
freedom where guns are concerned equals more safety. But let someone suggest
that less freedom under the first amendment, i.e. suppressing "Cop Killer
Rap" for instance will make us safer, and watch the liberals scream. In
fact, there is a growing body of evidence that would suggest that "more
guns, equals less crime". Would I offend you with the idea that 10% of
every faculty should be trained and licensed to "carry"?
If 12 members of the faculty of Columbine High had access to weapons on
April 20, there quite possibly would have been fewer deaths, and perhaps the two
perpetrators would not have struck at all. I read about one case where a young
man pulled a gun in a restaurant in a town that allowed solid citizens to carry
weapons, somewhere in Florida I think. As many as four or five senior citizens
immediately drew their guns. One
shot the perpetrator dead, ending the threat to every person in the restaurant.
You didn’t hear much about that situation but if the creep had shot and killed
seven or eight innocent people, we would have heard much about the evil of guns.
There are many things that come together to produce
the kind of children (and adults) that are roaming the halls of our schools
today. They are of course also
roaming our streets and malls, parks and playgrounds.
My short list of some of the more important things responsible for the
moral decay in our society generally, and our schools particularly, includes the
following items. I offer them, not
because I think things will change, but merely as some of the reasons why we are
in the condition that we are: 1.
The removal of absolute moral values from the core curriculum of our
public schools.
This is not to insist upon a "Christian" source for teaching
right and wrong, although I think that would be best. But again, being
realistic, it could also include Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist and Jewish teachings, since
all of them require adherents to walk according to a basic moral code.
All speak of moral accountability. 2. The
adoption of Evolution as the factual cause of origins and destinies.
This is the single most damaging teaching over the last 75 years.
When one comes to believe that we evolved in harmony with the rest of the
animal kingdom, and that we are just one species in a string of equally
important, though perhaps less advanced forms, then one's origin is determined
to be without God, and one's destiny must therefore likewise be godless. The resulting principle then becomes "the biggest dog gets the bone!"
I am convinced that this is a major reason that people can kill with no
remorse. They do not believe that
they send their victim to face God, and they do not believe they will be judged
for their crime. If there is no resurrection, then
let us eat, (kill), drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die ... and we
are better off for leaving the futility of an evolutionary world! 3. The
substitution of "no pain or penalty" solutions in place of real
disciplinary practices. There is no real justice in America.
Most of the "enlightened" nations of the world also have bought
the concept of reform and restoration rather than punishment.
The fact of the matter is that without a deterrent, there is no fear of
conviction. This again, is primarily the work of the left wing liberal
"bleeding hearts" that have built the current so called legal and
penal systems. School children today know more about their rights than they do
about their obligations. And the system encourages rebellion. 4. The
guarantee of free public education for everyone, regardless of their
unwillingness to cooperate, or their inability to succeed.
This one brings all kinds of railing accusations against anyone who would
suggest a limited and earned privilege of education beyond grammar school.
But I can face the abuse. The upper grades of our public schools are overflowing
with children who not only hate school, but who also know that bad behavior is
rewarded with special treatment. I
refuse to debate this issue, except to suggest that anyone who consistently
shows no desire to be educated should be released from the burden of school
until they show the requisite interest. This
is not to punish the bad, since #3 above precludes that, but to protect the
good, and to keep the academic level above that of the lowest common
denominator. 5. The
kidnapping of the American education system by left wing liberal unionism.
Any attempt to upgrade the quality of the teachers in public schools is
negated by the powerful left wing teachers unions of America.
As with all unionism that is worthy of the name, the primary objective is
to protect the slacker and unqualified member from discipline or dismissal. The efficient and diligent worker does not come into view
very often. Combine "union" with "liberal" and you have the
downward death spiral of improved education.
The sad truth is that the same group of people who
caused most of the moral decay are the ones we look to for solutions.
It is the sign of the times. The rash of legislation and new laws that
are going to follow in the next few years will fix nothing. All I can suggest is
family order according to the Bible, and a withdrawal from those areas that are
judged ungodly or dangerous to the welfare of our children. I close with two quotes, one from Adam Clarke as he
comments on Prov. 29:18, and the other from St. John as he describes the
response of the unrepentant to the judgment of God. "Where
Divine revelation, and the faithful preaching of And
(they) blasphemed the God of heaven because of their (Revelation 16:11)
Hayden |