God help us....

I was talking to a friend on the phone and of course the school shooting came up.  Some of the things she was saying were exactly what I had written this morning.  I said, "yeah I had a blog post ready to go that sounds just like what you are saying...."  I read it to her, she  told me to post it.  So here ya go.  Like it or not...

We had four of my five nieces this weekend.  The fifth one is 29 years old and probably wouldn't want to spend the night with Aunt Cindy and Uncle Dave!  Actually, her daughter is one of them that spent the night.  We did our usual traditional stuff and when I get a new computer, pictures will follow.   We had a wonderful time. 

I have to tell you, this entire weekend I couldn't help but think of the Newtown, CT tragedy.  I hugged my nieces a little more this weekend.  I complained less.  I didn't try to make sense of the tragedy.  There is no sense in it. 

But I did wonder ...what happened to this kid...this kid that felt compelled to kill innocent people before taking his own life.  I wondered if he had mental issues, and why do so many children and young adults have mental issues now. 
Is it the vaccines? 
Is it the drugs they are on?  I'm not talking street drugs, although I realize that is a problem too.  I wonder about these mind controlling drugs that are prescribed for 'mental' issues. 
Is there something in the chemicals in the fake food in our grocery stores, that turn these young adults into murderers? 
Too much sugar maybe?
The moral breakdown of our society? 
Is it because so many children are being raised by violent video games and trash tv.  This summer I turned the tv on, during the day, and there was a man in bed, naked from the waist up.  A woman came to him, started crawling in bed with him, and started biting his nipples.  This was on tv, during the day, in the summer when kids are home, many alone.  The other day I saw two men in bed together, on tv, during the day.  (and we only have an antenna by the way, no cable)
Do we really need to see all of this? 
Must we always have the shock factor? 

OK then...I'll give you shock...
So many children have two sets of parents, three incomes, yet they get less attention and even less love than I did growing up, in a two parent home.  We didn't always have a two person income. We didn't always have the stuff, but what I do have are wonderful childhood memories. 
I'm sure there were times my parents would have liked to separate...they didn't.

Or here's a shock....imagine if you can...
We got four channels on tv growing up.
It was enough.
We didn't have video games.
We used our imaginations and played with other kids in our  neighborhood.  I still have connections with those kids.

Here's a shock.....
I BELIEVED in Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and God.  Still do.
I said the Pledge of Allegiance every morning in school.
In 6th grade the teacher made us recite the 23rd Psalm after the Pledge of Allegiance, every morning.

Not shocking enough....how's this?
My Dad was an outdoorsman.  He would hunt and fish.  A few times our entire family went to the shooting range and we all shot at targets.  We learned to respect guns. When I was single, living in an apartment all alone, I had a window peeper.  I was scared.  After that, I took a class on guns and learned to shoot.  I had a gun.  I had a permit to carry.
I wish that principal at that school had a gun.  Maybe her and several others would be alive now if she did.  Oh you can ban all of our guns, but then these same people who are killers, are not going to stop killing.  We just won't be able to protect ourselves.

And THIS  might be too shocking for some of you.....Two summers ago, an eleven year, his boy scout buddy, his Dad, and the boy scout leader were walking a trail, trying to earn their hiking badge.  A mentally ill 20 something year old sliced the neck of the boy scout leader.  He bled to death on the trail in front of those boys while the Dad tried to stop the bleeding.  His jugular was sliced...so the boy scout leader died...on the trail...  I know this story first hand.  I am close with one of those boys and his father.  That killer didn't need a gun.  So don't even get me going on gun control.  (If I sound a little mad, I probably am.)  Killers do not follow the rules.  They will have a gun whether it's allowed or not. 

Why is it, as a nation, we keep avoiding the real issues?  (I'm sure I'll probably lose a lot of blog readers over this post.)

One time my Shug and I were sitting in a lawyer's office and the lawyer said, "See all of these law books in here? Not one of them can make someone be nice." He was right. You can't make someone be nice.  There are no rules that can make someone be nice.  A judge can't order someone to be nice. 

But you know what.....I've never seen a mean baby. Ever. 
WE ARE NOT BORN MEAN.

In our town there is a medical center that offers counseling for children and young adults.  I've been there many times, and the waiting room is always full.  ALWAYS FULL.  What is causing all of this trauma and mental anguish to our young society?

People.....
You can't legislate common sense.
You can't legislate morals.
You can't legislate values.
You can't make someone respect people, or things.
You can only take time to teach your children and lead by example.
It's up to parents, it's up to Aunts and Uncles, it's up to Grandparents. 
It's up to adults.
As a nation, as a world, we keep numbing ourselves to things that are wrong.  We see something over and over, and we become desensitized to it....things that in my parents younger years were shameful and appalling. 
I always wonder what's going to be next. 
What will we numb ourselves to next....
God help us.

Cindy Bee