Whats wrong with kids these days?

Here's a joke for you: "Two Nazi worshiping kids with guns walk into a high school." Stop me if you've heard this one.

Like it or not, that's how this whole tragic situation at Columbine high school will wind up. Another joke on the late night shows. Hell, by some shear twist of fate Dave and Jay will probably make that joke at exactly the same moment. On CBS: "Two Nazi worshipping--" Click. NBC: "--kids, with guns, walk into--" Click. CBS: "-- a high school."

The studentbody of Columbine High school know that joke. Oh yeah, they know it well. And the last time I turned on CNN nobody was laughing. Neither am I. You see, this little Contribution won't be very humorous, there is nothing funny about what has happened. Rather, this little soapbox will try to get you to think about the events, and maybe, just maybe, you can come up with and answer to the question posed above.

Obviously, the parents of the two gunners are perfect targets for finger pointing. Just where were they when their kids were making pipe bombs in the garage? Had they ever checked out their son's Nazi website? How do you let your kid out of the house with that much heavy artillery? Were their parents aware of these activities? Did they actually condone them? These are the questions to ask. And quickly, too, before the parents have a chance to blame the entertainment industry.

Yes, True Believer, you know it will happen. I know it will happen. Outside influences will be blamed for this. They always have been, and always will be. In today's America people are sue crazy. "Marilyn Manson caused my baby to go on a killing spree, so give me $20 million." Is that mean spirited? Hell yes! But I'm just sick of parents blaming a movie, or a song, or whatever for their children's outbursts of violence. I think that the criticism should be directed inward first, since most children do learn the basics of right and wrong from their parents.

Though, in today's work-a-day world both parents just can't be there for their kids. Maybe parents should just bite the bullet and realize that you can't juggle a full time job and a kid. Some professions just won't allow it. Should women go back to the home? Hell no! Both my parents worked two solid jobs for my entire childhood and I turned out perfectly normal (or, at least I have yet to kill anyone). So what is it? What causes children to pick up a gun and start blasting?

Perhaps the high rate of "broken" households in this country contributes to it. To quote Scream: "Abandonment causes serious deviant behavior." However, its been noted that a high divorces are caused because of some sort of spousal and/or child abuse, so separation can only help in those situations.

Maybe I'm restricting my focus in this search. Perhaps not one simple aspect of society is to blame. Perhaps the whole of American society is responsible for this tragedy. In this "Democracy" (we're actually a Republic, but whatever) we have certain freedoms that we hold dear. The Press can print whatever they want about whomever they want. Any asshole of the street can walk up and buy a gun. Any person can have a child regardless of how stupid and under qualified for the job that person is. Something like the school shooting may be the logical result of all these freedoms. The obligatory dark side of this "Grand Experiment" we call America. To quote the TV show Millennium: "You can't stop it."

The darkest of all these possibilities could be that, regardless of upbringing, parenting habits, what the kid saw on TV, read in a book, or heard on the radio, maybe some people are just plain evil. Of course, this would mean that evil is a tangible thing, which gets into a really big philosophical debate that has raged since the Age of Enlightenment. Maybe even further then that.

Yet, when all is said and done, I think it all goes on a case by case basis. No one thing is responsible for all theses school shootings, or any shooting for that matter. It all depends on the person, and the personality that dwells in that person's brain. Blaming porn, or the Internet, or a movie is simply an excuse to absolve the parents of guilt. Blaming the parents every time won't get you anywhere ether, considering I know some fine people who have come from "broken" households. We have all had the urge to kill; yet, only a few actually act on the urge.

So what is it?

What's wrong with kids these days?

Something to think about.