Don't mess up

"A child is a curly dimpled lunatic."
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

If Ralph Waldo Emerson were to be alive today, he would not be surprised with the storyline that shocked me this morning. When I turned on the TV this morning, I heard this:

How bad is that?

This reminded me of the incident last year where some 3rd-graders had plotted to attack their teacher. These 8 to 10-year-olds had planned to knock the teacher unconscious, put her some handcuffs and tape, and then stab her with a knife.

Look at other recent headlines I found related to my initial story: "Arizona 9-year-old pleads guilty in shooting death of his father Vincent Romero, roommate" and "Arizona boy, 8, accused of murdering father, admits to shooting in chilling video."

I don't want to be pessimistic with the title for this post, but I really believe we need some change. These stories about children becoming, or planning to become, assassins worries me. To me, they reflect our society's values. I don't want to generalize, either, by saying that every aspect of our society is going downhill, but we must reconsider the behaviour we are showing our kids.

First of all, where were the parents? I am very sure that the boy that killed his dad's fiancee showed some signs that had problems: problems against the lady or at school...I don't know...but there must have been something wrong going on with him. By the way, the gun he used was a Christmas gift from his dad. Think about that.

I think kids have the right to have a happy childhood, but current issues aren't letting them have it that way. There are too many wars, too much violence, and too much unhappiness being built up. Kids are quick learners, so they pick up the good and the bad stuff they see.

Let's consider these incidents and learn from the mistakes of these kids. Watch this video and think [warning: it's intense]. Let's prove Ralph Waldo Emerson wrong. Let's build a better society by taking care of our youngest ones. They will, soon, become our future.