On Monday there was a horrible tragedy up in Ohio where an alleged student shot four of his classmates. It broke my heart to read the news posts and I hugged my girls a little harder when they got home from school.
On Tuesday a boy in Texas pointed a loaded gun at a classmate in the lunch line.
So know I want to know, what the hell is going on? Why are children resorting to such violence to let their thoughts be known? Back in my day we would just beat the shit out of each other on the playground. What are we teaching our children that makes them feel guns are the answer to solve their perceived problems? I don't know about anyone else, but given the choice I would rather know my child got into a fist fight than had to dodge a bullet.
I'm with you, Missy.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I don't allow my kids (ages 7 & 4) to watch even remotely violent programs on television. Neither do I allow them to play video games that involve shooting situations or violence of any sort.
When my 7-year-old got his first Nerf gun (with the suction cup darts), both boys received a gun safety lesson and a stern warning that pointing a gun, even a toy one, at any person or animal would result in immediate confiscation of all guns and some boys going to their rooms. Eventually the 4-year-old broke the rule and punishment was immediate. They haven't asked to play with those guns since.
Sidenote: I'm also a Texan and was a cop for 8 years.
Good for you Lisa! I think too many parents just don't take violence seriously because it's so rampant. For the longest time I wouldn't let my daughters play with guns. I loosened up on that once I felt they were old enough to understand the difference between "play" and real life. We have two guns in the house and they know exactly what they can do to a person.
DeleteI read about these things and hear them on the news. I'm just glad I live in New Zealand where we don't have guns like this.
ReplyDeleteIt's a double-edged sword, Shelley. We have guns in our home, but our daughters have been taught to respect them and never touch them unless in self defense at home. We actually live walking distance from an outdoor shooting range so hearing live fire is the norm. The problem is a lot of children aren't taught to properly respect guns as they should be, and/or the guns aren't kept away from the kids as they should be.
DeleteThanks for reading my post and leaving a comment!