In the last years our news media has been bombarding us with reports of crimes of our youth. We have had teens walking into schools and movie theaters going on shooting rampages. We have watched helplessly while kids that are not old enough to vote, use shotguns and automatic rifles with precision and accuracy. We have tried to find someone to place the blame of these horrific crimes. It is easy to blame the parents for not rearing the children correctly. We do not look at the fact that the courts have taken the right of the parent away. We have blamed video games on their behavior and we have tried to blame movies, but we should be placing the blame where it is due, the kids. We have constantly been told that no child should be hit, but who steps in when parents come to court with black eyes, courtesy of their 17 year-old. Should we have parents that are threatened and afraid of their child (Ayers, 1997). Some parents have been arrested for simply disciplining their kids. When we have young people meticulously hunting and killing kids as well as adults without any remorse for a human life. When crimes of such magnitude are committed with weapons stolen from their own homes, the punishment should fit the crime. The blame of these crimes should not be on the parents, but the youths, society, and their peers. Juveniles commit some very serious crimes. It does not matter the age. I worked for Juvenile Court and there were times when kids as young as nine or ten were arrested for crimes. The easy thing here would be to point the finger at the parents of these kids, but I think that is a lot of the problem. I have personally heard juveniles say, “the only thing I’ll get is probation.” Children need to know that their crimes will be punished according to the law. That this will take place regardless of the age of the child.
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Sometimes crimes are committed by younger children just because of the fact that everyone knows their punishment will not be that severe, they are getting away with murder with just a slap of the wrist. When we have children that are plotting and planning massive murders there is something seriously wrong with our youth. Juveniles are committing serious crimes regardless of their culture or the country where they grew up (Junger-Tas, etc…, 2012). If youth crimes are dealt with like adults; jail time, prison time, and probation, I personally think a lot of these crimes will not exist. We have given the job of rearing our children to the courts. No longer are we allowed to discipline our children. I am sure some will say parents are totally responsible for the actions of their children (Gilmore, Herring, 2009). There are kids reporting their parents for child abuse when they do not get their way. The courts are saying no hitting children, place them in time out or on punishment. I wonder, how will punishment go for a child that is punching on their parents? There needs to be a lot of revamping of these rules. We live in a society now where kids are controlling the household. We do not have kids that are respectful of authority or their parents. It has become a situation where parents are afraid of their children. The courts have created a problem where the blame is placed on the parents for uncontrollable youth. Parents should be able to control the behaviors of their children. This should start at an early age. Sometimes the system needs to step away and let parents be parents. If the court continues to block parents from their duty of being responsible adults and trying to rear respectful and God fearing children, our youth are going to continue in this downward slope. Youth are trying so hard to fit in with their peers and do what everyone else is doing. They do not want to be left out of the loop among their peers. They do not want to appear different and find themselves being talked about. Peer pressure or bullying is very real. We see kids being controlled by the kids
Sometimes crimes are committed by younger children just because of the fact that everyone knows their punishment will not be that severe, they are getting away with murder with just a slap of the wrist. When we have children that are plotting and planning massive murders there is something seriously wrong with our youth. Juveniles are committing serious crimes regardless of their culture or the country where they grew up (Junger-Tas, etc…, 2012). If youth crimes are dealt with like adults; jail time, prison time, and probation, I personally think a lot of these crimes will not exist. We have given the job of rearing our children to the courts. No longer are we allowed to discipline our children. I am sure some will say parents are totally responsible for the actions of their children (Gilmore, Herring, 2009). There are kids reporting their parents for child abuse when they do not get their way. The courts are saying no hitting children, place them in time out or on punishment. I wonder, how will punishment go for a child that is punching on their parents? There needs to be a lot of revamping of these rules. We live in a society now where kids are controlling the household. We do not have kids that are respectful of authority or their parents. It has become a situation where parents are afraid of their children. The courts have created a problem where the blame is placed on the parents for uncontrollable youth. Parents should be able to control the behaviors of their children. This should start at an early age. Sometimes the system needs to step away and let parents be parents. If the court continues to block parents from their duty of being responsible adults and trying to rear respectful and God fearing children, our youth are going to continue in this downward slope. Youth are trying so hard to fit in with their peers and do what everyone else is doing. They do not want to be left out of the loop among their peers. They do not want to appear different and find themselves being talked about. Peer pressure or bullying is very real. We see kids being controlled by the kids