Little Bullies, Big Problem: Karen Klein Case Highlights Moral Malformation of our Youth

7/2/2012

(Page 2 of 2)

hope for them. The "mold" isn't totally set yet and there is time to try to recast them. Only if, however, we are honest enough to connect the dots and admit that the ugly picture is our own doing.

These kids weren't raised in a vacuum. They're the product of their environment and their culture. They've become what they've been fed -- a steady diet of consumerism; violence through graphic video games and television; crude and vulgar speech through the music blasting from their iPods; relentless sexual titillation bombarding them everywhere they turn; and the philosophy of "me first." They've learned that their wants should be satisfied without delay or cost to them. They've learned that pleasure dominates, and if something displeases them, they can ignore it, neglect it, or destroy it.

They've learned that promises don't mean much and vows can be broken any time; fidelity is old-fashioned and sex is the meaning of life. Other people are not human beings with dignity but objects to be used for satisfaction and then discarded. They find amusement in vandalism and give no thought to trashing a grave site.

God is out, and their personal freedom, according to the dictates of relativism, is the true supreme law that cannot be violated. Worst of all, they are growing up with a deep disregard for human life. In the case of human life deemed "less than" their own, they seem to have an instinctual contempt. (Why? Because we celebrate the pagan practice of slaughtering our own children if we don't want them, or they're not perfectly healthy, or they're not the right gender, or hey, just because, that's why. You think they don't get the message that only some human life is valuable?) That's what we saw on that school bus.

Imagine a world dominated by such people in 30 years. Are you alarmed yet? So my question is, when are folks finally going to admit that our culture is toxic and ruining our kids? When are the adults going to start showing up again? Who created this toxic mess anyway? From whom are these kids learning their boorish, selfish, and cold-hearted behavior? (You get three guesses and the first two don't count.)

Solidarity requires that after the discipline is enforced we get to the root of the problem and teach these children what it means to love their neighbor, what it means to love, period. Clearly, they do not know. Whose fault is that?

Let's start by acknowledging that for too long parents have surrendered their parenting authority to the culture at large, either out of indifference, laziness, or ambition. Kids have become things we have around only when it's convenient for us, and the truth is that children are never convenient. They require a commitment and a sacrifice that much of our society is unwilling to make. We're raising future adults here, and the sampling on that school bus says we're doing a phenomenally lousy job.

One more thing: If this is the "socialization" that my homeschooled kids are supposedly missing out on by being "deprived" of their peers, you better believe I want no part of it and you'll "socialize" my kids over my dead body. Every homeschooled child I've ever met has been polite, respectful, pleasant to talk with, helpful, and considerate. Precisely because they're not learning to behave like animals from their peers -- they've learned to be civilized, respectable people from the adults in their lives.

Imagine a different picture and connect these dots: Mom and Dad are married to each other, living under the same roof. Mom and Dad know how to say NO. Love, respect, kindness, and service to others are the rule. Children are taught modesty in dress, speech, and behavior. (aka, Pull Your Pants Up and Mind Your Manners) They learn that all human life is sacred. They learn they are not the center of the universe. They learn to put God first in their lives, and as a result, they are happy. They learn chastity is possible and preferable. They learn that they matter; they're worth a lot; they're needed; they're wanted; they've got a purpose. They learn they are loved, and they learn how to love others.

Now tell me -- which set of dots should we be connecting?

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Jennifer Hartline is a grateful Catholic, a proud Army wife and homeschooling mother of three children. She is a contributing writer for Catholic Online. Visit her online at Wake Up, Deborah!
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Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.

Keywords: bullying, Karen Klein, middle school, school bus, discipline, Jennifer Hartline

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1 - 7 of 7 Comments

The Mommy Psychologist
10 months ago
As horrible as this situation was, it proves what social psychologists have been studying for years. It demonstrates the power of the group over individual behavior. I talk about trying to make sense of this incident here:
http://www.themommypsychologist.com/2012/06/22/how-do-you-bully-a-grandmother/
Robert Burford
10 months ago
"Those kids are our future, God help us" I remember high school and the bullies that attacked me at that time. I would always speak out when a geekie kid was picked on and luckily I had bigger stronger friends to back me up. I agree it is too easy to blame the parents in connecting the dots. The real dot connecting occurs in our society today by the laws and regulations that rule our conduct. Spare the rod spoil the child? We leave discipline up to the schools and hamstring the schools because they have little tools to discipline a child. Not everyone can homeschool. We look at the parents but it is also the rules that we use to live. Today society believes the have a right to premarital sex, and it is okay for same sex parents to :marry". We believe in self determination of the individual but do not believe in the self determination and rights of a fetus. "The consequences of bad choices" are not just the parents involved but society that has evolved. We are responsible for both.
jh
10 months ago
Again, as clear as can be, Jennifer. We reap what we sow, and we adults are responsible for our children.
Tanya Holland
10 months ago
Jennie, you have outdone yourself. This has absolutely GOT to be read by all humanity. You nailed it.
JoAnn
10 months ago
"Fruit doesn't fall too far from the tree." Where were the parents when these children were supposed to be taught respect for their elders and love of thy neighbors. Like I said, "The fruit doesn't fall too far from the tree.
Rodger
10 months ago
Excellent insight into where a society is destined when God is spurned and any moral compass is deemed not only irrelevant but offensive. At the time I retired from the public classroom some years ago, we had already reached the point where the classroom teacher was held accountable for a child's misbehavior, not the child or parents. Wherein disciplinary action was taken toward a child, the teacher was subject to correction and possible lawsuit. Lack of self discipline, the promotion of self, the creation of a cult of indulged children is pressing us toward a society defined by chaos. The writer of this article makes a very accurate prediction, unless we somehow turn around and break this liberal mindset that is being forced upon us, there will be no future.
Sum Nemo
10 months ago
It is too easy to blame the parents for the situation presented here, but the reality is that the job of child-rearing is generally a "crap shoot". It is not uncommon for a child to come out of the best of cirumcstances, a "wholesome", Christian environment, as the devil incarnate while there are those children who come out of hell as living saints. Then there are those in between. However, rather than go into the blame game whereby we try to find somebody to accuse (Whether it be an amoral liberal, an oppressive conservative, ...) why not simply acknowledge the fact that there is sufficient blame to go around for everybody? My frustration as a parent was the fact that I was fighting an entire culture, Christian and non-Christian. I could tell my son that money is not everything, that peace "is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but a means by which we arrive at that goal" (Martin Luther King, Jr.), the "Golden Rule", sexual virtues, love your enemy, or others when our culture was teaching him otherwise, particularly when it comes to bullying behavior. I spent a great deal of time teaching my son the virtues of the New Testament, but American lay Christian culture, based upon our behavior, is generally indifferent to the virtues taught in the New Testament. But, rather than argue the problem philosiphically for decades, to to an even more basic level we find the simple vitue of respecting others missing in our culture, and Christians are equally as guilty of this as non-Christians; and if you do not believe me, visit an online Christian forum and read the name-calling and the harsh rhetoric. But, as mentioned, the reality is that there is sufficent blame to go around. There are a great many societal problems manifested in this situation, but the key to correcting this situation must begin with me. How about you?

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