"Here's a question posed by a student to God:

Dear God,

Why didn't you save the school children in Littleton, Colorado?

Sincerely, Concerned Student


Dear Concerned Student,

I am not allowed in schools.

Sincerely, God

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now read below for how this has unfolded in an incredibly short period of time:

Let's see, I think it started when Madeline Murray O'Hare complained she didn't want any prayer in our schools.

And we said, OK...

Then, someone said you better not read the Bible in school, the Bible that says "thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself."

And we said, OK...

Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem.

And we said, an expert should know what he's talking about so we won't spank them anymore...

Then someone said teachers and principals better not discipline our children when they misbehave. And the school administrators said no faculty member in this school better touch a student when they misbehave because we don't want any bad publicity, and we surely don't want to be sued.

And we accepted their reasoning...

Then someone said, let's let our daughters have abortions if they want, and they won't even have to tell their parents.

And we said, that's a grand idea...

Then some wise school board member said, since boys will be boys and they're going to do it anyway, let's give our sons all the condoms they want, so they can have all the fun they desire, and we won't
have to tell their parents they got them at school.

And we said, that's another great idea...

Then some of our top elected officials said it doesn't matter what we do in private as long as we do our jobs.

And we said, it doesn't matter what anybody, including the President, does in private as long as we have jobs and the economy is good...

And then someone said let's print magazines with pictures of nude women and call it wholesome down-to-earth appreciation for the beauty of the female body.

And we said, we have no problem with that...

And someone else took that appreciation a step further and published pictures of nude children and then stepped further still by making them available on the Internet.

And we said, everyone's entitled to free speech...

And the entertainment industry said, let's make TV shows and movies that promote profanity, violence and illicit sex... And let's record music that encourages rape, drugs, murder, suicide, and satanic themes...

And we said, it's just entertainment and it has no adverse effect and nobody takes it seriously anyway, so go right ahead...

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, classmates or even themselves.

Undoubtedly, if we thought about it long and hard enough, we could figure it out. I'm sure it has a great deal to do with...

"WE REAP WHAT WE SOW."

Pass it on if you think it has merit. If not then just discard it...but if you discard this thought process, then don't you dare sit back and complain."


*  *  *  *



Now, I'm sure your asking yourself why I have such a problem with this email. On the surface it seems to raise some interesting thoughts and ideas. But let's break it down, bit by bit, shall we?

"Let's see, I think it started when Madeline Murray O'Hare complained she didn't want any prayer in our schools.

And we said, OK..."

First off, why do we need structed daily prayer in school? The last time I checked, students come to school to learn in the classroom. If they want to pray, they have upwards of an hour off for lunch. They can pray then if they chose (and in many schools, students do indeed attend prayer groups at lunch). And what about students that weren't raised Catholic? Muslims, Jews, Budists, Mormons and Baptists, just to name a few? Would not having Catholocism crammed down their thoats be an infringment on their First Amendment rights? We don't need to convert the horrid pagans and non-believers. The Crusades ended over 1000 years ago. And the Crusaders lost.

"Then, someone said you better not read the Bible in school, the Bible that says "thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself."

And we said, OK..."

See my comments above.

"Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem.

And we said, an expert should know what he's talking about so we won't spank them anymore..."

I think I'll use the old parental addage to disassemble this part: if Dr. Spock told you to throw your kids off the roof, would you? My father used corporal punishment to keep me and my brother in line. It was never abusive, just a swat to let us know that whatever it was we were doing wrong was not acceptable. Looking back, I'm glad he did; I feel that I'm a better person because of it. And I have no problem using a little corporal punishment to keep my son in line.

"Then someone said teachers and principals better not discipline our children when they misbehave. And the school administrators said no faculty member in this school better touch a student when they misbehave because we don't want any bad publicity, and we surely don't want to be sued.

And we accepted their reasoning..."

And why not? Would you spank a child that was not yours without that parents express consent? Of course not. Even in everyday life, we don't spank kids that aren't ours. We don't want a lawsuit on our hands. Parents should be responsible for their childrens discipline. I know that if my son ever gets into any kind of trouble at school, he's going to have to deal with his mother and I. And he knows that there will be consequences for negative actions on his part. We discipline him because we care. If we didn't, we'd let him do whatever he wanted.

"Then someone said, let's let our daughters have abortions if they want, and they won't even have to tell their parents.

And we said, that's a grand idea..."

Last time I checked, NO ONE thought abortion was a grand idea. Even pro-choicers don't think abortion is a grand idea. It is a very somber decision that a woman must make on her own. I have little doubt that any woman who has had an abortion didn't think long and hard before making that decision. I won't go into moral issues, but think about this part of the email before accepting it at face value.

"Then some wise school board member said, since boys will be boys and they're going to do it anyway, let's give our sons all the condoms they want, so they can have all the fun they desire, and we won't have to tell their parents they got them at school.

And we said, that's another great idea..."

Yes, boys will be boys and girls will be girls. Whether they are in love or not, married or not, or even of age or not, high-school aged teens are going to have sex. It's just a fact of life. Accept it and move on. Yes, some schools are indeed issuing condoms to students (not just male students, either). And why is that? Consider how uncomfortable you may be having "the talk" with your son or daughter. A LOT of people in America are so uncomfortable having "the talk" with their kids, that they simply do not and hope that they will learn what they need to know to keep them safe and healthy somewhere else. Fortunatly, some school districts have stepped in and taught sexual education and even issued condoms on request to students. Consider the alternative to this: would you really rather see more children having children and children with STD's? Which is the lesser of the two evils here? Use some common sense.

"Then some of our top elected officials said it doesn't matter what we do in private as long as we do our jobs.

And we said, it doesn't matter what anybody, including the President, does in private as long as we have jobs and the economy is good..."

Our basic civil liberties, garaunteed by the Constitution of the United States and The Bill of Rights cleary dictate that it DOESN'T matter what we do in our private lives SO LONG as we don't hurt someone else or ourselves. Would whoever wrote this email rather see cameras installed in our houses that are monitored 24 hours a day by government and church officials? What I do in my house is my business, and what you do in yours is your business. Don't peek through your windowshades at me, and I won't peek through mine at you.

"And then someone said let's print magazines with pictures of nude women and call it wholesome down-to-earth appreciation for the beauty of the female body.

And we said, we have no problem with that..."

For the love of god, even Hugh Hefner doesn't stoop so low as to call Playboy "wholesome" or "down-to-earth." Everyone knows it's all pornography. If you don't like it, don't buy it. No one is putting a gun to your head and telling you you must purchase it. But ask yourself this: would it exist if there wasn't a market for it? Someone, somewhere is buying it. And, like it or not, it's one more thing defended by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Someone has the right to make it, someone has the right to buy it, and you have the right to hate it. See how that works?

"And someone else took that appreciation a step further and published pictures of nude children and then stepped further still by making them available on the Internet.

And we said, everyone's entitled to free speech..."

Yes, everyone's entitled to free speech TO A POINT. Having worked for a police department, I can assure you that child pornography is a Class A felony punishable by a long imprisonment. There are laws strictly forbidding child pornography in this country and many others. Yes, child pornography exsists on the internet, but that doesn't mean for a second that it's legal in America. It's not. Even if you're caught veiwing it here (and, believe me, there ARE government agencies patroling the net), you risk going to prison with a big, fat felony arrest record forever clouding your name.

"And the entertainment industry said, let's make TV shows and movies that promote profanity, violence and illicit sex... And let's record music that encourages rape, drugs, murder, suicide, and satanic themes...

And we said, it's just entertainment and it has no adverse effect and nobody takes it seriously anyway, so go right ahead..."

If you don't like what you see on your TV, change the channel. Or better yet, turn it off and spend some time talking with your family. Movies have ratings, and theaters around the country are becoming much better about asking for ID before admiting anyone into an R rated movie. CD's and casette tapes that contain explicit lyrics ALL have a warning sticker on them. If you don't want your children to watch adult-themed television shows and mature movies or listening to explicit music, then don't let them. Monitor what your children are doing. Explain to them that some movies, TV shows and music are not for them. Take a part in your child's life, don't just expect them to turn out just fine all on their own. Parents are the most influential source in a child's life. Use that influence.

"Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, classmates or even themselves.

Undoubtedly, if we thought about it long and hard enough, we could figure it out. I'm sure it has a great deal to do with...

"WE REAP WHAT WE SOW."

Indeed we do. When we take little to no part in the lives of our children, when we don't monitor what they're watching or listening to, and when we have no interest in who their friends are or what they do when their together, is it any wonder that some children turn out the way they do? Respect is earned, not given. Manners are taught, not inherant. When we ignore our children they will do ANYTHING to get the attention from us they crave. Even negative attention from us is still some attention from us. When we ignore our children, we do indeed reap what we sow: teenage pregnancy, drug abuse, shootings, robberies and the like all come down to someone not taking an active part in that child's life. Instead of trying so desperatly to point the finger at the government, the school districts, the "experts," and mass media, try pointing that finger at the person in the mirror.