A Worth Read (Re-Post from another forum)

[Okie4Life]

This is a re-post from "Don" on www.VersatileDogs.com

COLUMBINE STUDENT'S FATHER 12 YEARS LATER !!

Guess our national leaders didn't expect this. On Thursday, Darrell Scott, the father of Rachel Scott, a victim of the Columbine High School shootings in Littleton, Colorado, was invited to address the House Judiciary Committee's subcommittee. What he said to our national leaders during this special session of Congress was painfully truthful.

They were not prepared for what he was to say, nor was it received well. It needs to be heard by every parent, every teacher, every politician, every sociologist, every psychologist, and every so-called expert! These courageous words spoken by Darrell Scott are powerful, penetrating, and deeply personal. There is no doubt that God sent this man as a voice crying in the wilderness.. The following is a portion of the transcript:

"Since the dawn of creation there has been both good & evil in the hearts of men and women. We all contain the seeds of kindness or the seeds of violence. The death of my wonderful daughter, Rachel Joy Scott, and the deaths of that heroic teacher, and the other eleven children who died must not be in vain. Their blood cries out for answers.

"The first recorded act of violence was when Cain slew his brother Abel out in the field. The villain was not the club he used.. Neither was it the NCA, the National Club Association. The true killer was Cain, and the reason for the murder could only be found in Cain's heart.

"In the days that followed the Columbine tragedy, I was amazed at how quickly fingers began to be pointed at groups such as the NRA. I am not a member of the NRA. I am not a hunter. I do not even own a gun. I am not here to represent or defend the NRA - because I don't believe that they are responsible for my daughter's death. Therefore I do not believe that they need to be defended. If I believed they had anything to do with Rachel's murder I would be their strongest opponent

I am here today to declare that Columbine was not just a tragedy -- it was a spiritual event that should be forcing us to look at where the real blame lies! Much of the blame lies here in this room. Much of the blame lies behind the pointing fingers of the accusers themselves. I wrote a poem just four nights ago that expresses my feelings best.

Your laws ignore our deepest needs, Your words are empty air. You've stripped away our heritage, You've outlawed simple prayer. Now gunshots fill our classrooms, And precious children die. You seek for answers everywhere, And ask the question "Why?" You regulate restrictive laws, Through legislative creed. And yet you fail to understand, That God is what we need!

"Men and women are three-part beings. We all consist of body, mind, and spirit. When we refuse to acknowledge a third part of our make-up, we create a void that allows evil, prejudice, and hatred to rush in and wreak havoc. Spiritual presences were present within our educational systems for most of our nation's history. Many of our major colleges began as theological seminaries. This is a historical fact. What has happened to us as a nation? We have refused to honor God, and in so doing, we open the doors to hatred and violence. And when something as terrible as Columbine's tragedy occurs -- politicians immediately look for a scapegoat such as the NRA. They immediately seek to pass more restrictive laws that contribute to erode away our personal and private liberties. We do not need more restrictive laws. Eric and Dylan would not have been stopped by metal detectors. No amount of gun laws can stop someone who spends months planning this type of massacre. The real villain lies within our own hearts.

"As my son Craig lay under that table in the school library and saw his two friends murdered before his very eyes, he did not hesitate to pray in school. I defy any law or politician to deny him that right! I challenge every young person in America , and around the world, to realize that on April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School prayer was brought back to our schools. Do not let the many prayers offered by those students be in vain. Dare to move into the new millennium with a sacred disregard for legislation that violates your God-given right to communicate with Him. To those of you who would point your finger at the NRA -- I give to you a sincere challenge.. Dare to examine your own heart before casting the first stone! My daughter's death will not be in vain! The young people of this country will not allow that to happen!" - Darrell Scott

Do what the media did not - - let the nation hear this man's speech. Please send this out to every one

 

[ConstitutionCowboy]

Finger pointed in the right direction.

Woody

 

[WideLoadTimmy]

I have been arguing this with some of the people I know for years. Those kids built bombs in their bedrooms! How!? Because their parents respected their privacy? I was told, as a child, that if I wanted privacy, I would get a job and move out on my own. That as long as I lived under my mom's roof, she would come and go as she pleased in HER house. If I closed my door, she assumed I doing something wrong and would burst in, asking what I was up to. If my door was closed by them, it was usually accompanied by the removal of my TV and being told that I was ground to my room and that I was lucky to have that old, messed up, no-remote-having, piece of junk second hand TV.

Today's parents and school administration are apathetic and think their job is not to raise children, but herd them. I can't tell you how many times, as a child, my voice fell on deaf ears. Now, there's social networking and the internet is everywhere (Not that I'm blaming that. You'll see my point in a moment). When I was growing up, I could get away from school bullies by going home and, if I said something to my parents, the following would take place:
Me - "So-and-so is a bully and he took X from me"
Parents - "Why did you let him do that? Stand up for yourself!"
Me - "I did and I got beat up." (The next response would vary, depending on which parent I was talking to)
Dad - "The next time he does that, do X and I bet he won't do it again."
Mom - "Did you tell the teacher?" Me - "Yes, and he hit me again when they weren't looking." Mom - "I'll have a talk with his mother." (I never understood what good that did until I fund out how fierce my mom is.)

If all else failed, my parents would raise a stink with the administrators. If I got in trouble, the first thing they asked wasn't "What did they do to you?", it was "What did you do to deserve it?". I was held accountable for what I did and I was given coping skills to help me get through school. I feel that children today aren't given those same skills. That there are too many parents that don't teach and guide their kids. That means that the kids have no place to turn to and now, the bullying can follow them everywhere. They have no place to shelter them and no one to turn to and they feel trapped and lash out. The majority of school shootings are students committing crimes against other students and I firmly believe it's because they have been all but abandoned. Parents need to step up and teach their kids how to cope and make it so those same kids have some place to turn when all else fails.

We are all to blame in this. We all have to change. People need to hold themselves to a higher standard. I'm trying to. I want something for myself and I see the only way to get it is to fix that which is broken about me. I don't know what to suggest to make this problem smaller and I don't think I'm in a position where I should if I thought I could, but I know that I see a lot that I think is wrong and I feel I need to voice it. I'm sure I'll catch grief for this but /rant.

 

[TerryMiller]

To add to Timmy's comments, I was pretty much told the same thing. But, to go beyond that, if I got a whipping at school for being "unruly" or whatever, I got another one when I got home.

Years ago while on break at work, the subject of whippings came up and I related that I could get the "double-whammy" from both school and from Mom. A co-worker up and commented that "No one was going to spank her child."

I was a wimp and didn't ask the question that came to mind. I should have asked, "So when your child gets older and the police get involved with your child's "unrulyness," will you have the same idea, or, will you wish that you had allowed more discipline. Would you have altered the discipline that you yourself dish out?"