The Education Wonks
I'm a former police officer with nearly two decades of service, including years specilizing in juveniles, prior to beginning a teaching career. While this "youngster" is noteworthy, there are a great many like him across the nation. Most receive no press because they are members of protected victim's groups near and dear to the mainstream media. I wonder why the press chose to publicize the exploits of this particular young man? Believe me, there are many who have done as much and more to earn a spot in the criminal hall of fame.
When I come across these kids, I'm always distressed, not because they exist--evil is everywhere and is not the sole province of adults--but because adults imagine that underage felons like this can be rehabilitated. He's 13 now, but he's likely been a criminal for probably half of his life. We just don't get around to calling what kids like him do crimes until they reach a certain age, say about, I don't know...13? The overwhelming odds are that this junior criminal will continue to commit more and more vicious crimes, until he begins to kill and discovers that no crime is quite so thrilling and addictive as murder, unless he is locked up, and in an act of enlightened penology, the key is thrown away.
The reality here is that unless this kid is locked up, he'll be out there committing serious, destructive crimes, involving other kids, and wreaking havoc.
But of course, under NCLB, it's the sole responsibility of his teachers to motivate and encourage him to pass his classes and read and figure on grade level. Yes, this kid is an extreme example--but remember, by no means a rare example--but all a child need do to totally thwart the best efforts of the best teachers alive is to fail to show up for school, or merely refuse, politely, to do his work. There are hundreds of thousands of those kids out there.
The interview with the stepdad was more interesting.
He knew about some of what he was doing (but didn't DO anything about it) but doesn't believe the kid could be responsible for all 128 (Deny, deny, deny).
Then we have the universal excuse: "He's had a rough life."
To quote Hawkeye Pierce: I've seen too much to ever be wide-eyed again.
I believe it, and I think the kid should be locked up forever.
Rough life? That is not a viable excuse. He didn't do it "all?" If he did merely "some," he's still a criminal.
I'm not wide-eyed any more, and I'm sick to death of dealing with this kind of kid and being blamed because he doesn't perform to the liking of the State Standards.
Bah.
You know, I had a pretty rough life growing up. But it's MY life, and I only get one of them, and so I try to make the most of it. I couldn;t help what happened when I was a child, but I certainly CAN choose what happens when I act in a certain way.
I don't by the "culture of victimhood" crap that permeates society. You know the litany by now: "Oooh, poor me, I'm an alcoholic-- so I'm not accountable; I'm a drug addict-- so I'm not accountable." And yet, you chose to take that drink and put those drugs into your body. You chose to never control your temper.
The truly bad part is that society is set up to create future victims for this person, because as soon as he is released back into society, and that will probably be way before he is 21, he will certainly hurt someone else as soon as he is released.
Ms. Cornelius: what would you say about an eight-year-old whose parents gave him his first drink and kept making alcohol available to him until he was an alcoholic? What would you say about a nine-year-old whose older brothers taught him to shoot up? I know people in prison who started that young in exactly that way.
Yes, it's always a choice, but our choices are very, very heavily influenced by what we're taught and we're taught most "effectively," so to speak, by our own families.
I'm with you on this generally, but I don't start using the "he had a choice" line until I know that an addicted teen or an adult didn't start using until after he reached a certain age. With kids under 13 - and as Mike points out, this kid's criminal career probably started when he was 6 or 7 or 8 - I'm much more inclined to blame the parents than the kid.
Oh, there's PLENTY of blame for the parents. There's also plenty of blame for a society that values "keeping families intact" over protecting children.
There was recently a case I read about where a guy was arrsted for shooting his newborn with a pellet gun, repeatedly. And he was on probation for harming another child of his. Why was he allowed to be anywhere near another child? And I don't care if it was his own or someone else's.
But you're not going to get anywhere unless you start with yourself.
I had to deal with plenty of violence growing up. And I have somehow managed to refrain from being a felon. And maybe it wasn't as bad as this kid saw. But I had made up my mind to be different way before I hit thirteen.
Society's indifference may have contributed to creating this little thug. But that doesn't mean we have to stand by while his own violent acts create their own repercussions, or their own damage. Nor should we excuse them.
Sorry I get so heated about this.
I said absolutely nothing about excusing them. I just think that the idea that "well, it was HIS choice" doesn't mean much when you're talking about a 6-year-old, which, again, is probably about the age this kid was when the real trouble started.
To say that this is bizarre is an understatement. I think this is a very explicit example of need for this country to rethink the goals of education so that it gives considerable weight to social and moral development. Given that he's 13, and the fact that early adolescence is a such a crucial time for a youth's development, there are probably a host of factors (although it does not excuse having over 100 felonies) contributing to his behavior. There needs to more of an effort on behalf of parents, the community, and teachers to find ways to not only promote students' academic development, but their social and moral development as well.
Another issue is how is it possible that anyone, let alone a 13 year old, has the opportunity to commit so many felonies? This is more than a "pattern," this is a pathology. I just pray that he gets the love, support, and services that he needs before it's too late.
It was too late years ago. This one is lost. Others may be retreivable.
That is some serious stuff. This kid definitely needs counciling. With the behaviours he has shown, he's probably under the influence of either peers or his parents.
Doubting about their accusations, they should put hin under observation.
I agree to observation. You can tell lots of things from a person by just observing him. Experts can even notice a lot more with their knowledge about observation. We can't be too sure of things unless we witnessed something that may lead to such behaviors
To Mike: No one is lost. With the right counseling and positive role models from this point forward in his life, the boy may well be salvageable.
To everyone else: Speaking as someone who came from that kind of environment, who once committed crimes and got away with it until finally it all came crashing down on me, I won't say that it was easy. It most certainly wasn't easy on the people who had to deal with me as a teenager and young adult. But my life has changed. With positive feedback and people who weren't willing to give up on me, no matter what, I came through it. I'm now a productive member of society, and I haven't seen the inside of a jail cell since I was 21. I vowed I never will again. The boy has troubles. But those troubles can be overcome. Let's just hope he gets the same kind of people that I did. I know a lot of others who didn't.
-- Lynz
The question to ask is why? Seems to be such a nice looking kid that you would have around and get to respect., Isn't looks decieving.
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