It’s June 2022, and we are learning about mass murders. Almost on a daily basis. Innocent people dying. Even little kids.
Did you see this coming?
If you didn’t see it coming, maybe it’s because you didn’t want to believe the signs all around us.
What do two-year-olds know about the world around them? Easy answer: almost nothing.
But after that, year after year, they piece together a growing picture of what’s going on in their world. Our culture teaches them what the world they’re growing up in is about.
Comic books. Toy guns. I had them when I grew up. We kids pretended to shoot each other and fall down dead. Great fun. We learned that this was normal – even entertaining – from watching TV and movies.
Of course violence on TV and movies has escalated quite a bit since I was a kid. I recently watched a popular movie and counted the killings: over 40 in 100 minutes of “action.” Attention-grabbing! Do your kids watch these entertainments?
Did you buy them toy guns to play with? And these days we have addictive video games that feature realistic shooting and killing scenarios that engage them in the action. Lots of parents get these programs for their kids because the technology keeps them occupied. Their friends play these games, and parents want their children to be accepted by their friends, right?
Do you keep real guns in your house? For hunting or target shooting? Do you feel you need them for home safety? Is this the world you live in? What are little kids learning about the world they live in?
Violence and killing are a part of our culture. Do you want your kids to learn that it’s normal and OK? It’s really tough to swim against the tide of culture, but that’s what you have to do to teach your children that it’s important and possible to create and live in a compassionate, peaceful world.
Are you up to this challenge? I think it’s important that parents give this a lot of thought.