(Aired on September 27, 2010)
I have mostly fond memories of my time in high school. Didn't get into too many scraps. Wasn't teased too unmercifully, although it certainly wasn't perfect. I have mostly fond memories of my kids' time in high school. Only one of them got into much trouble. I was probably too over-protective of my kids, and have often wondered if I was too protective.
But seeing things such as those that have happened to a couple of high school girls in the past three weeks, maybe not. And the sad reality is that no matter how over-protective you are, you still can't stop everything. It was probably not a smart move for a young girl to go to a rave in Maple Ridge a couple of weeks ago. Doped up from the date rape drug, she was gang raped, and to make it worse, pictures started showing up on the Internet. While the girl's judgment in going to the party might be considered suspect, considering most of those things are problems from the get-go, what happened to her was devastating and tragic, something she will have to live with the rest of her life. Bad judgment or not, there's no reason for that kind of attack.
If there's a good thing, I suppose, it's that at least she will have a life to live. Not so fortunate was a grade 10 student in Delta, killed on the weekend while walking through a park in broad daylight. Details of both these tragedies are still sketchy, but, by all accounts, these were not bad kids. They were happy kids, enjoying life, probably going through the same issues many teens do, emotional upheaval, peer pressure, we've all gone through it. As parents, we hope our kids survive those rough years intact, and move on to their adult life.
It's hard for us to comprehend the tragedy these two families, and many like them, are going through. I guess the only thing we can do is to keep in touch with our kids as best we can, protect them as well as we can, and hope for the best. Sometimes, unfortunately, our best isn't good enough.
Showing posts with label violence. Show all posts
Showing posts with label violence. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Friday, September 10, 2010
Increased Support for Gun Registry Vexing
(Aired on September 8, 2010)
It's a head-scratcher that support for keeping the long gun registry has jumped over the past few months. Back in April, 42% of respondents to a Canadian Press Harris-Decima poll thought it would be a bad idea to get rid of the registry. Now, the number is up to 48%.
That's a significant jump considering nothing has really happened to precipitate it. As far as I know, there haven't been any dramatic jumps in gun violence during that time. The Conservatives still want to scrap the registry, and the opposition parties are still largely looking for ways to keep it in place. Police organizations have reiterated their support for keeping the registry, but that support has always been there. They say it's incredibly helpful to know which homes have firearms registered to them before they knock on the front door. That may be true, but the stated purpose of the long gun registry was to make guns involved in crime more traceable, thus leading police to the criminals more quickly and easily. I have yet to see evidence that actually happens.
It's only common sense that people who would use firearms in the commission of a crime will avoid registering their guns. And while the residual effects may be positive, the billion-dollar boondoggle doesn't seem to be effective at fighting crime.
On a philosophical, world view level, I'm not a fan of firearms. In a perfect world, they would not exist. But it's not a perfect world, guns are a part of society and we would be better served managing their possession and use than trying to rid the world of them. Politicians need to come up with a better option than the ones we have today.
It's a head-scratcher that support for keeping the long gun registry has jumped over the past few months. Back in April, 42% of respondents to a Canadian Press Harris-Decima poll thought it would be a bad idea to get rid of the registry. Now, the number is up to 48%.
That's a significant jump considering nothing has really happened to precipitate it. As far as I know, there haven't been any dramatic jumps in gun violence during that time. The Conservatives still want to scrap the registry, and the opposition parties are still largely looking for ways to keep it in place. Police organizations have reiterated their support for keeping the registry, but that support has always been there. They say it's incredibly helpful to know which homes have firearms registered to them before they knock on the front door. That may be true, but the stated purpose of the long gun registry was to make guns involved in crime more traceable, thus leading police to the criminals more quickly and easily. I have yet to see evidence that actually happens.
It's only common sense that people who would use firearms in the commission of a crime will avoid registering their guns. And while the residual effects may be positive, the billion-dollar boondoggle doesn't seem to be effective at fighting crime.
On a philosophical, world view level, I'm not a fan of firearms. In a perfect world, they would not exist. But it's not a perfect world, guns are a part of society and we would be better served managing their possession and use than trying to rid the world of them. Politicians need to come up with a better option than the ones we have today.
Friday, June 18, 2010
UFC Spawning Violence? It's Possible
(Aired on June 17, 2010)
Does violence spawn violence? That's often a hotly-debated topic. But sometimes, I do believe some who are prone to violent acts can be triggered by watching violence. I believe when the adrenaline starts to pump, a person can react just about any way humanly possible. That's why I'm against gratuitous violence on television, that's why I believe Ultimate Fighting matches should be banned.
I suppose some might get a high out of watching someone literally kicking and punching someone else's head in. Some may not get affected, but if circumstances were right, I bet someone could easily walk out of a match, walk down the street and crank someone for no reason at all. Don't tell me that people don't react that way to things. They do. Not everyone. But some do. And we have to put those matches under wraps because of the greater good.
Screaming fans yelling for blood does something to unnerve me. It's the same with dog fighting or cock fighting or whatever else someone wants to tell you is really OK and not as violent as you think.
I've never thought of myself as a violent person, in fact, as I grow older, the opposite is more and more true. I boxed a lot as a youngster, and very seldom lost. I took karate too. But as I got older, I began to enjoy it less and less. Now I can very seldom watch a boxing match on TV. And I would never watch an Ultimate Fighting match. It just seems so senseless all of a sudden. When I think of those people fighting those matches, I wonder how many of them will be still alive twenty years from now. I don't want to seem like a prude, but aside from the fighters' health, I worry about the reaction the fights cause in others.
Scientific evidence is somewhat lacking on this issue, but I can't see how one could avoid being swept up in the violence when watching these things. And when the body is pumped, who knows what might happen?
Does violence spawn violence? That's often a hotly-debated topic. But sometimes, I do believe some who are prone to violent acts can be triggered by watching violence. I believe when the adrenaline starts to pump, a person can react just about any way humanly possible. That's why I'm against gratuitous violence on television, that's why I believe Ultimate Fighting matches should be banned.
I suppose some might get a high out of watching someone literally kicking and punching someone else's head in. Some may not get affected, but if circumstances were right, I bet someone could easily walk out of a match, walk down the street and crank someone for no reason at all. Don't tell me that people don't react that way to things. They do. Not everyone. But some do. And we have to put those matches under wraps because of the greater good.
Screaming fans yelling for blood does something to unnerve me. It's the same with dog fighting or cock fighting or whatever else someone wants to tell you is really OK and not as violent as you think.
I've never thought of myself as a violent person, in fact, as I grow older, the opposite is more and more true. I boxed a lot as a youngster, and very seldom lost. I took karate too. But as I got older, I began to enjoy it less and less. Now I can very seldom watch a boxing match on TV. And I would never watch an Ultimate Fighting match. It just seems so senseless all of a sudden. When I think of those people fighting those matches, I wonder how many of them will be still alive twenty years from now. I don't want to seem like a prude, but aside from the fighters' health, I worry about the reaction the fights cause in others.
Scientific evidence is somewhat lacking on this issue, but I can't see how one could avoid being swept up in the violence when watching these things. And when the body is pumped, who knows what might happen?
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