Our Disappearing America

Have you heard the sound? No, not the sound of silence, but the sound of our America being steadily flushed down the toilet by the powers that be. As Congress debates the necessity of a tax cut even though the budget surplus is an accounting myth, what America stands for is being flushed down the toilet, piece by piece.

Utah got their very own Porn Czar and the whole nation got our very own Compassionate Conservative President. As school shootings come one after another, his answer is to further cut back programs to assist poor children, add new filtering software to public library computers, slap new restrictions on the games and videos you play and watch, and of course, add more gun regulations. To point out that none of these things will help is to state the obvious.

What is needed is parental involvement in the lives of our children. When I was growing up my parents pretty much knew what I was doing every second of the day. Mom was home and Dad worked, as were many of the family situations. If my Mom didn't know something, I could count on some of the other stay at home mothers to know what the heck I was doing. They would make sure that my Mother knew about it before I got home. It didn't take a village. It just took two or three mothers that knew somebody else and like some vine out of a Sci-Fi movie, everyone was connected. Good or bad, she always knew and I had to deal with her consequences. If I had been bad enough, I had to deal with my father's consequences when he got home. Some days, it was a real tossup, which was worse!

I know things have changed and it is much harder for one parent to stay home with the kids. Before I became disabled, my wife and I worked job schedules with me working nights and weekends so that one parent was always home. Thirteen years ago, I was routinely stopped as I walked with our son in his stroller in the afternoons because we looked "suspicious." It must have been me. After the first couple of times it got funny and after awhile some of the officers would check in just to see how the baby was doing.

Not only was daycare expensive, it was out of the question. We didn't have a choice as we had to make it work because we had what is euphuistically called "special needs" children. This term is disgusting and non-sense as each and every child had special needs. Digressing for the moment, aren't all of us that really work for a living on "fixed income?"

I know for many parents, there is no choice. Both parents have to work and they rely on the kids to behave and not get into trouble. But, that isn't enough. You have to know what your kids are doing as much as possible. Forget the legal liability issues, you have a moral responsibility to be a part of these kid's lives.

Don't look at your neighbor with distrust when he or she tells you about the little problem that happened while you were at work. Don't assume that because the Dad is home that means there is something off about him. He might be the best ally you have. Find out where your kids are hanging out and with whom they are spending time. Ask the other parents that know your kids if they have weapons in the house, and if so, are they secured? Make the time to know your kids and what their interests are.

If you don't, you may second-guess yourself later. Not only will your rights continue to diminish as cameras are installed on every corner and your purchases are tracked and reported to every agency known to mankind, you may find yourself involved in another of the nearly daily school shootings. Your son or daughter could be the victim or the shooter. Victim or shooter? Which is worse?

Kevin Tipple