How do you suppose this happens? How do young people, who are supposed to be sweet and at the very beginnings of their lives go so desperately wrong?

I know for a fact there are many groups out there that would be all too glad to blame it on external influences, such as movies, music, and yes, even the "evil" video games that are so popular with today's youth. I'm not so sure I buy those excuses...at least not entirely.

Every article I've ever read regarding children, both psychologically and developmentally, states that children are "programmed", so to speak, by the age of five. That doesn't leave a whole lot of room for debate, folks! So, the experts pretty much conclusively agree...your child is going to be pretty much who and what he's going to be by the time his first day of kindergarten rolls around.

Kinda steals the steam right out of the "Let's Crucify Ozzy Ozborne...He's the Anti-Christ Campaign", huh?!?

According to these statistics that would put the ball squarely back into the court of the parents and home, alhtough, there will still be some who claim that constantly surrounding yourself with "dark" themes in your choice of entertainment will tend to jade you. Granted, this may very well be so, and it is a valid argument, but I seriously don't think that a movie or a video game, or even a cd, have the ability to completely change a person's whole behavior, or the way they relate to the world around them.

Trust me, there have been many, many people whom I would have liked to have dealt with in a less than civilized manner...and I'm sure there will be many, many more. And...even though I grew up watching Wile E. Coyote and Roadrunner beat each other stupid on a regular basis, I know that to behave in that manner is wrong. Why? Because...I had people around me as a child who taught me just how wrong that was. My family was never afraid to let me know that: 1. When you kill someone, they are dead...permanently 2. I am not the only person in the world, therefore, there are other issues to consider, not just mine 3. Violence never really solves an argument, it just makes the other party resent you even more.

In closing, I guess you could say there are two sides even to this issue...but I think I'd notice if my child were building a bomb in my garage, or keeping a sawed-off shotgun on her dresser as a paper-weight.


"We are shaped and fashioned by what we love." -Johanne Goethe