The reason schools are not safe

The slaughter which occurred in a Florida school in February probably would never have taken place had the safeguards supposedly built into our safety network, which make it more difficult for the mentally dangerous to obtain firearms and/or ammunition, been followed. However, from all outward appearances, this system failed at all levels. From parents to school to public mental health to local police to the FBI, all failed to take appropriate action.

Then, in March, we all watched the TV news coverage of high schoolers, from all around our nation, as they gathered to remember those who died in the previous month’s atrocity and as they demonstrated against violence in our schools. They also were advocating for change but sadly much of their proposed change simply parroted what we hear after each of these atrocities, “more gun control.” Guns are nothing more than an inert assembly of metal parts that only become dangerous when loaded by and in the hands of a careless or a willfully dangerous human. What these young people need to be advocating for are drastic changes to a sick society whose current culture breeds these monsters who unleash their pent-up hatred on those around them.

I was born in 1929 a few days before the great stock market crash that signaled the beginning of the Great Depression, so I have been present to observe the sad demise of a culture that was once a proud and patriotic people who honored and gave thanks to their Creator; who were family oriented; who for the most part were honest, hardworking, law-abiding, productive citizens who were always ready to give a needy neighbor a hand or a handout. Like all societies we had some problems during my earlier years, especially the continuing racial divide, but progress was being made, at least up to a point, then God the Creator was evicted from our schools and our public places and Satan quickly filled the void bringing his hate-filled message and mind-numbing drugs and all hell broke loose.

We are fortunate here in the valley to have a local newspaper that still reports the news as it happens without slanting every story and we are fortunate to have an informed editor, Frank Miele, who also demonstrates a keen insight into the intricacies of our political, educational and cultural society. If you have been reading the “Editor’s 2 Cents” (Mr. Miele’s opinion) column in the Sunday Inter Lake, then you have a pretty good picture of what major forces have worked to drastically transform our culture during the past 50 or more years.

There is no accurate count but recent estimates indicate that as much as 20 to 30 percent of our population has now been exposed to the cultural brainwashing that is prevalent in our educational system and the number grows with each passing day. This means that a large segment of the population is now adrift on the stormy seas of life on a ship with no rudder and no destination, hopelessly lost. In their world where all things are relative, there can be no system of rewards and punishment for each is their own god and decides their own destiny, which extends no further than the physical boundaries of this earth; therefore, human life is no more valuable than animal life so they live for the pleasures of today for there is no tomorrow. In their world, where life is cheap, murder of the unborn is perfectly legal and a common practice controlled only by the whims of the mother. Some 60 million have been murdered in this nation since the passage of Roe v. Wade in 1973. We have to wonder how many Lincolns, Washingtons, Einsteins and Grahams never had the opportunity to see the light of day. Mother Teresa, now Saint Teresa, once commented, “We must not be surprised when we hear of murders, of killings, of wars, of hatred. If a mother can kill her own child, what is left but for us to kill each other.”

Through movies, TV, digital media and games, our youth of today are surrounded with constant visions of violence, murder, blood, gore and a constant stream of profanity and sex without love including disgustingly deviant sexual practices that God has said were an abomination in his sight. In this world where evil is called good and good is called evil, marriage and family are an inconvenience and all lifestyles, no matter how abhorrent, are to be considered acceptable. In this environment where reality no longer exists and there is no clear path to follow, many of our young become confused and feel helpless and turn to alcohol and drugs and even suicide and others turn to violence and take out their frustrations on those around them by committing heinous crimes.

We are at a crossroads and must decide, do we continue down the current feel-good path of attacking the Second Amendment while these mass slaughters continue and probably become more frequent, or do we attack the root cause of the problem? I vote for the latter. This certainly will not be easy. Wresting control of an educational system that has been steered down the wrong path for the better part of a century will be a monumental task that will require many years to complete but a task that is essential to the survival of a United States. Additionally, our politicized judicial system has made some horrid mistakes in the past century that have been the enabling factor for some of the most profound and damaging changes in our culture and these must be rectified.

In summary, there’s more at stake than just our current problems for if we persist in continuing our morally downward trajectory and its attendant divisiveness, the division among the citizens of our nation will continue to grow wider and more hate filled until we are torn apart with civil strife in the struggle for control. The choice is ours and the time is now so let us roll up our sleeves and get to work. A good place to start is with a sincere, heartfelt, prayer for success in saving our nation. If that last request offends you (whatever that means) then may I offer to head a fund-raising committee to raise funds to buy you a one-way ticket to wherever you think it is that you have a right to not be offended by the presence of God?

Larry Metzger is a resident of Bigfork.