that government agencies never want to address a problem head on. This is getting to the point that I am starting to get angry whenever this topic is brought up.
I'm going to be blunt. I'm going to speak my mind. I'm going to allow my emotions to show rather than keep them to myself. This may come across as preachy, but I'm going to say it anyhow. Attempts to troll will be met with silence (in this case trolls ain't worth my time).
I'm not talking about the corruption, the narcissistic dealings, the nepotism, the double speak, etc, though these actions and many more all play a role in what is going on. These actions don't come from only one party - all parties are guilty of this.
A little over a year ago I posted this thread:
http://ift.tt/1tiZ8Kh. In the middle of February I added to it following the suicide of a 17 yr old.
On Monday (June 6) of this week a story (
http://ift.tt/1tbp5uB) hit the national, possibly international, press that there appears to be a problem. Really? There appears to be a problem? 5 teenagers kill themselves and it
appears that there is a problem?
There is a problem!! There's no "appears" about it. When they say "appears" I laugh (sadly this isn't a joyous laughter) at the incompetence they show just from their word choices.
I believe that the two deaths I referenced earlier is what kicked off this sequence. In Justin's case, Andrew (the first death in the post) was his best friend. Justin was never able to fully get past this. By the time he hung himself (9 months later) he had lost hope. It is this complete and utter loss of hope, along with the complete moral depravity that is ingrained into humanity, that drives these actions.
Yesterday, a student walkout was held by city hall in Woodstock. I had to physically restrain myself from crashing the walkout and telling the kids to go home or back to class. Government ain't gonna fix this. Education ain't gonna fix this. Not even talking about it is gonna help fix this.
Harsh words? Yep.
Depressing outlook? Absolutely.
Bitter? Guilty as charged.
Why am I angry? Because all I ever hear coming from the "powers that be" is talk. They talk, and they talk, and they talk, and they talk some more. Anything that they do to attempt to fix the issue backfires (non-violence laws had a kid in western Canada being suspended for stepping between a bully and his soon to be stabbing victim). No touching policies in the schools don't allow students or teachers to give a non-sexual hug when the receiver of said hug clearly needs one. They're being taught that they're no better than animals. They're being taught that there is no perfect standard of good. They are being taught that walking away, turning their backs on, or checking out are the best options. They're being taught that the sanctity of human life doesn't exist (look at abortion stats and euthanasia debates). They're being taught that it's a disease, an illness, or one of the various other labels the psychiatric community has given this (talking about it can help, but the approach needs to come from a position of understanding rather than a fixing a broken person position).
These kids see what's going on around them. They see our governments asking for input and then doing what the minority wants even though the majority says don't. They ask what's the point. They get told that they can't effect change (I've been hearing this line being said to myself for as long as I can remember yet never got suspended for fighting back against bullies nor calling a spade a spade when teachers and those in authority are abusing their position). They, often unknowingly, understand something that most of us don't, or refuse to, see. Unfortunately, they choose (yes it is a choice and often includes a fair amount of planning) the only option they see as their only choice. Its a tragic choice and the consequences are final and quite selfish.
I do not have an answer. I can say, with full assurance and knowledge, that there is hope, though it is not rooted in people or governments, nor is it rooted in myself.
I'm not really sure where this is going to go. Maybe this thread will die with only this post (I can live with that btw). All I can say is that this has weighed heavily on me all week and I had to say something.
