Gun violence and crime is a crisis. But taking firearms away from law abiding citizens will not change the behavior of criminals, nor will it solve America’s real societal issue, the destruction of the family.

violence

behaviour

violence, an act of physical force that causes or is intended to cause harm. The damage inflicted by violence may be physical, psychological, or both. Violence may be distinguished from aggression, a more general type of hostile behaviour that may be physical, verbal, or passive in nature.

Remember that definition as you read this. It brings up an issue the late Rush Limbaugh brought out regularly, “We are losing the language.” In this case, gun crime is now gun “violence.” And this “violence” is supposedly the cause of our problems in society.

I picked up the Sunday morning edition of the Houston Comical, and the headline is about how the city has an epidemic of “gun violence” taking the lives of children and teenagers. The headline, above the fold, “HOUSTON KIDS KILLED BY GUN VIOLENCE ON RISE: Data shows this to be deadliest in at least five years for children, reflecting a national crisis

What’s happened since 2017 to send the murder rates for kids sky high? Well, before we go there, let’s look at the numbers in a bit more detail.

Limbaugh had another saying, “Words means things.” In the last few years, new terms have entered our national lexicon, such as “gun violence.” The gun is violent, not the person with the gun. I didn’t know an inanimate object could get angry.

Then “died by suicide.” It gives the impression someone has died of a disease. No, by definition, the person took their own life. You can say they were clinically depressed, and as one psych tech said to me, they used “A permanent solution to a temporary problem.”

If someone wants to kill themselves, trust me, they will find a way. I’ve been to more than one suicide scene where the deceased hanged themselves, or swallowed poison. I’m not being flippant, I’ve buried multiple family members and friends who killed themselves, and I’ve seen how it rips at the survivors.

From the article:

HOUSTON KIDS KILLED BY GUN VIOLENCE ON RISE

Data shows this to be deadliest in at least five years for children, reflecting a national crisis

Fifty-three children and teenagers have died from firearm injuries through October in Harris County, according to data from the Institute of Forensic Sciences, making this year the deadliest in at least five years…

…Many of the victims were Black and Hispanic boys, the data shows, and most of the shootings happened outside Houston’s Inner Loop, with gunfire cutting short young lives in far-flung places: a strip mall parking lot in Katy, a mobile home in Cloverleaf, the sidewalk outside a house party in South Acres.

Not surprising seeing Hispanics make up over 42% of the county, while blacks make up 18.5%. Whites, currently at 29%, have been on a decline as a percentage of the population for two decades.

To be more accurate, of the 53 “kids” on this list, 11 (21%) were not victims of “gun violence,” but shot themselves. Of the remaining 42, 30 are high school (15-17) age. Not exactly children.

No matter the circumstance, each death delivers devastation and leaves a gaping hole in the world…

…Statistics from the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, too, show a spike this year in gun-related deaths among youth.

Fourteen children and adolescents have died in murders, manslaughters and justifiable homicides involving a firearm this year in Harris County, not including Houston, according to the agency — nearly triple the total count from last year.

The sheriff’s office recorded five or fewer gun-related deaths, excluding suicides, among children under 17 in each of the prior three years, according to the agency.

Meanwhile, more young people are also perpetrating violent crime, said Wayne Kuhlman, a major overseeing the sheriff’s office criminal investigations bureau. Older gang members are recruiting middle and high schoolers, he said, enticing them with stolen guns and access to cars.

Some teenagers are losing their lives in shootings as a result of their involvement in such criminal activity — they “live by the sword, die by the sword,” he said.

“They are victims of their own choices and decisions,” Kuhlman said.

You don’t say. You mean you take a pistol, use it in the commission of a crime and a rival gang member or potential victim shots you dead, there is an issue. But if they had not taken the sword, if you will, this would not be an issue.

But systemic problems like racism and poverty play a role in those decisions, too, said Brandon Denton, director of My Brother’s Keeper, an organization backed by the Houston Health Department that serves boys and young men of color.

Some teenagers get involved in criminal activity because they lack the resources and opportunities to thrive in their communities, Denton said.

Mr. Denton, you have a point, but it’s not emphasized in this article. I will get to it later.

…Cynthia Sauceda watched as her oldest son, Damian Guillen, became involved in street life and started hanging out with the “wrong crowd.”

The mother tried everything to stop him — lectures, crying, kicking him out — but her words seemed to go “in the one ear and out the other.”

She told him to channel his energy into something positive and reminded him that he was handsome, talented and smart enough to do anything. She warned him, too, that his choices would eventually land him “in the ground or in jail.”

“I knew that this was a possibility,” she said. “Those are the only options for that lifestyle.”

There were signs earlier this year, though, that her 17-year-old son was getting his life on track. Damian, a young father, had a job, a girlfriend and a camera roll filled with clips of him doting on his small children and younger siblings.

But those kids will grow up without a father.

These few paragraphs show the critical issue. Damian grew up without a father. While his mother did the best she could, she could not replace what a good man’s influence would be in this young man’s life. The proof? He has more than one kid, “children,” at the age of 17. Left unanswered is this article is were his children from the same mother, or different women.

The destruction of minority families since the Great Society, with the rejection of the father’s roll in the household, is at the root of our major societal issues. Children are growing up without the love and discipline of a male role model. It’s tough to get out of the ghetto, no question. Without a family supporting you (encouragement, emotional and financial support, guidance to put you on the right track, discipline when needed), children will run off. And they will go to a family setting, such as a gang.

If you have a well raised and disciplined child, you don’t have them running in the street shooting off guns at 3:00 in the morning. You destroy the family, children are not raised to value themselves or others, the sanity of life is gone. That is the legacy of the Great Society and the War on Poverty. Reversing the damage will take an incredible effort. But without it, this nation’s society and culture will continue to rot until it crumbles.

Michael A. Thiac is a retired Army intelligence officer, with over 23 years experience, including serving in the Republic of Korea, Japan, and the Middle East. He is also a retired police patrol sergeant, with over 22 years’ service, and over ten year’s experience in field training of newly assigned officers. He has been published at The American Thinker, PoliceOne.com, and on his personal blog, A Cop’s Watch.

Opinions expressed are his alone and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of current or former employers.

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