The
liberty principle for this Freedom Friday is the simple fact that there is a
connection between violence and morality – or the lack thereof – and gun
control is not the answer. The numbers
of people who own guns continue to increase, and yet gun deaths are decreasing
except in large urban areas and random massacres. Guns were readily available to most of my
classmates fifty plus years ago, but none of them were used to shoot up our
school! I believe that the main reason
why there is so much violence in our society today is the lack of morality
among the citizens of our nation and world.
As God was taken out of our schools, out of government, and out of
public activities, the level of violence increased.
Darrell
Scott is the father of two victims of the Columbine High School massacre in
Littleton, Colorado, on April 20, 1999.
His daughter, Rachel, was killed, and his son, Craig, saw two of his
friends murdered. Mr. Scott, along with
other parents of victims, was invited to address the Subcommittee on crime of
the House Judiciary Committee on May 27, 1999.
He did not mince any words as he shared his thoughts with the
legislators. He courageously spoke
“powerful, penetrating, and deeply personal” words as he spelled out the truth
to our national leaders during this special session. His words should have been “heard by every
parent, every teacher, every politician, every sociologist, every psychologist,
and every so-called expert!” His words
should have been taken into consideration as new laws were contemplated and
legislated. They apparently were not
because new violence struck in Newtown, Connecticut, in December 2012. We as a society have not learned the lessons
articulated by Mr. Scott.
Our
main stream media covered the testimonies of Mr. Scott and other parents of
Columbine victims who appeared before the committee, but there was not a “great
deal of major news coverage.” In fact,
“several other” parents differed in opinion from Mr. Scott. I am grateful for our “alternative” media (Internet)
because it keeps information such as this “active” instead of letting it
disappear. E-mails containing Mr.
Scott’s remarks have been circulating since June 1999, and now his words are
being shared on Facebook and other social media. There is little doubt in my mind that Mr.
Scott saw the real problems that cause violence and explained them very clearly. I believe that our society will never be safe
– never truly free - until we honestly face the problems that cause violence
rather than point fingers and destroy liberty by passing new laws. A partial transcript of Mr. Scott’s remarks is
as follows and has been declared “authentic” by Urban Legends.
“Since the dawn of creation
there has been both good and evil in the hearts of men and women. We all contain the seeds of kindness or the
seeds of violence. The death of my
wonderful daughter, Rachel Joy Scott, and the deaths of that heroic teacher,
and the other eleven children who died must not be in vain. Their blood cries out for answers.
“The first recorded act of
violence was when Cain slew his brother Abel out in the field. The villain was not the club he used. Neither was it the NCA, the National Club
Association. The true killer was Cain,
and the reason for the murder could only be found in Cain’s heart.
“In the days that followed the Columbine
tragedy, I was amazed at how quickly fingers began to be pointed at groups such
as the NRA. I am not a member of the
NRA. I am not a hunter. I do not even own a gun. I am not here to represent or defend the NRA
– because I don’t believe that they are responsible for my daughter’s
death. Therefore I do not believe that
they need to be defended. If I believed
they had anything to do with Rachel’s murder, I would be their strongest
opponent.
“I am here today to declare that
Columbine was not just a tragedy – it was a spiritual event that should be
forcing us to look at where the real blame lies! Much of the blame lies here in this
room. Much of the blame lies behind the
pointing fingers of the accusers themselves.
I
wrote a poem that expresses my feelings best.
This was written way before I knew I would be speaking here today:
Your
laws ignore our deepest needs,
Your
words are empty air.
You’ve
stripped away our heritage,
You’ve
outlawed simple prayer.
Now
gunshots fill our classrooms,
And
precious children die.
You
seek for answers everywhere,
And
ask the question “Why?”
You
regulate restrictive laws,
Through
legislative creed.
And
yet you fail to understand,
That
God is what we need!
“Men and women are three-part
beings. We all consist of body, soul,
and spirit. When we refuse to
acknowledge a third part of our make-up, we create a void that allows evil,
prejudice, and hatred to rush in and wreak havoc. Spiritual influences were present within our
educational systems for most of our nation’s history. Many of our major colleges began as
theological seminaries. This is a
historical fact. What has happened to us
as a nation? We have refused to honor
God, and in so doing, we open the doors to hatred and violence. And when something as terrible as Columbine’s
tragedy occurs politicians immediately look for a scapegoat such as the
NRA. They immediately seek to pass more
restrictive laws that contribute to erode away our personal and private
liberties. We do not need more
restrictive laws.
“Eric and Dylan would not have
been stopped by metal detectors. No
amount of gun laws can stop someone who spends months planning this type of
massacre. The real villain lies within
our own hearts. Political posturing and
restrictive legislation are not the answers.
The young people of our nation hold the key. There is a spiritual awakening taking place
that will not be squelched! We do not
need more religion. We do not need more
gaudy television evangelists spewing out verbal religious garbage. We do not need more million dollar church
buildings built while people with basic needs are being ignored. We do need a change of heart and a humble
acknowledgment that this nation was founded on the principle of simple trust in
God!
“As my son Craig lay under that
table in the school library and saw his two friends murdered before his very
eyes, he did not hesitate to pray in school.
I defy any law or politician to deny him that right! I challenge every young person in America,
and around the world, to realize that on April 20, 1999, at Columbine High
School prayer was brought back to our schools.
Do not let the many prayers offered by those students be in vain. Dare to move into the new millennium with a
sacred disregard for legislation that violates your God-given right to
communicate with Him. To those of you
who would point your finger at the NRA – I give to you a sincere
challenge. Dare to examine your own
heart before casting the first stone! My
daughter’s death will not be in vain!
The young people of this country will not allow that to happen!”
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