yesterday evening. It was Youngest Son. He was calling to report on his daughters.
Boston and Maddie are 15 and 13 years old respectively. Their school participated in the student "Walk Out" demonstration the other day, regarding the school shooting in Florida. Some schools made it mandatory that students participate. The school the girls attend made participation optional.
Boston and Maddie stayed in school.
Boston and Maddie were of the opinion the demonstration was, to quote them, "dumb."
The girls had talked with their parents about what happened in Florida. They understand the tragedy of the situation. They also picked up on the talk floating around about gun control as a way to prevent school shootings. I asked their Dad what the girls thought about that aspect of the situation. He told me they thought that was dumb, too. Boston said that if someone is killed in a car accident, nobody blames the car. It is the driver who is at fault. Same with guns.
I don't think I have ever been more proud of those girls. They followed their beliefs instead of following the crowd. And I am equally proud of their parents for raising children who can think for themselves and who have what is lacking in many adults - common sense.
To quote Boston, "I'm not going to school to demonstrate. I'm going to learn."
Boston and Maddie, your Grandma says, "Well done."
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Well done, Vicki; you can be proud!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Gorges...I am just happy that the public school system hasn't taken away their ability to think for themselves. Much of that is due to their parents who talk with them about what is going on.
ReplyDeleteThere's hope for this next generation after all. And a job well done to your son and DIL for having such an open and honest discussion with their kids.
ReplyDeleteYou should be proud.
SJ
Thanks, SJ...I am proud of them - both grands and parents. They talk things over. The kids are allowed their own opinions. Good way to keep from raising a generation of snowflakes!
DeleteMy 14 year old grandson was 1 of 5 students in a class of 30+ who did not participate and I am also very proud. His father is a deputy for Multnomah country and he. Understands and believes that it is a good guy with a gun who stops a bad guy with a gun. To bad that the good guys with guns dilly dallied outside the buildings until the shooting stopped.
ReplyDeleteSue...Good on your grandson!! He is being raised right. I just can not understand how limiting access to firearms helps anyone except the criminal who doesn't pay any attention to the laws. I notice that those politicians who talk long and loud about gun control are guarded by men with guns.
DeleteThere was a boy in a high school just south of here who decided to participate in the walk out, but who carried a sign saying "Guns don't kill people. People kill people." He was escorted off the premises by law enforcement. I don't blame the cop, for I am quite sure he had to do what he did, but that incident sure does tell me that there are those (I am assuming school officials were behind this) who have no respect for our Constitution, particularly the right of free speech and the right to bear arms. I never thought I would live to see this happen.
Of interest to me is the folks who want to blame the gun but not the car are the first ones to call "the good guys with a gun" to help keep them safe. Just saying.
DeleteGoatldi...You are absolutely right. I will toss in those who live in their gated, well patrolled communities and those who don't go anywhere without their well armed bodyguards. Seems like those folks who have not a clue when it comes to the way the rest of us live are the ones shouting long and loud about gun control.
DeleteI too felt it was dumb. I read today that some kids who walked out actually threw rocks at cars and damaged them. I bet you are a proud Grandma.
ReplyDeleteKristina...I can go along with some sort of demonstration in honor of those kids and faculty who died in that awful massacre, but that is not what this was all about. It was all about gun control. It was all about using school kids to further a political agenda. I will never believe that a group of school kids could organize a nation wide demonstration without help from those adults who used them to promote gun control as a solution to a problem. From what I have been reading, there were several areas across the country where the demonstrations got out of hand and turned into near riots. There were other places where kids had no idea what was going on but were happy to get out of classes for a time. The whole thing is sad, really.
DeleteKicking my soapbox back into a corner now.
Congratulations to you and your family You evidently raised a son who knows enough to think for himself and he in turn is raising his girls to think for themselves and not follow the current trend.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Cathy...I'm guessing that you were probably raised like I was. We were taught that just because others do dumb things doesn't mean we have to do dumb things too. My Mom's favorite line was, "Just because your friends jump off a cliff doesn't mean you have to jump, too." We were taught values and that actions have consequences. We were taught all about using common sense. I hope my kids picked up on those things and I am really happy that they are raising my grands to do what is right and not just follow along like sheep.
DeleteSome students were forced to go outside and "demonstrate" no matter what they believed. Anyone who stayed in was punished. Other schools did not allow students to demonstrate and those who walked out were punished.
ReplyDeleteWith so much social media, I believe kids can coordinate these walk outs.
We were reared with guns standing in the closet and ammo above it on the shelf. But, we were told never to touch it. To my knowledge, none of us did.
I like Boston's statement.
Linda...What should have been a memorial demonstration for the 17 killed turned out to be more of an anti gun rally. Had it been a memorial, I would have been for it, but to use the kids to make a political statement was just wrong and I am glad my granddaughters had the good sense to skip it. I liked Boston's statement, too!
DeleteGrowing up, there were guns in my home. Dad had a deer rifle, a shotgun and a little .22. We kids knew where they were kept. We knew where the ammunition was kept. We knew better than to touch them. By the time I was 12 years old, Dad had taught me how to safely handle guns and I spent lots of time out back, target shooting with the .22. Without adult supervision, just like most of my friends whose parents taught them to respect firearms. Sadly, most kids today are being taught that guns are evil.