A shooting in the school, even bringing a gun to school, was unheard of. They're connected technically through the Internet, but they're disconnected relationally. Too many parents, he says, think by the time their children become teen-agers their job is almost done and that other forces will complete the shaping of young minds and spirits. The pace of life can be just as fast in a big city as in a small town, says Thompson, and kids who are on the edge, or over it, are hard to spot. It's not all the parents' fault.
Teens are free moral agents.
But Thompson says too many don't spend enough quality and quantity time with their children, nor do enough pray with and for them, or tell them how much they are loved and appreciated. Government officials are making predictable statements. Look for some to suggest adding more gun laws to the thousands already on the books that didn't stop this latest shooting. Parents have the best chance of curtailing violence in the heart before it reaches the head and the hands.