The era of third grade hit squads has begun

I am a serious news junkie, and because of this, it takes a lot to really shake me up when it comes to studying the events that shape our society.

However, one of those events happened recently when the news of a plot by third graders to stab their teacher hit the headlines.

Police in Waycross, Ga., recently stated that a group of students brought a crystal paperweight, a steak knife with a broken handle, steel handcuffs and other items as part of a conspiracy to allegedly harm their teacher.

Police said the plot was organized to the point that some of the children had been assigned specific duties such as cleaning up any mess and covering classroom windows, according to multiple news reports.

Since then, reaction to this has been wide ranging. Parents of students who attend that school were understandably horrified that this could take place. However, many psychiatry experts believe the children never would have followed through on their plans.

All the students implicated have received suspensions and at this point, law enforcement officials plan to pursue charges against three of the children.

There are a lot of thoughts that spring to mind when reflecting on this situation. The first thought is that this is another example of the challenges teachers face in the classroom.

This plot was allegedly hatched because the teacher had punished one of the children for standing on a chair.

All children need discipline, but this teacher got more than he or she bargained for when delivering this punishment. Unfortunately, violence is a real issue when it comes to our educational system, and teachers deserve our respect for being willing to serve our communities in this way.

As I stated earlier in this column, it takes something pretty extreme to shake me up as I read the news every day. However, after giving it a lot more thought, this event really should not have come as a surprise.

After all, children these days are bombarded with images that people my age never had to deal with growing up.

Kids get drenched with violent images especially as it relates to television, movies, video games and other aspects of the media. When taking this into consideration, why should it surprise us when kids decide to put into action the things they see every day?

Times have changed remarkably in the last 30 years. As a boy growing up in the 1970s, the most provocative aspect of afternoon television was how tight Mary Ann's shorts were on Gilligan's Island.

Today, when kids come home from school and turn on the television, they get exposed to violence and sex in doses that couldn't have been imagined just a few years ago.

Media technology has exploded over the last 30 years. While that has helped our country in many important ways, there has been a downside. Some folks keep pushing the envelope in terms of what they can get away with and not get burned.

Because of this, I wonder if many parents truly understand what their children are being exposed to.

Many of the parents of the children involved in this plot are likely about my age. If they are still viewing television and other aspects of the media like it was when we were growing up, then they are being extremely naïve.

To paraphrase Bob Dylan, the times have changed, and if parents are not monitoring what their children are being exposed to, then they will pay for it.

They may not pay for it now, but at some point, they will.