Reply to Girls, 13 and 15, Charged With Murder After Armed Carjacking Near Nationals Park

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Reply to "Girls, 13 and 15, Charged With Murder After Armed Carjacking Near Nationals Park"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I’m so tired of hearing about lack of opportunity for these kids. We live in a nation that offers free education for kids until they’re 18. DC has tuition assistance for college bound kids. Families can access food, health, and housing benefits. There are childcare credits, job training, social programs, and many charities that provide additional assistance. At some point we need to stop blaming ‘society’ and start looking at the families. Parents-mom AND dad-need to step up. Communities shouldn’t tolerate the crimes their children are committing. Parents need to be held accountable. We can throw a ton of money at the program, but it won’t help until people take personal responsibility for their choices and want to better their lives-legally. [/quote]

+1000

There are opportunities everywhere - if you're born in the US, you already have infinitely more privilege and opportunity than the rest of the world. Nobody's going to hold your hand through every step every day of your life - at some point you have to take charge and make good choices for yourself.

You don't even have to be some kind of big success story, the bar is pretty low - just don't hurt/harm/kill another person. That's it. It's not hard and it really takes only minimal effort.[/quote]

I am not justifying murder. I'm not saying what happened is right or understandable. BUT imagine that you are a 13 year old born into a household/community where most people didn't even finish high school. You don't have the internet at home and your parents aren't actively participating in your school or helping with schoolwork. Your classes at school are too big for you to ever get any individual attention. So how would you know about these opportunities? You wouldn't, not unless someone were actively trying to educate and involve and motivate you. You see what you know, you behave accordingly, and in a few years you become a parent yourself and repeat the cycle. Some people are self starters who are able to get themselves out of poverty, but by far not all or even most.

I came here as a child and we lived in poverty for a while. But I had an advantage in that my parents were educated (equivalents of masters degrees in our former country). Even though at first they worked menial jobs and were gone all the time, they still supervised my grades/homework and knew when to step in. They also constantly stressed upon me the importance of a college degree. If they hadn't? I don't think I would have just figured it out.  [/quote]

That’s where parenting comes in. I don’t expect a 13 year old to know about every program, but the parents have a responsibility to their children. They should be ensuring the kids are in school, and not committing crimes. The breakdown of the inner city starts with the parents. Even if the parents don’t have an education of any sort, it is their job to ensure the kids get one. It’s also their job to ensure their kids aren’t criminals. Government cannot raise kids to be productive members of society-it’s up the parents. You were poor, and yet your parents made sure you went to school, knew where you were, etc.  it doesn’t take a masters degree to parent. [b]Bottom line, until parents step up, the cycle will continue[/b].

I keep thinking about the this woman. https://www.yahoo.com/news/baltimore-hs-student-fails-3-211655068.html

Her son didn’t go to high school for 4 years and she was shocked to learn that when it was time for him to graduate. Yes, the school should have contacted her about this, but ultimately, it is her responsibility to make sure her kid is in school. She doesn’t take any responsibility for this-she truly believes she is the victim. This victim mentality is what keeps the cycle going. [/quote]

Ok, but how does punishing these girls as harshly as possible stop this cycle?  All it means is that they will have even less likelihood of being responsible parents when the time arrives, just perpetuating the cycle. [/quote]

Because when punishment is ineffective, you end up with adults on the streets killing innocent people like this: https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/20-year-old-scholarship-student-gunned-down-by-stranger-outside-temple-hills-tattoo-parlor/2615919/?fbclid=IwAR3YUHPREa1l0ibzlJ3EEiEnSqE68R49hq0GR3UF0iyab4ze455kPhZbtis
[/quote]

Which is why the response should be focused on rehabilitation, counseling and other ways to help them -- not punishment.[/quote]

Yes, but the rehabilitation, counseling and other ways needs to be done while they are separated from society for a significant amount of time. Not the DC way of "okay we're letting you go but you have to promise to show up to your sessions."

These two girls killed a man. Some people here seem to think we're talking about two kids who got caught stealing a candy bar.[/quote]

+1 Also, planning to taser someone and obtaining a taser is very concerning.

[/quote]

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