Mayor’s Row……..by Ned Mitchell
Are we becoming a lawless society is a question I keep trying to find answers for in my own mind. Recent events both in Franklin County and in other areas of the state bring about such deep thoughts and as I see the situation going from bad to worse it causes concern. I see people I have known all of my life who used to be easy to get along with average Joes become violent at the drop of a hat. Sure alcohol or drugs cause a lot of this type of behavior, but I question how we have gotten to this point? Are we out of control as a society?
In talking with school teachers, administrators, court officers and defense attorneys most all of them agree that things are falling apart on the home front. There is very little discipline for little Johnny or Susie coming from mom and dad and so it appears we are becoming lax in our respect for others as a result.
I was recently looking over some notes from Albert J. Dale, a now deceased Sesser school teacher. Mr. Dale had jotted down notes from time to time describing what it was like to be a country teacher in a one room school. Mr. Dale wrote about the water system at his school which consisted of a well, a bucket on a rope and several tin cups that everyone shared at recess. Roads, he said did not exist and everyone walked to and from school. The heating system was a King Heater stove in the center of the room that burned wood. The building was one room that held from 80 to 100 students. Rest room facilities were out back. The interesting part though was his comments about discipline. Discipline, Mr. Dale wrote was a hickory switch! He further noted parents disciplined children at home and backed the teacher at school. Result? Not much discipline needed according to Mr. Dale.
Talk to any teacher today or school administrator and mention the word discipline and you will get a whole litany of blah, blah, blah about time out, detention, alternative schooling and on and on. What we are missing is mom and dad setting forth guidelines for junior to live by and making them stick. Of course if parents don’t teach discipline at home how can we expect teachers to teach it at school? It simply cannot be done. It has to start at home.
There is a huge disregard for authority these days and it is evident by the traffic stops our police officers make. We especially see that in a small town where we basically know everyone who lives around us. You would not believe the people who get stopped by a police officer who when the officer approaches their car cut loose with words that would make a sailor blush. I often wonder if these same folks would talk that way to a state trooper, a Chicago police officer or a United States Marshall. Of course they would not; they only do that where they think they can get by with it.
Then we have those who feel they have to put up a fight, almost all of the time either too drunk to stand up, let alone drive or under the influence of drugs. To watch the videos of these 10 foot tall people is sometimes amusing. I hear all the time about how awful police officers are, not only here but all over. My response is that all of them have a job to do and you the driver must have been doing something wrong to get stopped in the first place. You would be surprised at the number of drivers who get stopped for a seat belt violation only to get charged with DUI or possession of drugs or some other felony. All of that could have been avoided if the seat belt would have been in place. That is a no brainer folks, if you are not doing something wrong, you won’t get stopped by the police. I have never in my life been stopped when I was not doing anything wrong. I was speeding, had expired license plates, or did not have my seat belt on every time I have been stopped by police. Here is the kicker though, not one time did I ever get an attitude with the police officer let alone jump out of the car and take a swing at him. I have been taught by two loving parents that you respect officers of the law; that is just the way it is around the Mitchell household I grew up in.
If parents are not going to teach their children right from wrong then whose responsibility is it? Ultimately it has to fall on the court system when one is arrested for breaking the law. That could be a violation of a traffic law or it could be a criminal felony. We have a court of public opinion too in this country and since I have been pondering this column for quite some time I have ventured into that court. Folks I am here to tell you that almost nobody believes the court system is working in this country. Even the offenders will tell you from their point of view it is not working. Your average tax paying, hard working citizen for sure will tell you that it is not working. Most police officers will tell you it is not working. Can all of these people be wrong? I doubt it.
The latest incident in Franklin County involving two young men who allegedly held up a Benton business at gun point at 11:00 in the morning is a good example. Both of these young men are no strangers to the court system. These same two are suspects in an armed robbery of three women leaving prayer meeting on Wednesday night at their church. One of the women threw her left over banana pudding on one of the creeps while another warped him with her purse. Are we right here in Southern Illinois living in a day when people cannot come out of their church on Wednesday night without being robbed at gun point? Sadly we all know the answer to that question.
Sure there is plenty of blame to go around. Bad childhood maybe, low IQ maybe, poverty maybe, no job maybe, divorce maybe, all just excuses. What we need in this country are prosecutors who will prosecute and judges who will judge. If the court system does not demand discipline then who will? There is no need for defendants to be given probation on top of probation or more conditional discharge. Sure everyone deserves a break or two but that must be the end of it. I give our States Attorney Tom Dinn high marks for doing his job, and it is a difficult job. I truly believe though when a charge of aggravated battery to a police officer is filed, it should not be reduced to some other meaningless misdemeanor crime. I don’t think prosecutors should plea bargain that charge away and I don’t think judges should agree to a reduction of the charge.
We simply have to get tougher in our court system when all else fails. Otherwise we are going to continue down the path of a lawless society where elderly women cannot go to a church social without fearing for their lives. Police officers are doing their jobs and I have a huge amount of respect for them. Is the court system doing its job? According to that great court of public opinion, I have to agree, it is not. We can only do so much on this end. I can assure you that we work very hard to make Sesser a safe place to live and raise a family but once it leaves our hands we have no control over it. You however do control it and your voice needs to be heard. I’ve called for a “three strikes and you are out law” here before. Twenty eight states now have some version of that where the courts must abide by the sentencing guidelines. Are you listening folks? Contact State Senator Gary Forby and Representative John Bradley and urge them to put an end to this nonsense of the repeat offender. We owe it to our parents, grandparents and children.
Look for the opening of the newly remodeled Opera House Café in Sesser on September 19th. I’m sure you will find it a great place to eat and visit on Main Street!
If you need us, give us a call at 625-3611 or 625-5322 or write nedmitchell@verizion.net or www.sesser.org or P. O. Box 517, Sesser, Illinois 62884.
| |
|
