Charles (Chuck) Kensinger

Today is March 24^th, 2023. On this day in history many tragedies took place. More than on any other day? Probably not. I have been reminded of some events that took place in previous years.

In Jonesboro Arkansas on this date in 1984, four students and a teacher were shot to death by two students at West Side Middle school. These boys also shot eleven other students. Why? They were bullies. They were not close friends until they began their plans to kill as many as they could from their school.

One boy had been dumped by his girlfriend a few days before. They had nine weapons and over 2,000 rounds of ammunition. As in other school attacks, the plan included setting up in the woods outside the building and pulling a fire alarm. Then they waited until the doors opened and their victims walked out and were ambushed.

We ask ourselves what could have been done to prevent deaths after every attack of this kind. If we take every gun away from everyone we can, others will steal weapons as these boys did and stage similar ambushes.

What happened after these deaths? The boys were taken into custody. They were tried for murder and kept in juvenile detention until they reached their state’s majority age. They were released and returned to society. Their records were sealed, and they lived under assumed names.

One was jailed and spent time in prison for robbery. He was again released and was killed a few years later in an accident that was not his fault. The other shooter is assumed to be alive and has not been identified for his earlier crimes. He may be your neighbor or even mine.

My question is, should what we do as children or teenagers be used against us as we age? We all make mistakes. I never did anything to get me arrested. While I might have been angry with others and thought about hurting them, I never have. We need to decide as a state and nation how to deal with young people who have problems with the way they react to others. Should murders be accepted from any age?

Is lax punishment for juveniles one of the causes of younger violent offenders? We must look at all sides of these offenses. I mentioned this was a day of death and destruction. This event in 1984 was not the only one for this calendar date.

The Exxon Valdez went aground in 1989 and spilled millions of gallons of crude oil on the Alaskan coast. It was the worst spill at that time. In 1999 thirty-nine died in a tunnel between France and Italy. The fire in the Mont Blonk Tunnel took two days to extinguish.

Harry Houdini was born in 1874. I add this fact to stop anyone from saying that this column is only about tragedies. Every day on the calendar has good times to remember and tragedies. Take each day as the Lord gives it to you and live it as He wants.

©Copyright 2023 by Charles Kensinger