Once again, our community is shaken by barbaric sexual acts of young men on a high school sports team. And once again, we condemn those in charge: We fire coaches; we point fingers at school district supervisors and boards; and, the local pundits condemn hazing and bullying. We know about the two incidents at Ooltewah and Grundy County that resulted in injuries, but we don't know how many similar incidents go undetected.
UTC football coach Tom Arth rightly condemned the incidents, stating we must, "Treat people the right way." Similarly, longtime McCallie School administrator and lacrosse coach Troy Kemp weighed in, "We have way too many people out there who are all wrong about what it takes to be a man or a ball player." Great words from two outstanding men in our community, but who defines "the right way," and how do we teach boys to be men?
Since the social and sexual revolution of the 1960s, the liberal elements of our society have led a movement against long established moral guidelines based largely on Western civilization and Judeo-Christian principles. God was replaced with each person's own moral compass. Catchphrases like "Do whatcha wanna do" and "If it feels good, do it!" epitomized the era.
The liberal intelligentsia assault on Western civilization emasculated our society by attacking traditional male roles in capitalism, private enterprise, religion and law. Solving problems has not sated the left. Any trappings of Western civilization must be destroyed. The process continues. The liberal media consistently casts men, especially white, heterosexual, Christian men, as incompetent, stupid and out of touch. Why should a boy aspire to such behavior?
Just as we discard Western civilization, we are now our own little gods. Who is anyone to impose their sense of morality on anyone else, we ask? After all, we live in a free country. We prevent coaches and teachers from discussing their faith. We stopped praying before athletic events. We stopped high school baccalaureate services before graduation, where we used to ask our Creator's blessings on children who were transitioning into the adult world. Now, they are on their own.
We tell them to "treat people right," yet they have no idea what right is. They have questions. Isn't sex out of wedlock OK? Isn't it OK to marry someone of the same sex? Isn't it OK to terminate the fetus if I get pregnant; after all, it isn't "really" a human? Who are you to lecture me about the dangers of drugs or alcohol when I see you abusing prescription drugs and drinking more than you should?
The problems are particularly acute in black communities where nearly three quarters of black children are raised without an adult male role model. Our children learn right and wrong, not from two responsible parents but from the internet, television, movies, gang leaders or the corner drug dealer.
We wring our hands and scratch our heads when we witness barbaric sexual acts by young men, and we want to cast blame. So we blame ambiguous acts like hazing or bullying or we blame coaches, administrators and teachers. We should instead blame ourselves as parents, brothers, sisters, consumers of media and community leaders. We deny the existence of a living God who created us. We turn our backs on the greatest moral compass God has offered mankind, the Holy Bible, even in our mainstream churches. We remain silent or even complicit in defending sexual predators such as Hugh Hefner, Bill Clinton, Donald Trump or Harvey Weinstein simply because they are rich or influential.
The moral compass of our youth is swinging wildly. They want to know how to behave "the right way." We owe them answers or the Ooltewah and Grundy incidents will surely continue.
Roger Smith, a local author, is a frequent contributor to the Times Free Press.