You hear a lot of people complaining about certain aspects of US society. Many people point the finger at the usual suspect, African Americans. The issues that face US society are more than the lack of pride in 41million people who reside in the USA. The issues that plague the US are not limited to race. There is a simple solution that will help the US as a whole recover some sense of sanity in the future. Everyone should take a hard look at their family and do what is necessary to make their own household better.
Once I was looking out of the window and thinking how horrible the neighbor’s yard looked. I was working myself up into a rage because I felt the neighbor’s lack of attention to their yard and house would bring my property value down. As I mentally berated my neighbor I turned my head and looked at my front lawn. As I looked at my grass it hit me. While I was so busy looking at the neighbor’s yard, my yard was full of crabgrass and dandelions. My yard looked a hot mess. Right then I decided to do something about my yard and not worry about anyone else’s. This is what many people in the USA need to do with their families. Clean your family up and stop looking at others.
Many will say, “I keep my children and family on the right path.” That may be true, but where is this “right” path taking you and your family? Pause for a minute and look at your children, especially those who have elementary age children. What are they doing in school? How do they behave? What are they watching on their iPhone and tablets? Many parents do not know. As long as the child is quiet or out of their face they are happy. It is time to raise children and not let the internet or social media raise them. The act of handing a child a cell phone whenever you want them to quiet down has to stop. This type of parenting crosses all racial planes in the USA. Don’t try to pin this form of inept parenting on any one ethnic group.
You can hear the good white people claiming, “Crime is rampant in the inner city ghettos.” This is true but don’t flatter yourself, my white brethren. Man… did I just say that, my white brethren? Must be getting soft. Anyway, white suburbs have their share of crime that is more insidious than the crack heads smoking their lives away in the hood. The drugs that plague inner cities do not have boundaries. Since white people have greater access to money they naturally have a wider variety of drugs to choose from. The overdoses from laced drugs are not an inner city problem but a citywide problem. Good white people, before you sit down at dinner and feel good about being “better off” than African Americans you may want to check your child’s bedroom for drug paraphernalia. Marijuana, cocaine, pills and even heroin have been residing in the suburbs for a while now. White people stop listening to newscasts that make you feel good about being middle class and check your family.
If you are wondering where I am going with this dissertation, it is so simple, it is complex. If everyone in the USA cleaned up their families and instilled good values in their children the country would be in a much better place. Just like if everyone on the block cleans their yard, the block will be clean. If everyone revamped their families and instills morals and values into their children, US society would run so much smoother. Think about it… if everyone focused on getting their family in order, there would be no ghettos. Well, at least not ghettos of the mind.
Frank James IV © 2024
beingfrankwithfrank@gmail.com
The opinions expressed in this editorial are those of the writer and not of the Milwaukee Times Weekly Newspaper or HT Group, LLC, its staff or management. “Being Frank” is a bi-weekly column exclusive to the Milwaukee Times Weekly Newspaper.
