http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Mississippi-Boy-9-Shot-Dead-In-Video-Game-Row-In-Marshall-County/Article/200906215300047?f=rss
So yea. What do we see here?
A death of a young individual by his own sibling, both underaged.
First of all, apparently, the complication was a result of fighting over a videogame. That will probably set the scapegoating flags into motion, but the general public.
But~
"He said the boys' father was outside mowing the lawn at the time of the incident."
Where was the mother? If there is no mother in this familial setting, then what exactly was the father mowing the lawn for while the kids were playing videogames with a weapon of potential mass devastation left in the house? But more concerning, what was the weapon doing in the house open to access by the children?
I would say that is a lack of parenting right there. What kind of a message is the parent (in this case the father) giving to the children? Probably nothing as the gun seems to have carelessly been left out.
Kids have the tendency to easily get upset with competitive activities. In this case, videogames was the medium.
If the father at least was aware that his children had the tendency to get upset easily and in a spur of the moment, the child may have believed that a gun would be a good way to 'show who's boss', maybe...just maybe, 1 of his kids did not have to die in that careless and unfortunate manner?
If a father, or any adult in general, believes that he/she is mature and competent enough to raise children and have a weapon in the house, I believe that the adult should have the care to at least make sure the weapon is out of access by the underage children, as they often lack the competence to understand how dangerous a gun really is and, albeit an accident in this case, that it really can kill someone.
" 'it appeared to be an accident anyway'." right...just an accident so just slip it under the rug.
The father may need to receive some counseling of some sort to make it clear that if he is to leave 2 underaged children unattended inside their home where there is free access to a gun (let alone any weapon), that maybe the parent is not competent enough to take care of the children.
Imagine what the child who did the accidental killing feels and thinks right now. He sees that his brother was killed with a shotgun at his hands; albeit an "accident". But imagine what it would feel like for him years later to realize what he had done. And then consider what he may feel when he realizes that 2 children were left unattended with a weapon inside the house.
The children really are not to blame. No one really should be blamed in this situation. The father was incompetent and the children were incompetent. If anything was to be blamed, it would be the lack of care from both parties.
Maybe there is a lack of decent education in that area? For an 11 year old to not be able to understand that if he does hold a shotgun to his 9 year old brother, he may accidentally kill him; not wound...kill, is a bit scary.
Incidents like this are things that are unnecessary and unfortunate. Children should never witness nor take part in such "accidents" as the ramifications in their near future has the tremendous potential of being too much.
What do you think about this. Post your comments below.
