I am one parent among the many who are horrified by the violence that seems prevalent among school students today. As an ex-Berkeleyite, I find it disturbing to see how far Bermuda as a whole has fallen. When I consider the teacher strikes just prior to exams, the reduced requirements for graduation, the lethargic pace of education reform and the constant changing of Education Ministers, there is little doubt left in my mind that the Bermuda Union of Teachers, Ministry of Education and successive Governments have utterly failed Bermuda.

Despite all this, I cannot at all disagree with Col Eddie Lamb's assessment of the state of parenting. As a society we have not remained faithful to Berkeley's moto, "Respice Finem". Instead of "Keeping the end in view" it feels like we have taken our hands off the wheel and are driving right off a cliff. In many cases we have "parents" who have the pedal to the metal with respect to destroying the next generation.

The deterioration of our personal standards did not take place overnight, and no matter how disturbing these problems are, we should not be at all surprised at the violence, ignorance, greed and academic failure amongst some in our society. We stand around and play dumb or point fingers, just as one might stand in the middle of a burning building and wonder what is wrong with the air conditioner.

Just turn on your TV or radio and listen to the reprobate and ignorant values that are celebrated. Go to your local magazine store and you will find the same "celebrities" all over the covers.

I propose that something is fundamentally wrong with our society when violent, uneducated drug-dealers and mindless, materialistic tarts are looked up to as some kind of role model. Millions of dollars are spent per year purchasing media of various sorts that promote violence, bigotry, promiscuity and misogyny. So why be surprised when these children and young adults act out the behaviours that are now deemed acceptable and promoted heavily? If we are honest with ourselves, we must conclude that what we see today makes perfect sense!

As dismal as this all sounds, I do not believe that all is lost just yet. Each of us is capable of playing a role in turning this mess around rapidly if only we at least applied the minimum standards and made the minimum effort! But why set the bar so low, when we could achieve so much more? We know that what we do today has a direct impact on where we end up tomorrow, and we have to accept responsibility not merely for the problems that exist today, but more importantly for the kind of Bermuda that we demand that we have tomorrow.

If we want a society that produces peaceful, educated and productive citizens, then it is time that we paid attention to what our children are listening to, reading and watching. We have to take time to review grades and promote positive behaviours. We must not be content with a simple pass, but instead encourage our children to reach their full potential. We must do our best to ensure that our children do not become parents before they are ready. And perhaps above all others, we need to be fully aware of those with whom our children are associating themselves.

The cynics amongst us may say that this sounds idealistic, or it's easier said than done. But I am confident that we can arrest this rapid decline if we can at least admit our mistakes and start to outright reject the belief that a thug, pimp or whore, is something to aspire to.

Should we refuse to play our respective roles as constructive leaders, we will usher in even greater social hazards. We can stop this decline, but only if we can agree that enough is enough.

As more of us choose to return to setting and managing higher, positive standards first for ourselves, and second for our families, ultimately we will all collectively benefit from a stronger Bermuda.