This behavior is a direct result of the new laws punishing parents and schools for punishing children. They no longer have any fear or respect for authority. They are now running rampant with little regard for societies rules.

Of course everyone will blame TV and Movies. It's all because of Hollywood and the courts because they won't put the 10 commandments in the courthouse. It's really all because we don't teach values in our own homes. We won't take the time to go to Church, pray at home, or teach our children about Jesus Christ. We don't take the time to teach our children, we are to busy with our pleasures to take time for families.

I agree with the first person's comment. In addition, I would add that due to the loss of discipline in families, schools, etc we have a lot of children growing up as sociopath's. They have no sense of right or wrong and no conscious.

Amem to the reasons behind current society's lack of regard for rule. Being old enough to see the Flower Children, the Baby Boomers, etc. come into rule and their effect on society, you "ain't seen nothin' yet". Just wait until the current
"Instant Cheaters, Instant Breeders" come drugging their way into rule. Common sense and integrity will be a goner.

I believe the price we as a society are paying for the high cost of living and having two incomes is our children. They are in day care from birth, are not nutured by parents and grandparents, allowed to learn in a safe environment. They are given too many games and not encouraged to use their imaginations to draw, read and ask questions. Until parents are able to stay home and still be able to live in a home with food on the table we cannot possibly have time to adequately raise our children.

The horrific reality is that kids are being medicated instead of parented. This is leading to a generation of unsocial zed adults who when confronted with fundamental life challenges, become potential sociopaths because they were denied basic information on how to cope or navigate reality.

Furthermore, lack of parenting leads to unchecked Internet use, which leaves children vulnerable to predators. This creates a whole new reality of what we as a culture, need to manage as this is widely unchecked. Kids who are victimized are often threatened with their own lives and consequently, grow up with backlogged rage that eventually leaks out into their lives and those around them. Fortunately, we are learning as we go forward, that we need to develop programs to help those who were denied proper upbringings. We just need make sure we will continue to fund these programs as new generations of children come of age in adult society.

It seems that now matter where you live in the world child violence is on the rise. My 3 daughters and their freinds tell me that they have nothing to look forward to but a destroyed, ruined world that they will have to fight to survive in. It's no wonder that they are getting more violent when we are leaving them with nothing to look forward to. When I look at the world I can see the sorry mess it is in and I wonder if we will survive what is coming, but then, maybe we derserve what we get.

I would like to retract my previous statement. While it is true violence amoung our youth is on the rise, it is wrong for me to categorize them and help remove doubt. There is hope. While it is true that it may be too late for my generation, those in the coming generations will have to "Stand Up". Stand up for truth, responsibility, integrity, decency, common sense, regardless of what may be politcally correct. This country and its freedoms is NOT about ME and what I want. It is not about how many cars I can put in my driveway or whether my kids can have cell phones in school. It is about the common good. The upcoming parents will have to take charge and do whatever it takes to teach their offspring. Not government programs or schools. Does this nation want to be a nation proud of who it is? If not, let it keep "same-ing". Blame our leaders if you want. How did they get there if we didn't vote them in?

I also believe that discipline is a problem but believe that parents tend to want to be their childrens best friends rather then their parents..
We have a society of 2 parents working to support the family and feel guilt because they are not there for the kids and blame because it has to be someone elses fault, not theirs..
You can discipline your kids without using violence..
I see people spoiling their kids because of their own guilt feelings, they don't teach them respect or responsibility..
Kids will have a lot of friends throughout their lives but only two parents, in some cases one..We need to be parents and teach our kids..

When the government AND the parents stopped administering corporal punishment and started "Time Outs" we saw an increase in child violence.

I detest anyone who beats children but I do think children need a good disciplined spanking sometimes by teachers and parents.

Parents need to take control of their families and teach them respect!

I was a single father and raised my Boys Firmly but fairly. I agree our young know how to use the system against there parents. You do not need to beat your kids to make them mind. You need to be smarter than they are. Still sometimes a little pat on the butt when they are small and I mean little Pat, goes along ways when they get older when it comes to remembering right from wrong.

There are a lot of good comments here, but as a child care provider what I have seen over the last two generations of children, is a definite change in ability to empathize, sense of social responsibility and personal boundaries about behaviors. I think the problem is overworked over tired parents who are emotionally unavailable for their children. This is caused by a slip in standard of living and folks acting like rats running on too fast a treadmill trying to keep up. It is the same problem as the young rogue elephants going after white rhinoceroses, corrected when bull elephants were reintroduced to the herd, probably controlling the testosterone in the juveniles by mere presents.

I'm glad to see the law come down hard on these kids and others like them. We cannot tolerate youthful crime against people and property. Publicize their names, trials, and the awful prospects of 5 to 10 years of brutal prison life.

A good question might be why were two ten years befriended by a seventeen year old? Of course it is not appropriate to look for a scapegoat, but we must consider where the parents of these pre-teens were during this incident. Why were the ten year olds outside of their homes after 9 p.m.? I, like many, find the behavior of the seventeen year old to be appalling and pathetic at the same time. My only hope is that the American government does more to assist those who cannot assist themselves (the homeless).

Children that young, (10 yrs. old)beating helpless people, schools, in this case are not the problem or cause. This is a direct result of parents, not teaching their children Right from Wrong. At that age they have only been in school, 3 or 4 years. Either these 10 year olds are being hit or beaten at home or they see their parents fighting. They are acting out what goes on at home.

i work in a middle school in ohio and the amount of violence i see is sad. violence is so accepted by americans today and noone seems willing to speak out about it. parents need to take control of our children and teach them only scum and cowards use violence for fun and games. i know that isnt P.C.