Where are the Parents?

As I reflect on all that our men and women in uniform do to protect our freedoms, I was alarmed by many telling headlines from the Memorial Day Holiday.

"Teen Gangs Unleashed on Boston Beach"
MIAMI 'WAR ZONE' DURING URBAN WEEKEND...
Urban Melee In Charlotte...
Unruly urban crowd shuts down Nashville water park...
Riot On Long Island...

As you read these stories there is one prevailing them in them all; all of the people causing this chaos and disorder are teenagers, some as young as 14. The other common theme that is covertly mentioned by Matt Drudge, who is compiling these stories on Drudge Report is that these are "urban" youth. That is code for "black" or "African American".

Sadly in America, we are now afraid to speak the truth about situations, based on race, sexual orientation (perceived or actual), religion (if you are a Muslim - perceived or actual) or any number of other characteristics that are deemed "offensive". In short, political correctness is killing our ability to point out offenders in society who break the law, or disrupt what would otherwise be a civilized and God fearing society.

My simple question though is this, where are the parents of these "children"? Why is there not great outrage at the lack of discipline of these teenagers, and why is there no shame amongst adults when their children end up as front page news? Now, I have my own personal opinion as an answer to this question, but I'd really prefer to let others voice their opinion on this matter.

Frankly, I don't blame the government, schools, lack of funding in education, or teachers for the chaos that is rapidly becoming the norm in American society. I blame the parents for their lack of ability to hold their children accountable. Now, whether the parent is actually even aware of their children's whereabouts is another story.

Bottom line, we need to start holding parents accountable for their children's actions. If the child acts like a criminal, then chances are the apple does not fall far from the tree. If you start holding the parents accountable, and start locking them up (if they aren't locked up already), then perhaps that will be motivation enough to change the attitudes and behaviors of the "urban youth" in our culture.

Please feel free to weigh in on what you think would be a step towards solving this national epidemic of youth violence and chaos in our urban settings.