Days of Discipline Are Gone When Boredom Becomes A Reason to Kill

The boys from Oklahoma (who killed for fun).

Here’s where these boys weren’t. These boys weren’t getting up at the crack of dawn, running 10 miles in the mud, scaling 6 foot walls, performing 100 push-ups each, marching in unison, and saying only “yes, sir,” when spoken to. These boys weren’t pledging their allegiance to the United States of America, they weren’t wearing the same P.T. (physical training) fatigues, and they weren’t worried that their shoes weren’t shined properly for inspection later on in the day. In other words, these boys weren’t in boot camp; it’s been outlawed since 1973.

Instead, these boys were bored. But these boys had things. They had a car; they had guns; they had bullets; they had ideas.

When I had the nerve to tell my Mom I was bored, she would hand me a mop and a pail; perhaps you remember those days. Evidently, those days are gone.

Today we have ideas. The boys from Oklahoma had an idea; they imagined how much fun it would be to act like a “gangster,” so they did. They stalked a young college student who was out for a jog, and from the safety of their vehicle, shot him in the back and killed him. What fun!

Can we really believe that boredom was to blame for their actions? Have you ever been bored? Have you ever contemplated killing someone to relieve your boredom?

Do you enjoy watching movies such as The Godfather and Goodfellas? Ever hopped in your car with two friends and committed a murder because you wanted to be just like the gangsters in the movie?

Of course you haven’t. You’re just no fun, that’s why.

Amy Barath is a retired New York State Trooper. She is a graduate of Tulane University and holds both a bachelors and master’s degree in architecture. Her novel, Henry’s Law, about a Holocaust survivor turned serial killer-vigilante, is published under the name Ayme Butavia. Amy’s op-eds have been published in ArutzSheva.com (IsraelNationalnews.com), The Jerusalem Post, TheBlaze.com, TheConservativeVoice.com and TheNewMediaJounal.US.com. Amy is involved with pet therapy and works with therapy dogs, volunteering her time with the disabled and infirmed of all ages.

Featured image credit: Marco Luzzani/Getty Images

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