arning less money if they did. This creates a negative incentive, a reward for mediocrity and unfulfilled potentials. Society has quietly been promoting aspirations of victimhood and indolence. One ramification of the ghetto mentality is the prevalence of random acts of violence. When escapism abounds, when hope is lost, when there is nothing you can do, the long term future is forgotten. Why invest now in a future you might never see? The long term penalties for violent behavior are forgotten. Furthermore, the "victim", in the tradition of Robin Hood, rationalizes their crimes. Short term gratification becomes the primary focus of life. What greater intrinsic joy is there than the imposition of power? Violence is the easiest tool to achieve that power. According to the second law of thermodynamics, all things tend to traverse from order to disorder. Therefore, great energy and effort must be put into creating an object of complex order. To destroy someone else’s creation requires very little energy and almost no effort. Thus, violent acts are an extremely expedient and rewarding method of exercising power. These deleterious values have engendered disturbing trends in our modern society. From 1960-1992, this country has witnessed a 41% population increase. However, also during this time frame, the number of violent crimes has increased by more than 550%.5 During the two year stretch from 1990-1992, more than 90,000 people were murdered, this is twice the number of American casualties during the entire Vietnam conflict.5 The murder rate of juveniles (ages 10-17) more than doubled from 1976 to 1992.5 Clearly, the escalation of violence on American soil has only worsened since 1992. Terrifying statistics and stories pour in daily. Hope remains however. "The rate of violent crime in the United States is worse than in any industrialized country. The United States’ homicide rate is more than five times that of Europe, and four tim...
