We Are Failing Our Adolescents and Young Adults

The CDC is out with yet another report on suicides and homicides among younger Americans.  While these events are tragic in any population, the loss of years of life and potential societal contributions among this age group is particularly distressing.  There is no doubt in my mind that trends under way for over two decades, exacerbated by the epidemic, are to blame.  The ongoing indoctrination of children in our schools to the effect that they live in a racist, that they are racist, that the world is burning up and will end in a decade, that they should have a certain sexual orientation, and that the sex they are obviously born with is not good enough for them, have had a devastating effect on young people’s mental health.  The tools that spread this garbage–smartphones and social media apps–are omnipresent.

And so we should not be surprised that the suicide rate for people aged 10 to 14 has risen from 6.8 per 100,000 to 11 in the period up to 2021.  Recent Minnesota data suggests a continued worsening of the trend in 2022.  And the greatest rate of increase is among those 10 to 14.  Homicide rates in this group, while elevated, had plateaued but have risen sharply following the epidemic and the demonization of the police.  Congratulations to the pro(re)gressives for the massive increase in teen mental health issues in lack of law enforcement resources to prevent crime.  The parents of these children should sue the states and local governments where they live for the harm caused by these awful policies.  (CDC Report)