Beating down the old, jacking up the young

Remember the time when people had respect for human life? Seems like a lifetime ago -- or science fiction. I am appalled at how little value human life and decency have in today's society. Something has gone terribly wrong.

Last week, a 92-year-old man taking a walk was knocked to the ground by a woman with a child, whereupon she and four men attacked him, beating him with a piece of concrete. And what did the victim, Rodolfo Rodriguez, do to deserve such brutal treatment? Apparently, the suspect thought he bumped into her young child. For that, this elderly man was punished with a "bruised and battered face, a broken cheekbone, head injuries, and bruised ribs" and had to be hospitalized.

A witness who captured the incident on video said, "The woman pushed him and dropped him. She took the block of concrete and hit him in his head many times." And while she's right, and her words show concern, I can't help but wonder what she could have been doing to help instead of shooting the video as the man was beaten senseless.

Concerning the people who committed this heinous act, Sheriff's Deputy D'Angelo Robinson said, "We can't have these kind of people like that out in the streets."

I agree, and I hesitate to call them "people." Folks got all worked up when President Trump called gang members "animals," but sometimes, I admit, even that seems like a polite term. I know I'm not supposed to want anything bad to happen to anyone, not even to those who commit vile acts like this, so, yeah, I ask for your prayers because I don't have very kind thoughts of them. Instead, I find myself wishing they experience hurt like the hurt heaped upon this nearly 100-year-old man. And so what if he bumped into her child? He's old. Maybe he didn't see her. Maybe he lost his balance. Or maybe the woman was just looking to start trouble with someone she and her fellow thugs could easily overpower. Either way, you don't knock someone down, then bash his face in with a brick. And you certainly don't do that to a 92-year-old -- but increasingly, today, "people" do. God help us. And God help me not to long for the days when the Bible called for "an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth." Like I said, pray for me.

If there is anything that rivals treating the old with hatred, it's treating the young with hatred. That's what happened last Tuesday when a coward decided to assert his brawn by attacking 16-year-old Hunter Richard. And why? Like Rodriguez, the boy's crime was minding his own business. He and some friends were dining at Whataburger in San Antonio, TX. Innocent enough. But he happened to have the nerve in America -- the land of the free -- to express his political allegiance to President Trump by donning a Make America Great Again cap. Kino Jimenez, 30, was arrested and fired from his job at a local bar for allegedly snatching the headgear off the minor, along with some of his hair, throwing soda on him and yelling expletives at him.

Look, dislike the president if you want; that's your right. But when you start attacking people because they have a mind of their own, you've got some serious issues that need tending to. I suggest that a big, burly, muscle-bound brother named Bubba do the tending. If not Bubba, how about a big, burly daddy who doesn't take too kindly to people messing with his son? And let's be honest: if a dad, or even a mom, had been with Hunter, the suspect would not have done what he did -- because that's how cowards operate. They sneak in, do their deeds, then try to sneak out. But they forget we live in the age of no-sneakery. Everything is captured on video -- and so he was caught.

Bring back the days when people held doors for strangers, when men tipped their hats at ladies, when children said, "Please" and "Thank you" to adults. Shoot, just bring back the days when people let others have their own opinions without attacking them for them; I'd settle for that. Instead, we've gone off the deep end, too many having too little regard for life and limb. It's time we asked what this generation's legacy will be -- beating down the old and jacking up the young? Come on, America. We can do better.

Adrienne Ross is owner of Adrienne Ross Communications and a former Southeast Missourian editorial board member. Contact her at aross@semissourian.com.