A Good Boy?

I was reading the Toronto Star the other day. The story was about a 23-year-old who had been shot.

The article said, “The men demanded drugs and cash he was carrying and (he) was shot point-blank when he refused to deliver, a source said.”

Later on an uncle is quoted as saying, “If kids are bad, you can always see the symptoms, but not with him. He was a good guy.”

Sometimes there is nothing blinder than love. It can make you ignore the symptoms.

An acquaintance said, “He was always laughing, always happy. He was a really good guy.”

I don’t want to be misunderstood here. I am sad when anyone has to die, but I am concerned when we start labelling drug dealers as good guys. People who make their living by ruining the lives of others are not good people. It doesn’t matter how much they laugh, how much they are kind to their families, how they may spend their money on others.

I hope this is a case where the family is just painting the best possible picture of the person to help them cope.

Unfortunately, too many people overlook the bad in their children and immediately label them as good. I have heard many of them say, “He’s really a good kid,” when the child has made some horrible choices in life.

Although not people, my dogs can provide a good example. They are not good all the time. Here’s the difference, though. I recognize when they are bad and I do what I can to correct it. If I didn’t do that, I wouldn’t really love them. We have a great relationship as a result. They are very happy and so am I.

Why are we so afraid to do this with people?

And I am speaking from experience here. Somebody I know was taking and dealing drugs. We got somebody to help by intervening. We dealt with the situation, eventually getting him to a clinic in the States. We didn’t idly sit by and talk about how good he was. He wasn’t, but we loved him enough to do what was necessary to give him the option of turning his life around. Fortunately, he grabbed the lifeline that was thrown to him.

Yes, there is good in everyone, but when the bad covers it you have to recognize it so it can be dealt with.

Finally, there are consequences to our actions. The fact that this young man was dealing drugs was the cause of his brutal death. The uncle in the story asks, “Why would anyone want to harm this young guy?” The answer is right in front of his face, yet it seems he refuses to see it.