To: Mr. President
From: Jesse M. Dombrique
Re: Columbine High School

Jue 8, 1999

Mr. Clinton, how many more lives of children will it take before you, Mr. President and the people of the United States come to the conclusion something has to be seriously done. Major changes have to be made concerning our youngsters?
The latest tragedy at the High School Columbine in Littleton Colorado wherein 15 children died and 22 were injured. This should open everyone’s eyes to the fact that something is seriously wrong and what is becoming of the country we live in. Is this incident also going to be just another fading memory like the incidents in Pearl Mississippi, Jonesboro Arkansas, Paducah Kentucky, Springfield Oregon etc. etc….? Are you and the people of the United States again just going to talk about the incident until it fades?
The saddest part of this latest tragedy is, politicians around the country will step up and use the lives of those murdered children to be elected to office by endorsing tougher crime laws and portraying the picture that they will make changes to make the United States a safer place. Once elected, very few if any, will step up to the plate for the children of our country. As a matter of fact, systematically the policy of children should be seen and not heard being endorsed more and more each day. Which is  a direct result of all the violence throughout the country, and will detrimentally affect the future of the United States.
The United States of America is the strongest country throughout the world financially and in stability, but the most inadequate when it comes to the responsibility of our children. There have been so many changes in the last 20 years as to the quality of life (both good and bad), laws, policies, rules, latest technology etc. etc, but I sit here helpless to name any changes to better the lives of our children in meeting the times. It is so heart-rending that the only times children are really paid any serious attention to is when money can be made from them.
Which does not say much about our society or morals.
The children are the country’s future and the lifeline of generations and generations to come. I believe it is the time we lose the mentality of “I will not be a round for that future” even though it may not be a conscious thought, the effects are the same. The quality of Education in all school systems as well as the mental well being of our children has to be at the top of the country’s priority, period! Politicians have only use the words “Education and Children” to swing votes and again I sit here helpless to name one politician that has made a true and real dedication to the children of our country. Politicians have endorsed the lotteries throughout the country. These lotteries have preyed on so many people in the name of education. The facts are, a certain percentage is being given to the school budges, which are being cut, so where do the benefits from lotteries help the school if not just to keep the schools afloat. The majority of the country is so blinded concerning education, children, crime laws prison and what the country is becoming. The country has been systematically encouraging voters to vote for longer prison sentences and tougher crime laws for the last 20 years, and nothing has changed. Things are just getting worse. The only way to sincerely work on dropping the crime rate is to start with the school age children and focusing serious attention in teaching our children how to make the right choices. Is there one answer to solve the crisis with our children? No, but it is seriously time to rethink the objective of raising children inside and outside our home because prison or death should not be the only source of prevention for a disturb youngster. Our country has been and still is running so many children and adult’s lives, which will eventually backfire.
I do comment Politicians for not rushing to Littleton Colorado during the crisis for camera coverage; but then again I guess they knew how transparent how it would have looked. Governor Bill Owens of Colorado did go to Littleton during the crisis and I seriously believe he was there to share the pain with the families of a true tragedy of our time. Time will reveal the true reason why he was there by his actions in building a solid foundation for the children, and giving them their true place in the countries’ priority list of things to do.
Though crime laws and mandatory sentencing has been proven to be a waste of tax payers’ money. Let’s start putting funding to work in the right ways and for the right reasons. Parents, society and government are responsible for everything our children to go through and experience in their lives. So many people are embarrassed to accept the responsibility of our children’s actions due to fear of being de-classed, which is a saddening pathetic thought. Blame is always pushed in the opposite direction toward someone else or something else.
No child in this world is born to hate, commit crimes or otherwise. It is taught, experienced or viewed. The challenge is when a child does learn something positive or negative that they know how to perceive the experience and understand the pros and cons of it, and if not, that someone is there to turn to for the true answers.
The barriers have to come down where children are comfortable in asking questions and having someone there to answer them, and not having to learn about them on their own, or through detrimental sources. Parents, teachers, society and Politicians needs to get involved for the future of the United States: “Our Children”.
Police Agencies of all branches have to stop the systematically discrimination of (all people) period! There have been too many unjustifiable killings; police brutality is on a serious rise to many individuals convicted of crimes they never committed, and too many incidents of police doctoring evidence to obtain convictions. If you believe these issues do not have a profound effect of our children’s view of life and values, we are worst off than I thought. There are so many children scared to reach adulthood, because they are confused of what is right or wrong with all the things that are going on in our country.
Children need someone they can speak to, trust completely, and confide in confidentially and someone who truly emphasize the word truly and understand them. How can anyone whom has not experience different aspects of life, speak on an understandable level to a child, where that child will understand them from their heart and mind? Children are so dispose that they know they are just being fed words or words from a book. Every school should put in place two individuals, one male and one female that are there solely and only for the children. Their job would consist of monitoring the children for changes by way of interacting with them on a communication basis. Someone they can speak to on an understandable level. Someone whom they can be totally truthful to. Someone whom a child will feel comfortable turning to during times of confusion or depression. In addition, someone that will stand up for them when they are being misunderstood. This person cannot be a school counsellor, police officer, or anyone that is controlled by school administration because the loyalty could not be strictly to the child and once the trust is broken, the project fails.
After I started this letter, the NBC Morning Show conducted an interview with Craig Scott, a student at Columbine High School that was inside the school’s library at the time this incident took place and also whose sister was shot to death in this tragedy. Craig Scott presented the reality of the youngsters throughout the United States. Looking into Craig’s eyes revealed pain, hurt, confusion, and a country that needs serious help.
Mr. President, you stated to the world when the three soldiers were taken hostage by Serbia, “Our country takes care of our own”. For whatever it’s worth those words meant a lot to me and I know to a lot of the other people. Let us show the world that we can be in conflicts around the globe and still step up to the plate for our children 100% because, “We do take care of our own.”
I challenge everyone to get a mirror and look deep into your eyes, to see if they reveal what you should and or capable of doing for our youngsters of tomorrow’s future. The pathetic thing about this letter is that things have come to a point you have a convicted bank robber “DISGUSTED” with what is going on with our youngsters in that outside world. Do I have an ulterior motive for writing this letter? I guess I do, I still have three sons, a daughter, and a grandson left out there that I love so much and I want someone to be there for them if needed. You might wonder where I got my understanding about youngsters. Well, I was one of them and I Don’t mean I was just a youngster. I was a youngster that experienced and believed everything a youngster could experience in their lifetime. Furthermore, I took a gun to school to shoot my vice principal, but he got warned about it beforehand.
In recent days there has been so much talk about putting committees together, doing investigations, communities coming together, new legislation on guns, music, clothing etc., etc. to find out why children are committing serious violent crimes. When anyone wants to find answers to something they got to the individual who has direct knowledge of the issue. When we want to find out about diseases, we ask the Center for Disease Control, and when we want to know about genetics, we ask a biologist.
The information the country needs to all the questions of WHY are only going to be found in and only from violent criminals. The majority of prison interviews are done with prisoners who do not have a clue what violence is, or what a real convict is all about. The reason for this is, because it’s hard to get a real convict to open up his inner-self, due to the lack of trust.
A true convict is always concerned about confidentiality issues, which are real concerns. In order to really find the answer. The country needs about violence and the concerns have to be eliminated. Serious violence and career criminals have to be encouraged to open up their lives to make a difference. A lot of them really want to help, but the issue mentioned above kept their lips sealed. The reason why they would want to help is because all of us have little brothers, sisters, sons, daughters and grandchildren that we never want to see behind these prison walls or in a coffin. I believe that if the country will under oath quarantine confidentiality to any prisoner and assure them nothing said in these interviews will ever be used against them under any circumstances, you could have an answer to the question WHY.
Mr. Clinton, I seriously hope you will do everything in your power at whatever cost to build a structure with a foundation, that any future President will not be able to touch for the youngsters of our country. The country does have to find out what the youngsters need from the youngsters themselves. Make the youngsters feel part of this country’s inner working, and let’s stop alienating them.
I feel you will be one of the last presidents for awhile that would and can make a difference if you seriously want to. It will be a sad day if a solid structure is not in place before your term is completed and especially if Bush takes over in the next election. I submit this letter to you Mr. President and the people of the United States in hopes you will seriously re-evaluate the needs of our youngsters, and to act upon those needs. Please acknowledge that this letter was received.

Sincerely

Jesse M. Dombrique
Federal No. 96164-012
Post Office Box 1034
Coleman, Florida 33521

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