Searchlight Logo
special_image

    • News
      • Front Page
      • News
      • Breaking News
      • Press Release
      • Features
      • Special Features
      • From the Courts
      • Sports
      • Regional / World
    • Opinions
      • Editorial
      • Our Readers’ Opinions
      • Bassy – Love Vine
      • Dr. Fraser- Point of View
      • R. Rose – Eye of the Needle
      • On Target
      • Dr Jozelle Miller
      • The World Around Us
      • Random Thoughts
    • Advice
      • Kitchen Corner
      • What’s on Fleek this week
      • Health Wise
      • Physician’s Weekly
      • Business Buzz
      • Hey Rosie!
      • Prime the pump
    • ePaper
    • Obituaries
      • In Memoriam / Acknowledgement
      • Tribute
    • Contact Us
      • Advertise With Us
      • Letters To The Editor
      • General Contact Information
      • Contact our Webmaster
    • About Us
      • Interactive Media Ltd
      • St. Vincent & the Grenadines
    • Subscribe
    • News
      • Front Page
      • News
      • Breaking News
      • Press Release
      • Features
      • Special Features
      • From the Courts
      • Sports
      • Regional / World
    • Opinions
      • Editorial
      • Our Readers’ Opinions
      • Bassy – Love Vine
      • Dr. Fraser- Point of View
      • R. Rose – Eye of the Needle
      • On Target
      • Dr Jozelle Miller
      • The World Around Us
      • Random Thoughts
    • Advice
      • Kitchen Corner
      • What’s on Fleek this week
      • Health Wise
      • Physician’s Weekly
      • Business Buzz
      • Hey Rosie!
      • Prime the pump
    • ePaper
    • Obituaries
      • In Memoriam / Acknowledgement
      • Tribute
    • Contact Us
      • Advertise With Us
      • Letters To The Editor
      • General Contact Information
      • Contact our Webmaster
    • About Us
      • Interactive Media Ltd
      • St. Vincent & the Grenadines
    • Subscribe
Our Readers' Opinions
July 30, 2004

The root causes of crime in society

Please permit me a space in your paper to deal with crime.
I remember as a boy growing up that what our parents gave us, we had to be satisfied with. Now over the last 50 years almost every country in Western Europe and North America has experienced an enormous increase in crime rates. {{more}}Neighbourhoods that once were safe at night have become dangerous during the day; random acts of violence, once almost unknown have become common. The good news is that rates seem to have stabilized in the 1990s; the bad news is that it appears to be largely a demographic issue.
Most perpetrators of crime are young men. In fact you can pick a social ill at random and you will find that the correlation with having no father is clear and direct: depression, suicide, dropping out of school, teenage pregnancy, drug use… To summarize, fatherless children are five times more likely to commit suicide, 32 times more likely to run away, 14 times more likely to commit rape and 20 times more likely to end up in prison. Fatherless children are also, according to one British study, about 33 times more likely to be abused. In 1983, the United States Department of Health and Human Services found that 60 per cent of children are abused by mothers with sole custody of their children. Almost all of the rest come from other members of her entourage, especially boyfriends and second husbands. Under these circumstances you would think that there would be an enormous amount of research under way by the police to understand what is happening. The media should be demanding answers.

Wilbert Scipio

  • FacebookComments
  • ALSO IN THE NEWS
    Slater traduced on social media, attacked at home
    Front Page
    Slater traduced on social media, attacked at home
    Webmaster 
    May 8, 2026
    Acting head of the Agency for Public Information (API) Nadia Slater, who was beaten at her home during a period where she was being traduced on social...
    Nurse gains her PhD, sets her eyes on more
    Front Page
    Nurse gains her PhD, sets her eyes on more
    Webmaster 
    May 8, 2026
    Driven to achieve academically, Samantha Burnett- Harry, a lecturer at the Division of Nursing Education, who recently obtained a PhD in Nursing, stil...
    Gov’t proceeding with development bank despite caution from IMF
    Front Page
    Gov’t proceeding with development bank despite caution from IMF
    Webmaster 
    May 8, 2026
    Government plans to move forward with its general elections campaign promise of establishing a National Development Bank, stressing that if properly m...
    Lawyer hints at legal action against Commissioner
    Front Page
    Lawyer hints at legal action against Commissioner
    Webmaster 
    May 8, 2026
    Lawyer, Grant Connell has hinted at the possibility of pursuing legal action against Commissioner of Police (COP) Enville Williams regarding statement...
    North Leeward Carnival launch set for Saturday
    Front Page
    North Leeward Carnival launch set for Saturday
    Webmaster 
    May 8, 2026
    North Leeward kicks off its 2026 Carnival programme on Saturday, May 9 at the Chateaubelair Park from 1:00 p.m in the form of a Launch and Night of Cu...
    Vincentian Educator Among Top Three US Principals
    Front Page
    Vincentian Educator Among Top Three US Principals
    Webmaster 
    May 8, 2026
    A Vincentian educator who began her teaching career at the then Kingstown Methodist School has been recognised among the top middle school principals ...
    News
    Government to soon unveil ‘Love SVG’ initiative
    News
    Government to soon unveil ‘Love SVG’ initiative
    Webmaster 
    May 8, 2026
    Minister of Tourism, Civil Aviation, and Sustainable Development, Kishore Shallow, announced that a new initiative titled “Love SVG” will soon be impl...
    SVG Government to tackle  property tax non-payments
    News
    SVG Government to tackle property tax non-payments
    Webmaster 
    May 8, 2026
    Modernizing and reforming the tax system of St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) is one of the areas that the months-old Dr. Godwin Friday administrati...
    New man at the helm as Coordinator of Sports and Physical Activities
    News
    New man at the helm as Coordinator of Sports and Physical Activities
    Webmaster 
    May 8, 2026
    A new co-ordinator of sports and physical activities has been appointed in St Vincent and the Grenadines under the remit of the Ministry of Youth, Spo...
    Troumaca Bottom Beach targeted for recreational development
    From the Courts, News
    Troumaca Bottom Beach targeted for recreational development
    Webmaster 
    May 8, 2026
    The Troumaca Bottom Beach, located in North Leeward, is set to undergo major transformation as part of the World Bank funded “Unleashing the Blue Econ...
    Vincentian-based in  Holland pays fine, avoids jail on marijuana charges
    From the Courts, News
    Vincentian-based in Holland pays fine, avoids jail on marijuana charges
    Webmaster 
    May 8, 2026
    A senior citizen of Barrouallie who is based in the United Kingdom (UK), was fined for illegally possessing, trafficking and exporting cannabis after ...

    E-EDITION
    ePaper
    google_play
    app_store
    Subscribe Now
    • Interactive Media Ltd. • P.O. Box 152 • Kingstown • St. Vincent and the Grenadines • Phone: 784-456-1558 © Copyright Interactive Media Ltd.. All rights reserved.
    We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok