[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 36 (Thursday, March 26, 1998)]
[House]
[Page H1558]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           FOR A BETTER AMERICA, WE MUST BE BETTER AMERICANS

  (Mr. TIAHRT asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. TIAHRT. Mr. Speaker, Congress has worked very hard to rebuild a 
strong economy and bring hope to our children. It took a great deal of 
discipline and dedication and it was not without sacrifice. But the 
results are record-setting days on the New York Stock Exchange, 
dwindling unemployment and welfare lines, and expanding consumer 
confidence.
  But what good will come from the strong economy if we have an empty 
soul? This week we were all stunned and saddened by the two boys who 
ambushed a school and killed four young girls with promising lives, and 
a young teacher with a promising career in Jonesboro, Arkansas. But 
that was not the only indication that our culture is in a moral free-
for-all.
  The day after this tragedy, in Dale City, California, a boy shot at a 
principal; in Coldwater, Michigan, another student committed suicide 
outside his school; and in Princeton, Texas, a student slashed three 
teachers with a razor blade.
  Mr. Speaker, it is time for us to rebuild our moral culture like we 
rebuilt our economy. It is time to overcome the culture of violence 
that permeates on our TVs and from our movies. Each of us must 
participate. It is up to us. We must talk to our children, honor our 
commitments. If we want a better America, we must be better Americans.

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