At the outset it is important to begin this discussion with two seemingly unrelated facts: the minimum age of enlistment in the U.S. Army without parental consent is 18. The minimum age of recruitment for a police officer in Milwaukee is 21.
When Kyle Rittenhouse, in camo gear with an AR-style semi-automatic rifle, took his stance outside the Car Source automobile dealership in Waukesha, Wisconsin, he was 17. Barely.
Though he was a cop wannabe, and toted a military style weaponry, he would not have qualified for either the army or the police department in terms of age. Whether he would have qualified for the police department psychologically, is another matter altogether.
The Dealership
What is not in debate is that at the riots during August 2020, Kyle Rittenhouse showed up at the Car Source dealership to defend the property. I might add that all things aside, the dealership was fully insured.
There are highly conflicting stories as to the events of that fire-filled August 25, 2020. The trial was “about” a violent encounter between the 17-year-old kid and other rioters all caught in an explosive frenzy. Rittenhouse was knocked down and he responded by killing two and injuring one.
The trial is over and done. Rittenhouse is free. However, the questions that remain are troubling and tragic.
On November 4, 2021, the owners of the Car Source dealership took to the stand. It had been the contention of the Rittenhouse defense team that he was asked to guard the property. Under oath, they said that they did not ask anyone to stand guard at the dealership.
What did emerge was that Anmol Khindri, one of the sons of the owner said he interacted with Rittenhouse before the curfew began. According to court transcripts:
“He talked about how he could help us with fundraising the business, and I’m sure he asked for my phone number, which I gave to be…nice and polite.”
That’s it. There were conflicting statements given during the trial. Rittenhouse claims he was asked to protect the business, but the person or persons who supposedly asked him were not named.
Would You?
So, now we come down to the big question. Would you, as a parent or guardian, send your completely untrained, completely unqualified armed teenager to drive to the middle of a riot to protect a business?
I realize this kid is a cop wannabe – and I have known several – but he was not going off to play paintball or a video game with a bunch of yahoos. He claims he was “asked” to defend to a business that was not his and that was fully insured.
Has this world gone completely mad in thinking any aspect of this was ethically, morally or physically acceptable?
The reports on the Rittenhouse family reveal the dynamic of alcoholism, drug abuse and divorce along with money problems. During the court proceedings the mother was in the courtroom but the estranged father was absent. I take no pleasure in focusing on any of that but in the absence of any meaningful guidance, an ethical compass or adult supervision, this junior “police officer” was left to his own devices.
The cable news has had a field day with the politics of this shooting but they did more harm than good. No one, it seems, wants to ethically address the issues of a 17-year-old with visions of grandeur, who felt it his calling to defend a business that wasn’t even his business to defend.
Kyle Rittenhouse pulled the trigger and killed two people. Even if his claims of self-defense are totally accurate, what the hell was he doing there with a loaded weapon and who gave him permission to go? Rioters caught up in a rioting, pointless frenzy are problematic enough for law enforcement; if we add a child with a deadly weapon to the mix, who was under no adult supervision, what did we expect?
Ethics does not believe in fantasy. Any adult who seriously believes this kid to be a hero had better ask themselves if they would permit their own child to be at a scene like that with a loaded weapon? And, which adult who truly believes that, would apologize to the parents of the dead victims? In the end, more than just Kyle Rittenhouse, we are all on trial.
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