At Center Elementary in Waycross, Ga., third graders planned to murder their teacher after she scolded a student for standing on a chair. 

I must admit, my mouth dropped as my idea of the angelic eight- and 10-year-olds shattered into smithereens. These delinquents have learning disorders, but their disabilities cannot be used as an excuse for their conduct. 

When disabilities can be used as an excuse for murder, what is to stop a psychopath from a killing spree? Schizophrenia is a disability, is it not? 

To one extent, I want to hold these third graders responsible for their actions. They had drawn out a plan with lookouts, kids responsible for cleaning up the mess and even came to school with toy handcuffs, a broken steak knife, duct tape and a piece of broken glass. 

These kids were serious; these kids are the monsters of my worst nightmare. 

Part of me wants to believe they do not know any better. They lack logical thinking skills and they might not understand the ramifications of what they are planning. Yet, if they could use their wits enough to gather the tools to do the planned deed, then I would still hold the children responsible.    

It is a scary idea that third graders can come up with a plan as elaborate and devastating as this. I have always found horror movies to be scarier and more suspenseful when children are involved.

Something demonic lies in seemingly innocent children. Why are children, more so now than in previous generations, losing their innocence younger and younger?

Next year, this same news story will run, but it will be first graders plotting against their own classmates. How close are we to chaos when our children can calmly plan the murder of their teacher?

In more recent news, in Lakeland, Fla., six teenage girls lured their friend to a house and began to beat her. She is now deaf in the left ear and her vision seems to be permanently damaged. Youth violence seems to be surfacing more and more. 

The six teenage girls ranged from 14 to 17 years old and their two male lookouts were 16 and 18. This beating was brought on by slanderous statements on the victim's MySpace page. However, the victim's parents said that someone had hacked into her account and put up those comments. 

This was another premeditated action as the teens filmed the entire beating and posted it to YouTube. These girls showed no remorse for what they had done. One even asked the police officer, after being arrested, if she would be able to go to cheerleading practice the next day. 

What will those third graders be willing to do when they hit their teen years when seemingly average, normal teens are putting their friend in the emergency room over words? 

Whatever happened to the cliché: Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.