The Wrong Crowd

"Bad company corrupts good morals" says St Paul, and his is right in this. Yet I think he is also being pastoral in how he puts this, framing it in a less-threatening way to enable you to be decisive and take action to change your ways.

"He got in with the wrong crowd" is an explanation I heard often as a social worker, and sometimes I would buy it.  It is particularly likely if falling in love is involved, getting involved with a boyfriend or girlfriend who is bad for you, but you are just so attracted. But more often I would think to myself "No, your son is the bad crowd.  He's the one the other mothers don't want their boys to be involved with. He's not a helpless victim here."

Jalen Rose gets it right when talking about Ja Morant, who has been getting himself in increasing trouble with threats, intimidation, and flashing a gun at a strip club with no context suggesting he was in any danger. Rose points out that the whole crowd around Morant is not the problem. Even if they are terrible people and bad influences, they are dependent on Ja and his money for both status and support. If he decided he was going to go work soup kitchens instead, they would either go along or be gone. They do what he wants.  That's who they are. It simplifies matters for him.

Well, if someone had thrown millions of dollars at me as a young man I would likely have been irresponsible as well, just in different ways.