What in the world is going on? Young people everywhere are apparently losing their minds.

In several cases in Minnesota, New York, Philadelphia and Washington, d.c., teenagers have swarmed convenience stores, restaurants and clothing outlets, assaulted employees, and carried off armloads of snacks, food and merchandise, all with ridiculous grins on their faces. In Chicago’s affluent downtown, thugs are dashing in and out of stores and setting on people in broad daylight. So many unprovoked attacks have occurred that tourists have been told to steer clear of the Magnificent Mile. In Milwaukee, dozens of young African-Americans rushed into a convenience store, gleefully stealing everything they could as cameras and paying customers looked on; it appears the same mob later beat and robbed a smaller group that had been watching Fourth of July fireworks. A month later, a mob of youths swarmed into the parking lot of the Wisconsin State Fair as darkness fell, smashing car windows and beating fairgoers. The Kansas City mayor finally slapped a curfew on roving mobs of youths who had been intimidating people after he toured the plaza district to see if it was as bad as everyone said. It was. Gunshots were fired only about 50 yards away from the mayor, who got tackled into a flowerbed by his bodyguards. The bullets weren’t meant for him, apparently, but three teenagers were less fortunate. And you could fill pages and pages with the anarchy that exploded recently in War Zone England.

Something is very, very wrong. We want our young people to not set things on fire. We want to be able to walk by them without fear of being beaten. We want to know that if we give them nice phones, they won’t use them to plan robberies. Actually, we want much more than that. We want this generation to be happy and productive.

Let this bitter trend cause you to take a second look at your own children, and your own child rearing.

The mayhem on the streets is being wreaked by young people who despise authority. We owe it to our children—for their sake and for society’s—to make sure we rear them to … ahem … actually respect authority.

If you are a parent, especially a father, think about this. When you tell your child to do something, how does he respond? “Uh-huh”? “But why?” “I’m busy”? No response at all? This is a good indicator of your child’s attitude toward authority. It starts with you. On the one end of the spectrum is a happy, obedient, positive child who is extremely responsive. On the other end … just Google the news for “riot” or “mob.”

Here is a simple exercise you can use to begin putting things right inside your home. Have your child answer with, “Yes, sir” and “Yes, ma’am.”

Okay—you think I’m certifiably crazy. But hear me out.

Many of us, even if subtly, suffer the ill effects of having grown up in a world openly hostile to authority—especially strong masculine leadership. Many men are uncomfortable in their God-given role as head of the family. A man may fear to come on too strong and make a mistake. Many men are simply too self-absorbed to even put forth the effort to lead their families. Many are weak because of spiritual immaturity or personal sins, and thus lack godly confidence.

Society drums into us that a dominant man hurts a family. That’s because there is a devil, and this is his world. His first and most vicious attack is against all authority. He works conscientiously to chip away at men’s confidence and encourage the rest of the family to step up and take charge. Everywhere you look, he is flipping families upside down. Children rule; parents follow.

If we don’t forcibly resist this influence, we will be victimized by it.

Ungovernable young people are miserable. The difference is stark between a child who feels he is above or even equal to his parents and the child who has a strong sense of being under their authority. The first child has a battle in his spirit; he is unsettled, edgy, unteachable. The second child is refreshingly sincere; he is happy; he has an underlying contentment and peace.

“Yes, sir” is a simple, effective way of regularly reinforcing in both a child’s mind and yours that everyone is happiest when they accept their God-given place in the family order.

Instill this habit in your children at a young age—like when they are first learning to speak. Even if our children are older, we can still teach this principle of respect within the home. It is easy for a child to slip out of this habit. Don’t allow it.

It might seem quaint in a world raucous with youths disrespecting their elders. But that’s all the more reason not to compromise. Our “advanced” society thinks it is too smart for “yes, sir”—and that is why it is so busy cleaning up charred debris.

Look, God doesn’t specifically command that children say “yes, sir.” But He does command that children honor their parents—that’s number five of the Big Ten. And He says, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right” (Ephesians 6:1). Not only will a child who is taught and trained in this way never end up in a flash mob, but he will enjoy a far happier and more productive life.

There’s no question that teaching honor is a tall order. But getting our children in the habit of responding to our requests with a quick and cheerful “yes, sir” is sure to help.