Following every unfortunate and tragic school shooting is an accompanying cry for moral/character/values education, in the belief that such teaching could have prevented the tragedy. Society decries the rising statistical evidence of the apparent lack of values and character demonstrated by youth as evidenced by soaring crime rates among very young age groups, rampant abuse of drugs, open displays of cruelty, and a generalized display of disrespect. Various social institutions, namely parents and schools, are pointing the finger of blame at each other instead of jointly assuming responsibility for the task of character education. The need for character education is certainly not being denied, but the public--and indeed many current educators--are seemingly unaware that such education has a long and definitive history. Lost in the midst of that history is not the attempt to reach consensus on whether the family, or the school or both should teach it, but rather the meaning of character education itself, the initiatives for doing so, and the ultimate evaluation of those initiatives. Students can not be expected to develop good character through wishful thinking or the hope that someone else will do it (though if parents and educators foolishly rely on the latter, the media will continue to step forward as the most influential institution).