From: jimc@cobabe.b11.ingr.com (Jim Cobabe)
Subject: Re: kids and morals
Reply-To: jimc@cobabe.b11.ingr.com
Organization: Intergraph 
Date: Thu, 9 Apr 1992 16:20:30 GMT

In article <4404.29E36140@umagic.FIDONET.ORG>, Christian.Walters@umagic.FIDONET.ORG (Christian Walters) writes:
|> >How about using the government to promote parental responsibilities.
|> >I don't mean interference.  I am thinking about things like spreading
|> >information and ideas, sponsoring grass roots community groups,
|> >dispensing propaganda, etc?
|>  
|> THis might be better than some huge impersonal nanny-funding program,
|> but I'm not sure it would work, either. I don't have any stats to back
|> me up on this one, but I have a feeling that much teenage delinquency
|> isn't caused by concerned parents who are looking for but cannot find
|> help in raising the kid. I bet lots of it is caused by parents who don't
|> care enough to try to be a good parent or are unaware that they're being
|> a bad parent. (A child abuser, for example, who doesn't think he has a
|> problem.) These kids are the outcasts that I'm worried about. How are
|> you going to get a drug lord to go pick up a pamphlet on how to be
|> sensitive to your infants needs?

You missed my point, I guess.

Parenting skills are largely cultural in nature.  People must learn these
skills from somewhere, they are not entirely intuitive.  A propoganda
campaign might help instill in people the desire to learn parenting skills.

I was not suggesting a solution for those who are already firmly entrenched
in perpetuating the problems.  Perhaps the only quick method of "curing"
these ills is a flood of biblical proportions.  Oops, sorry, how about a large
volcanic eruption?  :-)

|> >I suspect that any measures we attempt after the damage is done will
|> >prove to be less effective.  I agree that something constructive could
|> >be done here, but have to admit that I have no original or innovative
|> >ideas about what to do.  Perhaps we will just have to learn to be more
|> >tolerant. :-)
|>  
|> God forbid :) To be fair to parents, I think I'm in danger of being too
|> sweeping when I blame the problems of the kids on them exclusively.
|> There's nothing that says an abused child MUST eventually become a
|> criminal, or that the son of a drug lord must follow in his parents
|> footsteps. We could probably stem some of the crime by giving kids
|> something else to do. But like I said, I don't know much about politics
|> or fiscal policy and so on. And I'm still stumped about how to stop
|> teenage pregnancy.

Government-mandated chastity belts?  :-)

I heard a discussion on NPR the other morning about a state proposal
to mandate birth control for welfare recipient women who are single
parents.  They were talking about NORPLANT implants which last
for about five years.  Maybe this is the kind of social program you would
advocate.  I sure hope not. :-(

*****************************************************************
| Jim Cobabe                   |  uunet!ingr!b11!cobabe!jimc    |
| Software Consultant          |  jimc@cobabe.b11.ingr.com      |
| System Utilities Group       | Just My Own Bigoted Opinions |
| Mail Stop: CR1104            |  phone: (205) 730-5625         |
| Intergraph Corporation       |    fax: (205) 730-6011         |
| Huntsville, AL  35894-0001   |                                |
*****************************************************************
Newsgroups: hsv.religion