Violence plagues the schools-and kids have been arrested for bringing a cheese knife in their lunch box. Drugs are a terrible menace, and students are getting busted for handing out aspirin tablets. And six years olds are getting suspended for pecking a schoolmate on the cheek. Meanwhile, the schools themselves are pushing drugs like Ritalin and Zoloft. Doctors Skinner and Spock have come and gone, along with their ridiculous theories, the former coldly mechanistic and the latter warmly over-indulgent.
Parents can buy home-use drug testing kits.
All too often, these tests will be the harbingers of Bad News. If drugs are being used, it is vital for the parents to know. On the other hand, some experts advise against the use of the DNA test. In most situations, she explains, confirming past infidelities would only shatter an already shaky marriage, and completely estrange the child. But supporting one's family, and fulfilling the lifelong position of a father, is a precious and challenging role.