DEATH OR THE ARMY BY KELLY THOMAS:
I am constantly reading articles where some Mom is communicating with her son in college, whether he has the right socks or maybe whether he is eating properly; and, of course, according to the articles, if there's any negative behavior exhibited from the son, it must be the Mom's fault.
On a related but more serious vein is a recent article I read with the title of "When we let them down, kids get high"-bored kids doing drugs. The article was written by a therapist who basically lifted the responsibilty of taking drugs from the kids to being the parent's fault, making the argument that we're not listening to them. They are bored with life with a mantra that life sucks; and, consequently, a way to make it not suck is to do drugs. OK!
According to the story, many of these kids know how to score Oxycontin, a pain medication derived from opium, along with the designer drugs, methamphetamines with the ease of opening a coke can. Her statement, "It's happening here at beautiful Lake Tahoe, where people come to enjoy a nice vacation, where people drive SUVs the size of tanks and people are unwilling to face the reality that the local ski areas would probably have very few employees at all if they tested for drugs and enforced a clean and sober policy at work." Wow! What ever happened to kids doing homework, having an afterschool job, playing sports, hanging out with girl friends or boyfriends. And, more important where are the parents? Are they scared of their kids-no confrontation, I guess, less they alienate! Give me a break.
I have a solution for the therapist who feels so strongly for the plight of the teenagers she's counseling. What about the Army or Marines?What about kids knowing that at some point, bored or not, they are going to have to face the military draft or best case, some alternative. Why not?
What do we think is going to happen to these kids who at eleven know how to get drugs and get high?They are going to be a burden at some point on society. Even with baby boomers today, many are facing health problems from their "summers of love' and these kids are going to be so much worse even if they make it.
If we at least get these kids in the military they might have a chance. There should be an AllServe and we need a system where those drugged out will do best in the military where there is a possibility that they can get straighten out. Sound far-fetched? Well, not any more than doing nothing.
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