Possible problems for our future youth

[samai]

Somebody sent me this email







I feel very strongly that the majority of today's youth problems re a direct result of the "lack or parenting". If you are asking me to put my suggestion for a solution into a one sentence statement, I would have to say;



"Teach them how to be the parents that theirs were not"



I realize that these few words include a multitude of details and changes to accomplish. But I think the modern day psycho babble approach to counseling the youth by feeling sorry for them is a total waste of time and taxpayers' money. By trying to find things to do to entertain them as "Kids" only treats the symptoms and caters to the problem rather than identify and cure it.



1) Our youth today are displaying classic symptoms as a result of this problem. They are Craving:



attention

affection

acceptance

discipline

bonding

companionship

a mentor



2) By not having the above, they develop negative personalities and attitudes from the lack of:



self esteem

self worth

self confidence

accomplishments

a caring relationship (with their parents)

focus (on the realities of life - instead of the dead-end direction lead by peer pressure of their own kind)

understanding the possibilities of life's goals



3) They need to introduced to the seriousness and reality of life if we expect them to be responsible parents in the future. They need to understand that if they learn these things, it will prepare them for a successful and enjoyable life now, and one that can help them accomplish their life's ambitions in a career that would bring happiness and success. It is crucial for them to understand that it really is rewarding and worth while to contribute to society rather than take from it.



4) My own opinion as to why this "kids problem" has got so far out of hand goes back to a major change made after WWII. Prior to that, the word "teen-ager" was not in our social vocabulary. "Kids" ranged from the age 1 to about 12, at which time they began to be shaped into "young adults". Necessity caused them to get jobs and began learning what it meant to become responsible adults. Family mentoring and apprenticeships opened the door for them to learn responsible adult building life skills that did not include "I'm bored", but made them feel good about helping out with the family needs. This "young adult" training prepared a foundation for them to start of a family of their own, one that could be respected and accepted into our society and that would qualify them to raise the next generation of responsible adults. What did they learn then as "young adults" that our "teen-agers" are not learning today?



The same list of problems we see that our youth does not have today, are the basics of learning how to be an adult:



accountability

responsibility

honesty

respect

desire

honor

trust



The mandatory education age that came in with the age of "teen-agers" only contributed to keeping our young people from becoming eligible as adults until nearly 20. Then they can apply for an extension to this problem; if they opt for college, as the law allows them to stay home and be "kids" until they are 22. Does that ring any alarm bells??? 4X22 is 88! By my calculations, that is more than a quarter of our life expectancy that we have licensed, promoted, and encouraged our young people to be "KIDS" and not "Adults". So is it any wonder that our "kids" are not learning how to be adults? They are being raised by "kids" who are not being taught or encouraged to grow up and became adults.



How do we fix it? We have to break into this extended "kid" cycle (break the "teen-age" cocoon) in school since that is where they are to be by law, and start encouraging them to become "young adults". True adults make responsible parents, which make responsible kids which become young adults..... you get the picture.