Kids these days!

[wxmann_91]

But wait....i thought that teenagers wanted to be treated as adults. You can't have your cake and eat it too. Responsiblity comes with adulthood. Look around at the adults you know. Tons of responsiblity.

So you want to be treated as an equal but have the "older" people do everything. That's what i'm getting out of what you're saying. I'm not seeing where you are supporting other adults. In fact, i'm not getting what you're saying at all. Maybe cuz it's 2:15am?

lol...yeah I'm exhausted too. My thoughts are probably not going to be connected well.

I think teenagers often want to be treated as adults because their parents don't do a good job of treating them as adults. Who says being an adult is cake? Realize that deep down we teenagers yearn for discipline (not corporal punishment though, but discipline).

I think we should be treated as equals. I do not agree that "older" people should do everything. I think we should be taught as if we were adults. And conversely I believe they should listen to us as if we were adults.

And now look how this is all linked! Perhaps if parents treat their kids as adults and with respect, kids will do the same to their parents...

[CajunMama]

But wait....i thought that teenagers wanted to be treated as adults. You can't have your cake and eat it too. Responsiblity comes with adulthood. Look around at the adults you know. Tons of responsiblity.

So you want to be treated as an equal but have the "older" people do everything. That's what i'm getting out of what you're saying. I'm not seeing where you are supporting other adults. In fact, i'm not getting what you're saying at all. Maybe cuz it's 2:15am?

teenagers are not adults though, they can't live out in the real world yet because most of them are still in high school and dont yet have their diplomas. however, on another note, many of us teens do take on a lot of resposibility, as much as an adult, no, but we shouldn't have that much anyway until after high school.

That's right Dean, teenagers aren't adults. But there are those who think they should be treated as adults. Adulthood carries so much darn responsiblity. You worry about your kids(and you don't stop worrying no matter what their age), your parent, your finances, work, your spouse or significant other. You worry about how you're going to get everything done. There's so many things that adults have faced that teenagers haven't. And it's that experience that makes you more mature. Just wait until you get to my age and then you'll wish you were young and so many less worries.

Wxmann, you will never treat your children as adults. Why? They are your kids and they always will be. But also parents shouldn't treat kids as an adult, as an equal. Your parents are supposed to be role models no matter what age. And role models are looked up to. I agree with you that parents should treat their kids with respect but the kids also have to earn their parents respect.

Don't be in such a hurry to grow up. It's not all fun and roses being an adult.

[brunota2003]

You have it all wrong...

Times have changed, our kids are getting worse.
They won't obey their parents, they just want to fart and curse.
Should we blame the government, or blame society, or should we blame the images on tv? No!
Blame Canada!

I'm not worse, I don't cuss, I don't just want to fart...I obey my parents...and I know I'm not the only one...

[azsnowman]

Which is why good old fashioned spankings are needed once again. Nothing like a nice leather belt behind an old fashioned woodshed to keep a child in line

...I hope you're joking

Why? Kids nowadays have ZERO respect for their parents, law enforcement, ANYTHING for that matter...why do you think there are cops assigned to schools now? We have a SRO (School resource officer) and that's his job, he sits at the school from 8-4 Mon. through Friday taking care of the violence that occurs on a daily bases now.

IMHO kids have TOO many "rights" now...you LOOK at a kid crossed eyed and they'll call the cops on you, parents especially. I cannot tell you HOW many times we (the police dept) respond to a DV call (domestic violence) at a home e.g. a call comes in, we respond, turns out the parent(s) discipline the kid for mouthing off, the kid gets mad, call the PD.

I for one am a STRONG believer in spankings....I got my butt paddled MANY times at home and school, did I turn out to be a "wife beater, dog beater"? No...

[azsnowman]

Another thing that frosts my cookies....why are we as adults afraid of "hurting their feelings"? Used to a day when a kid tried out for the Little League team, if he/she wasn't good enough they simply didn't make the team. NOW....if the kid suxs at baseball, God FORBID we say anything, we keep them on the team for the sake of being "politically correct"...we don't want to make them feel like a failure.

[Miss Mary]

I have a 6 yr old niece who's parents had a bitter divorce last year. Now this little girl was rude before the divorce but now it seems as though no one is instilling polite manners in her. So my 3 in town SIL's and myself, are all instilling them. And this little girl hates it when we correct her very rude behavior. Very sad situation. She basically has no good role model. We each see her once a week so in that 4 hour time period, we try. So many kids today are just not listened to, spent quality time with, etc. The mom of this little girl thinks the way to please her is to buy another pair of shoes from Target - the kid has about 50! And she's 6. My kids had at best 3 pairs a shoes each season - gym, dress, and either sandals if summer or boots if winter. Three! Not 50!

I don't know what the answer is either. What I do know is it's not all these kids' fault. The parents let them down b/c they don't want to be decent, role modeling parents! Meanwhile, caregivers (our situation), teachers, ministers, neighbors try but it's not the same as when it comes from the parent. Sigh.....

Mary

[Yarrah]

Why?

My answer:

A: it gives children the impression that it's allright to resolve a conflict by using some sort of physical punishment. They're given the impression that something like that is normal. Research, for example, has shown that a large number of criminals who were caught for some sort of act of violence were punished corporally when they were still a kid. Also, research has shown that parents ho use corporal punishment, received it too when they were young. You could say that by hitting your child, you'll only make thing worse.

B: in a way, corporal punishment shows the incompetence of a parent to handle and raise his/her own child. Apparently, for the parent, there is no other way to resolve the conflict then to use corporal punishment, while most of the times there's a good, non-violent way to resolve it.

The reason why children are showing unacceptable behavior, is because they weren't raised properly. Parents don't know how to raise a child properly or they don't have enough time. I'm not saying that if you have a child that is misbehaving, you're a lousy parent, but in the process of raising a child, something went wrong.

[tropicana]

Did someone say *Blame Canada*?

Just kidding.

Most kids these days aren't rude, or evil or disrespectful. Sure, there are those that exist like that, but the same could be said that there are adults like that as well. For you to get respect, you have to give respect. You always give back what you get.

When you buy a box of a dozen eggs, and you come home and you open up the box and find out one is broken, what do most people do? They don't throw out all the eggs, they just throw out the "problem egg".
You can't lump all kids into this stereotype of being disrespectful. The truth of the matter is... most kids are willing and helpful, and as we all go through, the normal teenage phase. I know being an adult is hard too with alot of responsibilites, the bills, the constant worry etc.
But for teenagers, whatever problems they go through, those are the Biggest problems and struggles of their lives so far, so you can't just dismiss those problems.

It's not easy, but if we all work together and help each other along the way, it will be much easier. Differences of opinion will always exist. Just because we are different and go through different things, doesn't mean its easier being a teenager than an adult or vice versa.

-justin-

[Lindaloo]

What do you guys mean kids today are out of control?Aren't kids always out of control?My parents have always told me stories about stupid things they did when they were kids,I don't think what kids are doing today is anything new.Kids will always be out of control...because they are kids.They'll eventually grow out of it,especially if they have good parents that keep a watchful eye over what they do and have good discipline for their actions like my parents did.

Your parents shot teachers and students? Your parents were drug users?



.

ok, you're judging all the teens in the world by some very bad instances. you're saying i go into school, shoot everyone, and then go shoot some heroine? sorry, try again. have you ever thought about all the good things kid and teens do? honestly, have you? or do you just focus on the negatives like every other adult in this country?

I see the good in kids everyday. But all we hear is the bad. Besides, I was not even speaking to you, now was I.

[Lindaloo]

Gosh Cajunmama, if my teen talked to me like these kids are talking to you in this thread, it would be show time.

All of you that are teens in here, should show some respect to your elders. Second, and you have to ask why?

[Lindaloo]

You want to be treated as an adult? Accept the responsiblities that come with being an adult.

That's sorta vague...

What does it mean to be treated as an adult and to have responsibilities of an adult? As people our opinions should all be heard even if we are under 18. As people we all have responsibilities.

Just wondering CM, do you have children?

I think the term "adulthood" is really vague. IMHO it's definitely not reaching a certain age limit.

Hmmmm... according to the law it is.

[angelwing]

No one mentioned peer pressure, that too can be a formidable obstacle to overcome, I know what I went thru, it wasn't pretty.

Reading this thread makes me kinda glad I never had kids, I don't think I would make a good parent, I would be too strict for today's society.

[Regit]

Regit, I beg to differ on what you replied to me. Read these studies by professionals about the development of the teenage brain.

http://www.edinformatics.com/news/teenage_brains.htm

Teenage driving...(make sure you notice the part of "lack of maturity and rational thinking of older drivers") I got my dl at the age of 15. Was i too young and immature to have that responsiblity? You bet. We're my kids too young to get their learners permit at 15 and their license at 16? You bet. http://web.singnet.com/~robin281/gp2.htm

Where did I say teenagers don't make stupid decisions? I bet every 50-year-old on here has made a stupid decision pretty recently.

It has no baring on the ability to think abstractly and logically.

My point was that teenagers, being able to think abstractly and logically, are open to an opinion without some adult dismissing them simply because of age.

As for statutory rape, the law is there to protect teenage girls. I googled statutory rape and i was unable to find anything about "post victorian standards". http://www.nyx.net/~jkalb/misc/statutor ... /statutory

What does your inability to find something prove?
http://www.wickedness.net/els/els1/dcruze%20paper.pdf (PDF File Warning) Search for the word "victorian." "Post-Victorian Standards" are how the age came to settle at 16 in most of Western society.

I'm not exactly sure what your arguing this is meant to accomplish anyway. My point was just that the fact that 16 is the age of consent doesn't mean that kids under 16 are incapable of logic. I'm not interested in discussing why they came to that decision other than to point out it was not based on science.

[Regit]

You want to be treated as an adult? Accept the responsiblities that come with being an adult.

That's sorta vague...

What does it mean to be treated as an adult and to have responsibilities of an adult? As people our opinions should all be heard even if we are under 18. As people we all have responsibilities.

Just wondering CM, do you have children?

I think the term "adulthood" is really vague. IMHO it's definitely not reaching a certain age limit.

Hmmmm... according to the law it is.

So government has the power to instill total physical and mental maturity into human beings?

The government fairy didn't wave his wand over my head the day I turned 18. In fact, I was exactly the same as I was the day I was 17 years and 364 days old.

In discussing the rates at which humans mature, the law is of absolutely no consequence. If it was, it would be exactly the same in every society.

[Lindaloo]

Well I guess they do, Regit. The law is the law is the law. Regardless of whether you believe in the age of adulthood, it is what it is.

[Regit]

Well I guess if you believe that the government has complete and total control over humans, there's absolutely no way to argue it.

Although, just FYI, you might want to ask a lawyer what an adult is then ask a child development professional what an adult is and you might just find the usage of "adult" is different from each person.

[Lindaloo]

You can twist and turn all you want to. But the fact remains is the legal age before they are considered an adult is what is written.

I have talked to an attorney. My son is now 20 years old and I have to pay hospital bills that he incurred when he was 18, behind my back and without my consent. So don't you dare lecture me. My sister and I are in the same boat.

You are so far out in left field. But if you believe in that to be truth then more power to you.