Mini-Mo

okay, i'm really good friends with one of the german exchange students at our school, Verena. We were in the car with some friends on the way to a hangout when she saw a billboard that stated in black and white,

"Think of what you're doing" but the doing was crossed out and "risking" was written in.

There's lots of billboards like this all over and I've never thought about it. But Verena was steamed.

"Is THAT how you educate your youth?!" she exclaimed.

I'd never really thought about it, but I guess in Europe they're much more comfortable talking about sex and sexual activities. Their drinking age is 16, but you can't drive until you're 18. I thought that was ridiculous until Verena explained. She told me that she's heard a lot of people here say "Wow! Man, if I lived there I'd be smashed EVERY WEEKEND!" but it's not like that for them. It's no big deal to them. Sex isn't a big deal and neither is drinking. If they drink it's like, a margarita at a restuarant or something.

I know a lot about the people I go to school with, because when someone breaks the rules they're so psyched for everyone else to find out they did it and got away with it. Excited whispers, kudos and slaps on the back accompanies that person everywhere. More people want that attention. So what do they do? They go to Tom's or Kyle's the next weekend, get trashed, spend time on "the sex bed" with some random person and show up to school Monday to excited whispers, kudos and slaps on the back.

I'm not saying this goes for every teen, because I know myself that I don't. Once, I drank with my bro and a couple of his friends at home b/c I was curious about drinking. But even the small whispers armongst our friends of that was nifty. They named me "Korrupted Kacie" for that one night. And I haven't since because honestly, it was no big deal and I'm the girl who's all "I don't wanna get caught!!!". But siriusly, what are your thoughts on this?

I'm not saying that

The Daywalker

Media is more of a life teacher to kids nowadays than anything else. Few and far between is the youth taught the do's and don'ts from the parents at an appropriate age.

Silversun

I don't agree with that. I think the media and popular culture has copped a lot of disproportionate flak over recent years. Sure, it would have something to do with a lot of 'bad' kids, but I still think it comes down to the parents and the peers. Blaming TV violence, glorified drug-taking, Marilyn Manson and other assorted celebrity scapegoats can only carry you so far.

If the parents took enough time to bring their kids up as intelligent, thinking people - not so much trying desperately to drill into them "you must be good, you mustn't have sex or do drugs or drink" but actually giving them a well-rounded perspective on things and getting them to think for themselves - I think the kids would have a better chance at coming out of adolescence intact. And the power of peer influence (not even necessarily peer presure but just their general outlook on life and such) is immeasurable, in my opinion. Even your parents can't help how you turn out depending on who you befriend during these crucial 'growing-up' years.

And of course, like Mini-Mo said, it's largely to do with the culture that these kids are in, and how they view things such as drinking or drugs. There is definitely still an underlying glamour/coolness to smoking, drinking and such; and we just have to hope that our kids are independent and intelligent enough to know where to draw the line.

[ 02-06-2004: Message edited Silversun ]