There's just too much pressure, too much temptation, too much expectation, too much peer-pressure, too much danger and too much excess for today's young people. There's just a lot of stuff to deal with, a lot of stuff to have to do or avoid that as old folks we couldn't even imagine. In my time there were no logos on clothing (OK, a little Levi logo on my back pocket...) and therefore no peer pressure to have the 'right' designer duds. Clean was the only requirement; and then came the 60s and even THAT disappeared. There were no computers; no iPods, no cell phones, no play dates, most schools had few or no college-prep classes. Drugs pretty much began and ended with cold pills and Bayer aspirin. I'd never heard of marijuana until I went to college. Other drugs? Were there other drugs? Besides Grain Belt, that is? You wanted to go to college, you applied and you were accepted (except for the few elite institutions). You didn't worry that a B on an essay would derail your career.
Life, simply, was much more simple. As kids, we were allowed to be kids.
Not so now.
Still, teenagers persist in existing, and some of them eventually go on to become productive adults. Despite what you see at the mall.
Life for teens, however, got a little more complicated in the waning hours of the holiday weekend. Among the various things passed in Springfield were a number of measures targeting teens and teen behavior.
From the AP:
Drivers under 18 would not be allowed to talk on cell phones, even phones equipped with hands-free devices.
And:
The Democratic governor also succeeded in raising the standards that students must meet to graduate from high school. Seniors would have to take at least two years of science, three years of math, four years of English and two writing-intensive courses to graduate.
And:
Gov. Rod Blagojevich led an effort to protect minors from mature video games by barring stores from selling them the games and creating a $1,000 fine for retailers who knowingly do so.
What's a teen to do?
But all is not lost. If they can't talk on their phone when they drive and can't electronically disembowel thousands in the latest video game, at least they can decorate themselves:
On the other hand, lawmakers did vote to lower the age for getting a tattoo to 18. Right now, anyone under 21 must have a parent's permission.
Now THAT'S comforting.
Just driving down the street before of after school can convince you that the cell phone law makes sense. But who and how is it gonna be enforced? My guess is it won't be; perhaps a teen involved in an accident MAY get a ticket for cellphone use. Which probably will be dismissed.
The graduation standards measure also makes sense. Provided it's not another unfunded mandate. Springfield says it isn't. Do you believe that? Does anyone? There MAY be funds this year, but after that ... don't bet your state-funded pension on it.
The video game law ... will THAT be enforced? CAN that be enforced? The answer to both is not likely. Champaign can't stop teens from drinking. You want to start frisking them as they leave the mall for a bootleg copy of Mortal Kombat? Just another measure that looks good on a resume come re-election time.
And finally, the tattoo law: Instead of making it easier to deface one's body, perhaps a mental evaluation before every tattoo or piercing?
Our lawmakers never cease to amaze me. Like the Steely Dan song goes '...the things you think are precious I can't understand...'
And so it goes.
1 comment:
When I was state rep., one of my teenage friends told me if I voted to raise the driving age, he would walk to the polls to vote against me.
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