What is a primary root of many of our domestic problems in America: education, crime, drugs, gangs, teen pregnancies, unwed mothers, welfare, even healthcare and jobs to some extent?

 

This is not a debate on race, so please don’t go there. However, it is a debate about United States domestic issues. The same two situations below could apply to Appalachia as well as downtown Detroit.

 

Situation 1. A child is born to a 16 year old mother whose boyfriend has little to no interaction involvement from early on. That same child is raised by a mother who goes on to have many other children, gets hooked on crack/meth, did not graduate high school, is on public assistance etc… That child is introduced to the gang/street lifestyle at the age of 9 or 10 and begins having sex at 13, doing drugs at 15, etc… The child becomes an adult, with little to no education, skills, and often ends up in the justice system multiple times. This adult takes from the government (healthcare, prison, welfare, etc…) and gives little to nothing back. The cycle continues….

 

Situation 2. A child is born to twenty something parents. The child attends school, has parental involvement in school and life, graduates high school, goes to college or trade school, gets a job, pays taxes, etc… the cycle continues…

 

The crux of the issue in both cases is parenting and responsibility. Are there exceptions to both situations? Of course, but once the cycle starts it’s harder to break than it is to continue.

 

Someone who is not a productive member of society is a drain of the national, state, and local resources. In other words they take more then they give. Someone who is a productive member of society contributes more then they take.

 

:popcorn:

In other words they take more then they give. Someone who is a productive member of society contributes more then they take.

 

:popcorn:

 

How do you measure that?

How do you measure that?

 

Parental involvement = higher potential for focus on education and supervision = job = income = income tax, sales tax, property tax, etc…

 

The same person is not on welfare, in prison, on Medicaid, etc…

I've taught in Oldham Co (highly educated parents for the most part), Lexington (a mix of both) and coached in Eastern KY (not many parents that graduated college). There is definatly a coorlation to expectations without a doubt. My mom taught school and my dad was raised on a farm. He works circles around me still and went to the Army. While he didn't have a college degree he is very street smart and great in math, electicity etc. He's retired and owns his own business. I say that because it doesn't have to be college to be smart etc.

You are dead on with this subject. There are exceptions to the rules for sure but for the most part I have seen it all first hand. The problem with the lower class is that if you don't get them away from that environment at an early age it is hard to correct the problem. While that group might not be educated they know every loophole to get every dollar from the government that they can get. Most abuse the system + lower their expectaions in a huge way! It is a major crutch!

I don't know the answer but I do know for me what my philosophy has been. I have always loved sports. My dad coached me in baseball growing up and we were very successful. I always felt like it helped me in real life especially the things I learned in football. I've changed a couple of jobs but I have coached football every since I started college. The job I have now I drive 1000 miles a week a lot of times but I still get in as much as I can to coach. YOU CAN MAKE A MAJOR DIFFERENCE if you get involved. I would bet that 65% or greater of our kids have no dad. You are the major male influence in these kids lives. We have a great staff that tell the kids all the time how much we love them. We have built a family atmosphere that is often times all some of these kids have. We try to feed them at least once a week if not more....talk to them about whats going on in their lives and help them figure out what they are going to do when they get out of high school. You have to start that in their minds at an early age so they can dream a little and have a goal. We don't get all of them but there is no doubt we have saved a lot of kids. I've been in it long enough to have kids that are starting families and come back to say thanks. I've even had one break down on me because he had a friend that was shot in a bad drug deal in Lville. This kids mom had died about a year earlier. He was crazy about her. I knew when his best friend was shot that he would be a mess so I hunted him down and talked to him. He came back the next day to school crying (he had graduated already) to say thanks because he found the guy...had the gun cocked and kept thinking about our conversation about what his mom would want him to do.

Life is tough. Everybody has responsabilities and a lot of things on their plates. To me we have to all take the time to find our nitch to help the young folks because they are the future. It doesn't have to be something major...or it could be but I think if you invest in the future then a lot of things work themselves out down ther road.

 

On a side note I think there are a lot of kids that get out of high school in this area (Eastern KY) and there are no jobs. Most of the people in this area never leave. We REALLY need a few major factories around here. With no jobs there is more time on peoples hands and moral is bad. Bad moral...free money from the government...no bright future for a job here leads to depression + for a lot around here the pain pills. It's a mess after that! A lot of people here are very hard working blue collar people that would work if there where factories I think. You would still have a lot of the lazy bums too. I guess the US/KY need to push tax breaks or something to get people to want to open a factory in this area. That would help break some of the cycle here I think.

Parental involvement = higher potential for focus on education and supervision = job = income = income tax, sales tax, property tax, etc…

 

The same person is not on welfare, in prison, on Medicaid, etc…

 

Are you asking a question or simpy making an obvious point with your first post?

Are you asking a question or simpy making an obvious point with your first post?

 

I did not ask a question. I stated a point; although I’m not sure how obvious it is since the government seems to focus more on reforming the programs instead of working on the problems and when you get right down to it, it is the individual's responsibility not the government’s responsibility to parent, teach, mentor, etc…

How do you measure that?

 

With common sense.

I've taught in Oldham Co (highly educated parents for the most part), Lexington (a mix of both) and coached in Eastern KY (not many parents that graduated college). There is definatly a coorlation to expectations without a doubt. My mom taught school and my dad was raised on a farm. He works circles around me still and went to the Army. While he didn't have a college degree he is very street smart and great in math, electicity etc. He's retired and owns his own business. I say that because it doesn't have to be college to be smart etc.

You are dead on with this subject. There are exceptions to the rules for sure but for the most part I have seen it all first hand. The problem with the lower class is that if you don't get them away from that environment at an early age it is hard to correct the problem. While that group might not be educated they know every loophole to get every dollar from the government that they can get. Most abuse the system + lower their expectaions in a huge way! It is a major crutch!

I don't know the answer but I do know for me what my philosophy has been. I have always loved sports. My dad coached me in baseball growing up and we were very successful. I always felt like it helped me in real life especially the things I learned in football. I've changed a couple of jobs but I have coached football every since I started college. The job I have now I drive 1000 miles a week a lot of times but I still get in as much as I can to coach. YOU CAN MAKE A MAJOR DIFFERENCE if you get involved. I would bet that 65% or greater of our kids have no dad. You are the major male influence in these kids lives. We have a great staff that tell the kids all the time how much we love them. We have built a family atmosphere that is often times all some of these kids have. We try to feed them at least once a week if not more....talk to them about whats going on in their lives and help them figure out what they are going to do when they get out of high school. You have to start that in their minds at an early age so they can dream a little and have a goal. We don't get all of them but there is no doubt we have saved a lot of kids. I've been in it long enough to have kids that are starting families and come back to say thanks. I've even had one break down on me because he had a friend that was shot in a bad drug deal in Lville. This kids mom had died about a year earlier. He was crazy about her. I knew when his best friend was shot that he would be a mess so I hunted him down and talked to him. He came back the next day to school crying (he had graduated already) to say thanks because he found the guy...had the gun cocked and kept thinking about our conversation about what his mom would want him to do.

Life is tough. Everybody has responsabilities and a lot of things on their plates. To me we have to all take the time to find our nitch to help the young folks because they are the future. It doesn't have to be something major...or it could be but I think if you invest in the future then a lot of things work themselves out down ther road.

 

On a side note I think there are a lot of kids that get out of high school in this area (Eastern KY) and there are no jobs. Most of the people in this area never leave. We REALLY need a few major factories around here. With no jobs there is more time on peoples hands and moral is bad. Bad moral...free money from the government...no bright future for a job here leads to depression + for a lot around here the pain pills. It's a mess after that! A lot of people here are very hard working blue collar people that would work if there where factories I think. You would still have a lot of the lazy bums too. I guess the US/KY need to push tax breaks or something to get people to want to open a factory in this area. That would help break some of the cycle here I think.

 

Very good points and I commend you for your years of working with kids. I’ve coached a few years of youth football/baseball in downtown Clarksville, TN and I can certainly relate to the lack of parental involvement and family issues that some of these kids have to deal with.

 

In many threads in the football and other sections there have been discussions about team size and enrollment and how some schools have high enrollment yet comparably small team rosters. I wonder how many talented kids are roaming the halls or even the streets in some of these communities / districts that could play but don’t because of grades, behavior issues, family issues, etc…

I did not ask a question. …

 

My fault. I'm not sure why I thought you were asking a question.

 

What is a primary root of many of our domestic problems in America: education, crime, drugs, gangs, teen pregnancies, unwed mothers, welfare, even healthcare and jobs to some extent?

 

With common sense.

 

What exactly are we measuring? Contributions to society? How much they "cost" us taxpayers?

My fault. I'm not sure why I thought you were asking a question.

 

It was rhetorical.

I think the main problems with our Country begin with our drifting to the complete left of center. No one stands up for the majority. We have to keep the squeaky wheel oiled. If an athiest enters the Boy Scouts and doesn't like the pledge and acceptance of God, we are to take it out for the millions of boys who enjoy it just because one family objects. This goes for the Rights of every group in America. I am not saying that smaller groups should not have a say, but we have forgotten that the majority rules. Isn't that a fundemental stance in a Democracy.

 

Secondly, we have completely dumbed our society down, beginning with education. This is probably a continuation of the first complaint. No one should be smarter or succeed in the classroom because it may make little Johnny feel bad about himself. They don't want to keep score in games because no one loses, everyones a winner!? Let's get real! There is always a winner and a loser in the real world. The quicker we all learn that the better. It might actually motivate some to get off their rear and be competitive and productive instead of being in therapy because they didn't get a promotion or the job.

 

Lastly, no one wants to take responsibility for anything they do. If you do something, be a man and own up to it. Don't hide behind the law or technicalities. If we all just were honest, things would be a lot smoother.

I

 

Secondly, we have completely dumbed our society down, beginning with education. This is probably a continuation of the first complaint. No one should be smarter or succeed in the classroom because it may make little Johnny feel bad about himself.

 

 

I can't imagine a school system that does the above? You're saying that some schools won't separate the students by ability? There are no "honors" or AP classes?

I can't imagine a school system that does the above? You're saying that some schools won't separate the students by ability? There are no "honors" or AP classes?

 

I think a lot of the problem is that kids have no fear in schools anymore because teachers/administrators have their hands tied a lot. Kids at a young age lose respect for authority. A lot of that went out the window when there were no more paddelings in school. Teachers now have to spend 80% of their time dealing with 20% of the same kids over and over that are discipline problems. Schools can't paddle, get rid of the kids etc. If they are gone from school then the school loses money etc.

Very good points and I commend you for your years of working with kids. I’ve coached a few years of youth football/baseball in downtown Clarksville, TN and I can certainly relate to the lack of parental involvement and family issues that some of these kids have to deal with.

 

In many threads in the football and other sections there have been discussions about team size and enrollment and how some schools have high enrollment yet comparably small team rosters. I wonder how many talented kids are roaming the halls or even the streets in some of these communities / districts that could play but don’t because of grades, behavior issues, family issues, etc…

 

It depends on the coaches a lot of the time. The successful programs I've been around are the coaches that kids want to play for. Those coaches take the time to build relationships to get kids out of the hallways. If the coach has an ego and isn't going to go out and get them then the program usually isn't very good unless it's a traditional power like Highlands, Trinity etc where the tradition gets the kids out.

Edited August 27, 200917 yr by rockmom
Fixed Quote