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Is it really helping society
to give youth offenders a special status?
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In our last 150 years our young people have been given an additional
five years to mature!
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They acquired immunity as their names, pictures and criminal records are withheld. A youthful offender with a horrible record of criminal activity can do his or her time as a teen, and emerge with a clean record as an adult.
For five years, young people who are inclined towards criminal activities get an opportunity to practice their trade with little, if any penalty if they get caught. Our laws now classify them as minors.
For 20 million years they wouldn't have gotten away with their anti-social behaviour if they were caught. They would have been held accountable for their actions and punished accordingly.
The punishments were severe – too severe. Eight-year-old pickpockets were regularly hung in England. Now, you can be charged if you even strike an eight-year-old as you protect your pocket.
As a word, "teenagers" is less than 100 years old
“Teenagers” was first used in 1922 as governments, prompted, by their religious communities, went overboard in conferring a special status on 13 to 18-year-olds.
They now enjoy special status. They are children.
By the 1960s, things got out of hand. Our world went from exploiting societies middle and lower class young people before 1900, to being exploited and manipulated by these young people.
It used to be a matter of “if you can do the crime you do the time!” Even adults are getting away with this new leniency, especially if they are guilty of executing a white-collar crime.
Teenagers are now doing the white-collar bit. Some of them have mastered computer technology to assist them in their crimes. Bernie Madoff may have earned wrath from those he bilked of billions, but he also became a role model to thousands of young people who won't be looking at any serious jail time if they get caught.
Where maturity and adulthood were reasonable expectations by time an individual reached 14 or 15, now we don't expect this to occur until these same individuals reach 21.
Could we be sabotaging chances of our “teenagers” becoming responsible citizens of our world?
If we want to do something constructive to restrain this satotaging effort, we might dispence with our myths and learn to live moral lives . . . without gods!
Anton Kozlik
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Atheist
Quotes
 I became an atheist at 12 and still think, in all probability, that there is no God, just as there is no Santa Claus, fairies, or angels. I found out in sixth grade that the world was created in billions of years of evolution. That knocked off my Sunday-school view that the world was created in seven days. So, I said this is horseshit. And I stopped thinking about it.
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Albert Ellis
1915— 2007
Clinical Psychologist
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My definition of morality . . .
“No one should expose another living entity to unwarranted pain, loss, or deprivation!”
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*Terms and Definitions
My articles may contain words or phrases that may infer different meanings to different readers, or my reader may be unfamiliar with these terms or definitions. I feel it is important to know what writers meant when thhe used a word or term.
cognitive dissonance —
Filtering out information that conflicts with what one already believes, in an effort to ignore that information and reinforce one’s beliefs.
Editors note: I will be repeating the “cognitive dissonance” definition for quite a while since it is practiced by so many — known by so few!
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Grandpa said . . .
“Don't ever think of yourself as a teenager! You are a young adult!”
He believed that when you reached 13 years of age you should be able to take care of yourself. By then you should have learned enough to earn a living, cook and clean, and contribute to your family and your society as much as any adult. In fact, he felt that I could most likely accomplish more because I had a youthful body.
He taught me to type and write before I was 13 years old. "Now," he said, "you can earn a living!"
By time they were 13, my children could earn an adult wage doing adult tasks. They were proud of their accomplishments.
It was really quite easy. All they had to do was believe it was possible for them to be "adults".
I learned many things at my grandpa's knee. I believe that most of them helped me in my life. I share his comments with you.
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June 15th, 2009
Listen if you can!
What do Van Gogh and Kaufmann have in common with 21 st century Atheists?
Click here
to read my last posting.
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