Addym Kehris

Can't wait to pursue that line of thought in Haywood's third book. LOL. There be controversy awaiting in the wings.

Touche', Nigel. You hit the nail on the head, I believe.

I never realized there was a classification for the way we grew up. 'Free Range', eh? I like that. And I was definitely another of those. You see, I grew up in Alaska in the 60's. My friends all lived nearby (within three blocks or so). I can still hear the echos of my mother's voice when she'd step out the back door and yell for me and my brothers. Man oh man, that was a voice to recon with. My family relocated to Alaska when I was five. I don't remember a time when I wasn't able to go where I wished. Before I got my first bicycle, I would walk. Usually it was to friends' homes, but sometimes I'd march the five or six blocks to the commercial center of town. Going through the Woolworth store was always a favorite. When I got my first bike at age 10, I think, I was all over town, north, south, east, and west. There wasn't a corner I didn't make my way to at one time or another. There was never hysterical parents warning me of the dangers. I was expected to inform them where I was going and when I'd return. So long as I arrived by the appointed hour there was never a word said, except to be asked, "did you have a good time, dear?" During Elementary and Junior High school, I walked to school. You see, in this town, if you lived within three miles of the school you attended, you were expected to make your own way. There weren't many school buses and they were reserved for the kids the lived on the outskirts. We lived just inside the perimeter. And when I say I walked to school, I mean I walked in all weather. My path took me through residential areas and then through the majority of the commercial areas. I never once felt the least bit threaten or scared. I've thought recently about that time, and I feel so sorry for the youth of today that the freedom I experienced growing up is being denied to most of them. Having only recently reached that ripe ole 6-0, I've found myself reminicing about 'the good ole days'. Especially those early years in Alaska. And just for the record, the winters were no different than the summers, as far as the freedom was concerned. We learned to take reasonable precautions. I loved the winters. Playing in that winter wonderland, even at 40 below, was no hardship. We'd play vigorously for an hour, until nearly frozen, then go in and warm up for an hour, then bundle back up and go out again. I particularly remember my money making adventures during the coldest months. Most adults hated getting out and shoveling the drives and walks and 60 and 70 below. So, I'd bundle up until I looked nearly like the Staypuff Marshmellow Man and hike about the neighborhood doing the chore. Once I'd done the job I'd be sure to breath heavily into the scarf around my face, so that by the time I reached the door to receive payment, I'd have ice caking my scarf. A neat ploy, because it always resulted in considerable sympathy, gratitude, and a healthy tip (which was, of course, the ultimate objective). But I digress. LOL. I've heard that happens as we get older. Then again, I suppose I don't have more to contribute. It's sad that kids these days don't really have the freedom that I did at that age. It's a sad world we're living in.

Came across this rant this morning. Very much to the point. http://www.alternet.org/civil-liberties/why-gay-man-me-going-make-it-hard-indiana-shopkeepers-exercise-their-religious

I never expected Indiana to go this route. Shows how much attention I pay to politics. LOL. The entertainment on this one is just beginning though. Can't wait to see the fallout.

George Takei has set his sights on Indiana and the new discriminatory bill just passed by the Republican controlled state legilature. It's very similar to the recent bill vetoed by the Arizona Governor. Just thought everyone would be interested. http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2015/03/set-phasers-to-shun-george-takei-encourages-boycotting-indiana-over-religious-freedom-bill/

Hey Cole, I think the boy has talents that only an infantesimal fraction of 1% of men possess. Gads, how can a guy do that shit. It hurts just watching him, even if it is fascinating. LOL

If I may return us to the subject of crows, I read an interesting rendition for a group of crows. They are also referred to as A Storytelling of Crows. I can see the logic of it, since they seem to be a noisy bunch and might very well be telling each other stories. LOL. Just thought I'd put in a penny.

I've never seen a chair with five legs. Have I lived in ignorance all this time? LOL. Having said that, I wish all too frequently for a five-legged chair to use.

Well, there you have it. I'm in the minority. I'm for sending the brat away for an extended period. I also don't see the purpose of any lawsuits that involve simply money. It's likely that the parents of the dead boy will win, but they are unlikely to ever see any of the money. I heard something about putting money won to some foundation or other that will what?...get the message out there that acts like this are criminal? Puleeeese. That message is out there in abundance, and no one is listening. I suppose the next logical step is to start petitioning our law makers to generate new legislation with the goal of making it illegal for anyone under the age of 18 to possess any technology that could be used in harmful ways towards others, since science has proved that they are incapable of understanding the consequences of their actions. Since these studies will be used to absolve them of any real responsibility for their actions. I wonder how the scientists who did the studies and came to their widely accepted results would react to the use to which their finding are being put...principally, making it possible for real criminal acts to go unpunished.

Okay, so what we’re saying is that the psychology experts wish us to believe that there is quantifiable evidence that today’s teens are incapable of living socially acceptable lives until their late teens. And I’m sure that Cole is right in saying ‘in average terms’. Personally, I’m not so willing to accept these ‘studies’ without more information. To accept these resulting statements, we really need to know more about how they approached their study. How many teens were studied? Did the clinicians study this given group of individuals over the entirety of their adolescence or did they study different individuals in each age group? From what sociological groups were the subjects from? What economic groups? Which ethnic groups? Was there a distribution of candidates from public, private, and home schooling situations? How long did it actually take to complete the gathering of data? How long was spent analyzing said data? How about the clinicians who conducted the study; were they attempting to learn how things actually worked, or were they attempting to prove a hypothesis without any checks and balances to ensure their results didn’t get skewed to support their hypothesis? And before anyone poo-poo’s the importance of those factors, please think hard. Why wouldn’t those factors influence the results? Those are vital questions that need clarification if we are going to begin making blanket conclusions from these sorts of studies. Too many times we’ve accepted some hard truth based on ‘studies’, only to learn some time later that the studies had been flawed in their inception and their execution. For what it’s worth, gwilym.pocock, you have my sympathy, for it does indeed seem that there is a lot being said about the basic stupidity of today’s teens. And Cole, I’m sorry that I have to disagree with you, but I do it kindly, I hope. I don’t for a moment believe that we are talking about the ‘average’ teen. I believe that the problem is with a minority. That opinion, and it IS opinion, make no doubt, is based on decades of interaction with teens, hundreds and hundreds of them, through schools where I taught for brief periods, churches, baseball programs. There were always the trouble makers, but they were a very small minority of the groups. The vast majority of those kids (ages 12 – 20) would make a mockery of the study sited. So, I guess that makes me a cynic.

If we could make bans like that possible, we'd be making millions for the therapists who will inevitably have to deal with the drug-like withdrawal these kids will go through. I'd really dislike adding to the therapists' fat pockets, but if it resulted in better educated youth....like Hoskins - I just don't see a downside, not in school.

I'm going out tomorrow to find something with lego or Mario Bros. on it for the little tyke. I may have to make several stops to find one, but it will be worth it to me.

Okay, Colinian, well done, and point taken. Of course, someone should have thought of that on their own. LOL. Having said that, I have to admit that my ole brain failed in the exercise and I had to be reminded about the deviousness of our youth. You know, they really are smarter than their elders at times. Well played, my boy.

And to this I can not argue. How about an entire school year spent in an environment of tough love or boot camp, where behaviors are strictly monitored. Let us please avoid the floggings and other forms of corporal punishment that some envision when they think of that type of environment. There ARE other, less violent means of reinforcing correct behavior. I will wholeheartedly support your final sentence, Nigel, but gods help me, I haven't a clue how to make that happen. Alas, that I do not have all the answers, only the convictions that something needs to happen soon so that we stop losing innocent lives.

Well, lookee there, I managed to stick my foot in it once again. In my defense, it’s because I did not make the connection with capital punishment that the rest of you saw. That’s my bad, because after further review (I do a very good Fagan from the musical Oliver, if any of you would like to hear it), I agree that’s what was meant. So let’s clear up that little tidbit. I am not a proponent of the death penalty, but neither am I against it. Isn’t that enlightening. There are arguments for both agendas and I don’t feel it necessary to commit myself to one or the other. There are more than enough people with solid arguments fighting both sides of the question. If you feel that’s a cop-out, then fine, it’s a cop-out. I can live with myself each morning when I rise. I am not, however, the least bit shy about my views on the bullying issue. Bullies are a blight, and they need to be treated as such. They are a cancer that requires formidable measures to eradicate their influence from our societies. And before you get all up in arms about my statement, hear the reason why I am convinced this is true. I LIVED that poor boy’s pain. I LIVED that boy’s wish to be no more. And it all started when the subject of Big Band music came up in music class and I mentioned that I really loved that music. This was the 69’-70’ school year, and I was 14. The jibes began immediately and the few who started it managed to encourage others to take up the banner. It soon moved on to the fact that I didn’t walk in a manly enough manner. That, in their minds, meant I was a faggot and queer. I was extremely naïve about all things sexual at that age, much more so than any of my classmates. I didn’t understand a quarter of the things they talked about on the subject. I lasted out the process for six whole months before I finally snapped. I hadn’t had a real friend in three months, and there was no one that I felt I could talk to about it. Teachers weren’t any help, since they turned a blind eye and ear to the slurs that were spoken about me in their presence. Oh I can go on and on about the abuses, but I won’t. Suffice it to say, I finally decided that it’d be best for all concerned if I simply took myself out of the equation. Unbeknownst to me, my parents had noticed my depression, but didn’t know how to respond to it. But they did begin keeping a closer eye on me at home. They found me shortly after I’d consumed that bottle of sleeping pills. I vaguely remember being yanked from my bed and carried out of my room, but nothing else until I woke two days later in the hospital. Would you like to hear a detailed description of what it feels like after you’ve had your stomach pumped, all because some bully decided you were an ideal target? Would you like to know how long my chest hurt because they had to do CPR on me the minute I entered the emergency room, all because my peers needed to feel superior to someone, so they chose me? Would you like to hear how long I hated my parents for saving my life that night? (Okay, admittedly, it wasn’t that long. About a week. But a bully drove me to the brink of rejecting my parents’ love for me.) So yeah, I have a serious issue with people who have not lived through the ordeal of that abuse, sitting in their ivory towers, metaphorically speaking, and telling us that these are just misguided youth. It’s all teenage angst. They’ll outgrow it. We just need to talk to them and make them understand that what they’re doing is wrong. They know damn well it’s wrong, and they need to be taught that doing wrong things comes with consequences that include more than talking, talking, talking. In closing, I’ll return to the original question of my misunderstanding of the simple phrase, ‘a nation that kills its citizens’. When I read that, my mind saw a nation that is murdering its most precious resource, its youth, by allowing bullying to go unchecked and unpunished.

I imagine if we were to have the time and energy to investigate, we'd find that there are similar laws and procedures as you described, in place. It is my view, however, that the 'bad side of Christianity' is overtaking our politics, our judicial system, and even our schools, in this country. Now please don't get in an uproar because of that statement. It's the truth and you all know it. I'm not saying there aren't good Christians out there trying their best, but they too are being overpowered by the bad elements in their faith. My point is that with the right arguments, by twisting the evidence a certain way, and interjecting just the sliver of doubt into the proceedings, criminals get off. And I'm including bullies in that category. So these criminal children learn early on that in this country you have only to word your arguments cleverly to get out of any consequences. What a fine lesson. It certainly justifies gwilym's final statement.

Here, here! Personally, I'm offended by the fact that our societies, in their infinite wisdom, have determined that a crime committed by a juvenile is not the same as a crime committed by an adult (except in cases of capital murder). We see it all the time in television and movie, a child when caught in some criminal act spouts off that it's no big deal, that they are a juvenile and will be back on the streets in no time. And if you think that's simple Hollywood hype, think again. That attitude is prevalent out there. A crime is a crime. So long as society teaches our children that their crimes are more socially acceptable (yes, I know, that's an extreme simplification, but it's still essentially true) then we will continue to have incidents such as we've been discussing here. Now, where'd I store that set of stocks I keep for special occasions.

Okay, Pecman, that is out of line, blaming the boy for his woes. That is completely cruel and totally unjustified. We still know very little about the circumstances, but if the story about the boy being sent out of the classroom for eating sunflower seeds is true, then he was completely justified in believing he would be alone while he sought solace in the boy's room. So let's assume for the sake of argument that it's true, what was wrong with that, and what the fuck was this other boy doing in there instead of being in class? So much we could conjecture about. What right did the other boy have in capturing the event on video? But to blame the boy who killed himself as the author of all his woes and claim that he is to blame for the situation is insensitive. In fact, I'll go so far as to say that the statement is offensive in the extreme.

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I can't argue with your figures, or your assertion that sending them to a prison environment isn't the best option. Unfortunately, I can't argue effectively for or against your suggestion of sending them to this Eton place. I googled it, and all I got was hits about a college. I took a look and it seems like a fine institution of learning, but I hardly see how it applies to this situation. Maybe I didn't look deep enough. Perhaps in this country, a good military school would be an option. But honestly, I'm not certain you can use the terms 'good' and 'military school' in the same sentence. I believe in most cases, the terms are mutually exclusive. Perhaps the UK has a better system of counseling and support for instances like this. In this country, our counseling and supports often are associated with religious organizations. And those that aren't are usually hamstrung by the restrictions that those same religious organizations have gotten packed into the laws. In short, they are, by and large, namby-pamby. Let me ask everyone this: Most of us are old enough that we grew up in a much different environment than today's youth. When we did something that was heinous and cruel, what consequences were meted out to us? Did those consequences for our actions take weeks and months to happen? How were those consequences wrong? because we are being told that they were by how we treat the youth of today.

I must respectfully disagree, Nigel. Personally, I have no confidence in our systems of counseling, support, and guidance any longer. I believe that our policy of treating children as ignorant larvae who must be protected from themselves because they 'don't know what they're doing' is leading us to create more and more of these bullies because they know that any official retribution will be minor. Counseling, support, and guidance is tantamount to slapping wrists. What about teaching our children about consequences? How can this boy not know that posting something that is sexually explicit involving a minor on a public forum is supposed to be illegal? If an adult had done such a thing, we'd call it child pornography, and they'd already be in jail awaiting arraignment, and we'd all be sitting here in our outrage spouting about the horrible consequences that should befall the perpetrator. Why should it be called by a lesser name if a teenager does it? We do ourselves no favors by continuing to coddle our youth. We pass more and more laws that seriously penalize any adult who abuses a child, physically or emotionally. We prosecute those instances most vigorously and publicly. Our societies scream for harsher penalties. And yet, when a teenager is guilty of the same actions, all we can do is say 'Oh, you poor, misguided thing'. Well, I'm sorry, but I'm on the side of penalties and consequences, not slapping wrists.

I was traveling through my Twitter account today and came across an intriguing post and decided to look into it further. It's all self explanatory. Just two dads (heterosexuals) chatting on the way home, overheard and recorded for posterity. http://lockerdome.com/tre/6170042811288129/6779211545457681 Personally, I think it gives us a bit of hope for our future to hear a spontaneous conversation like this one. The sad part is that they'll never know the positive impact this little exchange may have on lots of folks. Enjoy. P.S. This was overheard and posted by George Takei.

Okay, I AM happy. I finally get to agree with Pecman on something. You've hit the nail on the head here. And I'm willing to admit that Free Thinker has a point. At what point, however, did this country lose the concept of separation of church and state. Religion has NO PLACE in government. I don't care if you're Christian, Muslim, Orthodox Jew, Pagan. The minute someone starts quoting the Bible, the Koran, the Torah, the Druid gospels, they need to be banned from holding any political office...anywhere.

Hm, never heard of podiobooks. Just had a look see at the link and found it has definite possibilities. And that's why I've bookmarked it. LOL. Thanks, Camy. Isn't it amazing what you can learn when you finally ask for help.