Kids do the darnedest things

Kids do the darnedest things
EDITOR:
Recently I have seen a debate heating up about the age at which children should receive a license to operate a motor vehicle. The current law dates to the time when it was considered that 18 was the age of majority and children 16 were mature enough to take the responsibility of driving. At that period in time parents took the business of parenting seriously and schools were in the business of educating. Today most parents are too busy or too lazy to parent. Educators are for the most part overpaid babysitters. This has resulted in children from early puberty to their early 20's going backwards in maturity till they have less common sense than they did at age 7 or 8!
These children claim they are mature enough to drive, make their own choices about sex, alcohol, tobacco and this week's sexual partners and most other life choices previously reserved for mature adults. They have no concept of how to safely operate a motor vehicle. They all have cell phones that are nearly always in use, cars full of other immature children, smoking and many other distractions. They also have very little training and no idea what to do in an emergency.
Today's young people have multiple sexual partners, babies and live together without thought of marriage. It is a wonder so many marriages fail with so much practice in advance. Public schools give graduation credit for the things my generation was told would be our fate if we failed to get a good education. Store clerking, flipping burgers, pizza delivery, and babysitting are just a few of the things students can do to get out of school and give the teachers more time to not earn their salary.
The only time you ever hear a child claim to be a child is when a bleeding heart lawyer, juvenile judge or other child advocate is trying to explain why a child who has committed a crime should not be treated as an adult. Then the child and his family says "They're just kids"!
It is time to rethink the age of majority and the age to drive without supervision. Either that or parents need to start parenting again and the public schools need to get back to the business of educating. Till that time, we will have children killing themselves and others, having children to care for when they can't take care of themselves, and working dead end jobs for low wages.
ROBERT H. HUSTED
New Springfield
YSU must strive to keepits costs as low as possible
EDITOR:
The days of continuous raises, expanded benefits, fully paid health insurance and perks are over. We are now in an economy, in our Valley and our country, that can no longer support those things.
Enrollment at Youngstown State University has increased because of the loss of so many middle-class, high paying, good and steady jobs in our area. More people are turning to our fine local schools for their education at the lowest cost possible.
We must keep these costs down to help those in our Valley to obtain their education and degrees by putting less financial strain on their families and resources.
I call on the trustees, management, and unions to resolve this for the good of the Valley, as they have a responsibility greater than that of the average citizen.
When public employees and public funds are involved, information on wages, benefits, and perks should be available to the taxpayers who foot the bill. There should be no closed door sessions.
GEORGE R HOLKO Sr.
Warren
Canfield couple heartenedby kindness, honesty at fest
EDITOR:
My family and I were enjoying a Saturday night in downtown Youngstown at Mount Carmel's Italian Fest a couple of weeks ago. Traveling home we realized that my checkbook was missing and started our frantic search back to the church to find it.
The checkbook apparently passed through a multitude of kind and gentle hands and made its way back to us. Thank you to those of you who helped return our property with nothing touched or missing. What was touched, however, were our hearts because of the kindness of many people. Honesty still exists in this world.
JACK and JUDY PALERMO
Canfield