by Robin Tidwell

Created on: July 29, 2009   Last Updated: April 27, 2010

The same reasons for juvenile delinquency have been trotted out for decades: broken homes, poverty, poor modeling, substance use and physical abuse. However valid these reasons still are today, there are two additional reasons that delinquency is so prevalent; let's call them crime and punishment.

Crime refers to the criminal implications of parents who discipline their children. Regardless of the methods employed, or the reasons thereof, parents are being treated as though 1) they know nothing about parenting; 2) their parenting methods are useless, even though no one can tell them what they should be doing differently; and 3) they must be abusing their children, because the children said so.

It is continually amazing that social workers, et al, who are barely out of college and have zero life experience, can possibly coach a fairly mature, well-educated adult on the finer points of parenting. Yet, the powers-that-be insist this is a valid manner of teaching parents how to relate to their children.

Lest you think the interference of social workers is in any way irrelevant to the topic at hand, allow a bit of clarification: the first time any authorities are involved in a juvenile's delinquent escapades, social workers become involved. It may be a state children's investigator, or it may be the school counselor. Guaranteed, someone who believes that all children are innocent and need protection and understanding, above all else, will become the annoying fly in the ointment.

They'll come in with their theories - frequently incorrect ones, at that - and attempt to tell you what all their textbooks tout; they will be unbelievably blind when it comes to relating to teenagers, or sometimes even younger children, have no communication skills with anyone over the age of five and, in general, make life miserable for parents who wonder what went wrong.

Parents of juvenile delinquents will be told they are wrong, they must listen to their children, they must allow their children to call the shots. Oh, wait - that won't be obvious, but they will indeed imply that when a teen reaches a certain age they should be allowed to surf the 'Net for whatever their latest fetish consists of, be on the phone all night long, go to class or drop out of school, have no curfew, and so forth.

The parents are considered near-criminals because they impose restrictions and guidelines for their minor children; some parents, who dare to slap a teen who curses them to the high heavens

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