Found this over at The Agitator regarding the “Kids Helping Kids” program:

Just four of these apparently means your kid’s probably into the drugs, and a likely enrollee in the program:

Has your child….

seemed depressed
become rebellious and defiant
had trouble with the law
had a bad attitude
avoided you upon arriving home
become increasingly isolated
had a drop in grades
required extra sleep
dropped out of favorite activities
changed friends
started looking unkempt or unhealthy
changed image/clothes/personal style
been caught lying
possessed unexplained money
threatened or attempted suicide
frequently broken curfew
been fired from work
come home high or drunk
destroyed car or property

Do you…

argue with your spouse about your child’s behavior
feel anger or dislike for your child
fear you are a failure as a parent
bargain with your child to change
compromise your own values
lower your expectations
feel frustrated because nothing seems to change your child’s behavior
cover up for your child
make excuses for your child
feel relieved when your child leaves the house
give money to your child
fear your child might injure him/herself
fear your child might injure others
desire to spend less time at home
fear your child is out of control

Remember, if you’ve nodded yes to just four of these, KHK says, your kid needs help!

I was a good kid in high school. Didn’t smoke. Didn’t drink. I’ve smoked marijuana once in my life. When I was 27. Never had trouble with the law. And though I’m sure some might disagree, I’d say I turned out reasonably well.

By my count, I would have triggered eighteen of KHK’s warning signs. Meaning I’d have been a shoe-in for the program. Hell, they probably would have given me a scholarship (not out kindness of course — most of these programs are heavily subsidized).

Absolutely ridiculous. “Does your child require extra sleep???” I’ve never met a teen that won’t sleep past noon if you let him. “Warning signs” like these serve only one purpose: keeping parents good and scared of drugs and hence in support of their prohibition. Moms and dads are all too willing to believe that it’s pot that makes their little angel act out against them and not their parenting (or even the natural psychological development of a teen). So pot’s the enemy! Crusading against drugs is far easier than taking the time to be a good parent.

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 17th, 2005 at 4:55 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.