Social Workers and current laws

[momtakesonworld]

Recently a friend told me about her friend's daughter and the Canadian legal system. Reading your book makes it clear that an adolescent before their 20's is not able to make a level headed decision on their own without great consequences when given the wrong tools. This friend had the friend move in during financial hardships and has 2 daughters. Only one daughter stayed with her, the other one (a teen) who had started hanging out with the wrong crowd in high school, moved out because the social workers that were involved told her that "once you are 16 you are legally able to make your own decisions", she turned 16 not too long ago, packed up and moved in with her grandmother who has no rules... hearing this, this tells me this child is in for a world of trouble, working the sex trade, getting into drugs, alcohol and probably never finishing high school. I truly hope there is some miracle and she pulls through okay, but what is our legal system trying to prove? Now that we have this information about teens brains literally changing, leaving it very vulnerable and can wire into a dangerous weapon if left in the wrong persons hands. How can one get the system to change its idea of 16 being able to handle life making decisions, mature decisions, correct decisions for that matter. I am ashamed to hear that our system does not recognize these scientific facts, that humans are not able to make reasonable, mature or correct decisions until AFTER the brain is finished rewiring and of course, this is only if the teenager came into contact with an adult that WAS mature and sane. I really want to see the system change, the way it is going now, our prisons are filling up, the crime is just starting, and the respect and wholesome decency is fading fast. I have a 12 yr old daughter and a 10 yr old son and "Yes, your teen is crazy!" validated that I was doing something right by exposing them in the safety of my home to some of the harshness and cruelty of the world and have very thorough discussions on how to avoid becoming one and how to help one that is becoming part of this world. I thank you, Mr. Bradley but now I think the legal system needs to recognize these facts as well!

[Mamakitty]

I so agree with you and it's so hard to wrap your head around this thinking that is so prevalent these days. It's rampant--in high school, the kids choose what subjects they want to take, often what they consider to be the easiest. They are coming out of school with very little usable education and nothing to build on. It just progresses from there. On top of this, while they are told that they are capable of running their own lives, we are also told that they aren't responsible for anything. Oh my. How can it be both ways?

In my house, I have always been up front with my kids and no subject was taboo. I always tried to remind them that there are two sides to every coin and that what seems to be isn't usually the whole story and that every action has a consequence of some sort. I do wish I had read Dr. Bradley's book sooner. I have been through about a dozen lately and his is tops. While I got most of it right, there's definitely some that I got wrong. Sigh.