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University Daily Kansan Wednesday, March 25, 1964
Communications Breakdown Blamed for Youth Problems
By Harry Ferguson
WASHINGTON — (UPI)—George Bernard Shaw once said it would be a better world "if parents would only realize how they bore their children." He struck at the heart of one of the major causes of juvenile delinquency—the inability of many parents to communicate with teen-agers.
The cold and unpleasant fact seems to be that millions of American children have either a resigned attitude of tolerance or outright contempt for their parents. Case histories show that is especially true in broken homes—one of the prime factors in juvenile delinquency—and the bad news about that is that about one in every five American marriages ends in separation or divorce.
But the problem also exists in marriages that appear to be permanent and happy. One of the signs of the times is that currently in McCall's magazine an article by Barbara Lang advises teen-agers in all seriousness on how to bambooze their parents into thinking everything is all right. It is necessary, she writes, to make parents feel secure and her advice includes:
- TALK TO your parents. "A friend of mine named Geraldine didn't talk to her parents for years because she knew they wouldn't understand her." But when Geraldine reached 17 she decided to talk to her parents without really saying anything, telling them trivial things. She reported her parents are now happy and no longer give her third degrees on what she has been doing.
- Ask their advice. This will work
Give Blood, Shake Hands With Wescoe
Chancellor W. Clarke Wescoe will be the attending physician for the Red Cross blood donation from 3:30 until 5:30 Thursday afternoon at Ellsworth hall.
Donald Nelson, Clay Center junior and chairman of the blood donation subcommittee, said this will be the second appearance for the Red Cross' mobile blood donation unit and the sixth of the committee's planned donations.
planned donor. The subcommittee is a branch of the Health Committee of the All Student Council.
SINCE THE SUBCOMMITTEE'S beginning, six blood donation drives have been held. The first drive was last Oct. 22 when the subcommittee members and several ASC members gave blood. Nov. 5 the Theta Chi's gave blood under the subcommittee's direction and on Nov. 19 several residents from Joseph R. Pearson hall gave blood at the subcommittee's request.
Several Olin Templein hall residents also gave blood late in November at the subcommittee's request.
In February of 1964, the Douglas County Red Cross chapter obtained the mobile blood donation unit. This eliminated many of the previous problems of transporting students to the Lawrence Memorial Hospital for blood donations.
The mobile unit was first used on campus March 3 at the Phi Gamma Delta house. Members of Phi Gamma Delta and the Sigma Chi fraternities gave blood.
The next visit of the mobile unit on campus after this Thursday's donation at Ellsworth hall will be March 31 at the Kappa Sigma house. Kappa Sigma, Delta Upsilon, Sigma Nu and Theta Chi fraternities will give blood during the mobile unit's third visit.
April 21 the mobile unit will visit the men's scholarship hall area.
TO DONATE BLOOD, students must be 18 years old or older. If the student is between the ages of 18 and 21, he must have a signed release from his parents or guardian giving the Red Cross permission to use his blood.
only if you follow the advice they give you and, therefore, you should ask their opinion only on things that don't really matter to you. Like whether you should serve an onion or cheese dip at your party.
Students over 21 years old may give blood without parental consent.
It is a waste of time for parents to shower money and gifts on teenagers in the hope of keeping them out of trouble. Rich kids become delinquents, too. A teen-age slum boy who holds up the owner of the corner candy store with a switchblade knife may be doing it because he wants money to buy food. Children with too much money don't have that excuse and they commit senseless acts just for the thrill of violating the law.
"I KNOW A boy whose parents gave him everything." said Philip G. Green of the U.S. Children's Bureau. "They spent a lot of money to buy him a snapping new convertible. He got behind the wheel, drove three blocks and saw a battered jalopy standing at the curb. He got out of his new convertible, got into the jalopy and drove away. Obviously he wasn't improving his method of transportation. He was just getting a kick out of doing something illegal and when he was caught he showed no remorse."
Rich children sometimes commit mass vandalism. A recent example of it was a debut party outside New York for Miss Fernanda Wanamaker Wetherill, Ill. Her parents had rented a nearby mansion where the boys could spend the night. After the dance was over the boys retired to the mansion and wrecked it by swinging on chandeliers, throwing furniture out on the beach and breaking windows for a total damage of $10,000.
About 100 boys were involved, but only 11 of them will be brought to trial, and the charge will be malicious mischief, an offense that does not carry a burdensome penalty.
AMERICAN parents currently are
TRY A REAL PEN FOR A CHANGE
under attack for over-codding their children and forcing them to do foolish things for the sake of status. Martha Lear, in her book "The Child Worshippers," cites the cases of mothers who put brassieres on 11-year-old girls and send their sons to summer camp where French is taught so the boys can come home and say "Bon mother, Mama." And some mothers, she writes, don't know when to leave their children alone and she quotes one of them:
"My son was in bed with a cold. I had lots of things to do and I feel guilty about being out all day while he was cooped up in the apartment with just the cleaning woman for company. So I cancelled my lunch date and zipped through my beauty parlor appointment and grabbed a cab home and rushed into his room and said 'Okay, I'm ready now. What shall we play?' and he said 'I don't know about you, Mom, but I have homework. Can't you find something to do?'
CARTER'S STATIONERY
1025 Mass,
Date Book Applicants Must Sign by April 15
Applications for KU Date Book editor and business manager are due April 15 in the University Relations office, 233 Strong.
Applicants should include their name, address, school and grade point average, experience and reasons for applying.
JIMMY GILMER and-the FIREBALLS
Dot Record Hits—
● AIN'T GONNA TELL NOBODY
● SUGAR SHACK
● DAISY PETAL PICKIN'
MeadowAcres Ballroom, Topeka,
April 5, 8-11 p.m.
Patronize Kansan Advertisers
ALL YOU CAN EAT!
ONLY $1
Wednesday, March 25
(Regular buffet service always available)
The Little Banquet MALL SHOPPING CENTER
Make sure your clothes look sharp and fresh for all the Greek Week activities.
FOR FASHIONABLE EFFICIENT CLEANING SERVICE IT'S
Independent DRIVE-IN 900 Miss.
DOWNTOWN PLANT 740 Vt.