i sympathise with plod having to deal with the parents of these kids
and the lack of options open to plod to sort the kids out
im always amazed at some of the serious life threatening stuff which results in the guilty party, in the unlikely event they are caught, being let straight back on the streets with little action of substance to address the problem
only long term solution is significantly better education in the inner cities and problem public housing estates, unlikely to happen while the decent parents all fight to be in the catchment area of the decent schools, if you were a teacher would you really want to teach a class full of these kids for the same money and less support? much easier to teach in middle class suburbia, and so itll get worse through the generations
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I agree with DP, it's down to the parenting, but when you have had generations of bad parenting, where are the examples/role models? The problems really set in when, despite parents best efforts, their kids get led astray at school.
Similar problem on last nights Police prog on ITV. Police up in Grimsby/Immingham having a hell of a job trying to explain to parents why they were right to take their 11 year old down the station for stealing goods, all captured on CCTV.
Edited by boxsterboy on 23/10/2007 at 11:44
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You have my deepest sympathies Jensen, a similar thing happened to my g.f. several months ago.
She was driving home on her own from a works meal at about 11pm, she passed a group of five or six teenagers on the pavement. One of these youths raised a road cone above his head and threw it at her car, she had no time to react and the cone hit the nsf wing (again, lucky it didnt hit the windscreen).
She braked to a halt and was going to get out and have a go at them, but saw in her mirror that they were running towards her car; whether this was just for the confrontation (likely?) or they had other motives I do not know. Thankfully she had the presence of mind to drive off rather than confront them, despite being shocked and in a rage. I hate to think what could have happened if she had got out and tried to berate them.
I dont want to put into words my thoughts about this phenomenon of teenage delinquents with no concept of discipline and no respect for anyone or anything.
:o(
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Why's castration never been used?
Nip the problem in the bud, literally.
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I faced similar issues quite often!
Last year, when walking on the road, someone threw a rubber ball on my wife's head. Nothing serious but couldn't trace who did.
My car is parked on the road. Few months back, on the morning I discovered that someone had bent my car's rear wiper! Fortunately, a local garage fixed that free of cost.
During the heavy snow in the beginning of this year, a road was blocked by puddles built by some 16-17 yr olds. An elderly woman was in arguments with them as she can't proceed for this!
My manager's car was dented by some youths dancing on his car's roof (in Nottingham)!
What can we say? Today's kids know that even if they don't anything, the government will provide them food as well as all the luxuries of modern life. So, forget books and education, just have fun....
PS: I think I saw on this forum a thread on "footprints on roof of car"....
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"only long term solution is significantly better education in the inner cities and problem public housing estates"
I agree that education is key especially now that there are so few jobs available for those with poor educational attainment. However, I do feel that today's generation have far better educational opportunities than were afforded to previous generations with good facilities and a wide range of subjects. Certainly some schools are better than others but all are now subject to rigorous inspections and it is possible to work hard and do well from a lower performing school whereas in the past a bad school was really bad, giving pupils little chance of achieving much.
It just seems sad when so much money has been ploughed into education by successive governments of both political persuasions that people do not value it more highly and take the advantages they have.
I stopped on a local quayside recently to make a phone call and there were a group of teenagers in a car eating burgers, etc. When they had finished their "meals" they simply opened the windows and threw all the rubbish out onto the quay. Just unbelievable.
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MLC - I don't think anybody is knocking/bashing the police in this thread. All I can see is comments about carp parenting and useless uneducated and uneducatable teens. We are now into a generation of rude boorish children conceived and not brought up up by rude boorish parents. Judging by the size and shape of the females who come into my place of work, asking for the morning-after-pill I'd say were making a start on a 3rd genration of fat dumb pillox! That said, I am not bashing teenagers, there must be a lot of charming well behaved ones - somewhere!
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re "However, I do feel that today's generation have far better educational opportunities than were afforded to previous generations with good facilities and a wide range of subjects" no at all. Granted it was bad in my Dads generation. But in my day a genuinely poor famly in a poor area did have a chance of getting their kid into a decent school, if the kid did well they were able to escape and get a grant to go to uni.
These days decent schools are much more reglated by postcode, and unless your parents are rich enough to live in the correct postcode, or lie about it, you are doomed to a rubbish school. Even if you then by some miracle do OK, you are expected to borrow more money than your family has ever seen to go to uni - so it never happens.
There is much less social mobility now under Brown/Blair than there was under Maggie etc.
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These days decent schools are much more reglated by postcode and unless your parents are rich enough to live in the correct postcode or lie about it you are doomed to a rubbish school.
That is very true and is happening to some friends of ours who are now looking at schools for their oldest daughter.
There are two schools in their area - one is very good, and the other is among the bottom 20 in the South East.
They fall into the catchment for the poor school literally by one street. Walk out of their front gate, cross the street, and walk less than 30 seconds. It's that close.
The houses in the next street that fall in the catchment area for the good school are identical to the house they live in now. The price of these identical houses is £50,000 higher.
There is much less social mobility now under Brown/Blair than there was under Maggie etc.
That was officially confirmed in a London School of Economics report recently. Social mobility has declined steadily in recent years, and now lags way behind Canada, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland. We are also the about the only developed country where the gap between rich and poor is increasing. Even in the US it's fairly static.
Cheers
DP
--
04 Grand Scenic 1.9 dCi Dynamique
00 Mondeo 1.8TD LX
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"Granted it was bad in my Dads generation. But in my day a genuinely poor family in a poor area did have a chance of getting their kid into a decent school, if the kid did well they were able to escape and get a grant to go to uni."
I was really thinking about the days of the old Secondary Modern back in the 70s where pupils were doomed to take the old CSE instead of O Levels and it would be exceptional for someone to reach Uni from that base.
"There is much less social mobility now" .... "confirmed in a London School of Economics report recently"
I completely agree on the lack of social mobility which really is disturbing and the LSE Report to which you refer is presumably the one below.
tinyurl.com/9hj83
Unfortunately the report does not go on to explore the root causes of this inequality.
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I too believe that bad parenting is the problem.
I do not, however, believe that better education is the solution.
Good teachers are helpless when confronted by classes of children who
a) are totally unmotivated
b) have learned (by the age of 5) a total disrespect for everyone - and a lot of other pretty unhelpful values
c) have parents who will in no way support the teacher
d) face enormous peer-pressure to be stupid and anti-social.
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Back to motoring, if possible, please!
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Just like to add that this incident has been reported to the police and although they have said it is very unlikely these youths will be caught (I knew this already), the police were extremely helpful and understanding!
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About 6 months ago one of the orderlies in the hospital I work came in with his arms covered in cuts and scratches. I asked him what had happened. He had been driving back from the city with his wife when some youths threw rock at his car. He came to a screeching halt reversed back up the road and took off after them. They had seen him coming and run off through the fields. John chased them and they spit up. He followed one over streams through thorn bushes and finally the kid ran into a house and slammed the door. John is a little guy, about 50 and quite scrawny but he was as mad as a meat axe. He kicked and bashed at the door till the kids father came, demanded the kid who was hiding behind his dad. The dad took one look at John who had murder in his eye and slammed the door in his face and called the police. The police arrived almost immediately. They were in the area looking for youths who had been reported throwing stones. Cars on that road are doing 70mph and stones are serious. The cops demanded to see the youth who then broke into tears and confessed everything before he was even asked. Charges were laid and John sent a bill to the father for panel damage to his car.
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Nice to hear a story with a happy ending, Expat.
By the way, what country did you say this happened in?
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Mr Mapmaker will be along soon to tell you it's your fault for failing to observe the little darlings at play, while you were trying to avoid the potholes, speedcameras, cyclists, drunks, pedestrians,..............................
Don't you know that as a humble motorist, EVERYTHING is your fault.
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good one mr tee,made me larf anyway
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"By the way, what country did you say this happened in?"
We are in rural West Australia. I have found the police over here to be very good. Responsive and helpful. They have a hard job and I couldn't do it. I expect the British police are the same but they have been hobbled by political correctness and human rights. There needs to be a lot more support given to the police by the politicians and the media and a lot less paperwork dumped onto them.
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Sorry, can't tar all youngsters with the same brush! I work with them all week and most are well mannered and hard working and many very talented. You can go go down the nature and nurture road but given support and encouragement I think the majority will turn out Ok. They are from all backgrounds too.
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