TN: Teenage boys are stupid

[HerrGlock]

http://blogs.knoxnews.com/knx/granju/2008/08/teenage-boys-are-stupid-2.html
Teenage boys are stupid

Teenage boys are idiots. And today's American teenage boys - whom our culture holds in a sort of manchild limbo long past the age they need to be doing some sort of hard work and earning their keep - are even bigger idiots.

By the time a male is about 16 years old, he has the body of an adult male, an adult male with a brain under assault by a dramatic rush of hormones the likes of which he'll never again see during any other period of his lifetime. Teenage boys are more impulsive and aggressive than any other group. WItness their penchant for crashing cars, diving headfirst into rock quarries, experimenting with drugs, and deciding to "play chicken" by draping themselves across dark country roads in an attempt to prove something to their similarly stupid peers.They are driven by sexual curiosity to the point of insanity, and they hold a misguided sense of immortality.

Yes, I'm generalizing. Many teenage boys are polite, respectful, accomplished individuals, but those of them who are are pulling this off are doing so by fighting the natural impulses to be idiots that threaten to overtake them every day.

There is, perhaps, no other single group in American life less suited to have access to handguns than teenage boys. Which leads me to the primary question I have yet to see answered regarding yesterday's tragic shooting at Central High School. Where did the boy get that gun? I want to know the provenance of that gun, and if evidence is found that any adult knowingly or very negligently allowed that kid to get his hands on that gun, that adult deserves to be sitting behind bars this morning along with the boy who fired the shot.

Teenage boys are stupid.

So are the adults who allow them to get their hands on guns.

Posted by Katie Allison Granju on August 22, 2008 at 9:15 AM

(Comments block at the bottom of the page)

[Tx-G30]

i'm more afraid of teenage boys driving cars

[SergeantC]

I left this comment:

You ask, where did this boy get that gun?

A better question would be, what influences in his short life made this youngster capable of murder? The gun is not the issue. People can commit murders with baseball bats, tennis rackets, tire irons, knives, and even their hands and feet, to name a few weapons that have been used in murders.

Why is that before he even graduates from high school, before he is even an adult, this teenager is capable of casually taking a life.

Guns don't frighten me. Access to guns doesn't frighten me. The thing that frightens me is that we seem to be, as a society, raising monsters. And I think it's going to get worse before it gets better.

[Indy_Guy_77]

Of course teenagers are stupid...

Wasn't it just recently that a large study showed that the area of the brain responsible for decision making isn't fully formed until in the mid 20s?

And people want to LOWER the drinking age...

-J-

[StraitR]

I left this comment:

You ask, where did this boy get that gun?

A better question would be, what influences in his short life made this youngster capable of murder? The gun is not the issue. People can commit murders with baseball bats, tennis rackets, tire irons, knives, and even their hands and feet, to name a few weapons that have been used in murders.

Why is that before he even graduates from high school, before he is even an adult, this teenager is capable of casually taking a life.

Guns don't frighten me. Access to guns doesn't frighten me. The thing that frightens me is that we seem to be, as a society, raising monsters. And I think it's going to get worse before it gets better.

Excellent post on the blog SergeantC, and very good points...

I posted something similar, albeit more sarcastic and direct, on the original thread about the shooting yesterday. It ultimately boils down to failed parenting and there needs to be greater accountability on the legal guardians of children who commit felonious acts.

No more, "oh Billy, he was so misguided", without the misguiding party being held responsible to a greater degree than we hold them now. I know that these days the thought of jail or prison time does little to deter some people from acting the way they do. If one parent did a better job raising their child because of knowing they are truly responsible for their child's actions then ultimately it's the child who benefited the most and that's a success.

[elo]

Teenage boys are stupid
Brainless media twits are stupid



... it's a working title.. I don't have the patience to work on the body.

[Thebes]

And people who think creating another "forbidden fruit" out of an issue (be it guns or alcohol) are just as stupid.

Knowledge is power and prohibition is about ignorance.

Teenage boys (especially) need to be absolutely surrounded by guns and cars and alcohol - and by responsible, loving people in their lives who show them how such things are used and enjoyed for those who choose to do so.

These things are out there, anyway, whether the responsible mentors are or not.

[Aran]

Of course teenagers are stupid...

Wasn't it just recently that a large study showed that the area of the brain responsible for decision making isn't fully formed until in the mid 20s?

And people want to LOWER the drinking age...

-J-

I'd like to see it abolished, personally.

[Hucklebarry]

And people who think creating another "forbidden fruit" out of an issue (be it guns or alcohol) are just as stupid.

Knowledge is power and prohibition is about ignorance.

Teenage boys (especially) need to be absolutely surrounded by guns and cars and alcohol - and by responsible, loving people in their lives who show them how such things are used and enjoyed for those who choose to do so.

These things are out there, anyway, whether the responsible mentors are or not.


What about parents who don't drink alcohol? Should they loan out their teenage sons to parents who drink, to show them how it is used and enjoyed?

Just wondering.

[vote Republican]

As a teenage boy, I agree with the title of this thread


:supergrin:

[Thebes]

What about parents who don't drink alcohol? Should they loan out their teenage sons to parents who drink, to show them how it is used and enjoyed?

Just wondering.

I think the onus is on them to at least talk to their kids about what responsible drinking is, point out people in their lives whom they consider good examples of responsible alcohol users etc. They can always hold up their own non-use as a viable example. But they should always acknowledge that their children may not follow that example.

[elo]

she's since qualified her stance... read the comments below the article.

[SIGSAREBETTER]

This case made my heart hurt frankly, but it has nothing to do with guns really, at least from a public policy standpoint. It sickens me that this doesn't change the media coverage.

[johnd]

As an ex teenage boy myself and a father of daughters thats not new news.

Boys, or males, up to about the age of mid 30s can only think with whats below their beltline. After that age its still not much better but they are usually distracted by debt and kids

In nature, the dumb adolescents usually get eaten by something else but we humans dont have that pleasure