Personal Responsibility

As I was driving to work today, I was listening to sports radio. (I'm a guy...what can I say?) The conversation, as it frequently is, was about Barry Bonds and steroids. One caller said that it is the parent's responsibility to teach their children the dangers of steroids, to watch over them, and to recognize that men like Bonds are not role models.

That is true. However, we also need to teach our kids personal responsibility. If they take steroids to be like Bonds, there have to be reasons behind it. There is the "win at all costs" attitude that prevails in the world today. But the kids choose to take the 'rhoids. They get them from somewhere, and it usually isn't the parent that is providing them.

In a way, this is a symptom of the "not my fault" generation. In many cases, this generation of adults has moved away from the principle of hard work to earn their money and have looked for the "quick fix" method. There is the gambling method, where someone continues to plow money into the lottery or gambling trying to get the easy millions. (Eventually, even the winners end up miserable because they found that money didn't solve their problems...but that's a topic for another time.) My favorite method is the "let's sue them" method. I hear that phrase over and over, especially on the news. Someone is suing McDonalds because their food made them fat. Really? Junk food three times a day can make you fat? What a concept! Another person sued McDonalds because they spilled coffee in their lap and the coffee was...hot!! Another surprise! You order hot coffee and you get hot coffee! Come on now. When I get something from the drive-through from a minimum wage employee, I always check to be sure the lid is on tight because I don't want to wear my drink. Yet this person who didn't check thinks McDonalds should be sued because the coffee was hot. That isn't the real reason. They want an easy buck, and that is the attitude of society today. Look for a reason to sue and sue.

Okay folks. Tell me that this attitude hasn't affected our kids. I dare you. Whether it is teen sex, drug use, stealing, materialism, or whatever; society's example has infected our kids. And how can we stop it? One way is to set the example. Bonds should take responsibility for what he did, confess it, take the spanking, and move on. As parents, we should display the benefits of hard work and not look for the quick buck. We also should teach our children the necessity of taking responsibility for their actions. If they get in trouble at school, don't go down and yell at the teacher like it is her fault! Nine times out of ten it is the child's fault, and he or she should take whatever punishment is doled out. That is how we teach it. That is how they learn it.

Winning isn't everything, and money isn't happiness. And Barry...take the blame. You did it. You know you did. Be a man.