"From 1985-1987 caseworkers for Wisconsin's Winnebago County Department of Social Services compiled careful records of Joshua Deshaney's burns, cuts, and bruises. Despite his doctor's reports of suspected abuse and his frequent hospitalization, the department left Joshua with his father. Joshua was only three when he was beaten into a coma and left permanently paralyzed and retarded. When Joshua was nine, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that even though county social workers had been aware of the abuse and had done little to stop it, Winnebago County bore no constitutional responsibility for Joshua's fate. In this sad and appalling case, an important concern is brought to the surface that must be addressed. Who is responsible for our children?

Millions of children suffer from abuse each year. Of those millions, thousands die from prolonged abuse. The facts show that our children are not being protected and it is everyone's responsibility to correct this problem. Many factors contribute to the continued abuse of children and the tragic deaths that result from abuse. Bad parenting skills, failure of child protective services, and failure of the court system all aid in continued child abuse across America.

For example, a mother doesn't notice her two year old has fallen into the swimming pool. A man punches his son in the nose because he received an F on a test. An infant doesn't stop crying until his mother throws him against a wall. These people are not always psychopathic child abusers who do not love their children. Most child abusers simply just cannot handle the pressures of raising children and are not equipped with the right skills to do so. They lack appropriate role models on which to pattern their behavior as parents. They may also have never been given a sense of dignity and self-esteem and may find it difficult to provide their own children with either a sense of well being or appropriate discipline. While these cases of abuse are clearly uncalled for, the parents usually only need counseling and support.

Secondly, failure of child protective services (CPS) has been a major factor in the continuation of abuse. While CPS has been helpful to many children, countless others are falling through the cracks. The basic concern of child welfare workers is for the safety of the child, but no state has the financial resources to provide all the services needed to all the children and families who need them. In state after state, CPS workers have excessive case loads, are paid low salaries, and lack adequate training for the highly sensitive work involved in investigating child abuse reports, working with families in crisis, and participating in decisions to remove children from their homes. A former caseworker in Indiana told a legislative committee that she quit because she could not adequately follow the eighty children assigned to her. Also, many children removed from their families by CPS are only to be returned to their troubled families after a period of months or even weeks. A child was two months old when he was removed from his home because of suspected abuse. The child was returned home and was killed by a karate chop to the stomach at four months old.

Lastly, the failure of the court system plays an important role in the abuse of children. Very few abusers are convicted or even charged with the crime. While a person who has been charged with the possession of a large amount of cocaine faces no less than ten years in prison, a child abuser can get off with as little as five years in prison or even probation.

The court also discriminates against children. Prosecutors are reluctant to pursue cases relying on children's testimonies of abuse. Child witnesses are often doubted or thought to have fabricated their stories of abuse. Jurors tend to doubt children's testimonies, thereby making it difficult for young victims of abuse to win justice in the court system.

While many cases of abuse go by unseen and without help, many individuals are fighting to combat abuse and take responsibility for the children. In Polk County, Iowa, a child S.W.A.T. team was assembled. This ten member team springs into action within a few minutes of any report of suspected abuse. The child is in protective custody, the crime scene secured, and evidence is gathered in approximately thirty minutes. The conviction rate of the team is 98%. Also, in Hawaii, a program has been established that relies on hospital-based screening of new parents. Parents identified as potential abusers are offered counseling and weekly home visits for as long as five years. Another break through in child protection has been initiated in ten states. Family Prevention Services (FPS) involves the removal of the risk rather than the child from the home. FPS programs seek to modify the home environment or behavior of other family members so that it is at least safe for the child to remain in the household. There has never been a case of parental abuse or neglect causing serious injury or the death of a child while receiving FPS.

In conclusion, child abuse is running rampant across America, and we must all have a hand in stopping it. Bad parenting skills, failure of child protective services, and failure of the court system all contribute to prolonged abuse or death of children. One solution to this problem would be to raise the minimum penalty for intentionally causing serious injury to a child. Also, people who know of a child being abused and do not report it should be charged as an accessory to the crime. While they did not abuse the child, they did not fulfill their social responsibility of trying to stop the abuse. Another solution to eliminate abuse would be to do a mandatory follow-up on all newborns. This way, abuse can be detected early and may even be avoided. The responsibility of protecting our children weighs heavily on all of us. We must work together to eliminate this problem."
Shavanhn Patrice Dorris, Joliet High School, Joliet, Illinois

"When was the last time you, or someone you know, took responsibility for their actions? Sadly enough, it isn't very often. The problem with our society is that not many people will take the blame for something done wrong. . .We are all so proud that we cannot take the responsibility for the mistakes we do make.

Irresponsible premarital sex often results in teen pregnancies. Many people immediately blame the female teen for this problem, but the truth is there are other people involved, and equally at fault. The grandparents of the child, the fathers, and mothers all play a role in the birth of each baby.

The new grandparents have the huge responsibility of training their children to determine right from wrong. Until the child becomes an adult, the grandparents must instill morals and values into them through their actions, and entire lifestyle: that is the first step. If, for example, the grandmother engages in fornication as a hobby, how will her child know that this behavior is morally unacceptable? If the grandparents do not monitor the television, for instance, the child will grow up thinking that there is no problem with premarital sex, because it is highly encouraged in the media. Unfortunately, many grandparents neglect this basic step.

Should the grandparents fail to convince their son or daughter that premarital sex is wrong, and the child becomes pregnant, the grandparents must move on to the next step. They must be emotionally supportive of the new mother and father. For example, when twelve year-old Patrina became pregnant, her mom agreed to care for Patrina's baby long enough for Patrina to get an education. Anna's mom will find a job that enables her to watch Anna's baby while she is in school. These girls are blessed that their mothers took the responsibility to be supportive. Laura, however, was not so fortunate. When Laura's mom found out that Laura was pregnant, she forbade her to enter their house again. She also insisted that Laura and her boyfriend never see each other again.

When comparing teens with supportive parents to teens with nonsupportive parents, the results generally show that the teens without support have abortions and live their lives in poverty, and without an education or a father. Basically, the grandparents need to show their children why they were wrong, but they also need to take the responsibility to be helpful in their desperate time of need.

The new fathers are perhaps blamed for their irresponsibility less than the mothers, even though they are definitely equally at fault. When Bill discovered that his girlfriend became pregnant by him, he denied the fact and blamed one of her old boyfriends. Bill refused to support her in any way, and he vowed he would not see her anymore. This situation is repeated constantly. Male teens need to take responsibility for their actions. Fortunately, there are some men who own up to the mistakes they make and confess their wrongdoing. For example, Almega's boyfriend, Bruce, contributes a sizable percent of the weekly paycheck from his after-school job to help with the cost of raising Almega's baby. Men must ask themselves, 'Am I going to be responsible, or will I quit when problems come along?' Will they be like Bill or Bruce? Available to the responsible fathers in Texas is a special program that teaches job and parenting skills through schools, hospitals, and social services. This successful outreach is one of many across the country.

Equally responsible for childbirth are, of course, the teen mothers. Teenage girls need to take the responsibility to say 'No' to sex before marriage. In many cases, teen girls have sexual intercourse only because their boyfriend pressures them into it, and they fear losing him if they choose abstinence. One solution to this problem is to let everyone know about the numerous consequences specifically involved with teen pregnancies. To begin with, fifty percent of teen moms do not finish high school once they become pregnant. There is a large risk of low-weight babies, or premature births, and living your life with a child and no education is to doom yourself to a life of poverty. Children of inexperienced teen moms have a tendency to do badly in school. They may repeat years or receive low grades. Again, to help this problem are outreaches, rather, girls clubs. In San Diego, California, a club will pay ten dollars a week for a whole year, simply if each girl abstains from pregnancy or sex. Another club in Texas chooses ten girls who have had one pregnancy, and invites them to join. In exchange for a salary, the girls go to weekly counseling sessions. Instead of school pressures to lose your virginity, this program pressures the girls to avoid pregnancy.

Obviously not all mothers are bad. For example, Almega has decided to breast-feed her baby, since she knows it is healthier. And Joan gave her child up for adoption because she wanted her child to have a better life than she knew she could give him.

Even though there are some teens who try to be good mothers, many simply cannot. Teenage mothers who are uneducated, immature, and inexperienced cannot possibly raise a child properly. If not for the sake of the baby, consider how much your life will change when you become pregnant. That alone ought to help you make the right decision--do the right thing, and abstain from sex before marriage.

Basically, as humans living in a sinful world, we need to think for ourselves, and not let anyone push us around. We must take responsibility for our actions, and stop thinking that everyone else except us is to blame. If we all do this, our society will become much better."
Thomasine A. Laib, Joliet Central High School, Joliet, Illinois

"Twenty years ago, Americans filed lawsuits as a last resort. Now we are the world's most litigious people. From medical malpractice suits to wrongful death suits, litigation is destroying American companies and the American people. . .The U.S. has a lawyer for every three hundred people. That is about seventy percent of the world's attorneys. They are responsible for the rise in malpractice, wrongful death, and many other bogus suits in the United States. . .An attorney's job is to win for his client. To do his job, he may on an occasion have to obfuscate, deny, obstruct, and lie. If he does this he ends up with a paycheck. A steelworker in Pennsylvania was charged with murdering his wife. His lawyer stated that the two made a suicide pact, and that she went first, then he changed his mind.

In 1977, Sang Yeul Lee was killed when he urinated on the electrified third rail. A year later, his wife brought a wrongful death suit against the Chicago Transit Authority. Mrs. Lee ended up receiving $1.5 million plus $300,000 in interest. The Illinois Supreme Court told the landowners to be more careful preventing injuries to trespassers. Mrs. Lee's lawyer never mentioned that in order to walk to the third rail, Mr. Lee had to cross a wooden barrier and ignore signs that said 'Keep Out', 'Danger', and 'Electric Current'. Mr. Lee was also very intoxicated. Now, whose responsibility was it that Mr. Lee died? Obviously it was Mr. Lee's responsibility. Who is responsible for presenting the plaintiff's ridiculous lawsuit?. . .In 1968, Keene Corporation bought Baldwin-Ehret-Hill, which had a small percent of its sales in asbestos products. Even though the company never mined or milled asbestos, or didn't do anything illegal, Kent had to spend $500,000,000 on asbestos litigation on more than 90,000 cases. Less than thirty-five percent of the awards actually went to the plaintiff. This goes to show you that lawyers are in it for the money. . .Lawyers recruit plaintiffs who have been exposed to asbestos, but aren't sick. . .Lawyers don't charge their clients unless they win: so people end up filing suits because they have nothing to lose. . .The American Bar Association is trying to create a national on-line database of disbarred and censured lawyers. . .The Illinois House of Representatives enacted a statute that made lawsuits less profitable for plaintiffs and their lawyers. On March 9, 1995, Governor Jim Edgar signed H.B. 20 into law. 'This law will attract industry, reduce insurance premiums, put more products on the market, and prevent companies from declaring bankruptcy to avoid lawsuits' quoted Edgar.

North Carolina is another state that has laws against frivolous lawsuits. According to a national study, North Carolina has one of the lowest rates of punitive damages lawsuits. The reason for this is its doctrine of contributory negligence. The doctrine of contributory negligence bars plaintiffs from collecting money if they, in any way, contribute to their injury.

The lawyers in North Carolina are presently sponsoring a bill that would rewrite laws controlling lawsuits tied to faulty or negligent products. This bill would lower the responsibility of corporations, so that they would be less likely to be sued.

Republican lawmakers are supporting bills that would cap punitive damages and pain-and-suffering. A tort reform bill would cap punitive damages at $250,000 or three times the amount awarded to the plaintiff for economic injury. A related provision would also put a cap on pain-and-suffering lawsuits.

The lawyers who use the First Amendment to defend litigation should remember the ethical requirements of fairness, balance, and responsibility. . .Individuals deny responsibility, blame others for their problems, and don't want to pay for their own acts of stupidity. Lawyers represent these people and sometimes get rich in the process. As a result,. . .the American civil justice system is discredited, businesses are less competitive, and jobs are vanishing. In the long run, the American people pay the price. They will end up paying more for goods, services, and insurance. It all comes down to individual responsibility."
Tony Lucio, Joliet Central High School, Joliet, Illinois

"Too many people today refuse to take responsibility for their actions. They want to place the blame on everyone but themselves, so they make up syndromes as excuses. The list of possibly false psychological conditions goes on and on.

'Law, psychiatry, nutrition, biology, and pop psychology all helped explain why nobody can really be held accountable for harmful behavior anymore. We are becoming a nation of victims, and we are running out of victimizers,' according to John Leo, in Reader's Digest. Instead of people owning up to their faults, they blame the syndrome that they supposedly have. Those range from the Peter Pan Syndrome (when men refuse to grow up), the Delilah Syndrome (women who are sexually promiscuous because of a fear and dislike of a domineering father), the Sunglass Syndrome (in which the pressure of too heavy shades on the nose can cause cold-like symptoms), and the Santa Syndrome (low-grade fever, sinusitis, nasal congestion, painful swallowing and a decreased appetite, caused by germs that are passed to department-store Santas by kids perched on their laps), to the Chinese Restaurant Syndrome (blamed on the flavor enhancer MSG, traditionally used in Chinese cooking), the Miss Havisham Syndrome (named after a Charles Dickens character who never removed her gown after being spurned by her fiancee on her wedding day; a sufferer tries to freeze time by maintaining her style of dress and surroundings as they were when she heard the distressing news), and the Raggedy Ann Syndrome (another name for the chronic fatigue and chronic mononucleosis-like syndrome).

In their rush to establish even more categories of victims, lawyers and therapists are encouraging. . .irresponsibility by convincing people that they have a psychological problem with a catchy name. . .Some examples include a computer hacker from Los Angeles who was accused of breaking into a corporate software system and stealing an expensive security program. He pleaded 'not guilty' because he was a victim of 'computer addiction'. In Milwaukee, an imaginative defense lawyer cited 'cultural psychosis' as the reason why one teenage girl shot and killed another for her leather coat. According to the lawyer, the violence of inner-city life conditioned her into thinking that problems are resolved by gunfire. 'Four people in California were awarded more than $1 million after claiming that living near polluted ground water supply had given them 'cancerphobia',' according to John Taylor, author of 'Pointing the Finger: The Culture of Victimization.'

Another legal concept that helped people put the blame elsewhere is inadequate warning, which encourages anyone who had fallen off a stepladder or cut himself with a power saw to file a claim. 'Men who injured themselves in refrigerator races--in which large, usually beery guys strap refrigerators to their backs and see who can run the fastest--argued that the warnings against carrying these appliances were insufficient,' said John Taylor. Up until a few years ago, none of this would have left a lawyer's office, much less enter a courtroom. . .Society may be too accepting of these excuses. 'Not only may victimization make you famous and the center of attention, it offers absolution and no accountability and creates entitlements to sympathy, support, and reparations,' said Wendy Kaminer, author of 'I'm Dysfunctional, You're Dysfunctional.' Many people try to categorize themselves as victims: smokers are victims of tobacco, troubled teenagers are victims of their genes, women feel victimized by men and men feel victimized by feminism. Minorities feel victimized by the majority and vice-versa. Have we given these people too much of a choice?

'Perhaps the newest, the most perverse, the most outrageous twist in America's evolving culture of victimization is the claim by people who can't come up with an excuse, who can't find a suitable victim category, that they have been treated unfairly just by virtue of the fact that they have been caught doing something wrong. It's almost a form of discrimination,' according to John Taylor. The willingness of society to grant victim status to just about anyone trying to make even the most unbelievable claims, and the obvious benefits of them, can be seen in a new trend of litigation called 'compensating the injured.' These are people that haven't suffered, yet claim to be victims because they're afraid they might suffer one day. The case of Rock Hudson's lover, Marc Christian, who was awarded $19 million because he suffered from fear of AIDS, even though he tested negative for the virus, is a perfect example.

Although these aforementioned people have gone over the line, there are many people who have suffered and do not need to find justice. Those are the true victims that are sometimes overlooked because of the large number of false victims.

A possible solution to this abuse could be for people to use more common sense. It may be that simple. Do manufacturers have to start putting a label that says, 'Warning: Do not strap this refrigerator to your back and race with your friends,' just because a few dimwits decided they would like to practice a not only dangerous, but stupid game? This doesn't make any sense whatsoever. How about people that catch a cold and blame the sunglasses they wear. . .They are the ones that make me doubt if people have brains. We need to stop allowing people to make up these syndromes and to blame their past abuse. We also need to stop lawyers, judges, and therapists that give people the chance to use these excuses. People need to own up to their mistakes. That will soon put this horrible mess of 'Don't blame me--I'm the victim' nonsense to an end".
Elizabeth Vivanco, Joliet Central High School, Joliet, Illinois

"Cheating is wrong. Cheating academically is an irresponsible act on the part of an unprepared student.

First of all, the acceptance of academic cheating in today's society is a deterioration of our moral standards. The fact that cheating is looked upon as no big deal by most of us is an irresponsible attitude. Cheating can lead to other problems. . .If we accept cheating as appropriate behavior, we encourage people to be more dishonest and not as straight forward with other things in business and later in life. The attitude of some individuals in our culture is that we need to do what it takes to get the job done and in this case cheating is the job and the desired grade is the payoff. This 'do whatever it takes' society does not view academic cheating as a problem, so it is continued and the problem grows larger and larger. Many people do care about the problem of academic cheating and view it as a serious issue, but until the majority of people start to care, and think of a way to put a stop to the problem, it will amplify.

Secondly, the students who resort to cheating often claim that the pressure to succeed is too great. The students who use this weak and pitiful excuse obviously do not manage time well. A student from New England prep school was caught cheating on a final exam and expelled from the academy. When the principal and other authorities questioned the student as to why he cheated on the exam he replied, 'my parents pressured me to get good grades and I can't keep up with all the work without cheating'. Our society is only interested in winning all the time as if nothing else matters. . .The old clicheé 'it's not whether you win or lose it's how you play the game', is out dated as a clicheé. For today's culture it should read that you must win or you shouldn't play the game at all. . .People place more emphasis on sports than on academics which is an irresponsible attitude and should be changed. To think that games can be more important than a good education is inaccurate and immature and an irresponsible excuse for poor academic performance.

Competition in academics has both good points and bad points. Competition in academics can be good because it makes students try to succeed and beat the other students for a higher score and to be the best student that they can possibly be. Competition can also be a bad thing; it puts undo stress on students and makes them feel they need to do whatever it takes to get the higher grade even if it means cheating. . .I have no solution to the problem of cheating except to maybe reduce unneeded academic competition and to emphasize knowledge rather than grades. Another possible solution. . .is to reemphasize the values of simple right and wrong. . .The morals of some individuals seem to have. . .degenerated and cheating has become acceptable.

"Many people are frustrated by juvenile crime and what seems to be a growing number of young people exhibiting bad behavior. State and local governments are doing something about it. They are passing laws that force parents to take legal responsibility for the acts of their children. Under the new law, judges can now order parents of juvenile criminals to pay up to $10,000 for losses that victims or their families suffer because of a crime. The new law makes it hard for parents to plead poverty: A judge can consider the future earnings power of the parents of the child. So, because of the actions of one wayward child, the whole family can suffer.

"The problem of child abuse is a difficult, but not unsolvable, problem. There are several things that we can do to reduce the problem of child abuse. People need to start taking responsibility for their actions, and also to prevent irresponsible behavior on the part of others. Workplaces can educate their workers about child abuse by handing out pamphlets and holding special educational meetings. Schools can educate children, and possibly have an elective concerning abuse. People can be educated about reporting abuse through TV, radio, newspapers, or magazines. Case workers can be trained to handle cases better, and foster families can be screened more carefully to prevent abuse cases in a system designed to help. The government, or local communities can band together and build more centers for children and parents of abusive families. Local church groups can hold fund-raisers for abused children. . .The government can start taking action and removing kids from abusive homes, or getting help for the families. Cases of abuse can be prioritized, with the most worrisome getting top attention. Finally, parents can start taking responsibility for their actions and get help!

"Finally, each individual American needs to take responsibility for his decisions and actions. This means accepting civilized standards of behavior and the laws that govern our society. Individuals need to accept the consequences of their actions, not blame the entertainment industry for corrupting their mind or forcing them to commit crimes. Everyone needs to control his or her own life, regardless of what entertainment may promote. Our nation needs to remember what we were told as children, 'It's only a movie.'"
Mary Beth Sylvester, Joliet Central High School, Joliet, Illinois