Lost souls

You can call me an old fogey or a bleeding heart, it matters not. I have two things on my frayed mind, two wrongs that must be righted. Both involve young people. The first involves something I keep hearing about: kids in school who aren’t paying attention in class. Maybe they’re fooling around with a friend or busy with that other close friend, their iPhone. Whichever it is, they’re not learning anything nor are the others sitting nearby who become distracted.
I know all about classroom disturbance first-hand because I had one teacher in high school who could not control pupils. At times, we would even go so far as to open the windows and throw things outside. Happily, in those days, the other teachers did not allow any such ongoing shenanigans. How? At the first sign of a badly behaved student at the beginning of the school year, the teacher would punish them for whatever they were doing, thereby setting an example of the interest and enthusiasm levels expected in order to permit learning.
Easy? No, but persistence will yield proper patterns. Equally tough rules could surely prevent iPhone use. A few phones confiscated with return to the owner only at the end of the day would be penalty enough to set higher non-usage standards. Otherwise, think of all the life learning lost.
The second issue that appears to be damaging young people is ads for betting that are pervasive during sports broadcasts. Scores and related game information are presented by something called “bet365” that looks to me like nothing more than a way to fritter away funds. Moreover, during most games there are live panels, often sponsored by other betting vehicles. Gambling used to be available only to the high-octane few, now everyone can sit at home while betting sites suck money from those who barely have funds enough for the needs of daily life.
According to reports presented in Parliament, 15 percent of young Canadians aged 18-35 have a gambling problem. Imagine all those wasted lives. Legislation setting national standards for online gambling websites has been awaiting approval for a while. Let’s commit to recapturing peace in the classroom and reducing seductive ads on the airwaves. Young people have enough pressures on them these days just trying to grow up and get on with life .