Animals
As the father of two teenagers, I often wonder what takes place inside those heads made of solid concrete. Impulsive decisions, extreme risk-taking and a belief in one's invincibility exemplify the typical teen.
Many laws and policies codify the belief that wisdom comes with age. The minimum age requirements for public office start at 21, depending on the office. A minimum age of 21 is also required to legally gamble or purchase and/or use alcohol, tobacco or handgun ammunition. Statistics show those under 25 demonstrate an inability to adequately assess risk, providing insurance companies justification for their rates. Some rental car companies require prospective customers to be a minimum of 25.
All of this conventional wisdom is supported by a National Institutes of Health study that found the human dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex is one of the last brain regions to mature. This region, responsible for controlling impulses and weighing risks, does not fully develop until the mid-20s. In the words of one periodical, the pre-25 brain is "a turbocharged car with a set of brakes still under construction."
Given conventional wisdom, laws, statistics and medical research, one must ask if it is conscionable to send people aged 18 to 21 into war. After all, if they aren't capable of properly assessing the risks of drinking, smoking, gambling or driving a car, how can they properly assess the risks inherent to combat?
Because of their proclivity for thrills and their inability to foresee possible consequences, it's shamefully easy to encourage young people to fight in a war such as the one in Iraq.
A cynic might even argue a president who wanted such a war and a Congress that won't stop it are actually counting on immature dorsal lateral prefrontal cortexes to keep it going. After all, as Sen. McGovern said, it's the "old men" who keep "dreaming up wars for young men to die in."
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- Old Enough For The Military, But Not The Men's Room?
In Today's Letter to the Editor (The Sun Herald) Old enough for the military, but not the men's room? My 20-year-old son recently returned from a 14-month tour of combat duty with the U.S. Army in Iraq. As part of his homecoming, we treated him...
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PolitiCalypso posted Insurance Industry Issues Veiled Threat to the Gulf Coast at DailyKos. Some of the comments were infuriating to say the least. Yes, State Farm made some serious mistakes in handling their Mississippi and Louisiana claims, but folks...
- Democrats Will Vote To................
Raise the federal minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25 an hour. Curb lobbyists' influence by banning meals and gifts to lawmakers and requiring more disclosure and oversight. Repeal subsidies for the oil industry. Cut college-loan interest rates in half....
- Endings.....beginnings
This week marks the end of construction at Bee Haven Acres. The main house decks are finished and today will be the completion of the deck on the guest house (pictures tomorrow). Yesterday we treated our construction team to a steak luncheon. I made homemade...
Animals
The Big Kahuna ask, Is war the ultimate thrill for the young?
As the father of two teenagers, I often wonder what takes place inside those heads made of solid concrete. Impulsive decisions, extreme risk-taking and a belief in one's invincibility exemplify the typical teen.
Many laws and policies codify the belief that wisdom comes with age. The minimum age requirements for public office start at 21, depending on the office. A minimum age of 21 is also required to legally gamble or purchase and/or use alcohol, tobacco or handgun ammunition. Statistics show those under 25 demonstrate an inability to adequately assess risk, providing insurance companies justification for their rates. Some rental car companies require prospective customers to be a minimum of 25.
All of this conventional wisdom is supported by a National Institutes of Health study that found the human dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex is one of the last brain regions to mature. This region, responsible for controlling impulses and weighing risks, does not fully develop until the mid-20s. In the words of one periodical, the pre-25 brain is "a turbocharged car with a set of brakes still under construction."
Given conventional wisdom, laws, statistics and medical research, one must ask if it is conscionable to send people aged 18 to 21 into war. After all, if they aren't capable of properly assessing the risks of drinking, smoking, gambling or driving a car, how can they properly assess the risks inherent to combat?
Because of their proclivity for thrills and their inability to foresee possible consequences, it's shamefully easy to encourage young people to fight in a war such as the one in Iraq.
A cynic might even argue a president who wanted such a war and a Congress that won't stop it are actually counting on immature dorsal lateral prefrontal cortexes to keep it going. After all, as Sen. McGovern said, it's the "old men" who keep "dreaming up wars for young men to die in."
- Death & Taxes
I found this neat website I thought I would share. Death and Taxes is a representational graph of the federal discretionary budget. The amount of money that is spent at the discretion of your elected representatives in Congress. Basically, your federal...
- Old Enough For The Military, But Not The Men's Room?
In Today's Letter to the Editor (The Sun Herald) Old enough for the military, but not the men's room? My 20-year-old son recently returned from a 14-month tour of combat duty with the U.S. Army in Iraq. As part of his homecoming, we treated him...
- How Could They Be So Wrong?
PolitiCalypso posted Insurance Industry Issues Veiled Threat to the Gulf Coast at DailyKos. Some of the comments were infuriating to say the least. Yes, State Farm made some serious mistakes in handling their Mississippi and Louisiana claims, but folks...
- Democrats Will Vote To................
Raise the federal minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25 an hour. Curb lobbyists' influence by banning meals and gifts to lawmakers and requiring more disclosure and oversight. Repeal subsidies for the oil industry. Cut college-loan interest rates in half....
- Endings.....beginnings
This week marks the end of construction at Bee Haven Acres. The main house decks are finished and today will be the completion of the deck on the guest house (pictures tomorrow). Yesterday we treated our construction team to a steak luncheon. I made homemade...