BCT Editorial – 2/21/07

This page was last updated on February 24, 2007.

Bitter harvest; Editorial; Beaver County Times; February 21, 2007.

Below is a detailed critique of the subject editorial.

“When it comes to their welfare, American children have the worst of both worlds.”

[RWC] “American children have the worst of both worlds?” Where, on the bizarre world?

I’ve asked this question before. Do editorial authors read what they write?

“Their government is failing them and their families are failing them.

“A United Nations survey released last week ranked the United States next to last when it comes to the welfare of children in 21 wealthy countries.

“Only the United Kingdom rated worse.

“The Associated Press reported the UNICEF study ranked the countries in six categories, based on national statistics: material well-being, health and safety, education, peer and family relationships, behaviors and risks, and young people’s own subjective sense of well-being. Both the U.S. and Britain were in the bottom two-thirds of five of the six categories.”

[RWC] Hmm, why didn’t the editorial author read the report himself?

“The U.S. finished last in the health and safety category, based on infant mortality, vaccinations for childhood diseases, deaths from injuries and accidents before age 19, and whether children reported fighting in the past year or being bullied in the previous two months.

“It finished second from the bottom in the category focusing on relationships, based on the percentage of children who lived in single-parent homes or with stepparents, as well as the percentage that ate the main meal of the day with their families several times per week. That category also counted the proportion of children who said they had ‘kind’ or ‘helpful’ relationships with other children.

“The AP story contained an interesting observation. In general, northern European countries with strong social welfare systems dominated the upper half of the rankings - Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark and Finland were No. 1 through No. 4, and Norway was No. 7 - while southern European countries, such as Spain, Italy and Portugal, ranked higher in terms of family support and levels of trust with friends and peers.

“Our children are getting support from neither source.

“Instead, they’re left to fend for themselves in a foster-care society that is indifferent to their physical, emotional and spiritual needs. Our nation is about to reap a bitter harvest for what it has sown.”

[RWC] Gee, I thought the Times used the “reap what it has sown” comment exclusively for Iraq.

Before you get wound up about this report, consider some of the questions that went into the ratings.

· Does your family own a van, car, or truck?

· Do you have your own bedroom for yourself?

· During the past 12 months, how many times did you travel away on holiday with your family?

· How many computers does your family own?

Finally, have you noticed Times editorials constantly portray the U.S. as some kind of hellhole? Of course, if we continue down the socialist road, it will become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

I really wish editorial authors would sign their names.