Kids Are Not Defective

Back when I was a teenager, in the mid-1990s, a myriad of politicians, reporters, experts and officials all shared a serious concern over a growing problem: me “Today’s media portrayals of teens employ the same stereotypes once openly applied to unpopular racial and ethnic groups: violent, reckless, hypersexed, welfare-draining, obnoxious, ignorant. And like traditional stereotypes, the modern media teenager is a distorted image, derived from the dire fictions promoted by official agencies and interest groups.” -Mike Males, Bashing Youth (1994) Bumper Music: "Tea For the Tillerman" Cat Stevens "Burning Bridges" The Mike Curb Congregation Look Closer: Bashing Youth: Media Myths About Teenagers, By Mike Males http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=1224 The Case Against Adolescence: Rediscovering the Adult in Every Teen (Robert Epstein) http://www.amazon.com/Case-Against-Adolescence-Rediscovering-Adult/dp/188495670X AGAINST ...

(Kids Are Not Defective Part 10) Today, a further exploration of acquiescence and aggression, from a different angle. Stephanie Murphy, Wes Bertrand and I discuss the perpetuation of gender roles and stereotypes throughout childhood, referencing the work of Cordelia Fine. We also question the disparity between the numbers of men and women in the liberty movement and the Free State Project. Bumper Music: "Baby It's Cold Outside" Dean Martin and Martina McBride Look Closer: Gender gap a scientific myth, says psychology expert http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2010/sep/10/gender-gap-myth-cordelia-fine Delusions of Gender: How Our Minds, Society, and Neurosexism Create Difference by Cordelia Fine http://www.amazon.com/Delusions-Gender-Society-Neurosexism-Difference/dp/0393068382 Wes Bertrand's Site: Complete Liberty Home Stephanie Murphy's Site: Porc Therapy http://porctherapy.com/ Past articles by Stephanie R. Murphy on LewRockwell.com http://www.lewrockwell.com/murphy-s/murphy-s-arch.html Delusions ...

(Kids Are Not Defective Part 9) Topic: I meet up with Stephanie Murphy and Mike Barskey, the hosts of Porc Therapy Podcast, to discuss common types of dysfunction in adult relationships. We examine the question: Are there embedded lessons or messages from school and childhood that most people can't seem to escape in their adolescent and adult romantic relationships? The Lessons From School: 1. People can be easily changed 2. It's dangerous/abnormal/inconsiderate to express your emotions 3. Pay attention to words, ignore deeds We cover the all-too-common phenomenon of 'settling,' due to a lack of self-knowledge and low self-esteem. I also discuss my experience with the "Skinner Box" of relationships. If I do this, I will get this. Bumper Music: ...

(Kids Are Not Defective Part 8) Topic: Stefan Molyneux of Freedomain Radio joins me to discuss the seemingly elusive nature of heroism. Our discussion surveys a variety of historical topics as we examine how heroes are manufactured by our government education, while our own capacity for "heroism" is gradually diminished. We also explore the conjecture that government school's theft of our sense of personal power contributes to a desire to experience heroism only through fantasy. Then, "heroism" gets a long overdue redefining. Bumper Music: Star Wars Disco Theme Look Closer: Heroism Part 1 - from Freedomain Radio http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_ix9MT3jn0 Heroism Part 2 - from Freedomain Radio http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVHAWSFXbPw BOOK: Lies my teacher told me: everything your American history textbook got wrong, By ...

(Kids Are Not Defective Part 7) Topic: Dr. Bruce Levine joins me to discuss his article, How Teenage Rebellion Has Become a Mental Illness. It turns out that pathologizing or "diseasing" rebellious behavior is not a new trick for those who hold tenuous power over others. Bumper Music: "The Man Who Danced Too Slowly" Baka Beyond Look Closer: Frontline - The Medicated Child http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoHv-_Rwu6c How Teenage Rebellion Has Become a Mental Illness by Dr. Bruce E. Levine http://www.alternet.org/health/75081?page=entire The Drugging of Our Children By Gary Null http://www.familyrightsassociation.com/bin/white_papers-articles/drugging_our_children/ Appendix 43 - Drapetomania by Michael Greger, MD and United Progressive Alumni http://upalumni.org/medschool/appendices/appendix-43.html ADHD schoolkids '10 times worse' on Ritalin, dexamphetamine, study finds http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/breaking-news/adhd-schoolkids-10-times-worse-on-ritalin-dexamphetamine-study-finds/story-e6frea73-1225831266819?from=public_rss

(Kids Are Not Defective Part 6) Topic: There is a phrase, "hole in the soul," that describes how a person may feel incomplete, unworthy, or dependent on external things. While much of this is probably rooted in family, I believe that school can contribute to one's sense of personal emptiness. This is a long and winding show that covers a valedictorian's brave and moving graduation speech, leading into a discussion of the problems created for all students by the carrots and sticks of school. As Alfie Kohn points out in his book (linked below), even the rewards are a kind of punishment, robbing us of our own purpose and intrinsic motivation. Whether we are the "overachiever" who gets the carrots ...

(Kids Are Not Defective Part 5) Topic: in·cu·ba·tor (noun) 1.An apparatus in which environmental conditions, such as temperature and humidity, can be controlled, providing suitable conditions for a chemical or biological reaction. 2. A place or situation that permits or encourages the formation and development of new ideas Forced Associations Adolescence is plagued by an artificial, society-created extension of childhood dependence. This is time where people can certainly begin to achieve greater self-knowledge and emotionally maturity, unless they're trapped in place that prevents it. There is no escape from the negativity; school is compulsory The Hypocrisy of Adults What's even worse: in this place, some pretty abhorrent behavior is modeled for kids on a daily basis. This behavior violates all ...

(Kids Are Not Defective Part 4) Topic: My thoughts on bullying. It's not a problem that always begins at school, but that's often where it ends. Tragically. We all understand that bullies seek out victims. But do victims often seek out bullies? Do victims wish to be bullies? Almost all bullies are the victim of someone else. This is a quick look at root causes, but there is more to come on this topic. Look Closer: Real Time Relationships by Stefan Molyneux http://www.freedomainradio.com/free/books/FDR_3_PDF_Real_Time_Relationships.pdf On Bullies, by Bob Jackson http://www.strike-the-root.com/content/bullies The Root Evil of Widespread Emotional Damage, by Glen Allport http://www.strike-the-root.com/71/allport/allport4.html

(Kids Are Not Defective Part 3) PICTURE: What kind of a person commands others to kneel in front of them? Topic: Ahhh, religion. Another great way to learn about all the things that are wrong with you. I receive an email from a Conservative Christian organization that sends me into an explosive rant and an examination of the amazing contradictions and inconsistencies in American Culture. Could culture even exist if people applied principles consistently? I also look back at my own Roman Catholic upbringing, specifically at an interaction with a nun resulting from my curiosity over the chronology of the life of Jesus. Then I imagine the same interaction with a more precocious and enlightened child. Bumper Music: "Magical Mystery ...

(Kids Are Not Defective Part 2) Topic: After reflecting on the last show, I wanted to explore my family comments a bit more thoroughly. Why do adults jump so quickly to the defense of the authority figures in their lives? Why are so many people resistant to the idea that their childhoods were not exactly great? When and how will the effects of childhood mistreatment reveal themselves? Because they always do. To answer these questions, I briefly channel a "composite character" assembled from many of my past discussions about raising children. Bumper Music: "Hometown Glory" by Adele Look Closer: Freedomain Radio 211: Childhood Prisons http://www.freedomainradio.com/Traffic_Jams/FDR_211_Childhood_Prisons.mp3 Complete Liberty Episode 31 - Authoritarianism and family, getting personal with ethics, battles of the ...

PICTURED: A listener sent me this example of his son's (first grade) school work, which includes the teacher's thoughts on his exercise of creativity. The introduction to a new series of shows about some other messages forced into the minds of children and young adults. These shows will include topics like medication, parenting, spanking, behavioral "disorders," bullying, "reward" systems and zero tolerance policies. Today, and hopefully someday this will not be the case, childhood and adolescence are not about a process of discovery that eventually leads to the embrace of ideas and beliefs that are chosen by you. Instead, childhood and adolescence are all about a process of training that eventually leads to the acceptance of ideas and beliefs that ...