WPCNR MR. & MRS. & MS. WHITE PLAINS VOICE. February 3, 2006: A reader noting news accounts which included televised mugshot of a White Plains parent charged with a misdemeanor for "unlawful handling of a child," when alleged teen drinking was going on in his home January 21 expresses shock:
Have we been transported back 20 years to the USSR? Cops peep in windows to catch 17 year olds having a beer, then arrest the parents. Some of these "children" will be serving in Iraq in a year but they can''t have beer in our increasingly puritanical community.
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People are going to party. People are going to drink. Parents should teach responsible drinking. This gestapo mentality will just encourage binge drinking where kids down half a bottle of vodka in 15 minutes and then go out to a "dry" party. Where are 17 year olds supposed to go? There are no more dances at schools and churches. There are no gyms kept open for drop-in sports. Don't our cops have something better to do than worry about a controlled, parent supervised party with 10 kids.
Don't get me wrong. If one of those drinking kids gets behind the wheel, they should be arrested immediately. But assuming designated drivers and no excessive consuption, I just don''t agree with these home invasions. They will just lead to binge drinking and push kids into remote, wooded areas where they can get into real trouble.
Anonymous
