Clean up your mess, teens

I think it is dangerous to say 'teenagers' feel that this is ok, since it implies that all teenagers do. But i think that those (teenagers and the adults i have seen do the same) who DO feel that it is ok may not have had parents who emphasized respect for others property and picking up after them selves, but who knows, they could be having serious family problems and are acting out, or any number of things. maybe it is a trend or maybe these particular people each have their own reason for their actions. I worked at a sporting goods store and was appalled by the number of adults who did just this and allowed their children to do the same. Leanne 100% Bi-racial

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Name : Leanne, Gender : F, Race : I'm a mutt!!, Religion : Christian, Age : 22, City : pleasant hill, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : artist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

I cannot help but belive that teenagers think they have the right to be disruptive and destructive because they have not been taught that they do not. The generation of parents that reared my generation drew a hard line on what was acceptable and unacceptable behavior. Political correctness did not enter into the equation. It was Classical Conditioning at its best: Inappropriate behavior was met with the same unpleasant response until the behavior stopped. By the time one became a teenager,the mere thought of rude behavior brought about a feeling of dread and regret. Unfortunately, my generation dropped the ball. We thought Dr. Spock knew more than our own mom and dad. And we've raised a generation of children who believe that computers are teachers and not the mere tools that they really are. I fear for the future.

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Name : Margaret Nell, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : non-secular naturalist, Age : 48, City : Donalds, State : SC Country : United States, Occupation : clerical/customer service, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

For the most part, most teenagers go as something to do when you're bored. Sometimes it's even mentioned to go to a store for the very purpose of getting kicked out. This is all done when there really isn't anything else to do. Keep in mind that most kids aren't always the ones portrayed hanging out at a store. We have many valuable qualities and are just about ready to enter society and make a genuine contribution.

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Name : Rick Dunham, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Baptist, Age : 19, City : Stillwater, State : OK Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Upper middle class, 

Staci, that's a great question. I remember learning in high school about the development of morality, in which the final step of the process is acting morally simply because an individual feels the need to look out for the needs of complete strangers, regardless of whether there is a personal benefit. That concept didn't fully make sense to me; I was busy going out at 2 am with my buddies, driving cars into trash cans the night before trash pickup day in the suburbs. I don't believe that I had fully developed the ability to see the viewpoint from the receiving end of my actions. The fun came from the fact that we didn't want to get caught, not from the idea that we were victimizing people. My friends and I eventually had a conversation in which it dawned on us that we felt bad for the people who had to pick up in our wake. Realizing the effects that our actions were causing was ultimately the reason that we moved to less destructive forms of entertainment.

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Name : Brandon, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 22, City : Boulder, State : CO Country : United States, Occupation : student, pre-med, Education level : 4 Years of College, 

I believe that we live in an age that has pretty much desensitized the youth of America. We have taught them that it is okay to play video games that are horribly violent, we have taught them that they need a cell phone to call all of their friends on the 'In', we have taught them that it is okay by what they see on TV, by what their friends do, by what we are not doing to prevent it because we have jobs or go to school, or any number of other things. This is a fast-paced world and they have very few consequences that we can make them adhere to. I just know that there is something to be said for people who make it a point to have a set of consequences, to be consistent, and to teach respect...it is lacking in many of today's youth.

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Name : Melanie S, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : American Indian, Religion : Catholic, Age : 29, City : Bellingham, State : WA Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Operator, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

I think it has something to do with the way they were raised. I can't count the number of times I have seen ADULTS who are in the check out line and have the clerk ring up an EMPTY soda bottle, or an open bag of this or that because they wanted to keep their kids occupied while they shopped...or worse yet, they themselves could not contain themselves while they shopped. I can't see where as a child you would not see this example and not think that any given retailer or grocery store is fair game. It disgusts me, and I would never subject a teller to having to touch something I had in my mouth...or worse yet something my kids had slobbered all over. The teens were probably children once allowed to slobber or devour foods that had yet to actually be purchased. As I see it, if you have not paid for it, you do not yet own it, and you are stealing!!!

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Name : Angie24968, City : Vancouver, State : WA Country : United States, 

It's not so much that the teens feel they have the right to do certain things. It's that they don't have the proper parenting and role models during thier upbringing. The teens were not taught how to behave in public, the respect due to others and how thier actions bring about hardships on others and consenquences of thier actions. With single parents, both parents working or worse basically no parents, due to 'other factors', the children of today have much less responsibilites and guidance compared to thier grandparents and therefore you get a bunch of adolencents who have the restraint, in public, of a child.

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Name : T. W. Klein, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Southern Baptist, Age : 26, City : Sedalia, State : MO Country : United States, Occupation : Equipment Operator, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Lower middle class,