Opinion: Next time? A scarlet letter

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It’s bad enough when the state tries to nanny everyone, but it’s even worse when parents voluntarily shrug their child-rearing responsibilities onto the state: specifically, in the following case, onto the cops.

Recently, the police chief of Shady Cove, Ore. went to the local elementary school, handcuffed a third grade girl in front of her classmates and hauled her away in his cruiser—all at the request of her parents. Her crime? The girl had been caught stealing and her parents, the police chief and even the school principal agreed the mock arrest would be a really neat way to frighten the bejeebers out of her (and every other 8-year-old in town).

Well it turns out that the parents who asked the police to do their child-raising for them have had their own challenges; the police chief says her father is a recovering meth addict. So are we really sure it’s the girl who needed a lesson from the cops? And why do we keep asking police officers to handle all of society’s ills?

Did we learn nothing from Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory?

As the Oompa Loompas sang:

Blaming the kids is a lie and a shame
You know exactly who’s to blame:
The mother and the father!