A Topical Solution: Ask Teen-Agers the Write Question

A few months ago, my Sunday column lamented that cursed condition known as writer’s block. It was a touching piece of work; so moved were the students in Roseanne Aulino’s English classes at Fullerton Union High School that they came up with some suggestions for me, should the affliction recur.

I can’t say that it has, but after rereading their ideas last week the thought occurred that they were more entertaining than whatever else I had planned to write about today.

Here are their suggestions, which, if nothing else, offer a glimpse into the fertile minds of today’s teen-agers:

“Write about teen-age pregnancy and what your views are on abortion.”

“Write about how jocks are stereotyped by being called ‘dumb jocks.’ ”

“Write about how corrupt the political system has become.”

“Where would we be without chewing gum?”

“Write about how people have become dependent on machines and what would happen if they all stopped working.”

“People who believe in aliens.”

“Acne.”

“What people would think of future women presidents.”

“Gay rights.”

“Importance of coffee makers.”

“Repetitiveness of learning.”

“Ignorance.”

“Cafeteria food. Is it?”

“Teacher salaries.”

“What the people in society have to watch out for.”

“Term limits for Congress.”

“Government-controlled health care.”

“What is the next stage of human evolution?”

“Suicide.”

“Air pollution.”

“Kids rebelling against their parents.”

“What do you think about the political aspects of genetic research?”

“The value of friendship.”

“The legalization of drugs.”

“Music.”

“Prostitution.”

“O.J. Simpson.”

“Illegal immigration.”

“Generation X.”

“Life without sports.”

“How much wood does a woodchuck chuck?”

“What kinds of toys are kids playing with today?”

“Why don’t we bring the dinosaurs back?”

“What would we do without a TV?”

“How would we learn without teachers?”

“What would it be like if we had to write with our feet?”

“Where would we go if we had wings?”

“How would girls handle life without makeup?”

“What would it be like if there was not a sun?”

“Freeway shootings. We need to take back the freeways!”

“How would it be if we had robots doing our work?”

“Scariest roller coasters in the U.S.”

“Gangster rap.”

“Low morals in students.”

“Why did we ban fireworks? Really.”

“Poor leadership by our administrators.”

“Vampires.”

“What should we do to those who kill?”

“Interpreting dreams.”

“Passing out condoms at school.”

“Gang wars; will they ever stop?”

“The party scene.”

“Racism among teens.”

“Adopted kids and whether it is their right to know their biological parents.”

“Your opinion on the book, ‘The Scarlet Letter’ by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and how does the significance of the letter relate to today’s society?”

“Do you feel that boys and girls are treated equally in high school sports?”

“Do you think that teens today have the same problems as teens growing up in the ‘60s had?”

“Do you think that a harsher law should be passed for child molesters?”

“School dress code: Should we all be clones?”

“Whatever happened to Vanilla Ice, New Kids on the Block, Milli Vanilli and all those great entertainers of the ‘80s?”

“Is Disneyland really the happiest place on Earth?”

“What do you think about women who like to marry rich men for their money?”

“Broken promises by our President, Bill Clinton.”

“Can music actually have an effect on people’s actions?”

“Recently the new camping equipment, such as RVs, has become increasingly high tech. Do you feel that this is taking away from the true spirit of camping?”

“How do you think life will be in 100 years?”

“Do we have to change our bodies to please ourselves in order to be accepted in today’s society?”

“The ‘joys’ of a rainy day.”

“What if California broke away from the U.S. and became an island?”