items of interest

with contributions from The Dalai Lama, M.S. Mason

A 1995 Study, reported in The Journal of the American Medical Association last year (1997), found that contrary to popular views, parents' expectations really do make a difference. In a nutshell: the more teens feel loved by their parents and at ease in their schools, the less likely they are to have early sex, smoke, abuse alcohol or drugs, engage in violence, or commit suicide.

If parents expected them to get good grades and abstain from sex, those expectations had a powerful effect on offspring through the twelfth grade. Family income, race, and whether there was one parent or two did not appear to make a difference.

Racial—and moral—justice

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