Anti-social behaviour – We are quick to blame the police and parents

It is an easy way out of the mess.

We find reasons for the behaviour of some young people. The reality is, sometimes, there is little the police can do and parents are unlikely to know where their kids are.

Any parent knows all too well we can ask a hundred questions and they may not necessarily get the right answer.

The police can only do so much and are not going to lock anyone up for just being an idiot. Even though we all wish they would.

Quite of lot of people now have a hands off attitude and don't want to get involved in case they themselves are at the wrong end of some abuse.

Now, I want to be nice to people and I think everyone should be given a chance. But I guess I am old school. No amount of ‘being nice’ matters to some folk. They don’t care.

So the blame should lie with the individual themselves.

As someone who helps run some community sites it is an all-too-common occurrence.

We have young people who are genuinely don’t want to bother anyone and simply want to do what we did when we were younger – find a place where you can just have a chat and a laugh.

Even if they litter or make the odd comment we can brush it off. I guess, on the whole, they just want to get out of the house just like we did.

Then there are those who don’t listen. Or they choose not to listen no matter what.

When you meet their parents, they appear to be shocked that their son is a vandal.

Other times their parents are overly defensive, as if their child can do no wrong. If we are to put any blame on some parents, it is this attitude that needs to be addressed.

It is always someopne else's fault.

This ‘entitled’ mindset appears to our biggest downfall.

I guess that’s where some things are different from our upbringing.

We had a sense of respect for anyone older and if any complaint was made about us, we would be the first to be get a slap at the back of the head, even when it may not have been our doing.

Sometimes a look was enough to put us into our place.

I am sure the generation before us thought we were a feral bunch.

Yet, all is not lost. On a positive note I am glad to say, regardless of what gets posted many young people still do have this sense of respect. So we shouldn’t get taken in by everything that gets shared.

I get called ‘uncle’ now. Guess it’s a start.