Stupid Adult Tricks on Life's Stage

Our society sends out crazy mixed up signals about how we value children and what kind of role models we adults should be. A student at graduation blows a kiss to his mother and his kicked off the stage. Well so much for, "Honoring thy father and mother." I guess officials need to be officious and look at the rules and not the intent. God help us if anyone used common sense.

Then there's the Sarah and David show, and I speak of course not of the biblical Sarah and David but Palin and Letterman. Letterman made a bad joke that was in poor taste about what he thought was Bristol--the 18 year-old unwed mother spokesperson for abstinence--at a Yankee game. The problem was the girl in attendance was Willow the 14 year old. Palin naturally assumed it was aimed at Willow and was rightly offended. She complained. He apologized. Should have been the end of the story.

Palin went on the attack for all women and girls and implied that Dave was a pervert who couldn't be trusted. Dave apologized again. Then Palin supporters, witnessing for family values and the moral high road, picketed Letterman's studio with family friendly signs attacking the mother of Letterman's child as a "slut." I guess because they had a baby before they got married.

Frankly, Bristol is fair game--because her mother put her on the national stage and enables her to go around giving talks on abstinence--irony free. Still, it is a bad idea to attack the children of famous people. Whether on a graduation or national stage can adults ever be role models of sense and civility? Probably not.