Forum topic related to:

: Many intentional communities include giving children a healthy place to play, learn, and grow in their mission statements; they are places where children are honored and not bored. Here are just a few examples.

Forum topic related to:

"The kids have given us some really good ideas," says Assistant Parks and Recreation Director Kelly Kollar. "They felt adults were telling them what they should do. They were really excited to have somebody ask them what they wanted to do."
(from Howell tackles teen boredom; Summer program offers beach fun, day trips by Karen Bouffard (Special to The Detroit News). Article is available online at http://www.detnews.com/2002/livingston/0205/16/d05l-491008.htm.)

Boredom is a causative link behind a number of problem behaviors such as alcohol and drug abuse, higher school dropout rates, and vandalism. Each problem behavior carries social and fiscal costs.

Research shows that adults who were formerly in foster care are more likely than the general population to succumb to poor life outcomes.

• They are more likely to be homeless, unprepared for employment and limited to low-skill jobs, and dependent on welfare or Medicaid.
• They are also more likely than the general population to be convicted of crimes and incarcerated, to abuse drugs and alcohol, or to have poor physical or mental health.

Obesity, which is now closing in on tobacco as the leading cause of preventable diseases, affects 21.8% of children in the United States. Current studies tell us that the children who are at the highest risk for developing poor eating habits that lead to obesity are under the age of five and come from low income families - a fair percentage of these children attend early HeadStart childcare programs.

The 1986 federal Bradley Amendment mandates that a child-support debt cannot be retroactively reduced or forgiven even if the debtor is unemployed, hospitalized, in prison, sent to war, dead, proved to not be the father, never allowed to see his children, or loses his job or suffers a pay cut.

This problem description is excerpted from "Repeal the Bradley Amendment," originally published on the Eagle Forum on March 1, 2006. Used with permission.

Forum topic related to:

These are very interesting and well-presented proposals for fixing children’s as well as adult health care problems. I’d like to see any other materials you’ve written on health care or other public or political issues.

As of 2006, 9.3% of children were uninsured, 59.7% had private insurance, and 32.3% had public health plan coverage. (National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control)