COMMUNITY COMMENTARY:School program should be put into perspective

I am responding to Shaunt Attarian's Community Commentary from Wednesday, "This program was an insensitive manipulation."

First, congratulations to Shaunt. I'm impressed and delighted that he voiced an opinion constructively in this community forum.

If enough other students participate usefully in our communities, I am certain we would reach more adolescents with important issues.

That being said, I strongly disagree with his viewpoint. Shaunt must understand that as parents and guardians of our most precious resource, you, our youth, we are constantly looking for ways to reach out and connect with you. This was the same when I was a teen in high school. The parents of my generation were reaching out to us. We thought we were invincible, but we were often irresponsible and oblivious to the risks we took. But not to the magnitude of current teens.

I know well that not all teens are reckless, and that we have many model teens in our communities, but many today are irresponsible, and the statistics on teenage injury and death are staggering. Shaunt, your generation seems to be obsessed with excess. It is prevalent in the current teen lifestyle. The more over the edge, the better, seems to be the status quo. It is this extreme teen culture that compels educators, city officials, police and firefighters to consider and implement drastic measures to get to you before it's too late.

A good time and recklessness are not mutual. You can have fun and be responsible simultaneously. This was evidently not apparent to the four Riverside High School seniors who were believed to be racing on their way to a pre-graduation event this week. They crashed their car into a tree. Shaunt, the photos of the car and crash site made the "Every 15 Minutes" event seem pleasant. The car was mangled beyond recognition, empty beer cans all over and three broken and bloody dead bodies, for real, were covered with tarps. The lucky fourth teen was on life support.

I have a 15-year-young son in high school and, as a parent, I am very concerned with the current pop culture that promotes drinking, drugs, excess and violence.

I ask that Shaunt reflect on the pain and loss caused to the parents, family and friends of Sarkis Atikyan, the latest local teen victim, and the loved ones of the boys that died this week. Research records of the local police departments and see just how many teens have died as a direct result of their, or another teen's, recklessness. Then see if the means used on May 23 were "insensitive, manipulative, or unprofessional."