Continuing on with some political venting, I would like to move on to a different angle.

What makes a good parent, in regards to social problems and education, is being responsible in teaching your children about living within a budget, the value of the dollar, and that real values come from within and can’t be bought at the store. Real values and happiness come from parents teaching values that empower. Those values include ethics, responsibility and reasonable expectations based on contribution.

When I was looking at those students march at the Berkeley campus yesterday I couldn’t help but feeling that these kids had no connection between social problems and education as it related to their tuition. These kids were just upset that they would have to actually pay for the amazing education that they wanted. What makes a good parent is, when seeing their kids march, to teach them that the state is in financial trouble and that if they want to be part of that state they have to pay their part. What makes a good parent is to teach their kids that its good to want great things but that great things come with a price tag. America was built on excellence, but great things are earned, great things are created, great things are gotten through hard work. Great things are not an entitlement to be given just because you want it.

It is my opinion that the relationship between social problems and education has been one of the biggest unspoken problems facing America. What makes a good parent in regards to social problems and education is that education starts and finishes in the home. It is essential in the home to set the stage for your children that they are responsible to a) do well in school and b) there is no free ride and c) if you don’t you want to pay, there are a lot of scholarships to get if you work hard enough. It is not the government’s responsibility to pay for your college. Furthermore, when the government does pay some of it, it is because there is money in the budget to pay for it. So if you want money available then you need to vote for people who aren’t giving it away to every special interest group. Unfortunately, for those students marchings, the special interest groups are the teacher’s unions that keep wanting more.

Good luck,

Dr. Bocknek

Dr. Robert Bocknek is the problem solving expert for marriage, parents and families at www.takebackthehome.com and www.keyboard-culture-parenting.com. He can be reached at bocknek@takebackthehome.com. He is author of the “Take Back the Home course” and the “Learning how to Learn course” which can be seen at http://www.takebackthehome.com .

Winston Churchill once wrote “If you aren’t liberal as a youth, you have no heart, but if you aren’t a conservative as an adult, you have no brain. We are coming into the time where our country will reach a period of reasonably rational thought or a period of seeing the greatest country, maybe of all time, fall into the dark ages.

As I watched the students demonstrate I wanted to be there, not to join them, but to ask them why they think the tuition is going up and what role they, themselves, played in it happening. From the intensity of the march and the taking over of the building, I’m thinking it never occurred to them that they, and their fellow Californians, who voted for the present state and federal government, helped create, or completely created the tuition hike that they are marching against.

Social problem and education collide when there is no connection of education to the realities of economics. This coming year, California will have a 23 billion dollar budget deficit. How do the students think this state is going to pay for it? The UC campus is a state funded system. Do we think that at any time someone taught the students that states, like families have only so much money to live on? If a family spends more than it has it will go bankrupt, so too the state. If we keep electing officials, who think that their job is to get elected rather than serve the public and the only way to do that is to pander to special interest groups, in this case the teacher’s unions and the labor unions that have pension plans and ins. plans that only the richest Americans can afford then the students will eventually have to pay for it. Hence, we have the present clash of social problems and education.

Now, I’m not so cold hearted to not want every American to do well. I have 3 kids in college myself next year. Although, I am literally freaking out about my finances for this situation, I don’t delude myself as to the cause of the price hike. American colleges have not moved to the place they ought to be, namely a place where truth is told. Liberal arts are great, but students should also be taught that fiscal responsibility is just as important.

Social problems and education have never been more connected than the dramatic increase in tuition we are all going to face.

Good luck,

Dr. Bocknek

Dr. Robert Bocknek is the problem solving expert for marriage, parents and families at www.takebackthehome.com and www.keyboard-culture-parenting.com. He can be reached at bocknek@takebackthehome.com. He is author of the “Take Back the Home course” and the “Learning how to Learn course” which can be seen at www.takebackthehome.com.

Steps to solving our social problems and education problems:

1. Take responsibility for your economic situation
2. Talk to your kids that it is not ok when politicians cheat
3. Spend more time teaching your kids your values
4. Be honest and admit when you don’t know something
5. If you don’t know something important in your life, learn it
6. Show your kids you are willing to learn
7. Get involved with your local politics
8. Be a better person today than you were yesterday
9. Be an example to others
10. Live your life like you have to earn the right to be an American

Social problems and education problems begin in the home. A great country is made up of great cities and towns. Great cities and towns are made up of great families. Great families are made up of great parents, who lead their family with integrity, ethics and morals. Great families don’t blame others for their troubles. They gather together and work together to solve their problems. They don’t cheat to get out of their problems and don’t accept others who cheat to get out theirs. They only vote for people who hold up to those standards.

We, as Americans don’t always have to agree, but we do have to be dignified.

Dr. Robert Bocknek is the problem solving expert for parents and families. See him at his website, TakeBackthehome.com , or Keyboardculture.com, or email him directly at Bocknek@takebackthehome.com.

But, I thought America was different. I believed, that in my country, ethics and integrity stood for something. I believed that people weren’t so cynical and that the truth mattered. Well, my point is this. The social problems and education problems of that country are at our doorstep and if we don’t change direction soon, we are going to become that country.

I believe that the first obvious sign of this began at the Monika Lewinsky scandal of the Bill Clinton years. It’s the first time I recall that the public was more interested in getting past a major scandal than handling it. When Nixon was caught in Watergate, we all new it was wrong and we were rightly outraged and correctly insisted that he leave. Social problems and education problems were still connected and dealt with. We recognized that we can’t have that kind of behavior because of what it could mean for our country. It was painful but we dealt with it. In closer analysis, though, let’s look at it. With Nixon, he didn’t commit the crime, but he covered it up, and that was enough to remove him. With Clinton, he disgraced the office of the president and then right on camera he lied to the American people, saying “I didn’t have sex with that woman”. I remember, myself, thinking what a slime, but let’s get on with it. I didn’t realize what just took place for America. What took place was, we just lowered the bar for ourselves twelve notches. I believe this event was the genesis of social problems and education problems in America that we see today.

If, at this point, you are thinking this is a political bashing commentary, it only goes to show how far we have fallen. If you are reading this blog and cannot see what I am talking about as a crisis of ethics and not politics, its time to introspect. Moving forward to what is going on in America today. Five of President Obama’s picks for government have either been caught for fraudulent tax evasion or are being followed. America, doesn’t even care for the most part. They want to raise our taxes but don’t pay their own but America doesn’t care. In the new tax stimulus package, the American people were supposed to be able to review it for 48 hours prior to it being signed. They didn’t even let us see it. America didn’t care. We are going into 1.8 trillion dollars of debt and we don’t care enough to see it. What happened to American outrage that was there when Nixon covered up a break in? Its gone. Social problems and education problems of our next generation are just getting started. Immediate action is needed immediately.

See part 3 where Dr. Bocknek starts to talk about solutions.

Dr. Robert Bocknek is the problem solving expert for parents and families. See him at his website, TakeBackthehome.com , or Keyboardculture.com, or email him directly at Bocknek@takebackthehome.com.

The first point goes to accountability and ethics. For many years I lived in Asia. Although, I loved my experience living there, let me tell you something I observed. The president of that country took government land and built 3 golf courses and proceeded to give them to his wife. The Premiere sold public land in the city to his family and built condos on what used to be a park. He became a billionaire. Everyone knew it and expected it. What kind of social problems and education problems do you think this had on the population? Let me tell you how it trickles down. I was importing mattresses and pillows there. If I didn’t kick back money to the customs guy, they would either steal stuff wholesale or they would make me wait an extra 90 days to get my stuff out of customs to sell.

Why I bring this up is, the thing I was most proud of America was that although I knew there was corruption, it wasn’t pervasive like that country. In that country, everyone knew to get ahead you had to pay someone. Teachers got gifts from parents for good grades and recommendations. You literally had to put in your budget extra money for payoffs. What role do you think this plays in social problems and education in that country? Let me tell you. That country was Taiwan. I was there during the first ever democratic elections in that country. China didn’t want us to have elections so during the election they start shooting missiles within 5 miles of our shore. The atmosphere in Taiwan was very tense. What happened next was one of my proudest moments as an American. America sent its fleet into the Taiwan Strait right to where the missiles were landing stopping China in its tracts. China proceeded to take away 10 billion dollars of contracts with , Chrysler, DuPont and other companies and gave them to the Europeans. Here’s where the social problems and education problems come in. Shortly after this time I had many discussions with very bright, wealthy and educated Taiwanese about this event. Their perspective, unanimously, was the U.S. only did it for business. Even though, I told them about how much business the U.S. lost they couldn’t believe the U.S. could do it for the right reasons. They said no government does things like that. Ethics and integrity of that country had fallen so far that there is no belief in hope or doing good for goodness sake.

Please read part 2 of social problems and education in America.

Dr. Robert Bocknek is the problem solving expert for parents and families. See him at his website, TakeBackthehome.com , or Keyboardculture.com, or email him directly at Bocknek@takebackthehome.com.