MENTAL ILLNESS SHOULD NOT BECOME NORMALIZED By Domenick J. Maglio PhD. Traditional Realist We are living in a world where individuals no longer have to learn how to fit into the culture. Instead, we are changing the society to be accepting of any and all behavior and thinking. Should accommodating everyone’s thoughts and unusual behavior be normalized? Would it result in resentment as well as pain at a sensitive time in a person’s life? Would it be positive or negative for society? The permissive child rearing philosophy of Dr. Benjamin Spock and his immense network of followers has radically affected the way we view people in general. In our modern culture each person is unique and should be able to create their own world with as much freedom and minimal redirection as they want. This radical shift in our society from the need for a certain degree of conformity to “doing your own thing” has opened up society’s tolerance to many behaviors and thinking that were shunned or punished as anti-social in the recent past. Long periods of isolating oneself in one’s room, not working a 9-5 job, not talking with others, or being on social media every waking hour can be cause for mental health concerns. This is not normal even in our everything goes society. What should or can society do to set societal parameters? Our culture no longer clearly designates right or wrong, good or bad, or easy to understand norms. People who were once considered unstable or mentally ill are receiving greater tolerance in our society since many are just “doing their own thing.” Our tolerance level has risen to a level where little is shunned and almost all behaviors are acceptable. Behaviors that were precursors to mental illness are now often viewed as normal or “cool to large segments of the country. We have become a much more tolerant society where everything goes, and little is seen as offensive or out of the acceptable norm. Mental illness has lost its stigma in our society. Too often, harmful and self-destructive behaviors are being overlooked or have become acceptable. Our society’s acceptance of mental illness is weakening society. We need to return to defining specific acceptable positive and negative behavior. This is how a consensus of people would want others to behave so society is functioning more effectively. In societal situations the message needs to be conveyed clearly and precisely with sufficient negative consequences to stop the behavior. For a society to be successful, its rules of behavior and appropriate thinking has to be clearly defined and followed by an overwhelming majority of the population. When the individual is confused as to whether something is acceptable or not, he needs to be taught what is right and punished if the unacceptable behavior continues. When rules of the nation become blurred, confusing or conflicting with each other, the citizens attempt to insert their own interpretation of the rules to do whatever they want to do. This will cause others with the opposite interpretation to oppose them. Chaos will result until one position dominates the other. Clear definition of what is acceptable and what is not is necessary is imperitive to keep a nation stable and coherent. Domenick Maglio, PhD. is a columnist carried by various newspapers and blogs, an author of several books and owner/director of Wider Horizons School, a college prep program. Dr. Maglio is an author of weekly newspaper articles, INVASION WITHIN and the latest book entitled, IN CHARGE PARENTING In a PC World. You can see many of Dr. Maglio’s articles at www.drmaglioblogspot.com.

THE UNITED STATES IS IN A GREAT PLACE The United States is doing well but… By Domenick J. Maglio PhD. Traditional Realist The United States is in a great place, but we don’t seem to appreciate it. The citizens of the USA are living in a wonderful, stable, peaceful time. There are currently no world wars, available work for those who want it, and food is plentiful. The negative world events are few and far between affecting our affluent nation. There are spots of discontent and hunger, but they are mostly handled by government social agencies. Rampant abuse of children, the retarded, the elderly, and mentally ill still exist but most of those affected are in safe environments supervised by well-meaning staff. The USA is not perfect, but it is more than adequately meeting the basic needs of its people. However, too many Americans are unappreciative of what they have as individuals. The majority of citizens have all their life necessities met more than adequately. We Americans have more material goods than most any nation in the world’s history. Although there is no great joy or celebration, there is great sentiment of the US citizens that asks “Is this all there is?” There is a strong impression that we all have lost our sense of appreciation for a life that people in most of the world could dream about. Could it be that the American dream has been so amazingly realized that citizens have forgotten about the hard times when they did not have the affluence they now possess. Too much of anything, including blessings, can weaken our appreciation of what we have gotten through on our own initiative. Young people, just out of higher education or advanced technical programs are under the impression that they should start out on the top of the employment ladder making top salaries and benefits. They do not realize they have to prove themselves through their own good works. They will only prove themselves through good works, over time and perseverance. The USA has not been actively involved in any war for more than a decade. Although crime is too high in some urban areas, crime is decreasing overall outside some of these areas. The United States is far from perfect although it is still a great place to live. We should count our many blessings while trying to make our nation even better. Highlighting only imperfections distorts the great achievements of our wonderful nation. Yes, we are not perfect but we may be the overall best nation at this time. Domenick Maglio, PhD. is a columnist carried by various newspapers and blogs, an author of several books and owner/director of Wider Horizons School, a college prep program. Dr. Maglio is an author of weekly newspaper articles, INVASION WITHIN and the latest book entitled, IN CHARGE PARENTING In a PC World. You can see many of Dr. Maglio’s articles at www.drmaglioblogspot.com.

TRANSEXUAL FAD IS ROOTED IN INAPPROPRIATE MODERN PARENTING By Domenick J. Maglio PhD. Traditional Realist In the past there were girls or boys who wanted to be the opposite sex from what they were born. Girls often dressed like boys and were referred to as “tomboys.” The boys who acted more feminine than the average boy were referred to as “sissies.” They often changed their mannerisms into more masculine ones over time. When girls reached puberty usually they begin to act more feminine, and their speech became more ladylike. Youngsters usually outgrew the experimental behaviors and became mature men and women. There also were a few males who were more comfortable with their female friends. Friends redirected them to socialize more with males than preadolescent girls. They were teased by their male friends with not so subtle remarks like “are you turning into a girl?” These blunt statements often changed their actions to fit more traditional roles. Today some of these peer interventions are condemned as politically incorrect. Children as young as infants and toddlers are not supposed to be corrected for acting like the opposite sex. Too often, a boy who cries easily when his feelings or body are hurt may be allowed to cry with little to no intervention. No one says to him “stop crying, boys don’t cry like that. You don’t be a sissy.” Instead, this crying behavior might even be encouraged to allow him to “express his emotions.” The reverse happens to girls who act too masculine and often have to soften their mannerisms in everyday situations. In other words, parents are no longer making clear distinctions between girl’s and boy’s behavior. Without voicing these traditional distinctions there will be confusion about how our boys and girls are supposed to act. This will obviously cause confusion for both boys and girls that will lead to greater incidents of transgender confusion. Without parents teaching distinctions between girl’s and boy’s behavior, gender differences will melt into a unisex culture. Why shouldn’t modern parents and family members let children understand that boys and girls are naturally genetically programmed to act differently from each other? They could even point out some of these differences to help them to understand the difference between the sexes. There is a genetic attraction between men and women that make them want to have children and start families. By not noting these differences, is this good parenting or is it the opposite? Parents highlighting these masculine or feminine differences helps their youngster understand that when they approach puberty, the sexual attraction to the opposite sex is normal and healthy. Youngsters have to be aware of reality. If a child does not differentiate between males and females, the child will not learn to be socially appropriate. In fact, parents should teach and point out normal and abnormal behavior in order to teach the child good choices and avoid bad ones that could lead to unnecessary problems. All parents want to protect their children by sharing their knowledge of reality. When parents do not prepare their children by teaching moral lessons, their children will more likely make misguided decisions. They will not be able to protect themselves from these ignorant and ill-advised choices in their life. No one can actually change their sex, only pretend to be the opposite sex than they were born. Their DNA remains the same. This attempt might start with wonderful hope but end with confusion and an unfulfilling existence. Some parents may want to appear progressive and “cool” to their friends by sacrificing their child to transgenderism but could set their child up for confusion and life as an outcast since the transgender fad will not always be in vogue. Domenick Maglio, PhD. is a columnist carried by various newspapers and blogs, an author of several books and owner/director of Wider Horizons School, a college prep program. Dr. Maglio is an author of weekly newspaper articles, INVASION WITHIN and the latest book entitled, IN CHARGE PARENTING In a PC World. You can see many of Dr. Maglio’s articles at www.drmaglioblogspot.com.