Here are a few examples.
At the federal level there are the Pathways
out of Poverty Act, the National Institutes of Health Pathways to Prevention program, and the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention Pathways courses. At the
state level there are Governor Phil Bryant’s Mississippi Works Smart Start Career Pathway, the
Mississippi Department of Education High
School Graduation Pathways, and the Mississippi Community College Board’s Academic Pathways and Career Pathways. Outside of government
there are the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Pathways for Student Success, the Boy Scouts of America Pathway to Adventure Council, and
numerous addiction and homeless programs named Pathways.
We have so many
intended-to-help, positive pathways, yet we have so many not following them.
They follow other, destructive pathways – pathways to gang membership and
crime, pathways to drug and alcohol addiction, pathways to sexual predation and
abuse, pathways to mental illness and disorder, pathways to homelessness and
poverty, etc.
It seems we have far
more pathways to fix people than in past generations, as well as far more
people who need fixing.
Therein
lies one of our
dilemmas. We have become terrific at analyzing symptoms and creating
pathways
to treat them, but mediocre at eliminating the destructive pathways that
spread the symptoms. It’s like treating small pox but not wiping it
out.
Indeed, the sorry fact
is our society now embraces much of what confounds us, from entertainment media
(movies, TV, Internet, magazines, novels, etc.) that glamorizes gangs, drugs,
sex, and anti-social behavior, to politicians who revel in stressful discord rather
than sensible solutions, to an economy that idolizes profit with little concern
for the consequences – harmful behaviors, rampant layoffs, and income
inequality.
In so many ways we no
longer condemn but celebrate that which leads us down destructive pathways. And
we do this in the name of freedom, e.g. free speech, free markets, and freedom
of choice. Never has freedom been so miscast!
If we cannot wipe out
destructive pathways, the only alternative is to get broken, adolescent, and
unsuccessful people to choose positive pathways.
But, just getting folks
to show up is often a problem, revealing our other dilemma. Too many lack the
motivation to try, much less stick with the positive pathways available to
them. That old saying “where there is a will, there is a way,” must have a
corollary that says “where there is no will, there is no way.”
If we cannot get people
to turn toward positive pathways and away from destructive pathways, then our positive
pathways become useless pathways.
Still, there are proven
methods to help with motivation. Providing more year-round stable, caring,
educational environments for young children, more outreach and intensive case
management for at-risk youth and adults, and creating more living wage jobs for
at-risk individuals are examples. There are more.
Investing in methods that
help motivate people to choose positive pathways is just as important as
providing them those pathways.
Crawford is a syndicated
columnist from Meridian (crawfolk@gmail.com)
3 comments:
why work when someone else does and the government takes their money and gives it to you for free in exchange for your vote. This sums up our real problem.
The one area that needs to be focused on more than anything is the number of out-of-wedlock births. That is the root cause of the woes the programs you cite are trying to fix. Children born to 14 year old girls or to poverty stricken women who have children by five different men are very likely to have no moral guidance at home. They are also very likely to live in a stagnant area with little prospect for job growth. No amount of government interference is going to fix that.
Look at the birth statistics and you will see that those that can least afford children are having more while those that are educated and have higher family incomes are having fewer kids. We have got to figure out how to reduce the birth rate among low-income families rather than funneling ever more taxpayer money to take care of their children and the inevitable crime that surrounds areas stricken with poverty, lots of kids, and no jobs.
One cannot government subsidize motivation or EBT/SNAP success! You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink! #Mindset
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