FROM THE TOP
LELAND ACKER
Over the Christmas holidays, my television was littered with news of the teen pregnancy of Jamie Lynn Spears, 16- year old sister of pop-star Brittney Spears, who has been in a downward spiral of her own. Jamie, it seems, has a 19-year old boyfriend who fathered the child.

Now, I am not going to go on a rant, declaring that Jamie and Brittney's problems stem from a total parenting failure. No, I'll save that rant for a later time.

Nor am I going to lament that the escapades of these two sisters is leaving a bad example, leading other young girls into lifestyles of decadence. While this is partly true, the other reality is scarier.

The downward spiral of the Spears sisters, Lindsey Lohan, Paris Hilton and Nicole Richey is an indication, not an instigation of the downward spiral of the youth of our nation. Think about it. Is Jamie Lynn the first 16-year old to get pregnant by her 19-year old live-in boyfriend? Is Brittney the first young mother who becomes an unfit parent due to her out-of-control drinking and revelling? Were Paris and Nicole the firsts to go to jail?

No! Unfortunately, No! I wish I could report to you that these events are unheard of, and that we could save our youth simply by banishing these young ladies to the celebrity graveyard known as "Hollywood Squares." But their actions are already prevalent in our youth today.

I know. I saw this type of activity when I was in high school and college. I have been around youth who discuss the very same behavior which they were involved in. They engage in drug use, promiscuous activity and many times wind up in legal trouble.

The indicators of these activities manifest themselves in the activities of the Hollywood stars and the skyrocketing truancy rate at Jacksonville High School. This activity is prevalent in Cherokee County, as well as the rest of the nation. So, what do we do?

It's time for parents to rise up and be PARENTS, not the friends of their children. This doesn't mean beat them and lock them in their room. It means giving them solid guidance.

In some situations, the parents are incapable of such action (which I suspect is true in the Spears cases). In those cases, our communities, yea, our churches should rise to the occasion and reach these young people.

"Remember the Lord, which is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives and your houses." (Nehemiah 4:14) chreporter@mediactr.com