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Acknowledgments, 11
Preface, 13
The Author's Personal Perspectives, 13
The Continuing Escalation of Present-day Threats, 13
The Objectives of this Book, 14
Introduction, 15
Today: The Best and Worst of Times, 15
A Chapter-by-chapter Overview, 15
1. Children at Risk, 17
Statistical Indicators Reveal a Continual Decline, 17
The Grim Picture of Children at Risk, 18
The Tremendous Cost of Crime, 19
The Need to Regain Our Bearings, 20
Society Needs to Support the Nuclear Family, 21
Increasingly Conflicting Values, 22
The Fundamental Dichotomy Between Individual and Societal Values, 23
Factors that Help Children Do Well in Life, 24
The Effects of Single Parenting, 25
The "Latch Key Kids" Problem, 26
The Need to Refocus Priorities, 27
2. When Families Fail to Function as They Should, 29
Family Decline Creates Urgent Social Problems, 29
The Impact of Illegitimacy, 30
The Need for Stable Parental Guidance, 30
Major Deficiencies in Modern Child Rearing Objectives, 31
The Lack of Spirituality, 31
Linked Problems: Cultural Decay and Family Disarray, 32
Contrasts Between Modern and Traditional Child Rearing, 33
Children Need to Learn to Give Service, 34
The Need for Competence Motivation, 34
Children Learn from Fulfilling Household Chores, 35
Children Need to Develop Competence and Social Responsibility, 35
Children are Harmed by Lessened Standards and Expectations, 36
The Loss of Family Control and Authority, 37
The Next Generation's Legacy: Unprepared Children Becoming Parents, 37
Creating Yet Another Unguided and Demoralized Generation, 38
Drifting Through Childhood without Finding Skills, Virtues or Purpose, 39
3. Movies and Television--Our Pervasive Schoolmasters, 41
Greater Power than Schools, Governments or Churches, 41
Needed: New Vision and New Models, 42
Moral and Spiritual Pollution, 42
Creating a "Mean World" Syndrome, 43
Studies Show TV's Detrimental Effects, 44
Needed: Programs that Reinforce the Best in Mankind, 46
The Lack of Religious Values Among TV Professionals, 47
The Pervasiveness of TV Violence, 47
TV Violence Increases Children's Aggressive Behavior, 48
What Can Be Done?, 48
The First Amendment Controversy, 49
Parental Control of TV in the Home, 50
Twelve Suggestions for Appropriate TV Use, 51
Parents Must Evaluate Their Personal Viewing, 52
Other Suggestions for Parents, 52
What Can Citizens Do?, 54
Power to Change: Voting with Our Wallets, 54
4. Pornography: The Bottomless Pit, 57
Pornographers' Business Strategies, 57
Technological Advances Have Skyrocketed Sales, 58
Today's Deepest Concern: Internet Porn, 59
Interactive Pornography, 60
The Industry's Goal: Easy, Unstigmatized Access in Every Home, 60
How Can Kids Learn to Make Wise Choices?, 61
Four Stages of Addiction to Pornography, 63
Everyone is Vulnerable, 63
The Numerous Ill Effects of Pornography, 64
Erosion in Motion Picture Ratings, 64
Pornography Leads to Adopting False Sexual Values, 65
An Allegory: The Boy and the Snake, 66
Resist the First and Second Look, 67
Two Generations: A Statistical Comparison, 68
Five Conclusions of Respected Experts, 69
Other Marital, Health and Social Concerns, 72
How Families and Communities Can Be Protected, 73
5. Tobacco, Alcohol and Other Drugs, 75
Drug Abuse: One of the Most Significant Changes in American Society, 75
A Soaring Infant Mortality Rate Because of Addicted Mothers, 76
Tobacco: The "Entry" Drug, 76
Peer Pressure Leads to Tobacco Usage, 77
The Tobacco Addiction Process, 78
Tobacco Advertising and Promotional Activities, 78
Strong Self-confidence Helps Youth Resist Tobacco, 79
Most Americans Favor Policies Which Restrict Youth's Tobacco Access, 80
The Alcohol Menace, 81
A High Rate of Youth Alcohol Experimentation, 82
Alcohol-related Accidents are the Leading Cause of Youth Deaths, 82
The Family Impact of Alcoholism, 83
The Influence of Attractive Advertising, 84
What Can Parents Do to Resist Alcohol's Influence?, 85
Marijuana and Other Drugs, 86
Statistics on Marijuana Usage, 86
Marijuana is a Gateway Drug, 87
How Parents Can Help Children Resist Drugs, 89
6. Winning in the Home, 91
Parents are the First Line of Defense, 91
Children Use Adults as Their Role Models, 91
Good Children Learn "Goodness" in the Home, 92
Successful Parenting Requires Respectful Interaction, 92
Parenting: Teaching Values, Goals, Skills and Standards, 93
Children are Receptive to Spiritual Ideas, 94
The Basis for Guidelines for Wise Parenting, 96
Children Need Purposes Beyond Their Own Immediate Desires, 97
Character is Based on Concepts of "Goodness", 97
Guiding Principles in Child Rearing, 98
The Family Prepares the Next Generation, 100
7. Winning in the Schools, 101
Schools are the "Second Line of Defense", 101
Children Need Rich Educational Experiences to Advance Society, 102
Good Schools and Teachers Help Students Find Their Life's Purpose, 102
Teachers are Models of Values and Character, 103
Student Disinterest Can Undermine Instruction, 104
A Growing Problem: Students upon Whom Teachers Have Given Up, 105
Three Goals for Educational Reform, 105
Educators Must Create a Climate of Positive Guidance, 106
Parents Must Support the Schools with Personal Involvement, 107
8. Winning in the Community, 109
Child Rearing Must Be a Cooperative Effort, 109
The Need for Positive Neighborhood Interaction, 109
A Major Community Priority is to Provide Protection, 110
Communities Need to Recognize Outstanding Youths, 111
Communities Need to Express Their Moral Values, 112
Communities Need to Foster Service Opportunities, 112
Youth Need Direction and Motivation, 113
A Youth Do-it-yourself Life Prediction Experiment, 114
Communities Need to Support Parents in Passing on Core Values, 116
9. The Battle Can Still Be Won, 119
Young People Crave Moral and Intellectual Direction, 119
Needed: A Positive Long-term Approach to Instilling Positive Values, 120
Parent-centered Resources, 120
A List of Attitudes, Values and Competencies Needed by Youth, 122
Negative Influence to Be Overcome, 123
Ways to Help Disadvantaged Youths, 124
Parents Must Be Confident of Their Own Moral Authority, 125
Conclusion, 127
The Essence of the Battle We Face, 127
The Ability to Shock Has Replaced the Ability to Inspire, 127
A Radical Reordering of Our Priorities is Needed, 128
Thirteen Basic Conditions Found in Successful Families, 128
We Need to Assume Responsibility for this and the Next Generation, 132
About the Author, 133
Endnotes, 135
Index, 140
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