Monday, February 11, 2008

Education, Sagging Pants, Goals, Behavior, etc.

By: B. Brown of BREG

A few weeks ago, Dr. Phil had a show about "Sagging Pants" and he had several guests on the show that had different opinions about the issue. One parent in particular said that he and his sons loved the style of dress and actually defended sagging your pants. The father doesn't believe there is a direct connection between people that have their underwear or shorts showing and people that may choose to do things incorrectly on a regular basis.

Let me share with you my opinion on "Sagging Pants". It is very interesting to me to know that there are a lot of parents that are actually ok with their kids having their pants hanging off of their behinds. Some of these young people let their pants come down to their thigh and knee areas. To me, it is absolutely crazy! Why, because these young people have not learned how to dress for any kind of success. They believe that they will be ok. The reality is that some of these young people will not be ok. If you look at the grades of the young people that allow their pants to hang tremendously low below their waist, you will see that the majority of them have very poor grades and their behavior is usually horrible. Go to any middle or high school and conduct a quick survey. It's embarrassing!

Grant it, you should not judge a book by its cover, but the cover is an indicator. In most cases, we all pre-judge a person upon initially seeing them, so when a person truly believes that it doesn't matter what they dress or look like, they are sadly mistaken. Go apply for a job anywhere with your pants sagging down and see what happens. Operate your own business and go visit a client or have a client come visit you and see if you continue to have them as a client with your pants sagging below your waist. I'm sorry, it's just not going to happen! Here is a way to test for yourself. Dress like you normally dress with your pants sagging below your waist, and then put on a suit or dress outfit and see the difference in how people look at you and treat you. It will be totally different.

You see, there is a certain mentality that goes along with wearing your pants below your waist. The first is a "Jail" mentality because the style began and has been perpetuated from jail. The second is "self-hate" because for you not to care about your appearance is a form of self-hate. The third mentality is a "I don't give a %$@#" attitude. This is very dangerous because if any adult or person of authority says anything to them, they will "go-off" on you! I mean cuss you out and possibly confront you. What has been going on in the 2000's has been a Nationwide shift of mentality for our young people.

Our Parents first and foremost must do their part to Love, Teach, & Discipline their children. It's not cool to be friends with your children. It's cool to be a parent to your children! It is ok to discipline your children and make sure that they go to school to learn. Learning is their #1 function and all the other craziness that they attempt to get involved with should be nipped in the bud. Children can only do what we as adults allow them to do and right now we are giving them too much rope, and they are hanging themselves.

Everyone, let's get back to basics and take pride in getting at least a High School Education. For these children to get an education, we must hold them accountable for their actions and stress to them that they are going to get their education and that we are going to support them in the process. Parents, we cannot be lazy! Prepare them for school, demand proper behavior (yes sir & yes ma'am) and demand that they attend their classes everyday. Watch the success!!!

Hip-Hop Youth, Education and Parenting!