Parents Wronged With Abuse Charge

Re “Tough Love, or Abuse?� Nov. 21:

I reacted with a range of strong emotions to your Column One story. As a high school teacher with 16 years’ experience, I have felt gratitude for the sometimes wrenching struggles of parents such as the Machnicks, who toil mightily to transform troublesome children into responsible adults. How can prosecutors advance child abuse charges against them in light of evidence indicating disciplinary consequences that only accelerated in the face of continued defiance by their son?

Sadly, the Machnicks have already had their careers tarnished with the suspensions imposed by their employers. “Fines,� in the form of legal fees paid to their attorney, will be assessed before and after their trial, whether or not they prevail.

Though an excellent story, I wish Stuart Pfeifer had asked the one glaring question: What would the Machnicks’ accusers have done if they had such a disobedient child in their home?

Chuck Comstock

San Diego

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Don’t district attorneys have anything better to do than prosecuting these caring parents? Social workers and child experts, put yourselves in the Machnicks’ shoes; can you honestly say you could do better?

Time and again, the society and its system have proved to be ineffective to our kids, if not downright harmful. What about the psychological abuse and the agony inflicted upon parents by the illness of the society handed down to these misbehaving kids? We are living in a time when our cities issue permits to shoot porno films next door and we, the parents, are at the receiving end of all the ill effects that are engendered. District attorneys, please drop the charges; give the Machnicks a chance to help the kid.

Kee Kim

Anaheim