I remember when i was 14 40 years ago and certainly got into some mischief. However, pot wasn't one of them.
Remember going to Bali in 1987 just after the October Crash. Sitting on the beach at Kuta talking to one of my mates when suddenly a Balineese came riding up to us on a small motor bike and offered to sell us a large block of hashish. Don't worry, we knew exactly what was on offer if we had bought it. Instead we acted dumb that we didn't have a clue what it was. Mind you the aroma was a giveaway.
My 14 year old son is at a airforce cadet bivowac this weekend. Has he ever touched drugs? I am certain that he has never had any dealings with any type of drug. We keep a fairly tight reign on him and know who his friends are including their parents. If you keep a kid busy enough they don't have time to get into trouble.
If i was taking my family to Bali or any Asian country i would make absolutely sure that the kids understand what they are allowed to do and possible dangers.
My youngest son who is 11 is a bit of a joker. When we went to NZ last Christmas i made sure that he wasn't allowed to make any comments about guns, terrorists, bombs or anything that could cause problems for us going through customs.
This kid that got caught in Bali would surely had to have been streetwise to some degree given he wanted to buy Pot in the first place. In this case the kid was dumbwise and his parents even sillier for not looking after his welfare.
I hope he doesn't get sentenced harshly as i don't believe kids should be treated as adults in that situation.
OK! He made a very stupid mistake which hopefully will probably haunt him for the rest of his life knowing how close he came to being jailed for a very long time.
His parents certainly need a rap over the knuckles.
