In some area of the US, a 'curfew' is imposed, in which teenagers are not allowed to be out of doors after a particular time at night unless they are accompanied by an adult. What is your opinion on this?

The teenage years are the time in a person’s development when they begin to need to make their own decisions, and I believe it is the role of parents, not the government, to decide how much freedom teenagers will have to make those decisions.

This

is why I oppose state-mandated curfews for young people. While making

this

general point, I concede that there might be some community-based exceptions. If,

for example

, criminal gangs are actively recruiting teenagers into their ranks,

then

perhaps a

curfew

makes sense. One might

also

imagine a scenario wherein the teens themselves are the ones causing significant harm late at night. Some kinds of mischief,

such

as throwing eggs at another teens’ home, wrapping trees in toilet paper or petty theft of commercial signage

has always been

Suggestion

had always been

the kind

Suggestion

kinder

of crime than only teenagers do. If these acts became rampant,

then

a

curfew

restriction would be more justifiable. On the whole,

however

, if we allow the government to dictate what a parent allows their children to do or not do in

this

case, we are opening the door to allowing more draconian restrictions later on. It would not be too far-fetched to imagine

government

Suggestion

a government

-imposed rules on teen hair styles, dress and leisure activities. The state has no place in my choices as a parent and how much freedom I give my children. In summary, just as some circumstances,

such

as civil unrest, allow for the government to declare a general

curfew

for everyone, it is conceivable that certain conditions might call for a

curfew

based on age. Absent these conditions, parents are the ones who should set

their

objective case of they

them

teenagers’ curfews.