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Messages - hanzomon4

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46
The Troubled Teen Industry / Reminder, Senators and Congressmen are reading your stories
« on: October 30, 2007, 06:44:29 PM »
I really couldn't care less why unless some good reason beyond the infighting and hollow accusations that get thrown around are given. I saw Mrs.Pinto's testimony and it was pretty damn genuine. If ISAC has said something against ASTART or Mrs.Pinto I'd love to hear it but I'll leave blind speculation for some other time.

47
The Troubled Teen Industry / NY Times Editorial - you may want to post a comment
« on: October 30, 2007, 06:37:49 PM »
The times is talking out of both sides of it's ass, unintentionally probably

Teen Whisperer or Teen Tormentor: As Congress Takes On Troubled Teen Programs, Times Inadvertently Plugs One



While I've gotta give The New York Times kudos for its strong editorial "When Tough Love is Too Tough," calling for greater oversight of the "troubled teen" residential industry, I must simultaneously take them to task for running a glowing review of a book by a counselor who worked for 10 years for one of the most notorious organizations in that business.

   Mike Linderman, author of The Teen Whisperer served as "clinical director" of Spring Creek Lodge, a Montana program linked with the infamous World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools (WWASP, also called WWASPS).

Calling Linderman "brusquely compassionate," the Times Styles section approvingly cited him for that work. But it failed to even mention the history of serious abuse allegations and lawsuits involving Spring Creek Lodge -- many of which include the decade in which Linderman worked there.

Take this 2003 Times story, headlined "Program to Help Troubled Youths Has Troubles of Its Own." In it, investigative reporter Tim Weiner notes that "some children and parents call [Spring Creek Lodge] physically and psychologically brutal." He goes on to detail stories of teens locked in solitary confinement for months [photo of the claustrophic isolation room known as "the Hobbit" at Spring Creek is here], fed only beans and bananas. Linderman worked at Spring Creek at the time and apparently was employed by the program until some time in 2006.

Weiner quotes the mother of one teen, Michele Ziperovich, saying "He came out 35 pounds lighter, acting like a zombie. When he came back, he was worse, far worse." Weiner also reports that former employees have corroborated the teens' stories and that one was arrested for sexually assaulting teens in the isolation room.

In 2005, a Spring Creek staffer shot a man seven times and then killed himself. And in 2006, Spring Creek was sued after a teenage girl committed suicide there-- the suit says that the facility "was not designed or operated to provide quality or even adequate care" and that its employees "planned and operated Spring Creek Lodge Academy in such a manner that physical, educational, mental or emotional harm was consistently and foreseeably caused to the children at Spring Creek."

The Times mentions nothing of this controversy -- essentially allowing the author to claim that The New York Times endorses his book and by association, Spring Creek Lodge.

Nor does the review inform readers that when Linderman worked at Spring Creek, it was affiliated with WWASP, which has had no fewer than eight programs shuttered following abuse allegations. In Mexico, police filmed kids chained in outdoor dog cages at one program -- a program to which kids at Spring Creek were often sent if they didn't behave.

Spring Creek Lodge is currently the subject of a large class action suit -- with over 100 plaintiffs claiming serious human rights violations occurred there and at other WWASP programs.

I think parents considering taking advice from the "Teen Whisperer" might want to know that he has been accused as well of being a "Teen Tormentor" and party to institutionalized child abuse.

And we wonder why people distrust the media...

48
The Troubled Teen Industry / Reminder, Senators and Congressmen are reading your stories
« on: October 30, 2007, 10:28:19 AM »
Quote from: ""wdtony""
I just wanted to put up a little reminder that Allison Pinto of ASTART has sent the wiki-site with survivor stories to congress to read. If anyone wants to add a story here, it might make a difference. Apparently all congressmen/congresswomen have been sent this link to peruse at their convenience. A short story of an occurence would probably be better than what I wrote seeing as how congress don't like to read too much.

Here is the website in case some of you don't have it:

http://endinstitutionalabuse.wikispaces ... /list/home

pass it on,
-T


Thanks for posting this wbtony

49
The Troubled Teen Industry / The issue from a parents perspective
« on: October 30, 2007, 10:23:24 AM »
Quote from: ""Deborah""
Quote from: ""Oz girl""
i ronically the who recommended I read this book a yr ago because he thought it would make me see that ALA is one f the good ones. When I first finished it i assumed that he was veing ironic

Did you mean ASR?


Yeah, that's ASR

50
Open Free for All / Rules for a Safe Halloween
« on: October 30, 2007, 04:47:03 AM »
I have friends from Transylvania thank you very much  ::hrumph::

51
The Troubled Teen Industry / The issue from a parents perspective
« on: October 30, 2007, 01:11:21 AM »
LOL, I'm not flaming you... Just glad that most parents, the GAO, and Rep.Miller don't share your view of survivors.

Also if you feel offended by my post please do start a thread about it in the OFFA, K?

52
The Troubled Teen Industry / Peninsula Village
« on: October 29, 2007, 09:08:17 PM »
Hey folks do save these pages as PDFs, ok?

Click file>print, then select print to file in the print dialog.

53
Open Free for All / Things from the net to make you smile
« on: October 29, 2007, 08:05:34 PM »
OMG, OMG!!!!



 ::roflmao::

54
The Troubled Teen Industry / The issue from a parents perspective
« on: October 29, 2007, 07:52:20 PM »
Well Who I'm glad that most parents disagree with you. Good discussion folks, please continue.

55
The Troubled Teen Industry / California Boy Abused at Yellowstone Boys and Girls: Montana
« on: October 29, 2007, 07:49:51 PM »
Ouch, That's what I thought, he became a ward of the court. Parents should be allowed to sue the courts when things like this happen. They are responsible for any abuse this kid suffers, it just makes me sick.

56
Web forum hosting / Action Alerts forum
« on: October 29, 2007, 07:27:53 PM »
Oh, cool thanks deb

57
The Troubled Teen Industry / California Boy Abused at Yellowstone Boys and Girls: Montana
« on: October 29, 2007, 06:43:01 PM »
My brother is a SE student, I still don't get how the kid can be placed in a program, parents denied access to their child, parents not have any say in were the kid goes, or not be able to say enough and just get the kid out? No PBMom I don't get it, could you please explain.

58
The Troubled Teen Industry / When is RTC not a "program"?
« on: October 29, 2007, 03:37:38 AM »
Zen I know after your daughter got out of PV she chose to go to a short term RTC that was good i.e not a program, what are your thoughts? CCM girl, you seemed to feel good about Heritage. What exactly made the difference to you?

59
The Troubled Teen Industry / The issue from a parents perspective
« on: October 29, 2007, 03:35:21 AM »
What about some of you other parents that post here, what are your thoughts?

60
The Troubled Teen Industry / The issue from a parents perspective
« on: October 29, 2007, 02:54:28 AM »
Quote from: ""Guest""
Well as a parent I can honestly say I really dislike this trend that places the blame on the shoulders of us parents!

These places are very deceptive and use all sorts of gimmicks to trick us into sending our children to them.

Further, I believe survivors are terrible examples of advocates. They come across as strung out little junkies who spend 3 hours out of 4 exspousing deranged conspiracy theories.

What really needs to happen, and I'm very grateful to Congressmen George Miller for his action, is the voices of parents need to be heard more and more. We parents have far more credibility than the survivors. Most of these young kids are far to troubled to be of much use. Imagine if some of these shabby young men and women testified in front of congress?

It would have killed every shred of credibility that this movement has! G. Miller was very wise to limit the witness pool to just the three parents that he did. Their testimony was far more powerful and moving that what could come from an ex-junkie.  

I can't help but feeling sorry for them and wanting to help them out in every way I possible can. We really do need to do more for these poor young men and women in the way of getting them good job skills and a helping hand up out of their terrible circumstances!


Ok I want to limit my commentary, but I must say that many survivors are not junkies or kids. Take Ursus, Rachel, Psy, Zen's Daughter(she is a kid), Deborah's son, Lorri Picklemire, Kat, Julia Scheers, Kev, Shelby Earnshaw, Lou Lou Carter, Rebecca Ramirez, and others I can't think of right now for example. They are not Junkies and are very well spoken, not to mention extremely intelligent. You don't think that they know more about what actually goes on in programs then parents? And isn't part of the problem a failure to listen to these kids who have been trying to warn parents for decades about abuse?

I'm sure that kids being locked in dog cages, being forced to eat their own vomit, beatings, and cover ups by powerful political forces sounds out of this world. However all of these things have been proven to be true and not just conspiracy theories.

It's also important to note that it was these kids(many now adults) who not only kept this issue alive but also won the ear of the APA's Astart and Rep.Miller. Of course parents like Cathy Sutton, PBmom, and the Parents at the GAO hearing have been great allies but at every moment they emphasise the need to listen to these shabby kids and consistently affirm their right to speak. And while you may not hold fornits in high regard you can't dismiss the impact of survivor run orgs like ISAC.

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