September First looms... out with the old, and in with the new??   Who can say...

No one has really made it clear to ME what to expect when we go from TYC to TJJD -- can anyone help me out?  It would seem there might be some changes ahead,  but WHAT?

Are we ready for it... are the kids... we can only hope.  When/if the word goes out to JCO's like us that groups are being formed to cuss and discuss new developments and ideas -- I'm rarin' to go for it!  From what little I understand, the changes aren't supposed to all be in place till December first... so we DO have time to get the ball rolling.

A clean start, a clean slate, a new and improved outlook, better results of our efforts: Those are what we have to set as goals.  If we continue doing "business as usual" -- and that includes using CoNextions, I'd say -- then we'll head into even deeper kimchi, if you get my drift.  I'm GUNG HO to see TYC Giddings be what it used to be, what it CAN be, and what it SHOULD BE in regards to meeting our Mission Goals of helping the Joe Delinquent's out there become productive citizens in society. 

We don't need to treat these young felons any WORSE than we'd treat our own children we love... nor necessarily any BETTER, either.  They ARE here to serve time for doing serious crimes, remember?  Being FAIR is FAIR, and good enough, and sometimes we are called on to decide this matter on the fly... and need to be trusted to do our best.  If matched up with CONSISTANCY, the kids will not see us as being so much as "FIRM" as "REAL".  This is where the basis of respect lies, treating one another in a way that is socially appropriate.  Being REAL means we're not going to be victims or victimizers, and we'll get what we've deserved and earn -- and give the same right to others, pretty much without exception.

The kids want this discipline and direction.  We JCO's are here to help  them see the light as to how all this stuff works.  We can show them the Tao, and if they follow it, all the better.  We can't push rehabilitation down their throats, but we CAN be given appropriate authority, tools, and consequences to deal with kids who REFUSE to "get it" after a second reasonable request.  NO WAY should we have to take the chance of being injured on the job for DOING our job!!  If the kids don't like it, well... maybe they will make some effort to wake up to what we're trying to do to help them.  If not, they'll continue to get away with as much as we lack the conviction to prevent.