Rites and Wrongs

Schoolies is seen, rightly or wrongly, as a rite of passage for teenagers.

In other cultures, a rite of passage marks a ceremony or event that bridges the gap between childhood and adulthood. It reveals something about the character of the soon-to-be adult and provides them with valuable lessons that enable that young adult to be a productive and engaged member of that society.

If Schoolies is a rite of passage what does it teach children like Ms Fynes-Clinton's son?

My son and his mates have also had some serious talkings-to. I stepped up to the mark early, warning my son, trying to scare him a bit; I deeply and secretly hoped he would change his mind and decide not to go after all. But that was not to be.

That adulthood is a series of violent, binge-drinking encounters where mummy and daddy will pick up the pieces when it all goes wrong?

Or perhaps, as the Gold Coast Bulletin is promoting with its 'pash mat', that adulthood is a time for unrestrained passions and careless sexual encounters?

PUCKER up for the pash mat - the ultimate Schoolies ice breaker.

Set to appear in The Weekend Bulletin on Saturday, it's a handy tool for those hoping to strike up friendships with members of the opposite sex during the hedonistic end-of-school festival.

As the name suggests, the pash mat is all about kissing, with one side featuring his and her footprints to help schoolies score a smooch.

There's also a handy personal space zone to make sure it's the ladies who call the shots.

The other side features everything you need to know about playing tonsil hockey.

It would appear so, as the media celebrates Schoolies with the same drunken abandon as the kids.

No wonder we now see 'kidults' in their 20s who are effectively disfunctional.

-- Nora


UPDATE: No, seriously a Pash Mat?

What on earth was the management of the Gold Coast Bulletin thinking?

So how many sexual assaults will the police and counsellors have to deal with because a drunken, over-sexed teen boy sees it as a licence to grab any girl or, by the same token, how many drunken doxies-in-training will believe they're 'safe' because they're doing it on the mat?

How long will it be before the parent of an assaulted Schoolie takes a class action suit against the Gold Coast Bulletin for their salacious profiteering?.

-- Nora