THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, April 19, 1996 TAG: 9604180157
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 07 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Jo-Ann Clegg
LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines
I was paying little attention to the TV last Thursday morning as Bill and I were getting ready for what was already promising to be a busy and difficult day.
But when the scene shifted from the New York studio to the predawn mist at a California airport, I glanced up from the breakfast table to watch.
``This is sheer madness,'' I said, watching as a little girl who should be sitting in a second grade classroom practicing her cursive writing was shown doing a preflight check on a plane not a whole lot bigger than she was.
``As far as I'm concerned, encouraging her to fly that plane cross-country borders on child abuse,'' I added.
Bill watched for a moment, then nodded agreement.
Later, as I was driving to work, I thought about my feelings. Perhaps I had been too strong in my condemnation of the father who was taking so much pride in his daughter's accomplishment.
I've always been outspoken in my criticism of parents who drive their children into situations for which they are not ready, who expect more of them than the children can produce.
I've been outspoken, too, about parents who meet their own ego needs by driving their children too hard: the father who never made varsity or the pros, the mother who sat in the audience while others led the cheers or donned the rhinestone tiara.
But, I told myself, while I disagreed with Jessica Dubroff's parents' decision to encourage the youngster to attempt something for which she could not possibly be ready, I would have to put aside my concerns and accept the fact that the child was indeed making the trip.
Several hours later, as the facts concerning her death unfolded, my anger returned.
The plane had taken off from Cheyenne in dreadful weather so as not to disappoint the crowd (and press) waiting at her next stop.
The child had been flying for only four months. She had minimal air time and was so tiny that she needed extenders to reach the control pedals. The push to get her into the air was the result of the fact that she would turn 8 in a few weeks and an 8-year-old had already made such a trip.
Were she to wait, she would not be the holder of a record, which in itself is meaningless. The National Aeronautics Association does not recognize feats it prefers to discourage. The Guinness Book of Records dropped the category several years ago in order to discourage what it felt was dangerous competition.
So who did encourage Jessica? Both of her parents and her flight instructor.
Was there no sane person anywhere in this picture, no one who had a clear idea of what the relationship between adult and child is supposed to be?
All three adults justified their encouragement by saying - over and over and over - ``It's what Jess wants to do.''
Rubbish. I know 7-year-olds well. I have studied, taught and parented them. They are simply not capable of understanding the ramifications of such a step.
Using the rationale that the adults in Jessica's life used, parents would give in to the wishes of any child who expressed the desire to get behind the wheel of the family vehicle and drive the length of I-95 from Maine to Florida.
They would put extenders on the pedals, give the youngster a few hours of instruction in an empty parking lot, seat a driver education teacher in the right front seat and a parent in the back, call in the media and begin the trip.
Then they would let the child enter the highway at the scheduled time in a rain, sleet, snow and ice storm so as not to disappoint the crowds and the cameras at the next stop.
Is that an unfair comparison because highways are more crowded than air space? I don't think so. The issues concerning the child's safety are similar. So are the issues concerning an unsuspecting public. Jessica's plane landed in a residential area. A few feet in one direction or the other could have meant several more deaths. The distance of a few blocks could have meant disaster at a school, office building or shopping center.
Do I think we need rules that will prevent this sort of thing? No, because it's unlikely that such rules will do any good so long as we have adults who are willing to put children in harm's way to satisfy their own ego needs or as some misguided manifestation of belief in the rights of children to determine their own destinies.
What we do need is a climate in which parents are expected to be parents and protectors, not promoters and peers.
That need cannot be met by legislation. It can only be modeled, taught, encouraged and expected. Jessica's real legacy should be a reminder of what can happen when misguided adults refuse to accept the parental responsibilities that are rightfully theirs. by CNB