Plastic: Submissions

More commonly known by their initials, Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) have long been recognized by the medical community as real ailments that afflict 5% of children - Ailments that can be treated with a high degree of effectiveness with Ritalin. (a www.mentalhealth.com link) But to conservative pundits, it's all nothing more than a fraudulent liberal scheme to "redefine childhood as an ailment, and medicate it until it goes away." (a www.thenewrepublic.com link) The arguments against ADD and ADHD as bona fide ailments coincide well with other traditionally conservative themes: It's not a real disorder; It's just a feminist plot to make boys act like girls; It's a scheme by public schools to shirk their responsibilities; It's an effort by parents to avoid normal child-rearing duties.