Middle school Mayday

The kids these days; what are you gonna do with ’em?

I don’t have the answer to that age-old question, but I do know you should not let them serve as air traffic controllers!

Incredibly, that apparently happened at JFK Airport last month. A controller let his kid make life-or-death decisions for a few minutes, just for laughs.

In one exchange, a child can be heard saying, "JetBlue 171 contact departure."

Then his dad comes on the mike and says with a laugh, "That's what you get, guys, when the kids are out of school."

Fun-nee! I laughed til I died!

This is the Doogie Howser syndrome run amuck. Sure, he could be a TV doctor, but would you want him doing a real-life brain transplant on you?

(I know; the answer depends on whose brain you were getting.)

Look, some kids mature early.

Mozart, for example, was composing at age 5 and performing before European royalty.

That’s why his playground nickname was “Amazin’ Amadeus.”

On the other hand, the Last Emperor took over the throne of China at age 3 and went on to end a thousand-year dynasty. (Hey, who’s perfect?)

I say let the kids have fun while they’re little and stay away from Important Jobs. They can screw things up when they’re older.

That was our career path, wasn’t it?