Dear Individual,

Who can change the law?

The law changes all the time. It changes when judges
make decisions in court. It changes through federal
and state legislature enacting legislation. It changes
with mandatory sentencing for certain offenses.

If you want something changed you need to be specific, and
contact the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC), or
the Attorney-General's offices, or your local MP.
Or start up a lobby group and attract media attention.

As for juvenile offenders and harsher sentences? You need to get
hold of "The Law Handbook," for your state, and browse through
the chapters concerning things like - "The Children's Court,"
"Criminal Cases and Young People," and so on. It may open your
eyes to the law and what it entails (court hearings, preparation,
procedure, evidence, Magistrate's findings etc). It's not simple
by any means.

cont'd ...

I would like to add a few more thoughts on the subject
of harsher laws for "tough" kids. We have to be very careful
with how we label our juveniles. Once young people get
the reputation as "troublemakers," and "deviants" breaking
away from that image becomes very difficult. Once they
acquire an image of themselves they select friends who
affirm that self-image. As that self conception becomes more
firmly entrenched, they may also become willing to try new and
more extreme deviances. With their growing alienation comes
freer expressions of disrespect and hostility for
representatives of the legitimate society. This disrespect
increases the community's negativism, perpetuating the
entire process of commitment to deviance.

Therefore, selective perception and labelling - finding,
processing, and punishing some kinds of criminality and not
others - means that visible, poor, non-mobile, outspoken,
undiplomatic "tough" kids will be noticed, whether their actions
are seriosuly delinquent or not. Other kids, who have established
a reputation for being "bright" (even though under-achieving),
disciplined, and involved in respectable activities, who are
mobile, and monied, will be invisible when they deviate from
santioned activities. They'll be allowed to "sow their wild oats,"
perhaps even wider and thicker than their poorer cohorts, but
they'll go unnoticed.

When its time to leave adolescence most will follow the expected
path, settling into the ways of the middle-class, remembering
fondly the delinquent but unnoticed flings of their youth.

The poorer kids and other like them may well turn around as well.
However, it's more likely that their noticeable deviance will have
been so re-inforced by police and the community that their lives
will be effectively channelled into careers consistent with their
adolescent background.

Therefore we need to think twice before making laws any harsher -
and for whom?

The law let's women and others get away with murder of the unborn. We let rebellious defiant kids off without punishment and then are dumb enough to ask why they turn out violent. Parents fail to say no to their children and then wonder why the children don't say no to drugs. We reap what we sow.

It takes governments.
Often on the advice or even request of judges and others.
I am extremely grateful it can not be done by those like you Indy.
Not being sharp with you just honest.
You have constantly informed us of your national service wishes for youth.
And of a problem few others see in todays youth.
Remember that Roman graffiti of Century's ago.
It has always been a failure of the aging, to see youth as lessor to what they had been at that age.
Most if not all, knew how laws change, some need changing.
I see ;little need for concentration camps for youth.

Individual,
In most cases the laws are there and as Pelican said it is the application of the laws that need to be addressed.

For example parents should have the right to physicly discipline children and be made responsible for the childrens actions. One does not need to go overboard with this as Susie implied, but children taught to respect others and others property is a good start to life.

Some laws are not enforced at all. I have been lobbying State ministers for years to get the laws enforced relating to forced marriages and FGM without success. Yet I notice that prosecutions are carried out relating to cockfighting, which makes one wonder what is important. Was told that some have been charged with docking puppies tails which is against the law. So that is more important than the pain and suffering of little girls.

We really need to regularly look at the application of various laws.

I was thinking along the lines of starting with curfews. Another idea would be a Government sponsored pop band drumming out positive message on the streets at night.
If that still doesn't impact then yes half a dozen whacks across the butt. Depending on the result increase either the number or momentum of the whacks.
Then non-military National service with a small salary which could then be handed to victims as some compensation. If positively identified some of the delinquents could be made to work in unsavoury jobs until they realise the impact their action have on all of us.
Another one would be to tell the mongrels they have won the lottery but all their winnings will go towards compensation.
There are many ways of dealing with them but we need to silence the ignorant do-gooder brigade by making them guarantors for those they want to defend or protect from responsibility.