I'm not a hardcore fan of any sport or team though if I had to pick a sport, it'd be European soccer and specifically the World Cup (indeed, the single biggest sticker on my laptop is a World Cup 2010 South Africa sticker. Ask me to see it next time we meet up. it's cool).

But I just don't think I have what it takes to be a fan in these offensive and unpleasant modern times...

Here are their five key points related to their product...

Is there a Florida Prepaid for pre-K?

Parents can send their 4-year-olds to three hours of free pre-K per day during the school year, but they still have to shell out big bucks so their kids can spend the rest of the day learning their ABCs and 123s.

So they can probably relate to a new study by Pre-K Now, which found that early childhood education is breaking the piggy banks of middle-class families across the country. The study looks at states where, unlike Florida, families must meet income thresholds to qualify for free pre-K. Earn too much, and you have to pay.

And pay they do.

In those states, preschool costs eat up about about 30 percent of a family's budget, beating out food, rent, car payments and healthcare, the study says. The study defined middle class as a family of four living on $51,523 to $103,046 a year.

Monthly expenses for Maryland's middle-class families look like this: $1,324 for rent, $995 on food, $1,559 on early education. That's a bit on the high-end of the scale. The low-end would be Louisiana, where rent cost $758 (which is wishful thinking down here), while childcare is about $809.

Another startling fact listed in the study: In every state, for families earning $60,000 year, a year of childcare costs more than a year's tuition at Harvard or Yale.

Pre-K Now is a national non-profit organization funded in part by the Pew Charitable Trust. The report, which was released Wednesday, is available here.

So my son brought his report card home yesterday.

It was really wonderful; great grades earned him a dinner out to the Melting Pot. After all, he's also earning some high school credits even though he's still in 8th grade. And we celebrate everything together, little achievements and big ones.

But now he's being wooed by area high schools for their magnet programs. It's kind of cool, but daunting too. We must consider the possibility that he might go to a high school that is farther away from home. And we value, as he does, his current friendships, staying in touch with the kids he's been going to school with since elementary school.

However, a good education is a priority too, and positioning himself to be at the doors of opportunity when they open is just as important. If he doesn't go to the high school we thought he'd be going to all along, then are we responsible for transportation? That will a definate concern.

Regardless of the school he goes to, isn't it all about what the kid himself makes of it, himself, in the end?

There is a lot to think about: Friends. Transportation. Exposure to educational opportunities. Learning environments. These considerations will give him, and us, practice on managing the options when it's time to pick a college.

Each issue is important. How would you rank them?

This raises a number of campus safety issues, some of which are explored by our colleague Kathy Bushouse in this article (Click Here).

One Dillard High parent said this morning that metal detectors may be an inconvenience, but they're also necessary to help guarantee safety.

"You need metal detectors," said Marion Stevens, whose son, David, is a junior at Dillard. "They have them everywhere.They have them in the courthouse."

Not to mention airports.

Is Stevens right? Are metal detectors worth the cost and inconvenience? Local columnist Mike Mayo thinks not. If the charges against Teah Wimberly (pictured left) are true, would a metal detector have stopped her from bringing a gun on campus to shoot Amanda Collette (right)?

Do you think your child's school needs a metal detector? What lengths should we go to in order to ensure safety in school?

And in case you missed it, this post by Lois Solomon (Click Here) talks about a counseling resource for teenagers. This came out about two hours before the shooting.

Teen Talk offers professional therapy for troubled teens no matter where they live. They can communicate by e-mail (markc@rrjfs.org) or phone (561-852-3333 or 800-393-5397) with a licensed clinical social worker.

The site is cited in the November issue of YouthToday, a national newspaper for people who work with kids.

It's a great idea. How many teens make an appointment with their school counselor when they have a problem? Or ask their parents if they can talk privately with a therapist? This way, they can remain anonymous and unload on a professional who will make sure they get quality help in a style they're comfortable with.

My question is whether, psychologically, they can understand at this age that it’s wrong. We can tell them not to do it, and that will have an effect. We remove treats, take away fun trips and put them on a time out. So maybe the association of hitting-leading-to-disappointment is what we hope for at this point. But I wonder: How can we get toddlers to understand that hitting is inherently bad? What worked for you?

You're 13! Here's
your new car!

You know, that's the age of the Bar Mitzvah. (We're not Jewish, but still!) And according to the great Internet, it's the age in some other countries when a boy is considered a man.

The Internet also tells me that 13 marks the age when a boy can mount an adult size Hippity Hop Ball and have a lot of fun.

And that's exactly what I'm torn with here. Is a 13-year-old a baby, or a little adult who should start making his own decisions in life?

I feel like I've already raised up my child in the way he should go. I've instilled all the character traits and values that will fit.

At this point, I think, I'm pouring into a vessel that is not only full, it is vomiting out everything I attempt to put in.

Should a teen be able to handle their own school responsibilities without a backpack-ransacking parent by now? Should a teen be allowed to skip church sometimes? What about sports and extra-curricular? Let the teen decide?

I'm thinking yes, within reason. If a 13-year-old doesn't have a good parenting foundation by now, it's really probably too late.

I know what you’re thinking. “Duh.” Ok, well, that’s what I’m thinking.

My wife and I are pretty lucky. Her daughters, 15 and 13, are still thrilled when an all-new episode of Hannah Montana airs on the Disney Channel. But we can’t kid ourselves. When it comes to trying to maintain a family-friendly atmosphere, we are outgunned, outnumbered and out of our minds if we think they’re not going to be bombarded with words and images of sex.

I mean, they’re into hip-hop. Hello!

A movie came out a couple of weeks ago called “Zack and Miri Make a Porno.” Granted, the ads for the flick didn’t air on the Disney Channel. But they did air during the World Series. So now our girls know that if they should live platonically with a male roommate and find themselves low on cash... Aw come on, guys, we have to sit through these commercials during a baseball game?

But really, who has to go to the movies for this stuff, anyway? Whether it’s “Desperate Housewives” or “Two and a Half Men,” “Gossip Girl” or the revamped “Beverly Hills 90210,” our television sets just ooze sex.

Was it that bad when I was growing up? I saw a guy in a leather jacket snap his fingers and have a half dozen girls flock to him thoughtlessly. Was that lust? Or parody? How about a constantly-on-the-make man living with two women? Love, exciting and new?

Somehow, as racy as things were in the late 1970s and early 1980s, those shows seem so tame in comparison to what we’re getting today. What happened, anyway? How did we get from Potsie looking at a girlie magazine and picturing "a sweater on that" to Rachel letting Ross know it's okay (only to learn it was a juice bottle), and from there to "OMFG" in an orgasmic ad campaign?

And you know what scares me? In 25 years, we’re going to be amazed at how tame “Sex and the City” and “Gossip Girl” were.

Solutions? I can only think of one: If my kids are getting their values from television, television isn’t the problem. I am.

Time for us parents to step up. We need to be filters, and I don't just mean blocking their eyes from the things we don't want them to see. We can manage that to a certain extent, but if you want to know how successful you'll be at keeping these things from your kids, ask yourself how successful your parents were keeping them from you.

What I'm thinking is that if we as parents can establish right from wrong, if we can let our kids know what's appropriate and what's inappropriate, what's safe and what will hurt them, then they'll process the images they get according to the values we instill in them.

Somehow, I think they’ll respect us for it.

Failing that, we can always try keeping our kids in a bubble. I doubt that'll work, though.

Sigh. Anyone know where I can find “Little House” reruns?

The doctors told me to forget about it until he was 3 years old. Many kids don’t have a dominant hand until that age. Three years went by, and guess what? My son still favored his left hand. Wait until he’s 4 years old, then you’ll know, my son’s doctor said.

Danny turned 4 last month and – surprise – he prefers to write, cut, kick and ride a scooter with his left. Fortunately, my son’s teacher is left-handed and is very cognizant of how she teaches my son.

But what should I be doing as a parent? Or, more importantly, what should I not be doing?

Both my husband and I are right-handed. Teaching our son to trace, write and cut are already a challenge. I can’t imagine how we’ll tackle teaching him to tie his shoelaces!

This is unavoidable, I suppose. As parents, we always want, to use a tired term, “role models.” The First Family is the parental role model extraordinaire -- simply by the fact of their prominence. Needless to say, as the first African-Amercian family in the White House, the Obamas will garner even more attention.

But we go through this same process with fellow parents all the time, and it’s not bad. There’s valuable information to be gained from other parents. Still I feel a bit awkward reading about the Obamas’ family life. What am I expecting to learn about being a parent? What are you expecting to learn?

The school is also a polling place. Palm Beach County schools are open today, Election Day. As explained in this Sun-Sentinel story, some parents are concerned about their kids' safety when the schools have to abandon some security procedures to allow voters in.

The administrators also seem to be concerned, as our school principal expressed in this letter.

"All classrooms will be following the District Code Yellow protocols, keeping all doors locked and allowing only essential hallway activity. There will be no recess and cafeteria lunches will be delivered to the classroom."

"Teachers are being directed to review previously covered material and to not assign homework as we anticipate high student absenteeism during Election Day."

So are they encouraging us to keep our kids home? Either close the schools on Election Day or keep them open, but don't give us these cryptic messages that imply that the day will be a waste and it may be better to play hookey.

This week I put up a new one, because she performed this rope-jumping "talent'' in our church talent show Sunday.

That's when I noticed that strangers are watching my baby jump rope. You're saying to yourself right now, 'What did you expect? You put videos of your child on YouTube!''

Yeah, I know. But as videos go, it's LAME!

I really don't care that much if strangers watch her jumping rope. It's just kind of weird. Five websites linked her video (phew! they were rope jumping websites!) and three marked it as a "favorite.''

I don't know if there's parent etiquette for posting our kids' videos. She's way below the age to consent.

It seems pretty cool to me; friends, family and whoever else can watch. And I don't think this will keep her from getting a job 20 years from now, when she graduates with her PhD.

Check it out.

I remember when I was a kid our Halloween costumes tended to be more improvised than purchased at the local Halloween costume store and the entire holiday had a rather underground "harvest festival" sort of feel to it, with benign scares and very little that was truly frightening.

That picture on the left? That's me, dressed as a pirate. Cute, eh?

I also have memories of borrowing one of my Dad's dress shirts and working with my Dad to build a little "shoulders" platform that rested on my head: I was the headless horseman. No picture's available for me to post online, however, sorry!

By contrast, this Halloween we decided that we didn't really even want to take any of our kids into the ubiquitous no-name Halloween costume stores because the imagery is so darn violent and gory.

What's happened to Halloween?

Or maybe walking door to door with my three-year-old daughter asking strangers for candy just isn't a good idea.

Instead, we're opting to take Ana Isabel, and Lucas Emilio. 6 months old, to an organized event at our local YMCA on Halloween. (For some reason that I still haven't figured out, they call it Trunk or Treat.)

I have fond memories as a child of walking the neighborhood with my friends trick or treating. So I feel a little guilty that we've decided not get Ana started in that tradition. But as a parent, what seemed like a lot fun back when I was a kid seems a little unsafe now.

Of course, she'll have many more Halloweens as she get older to do the traditional thing. But I'm not sure when I'll feel comfortable walking the neighborhood with my young children and allowing them to knock on doors in the dark.

At what age do you think it's appropriate to take your children trick or treating?

Am I a total party-pooper if I tell them they can only have two pieces at a time? Or am I negligent if I let them eat lots more?

As I've been thinking about this candy dilemma, I came across this list of "The Best Candy Ever" from babble.com. I'm partial to chocolate candy, but this list brought back lots of memories from my childhood trick or treating days, including Pumpkin Peeps, Sugar Babies and Dots.

On the other end of the sweets spectrum, the American Association of Orthodontists has a list of treats to avoid if your kid wears braces, including caramel, candy corn, nuts and bubble gum.

Do you let your kids indulge at Halloween? Or do you play Scrooge like me?

I'm going to change the name of the insulted, to protect her from knowing. But here's what my six-year-old first-grader said yesterday in the car. She was talking out loud, but to herself I suppose.

"I hate Shanna. She's a horrible person. First, she has the worst cafeteria manners. Next, she's the meanest person in the world. And last, she's a bad person. In conclusion, I hate Shanna.''

I wasn't sure whether to be impressed, or horrified.

I've told her it's not right to "hate'' anyone. But I do want her to pass the FCAT!

This particular film, if you want to call it that, was “Vacancy,” starring Luke Wilson and Kate Beckinsale. It’s charming family fare about a lovely young couple who learn the motel they’re staying in doubles as the set of a snuff film, and they’re the stars of the next movie in the series.

You know, the kind of movie you want to watch with impressionable teenage girls.

It’s not the worst horror movie I’ve ever seen, but definitely not the scariest.

Yes, I did ask myself (and my wife) whether this movie was too intense for the girls. This wasn’t exactly a Disney flick, and some of the violent scenes were pretty graphic. Aren’t they too young for this stuff?

Well, I saw John Carpenter’s “Halloween” in theaters when I was 9. I saw “Mother’s Day” and “An American Werewolf in London.” I was 15 when “A Nightmare on Elm Street” was released. Oh, and can’t forget “Dawn of the Dead.” Caught that on video back when video was new.

All before I should have been allowed to see R-rated movies without adult supervision.

Aside from messing me up for life, the movies did no lasting damage to my psyche.

So should I worry about the movies the girls are seeing?

Yes, for two reasons. First, I want to make sure they can handle the images being thrown at them. Second, and more importantly, the stuff being passed off as “scary” these days simply isn’t. There hasn’t been a really scary movie in theaters since “The Sixth Sense,” and even that isn’t scary once you realize what it’s about.

Now, the original “Halloween” was scary, and I had to explain that to the girls the other night. This movie was scary because it seemed so possible. There was nothing supernatural about it (until later movies devolved into a sort of self-parody). And even then, the notion that you could kill the bad guy and still have to fight him was fairly new to audiences.

Today’s scary movies aren’t scary. They’re gross. “Saw.” Please. They should change the name to “Saw that Already.” Look at “Vacancy” again and ask yourself, how original is a movie about an isolated motel where bad things happen? Anyone? Anyone? Hitchcock? Beuller? Frye?

I know, I’m being as snobby as the generation right before me, the people who think “Rosemary’s Baby” is a horror movie rather than (as I see it) a sure-fire cure for insomnia.

Whatever. The point is… okay, I have no point. It’s Halloween this week. To each his own chills.

Boo.

The night I wrote that, I was having dinner with my wife and stepdaughters, and we were taking turns talking about our day. When it was my turn, I suddenly became tongue-tied. Incest between a father and a teenage girl is not something I was prepared to discuss with two teenage girls. I was reduced to a kind of vague, abstract, “a man did a bad thing” summary.

Is it possible I did a disservice to the girls and to myself? By tripping up over a difficult subject, did I send a signal that sensitive topics are off-limits, making it less likely the girls will feel safe talking to me about other sensitive topics? Well, it’s more complicated than that, as my wife points out. And there’s nothing wrong with showing some sensitivity.

In working on a follow-up article about where victims can turn for help, I also decided to look for answers about discussing the subject with teenagers and other children.

“Parents should be able to have the comfort and ability to have a conversation about a tough subject, and this is a tough subject,” said Timothy, one of the Helpline advisers for Stop It Now, a Mass.-based non-profit that seeks to prevent the sexual abuse of children. “That lets them know you’re approachable, that it’s okay for them to bring it up.”

Deborah Donovan Rice, executive director of Stop It Now, expanded on that point: “I find the best way to approach this topic is in the context of a larger conversation about how we express ourselves sexually,” she said.

Good point. And good stuff on the subject of abuse at www.stopitnow.org.

Timothy (the telephone counselors on the Helpline, reachable at 1-888-PREVENT, don’t disclose their last names) points parents to another site, www.advocatesforyouth.org, for advice on talking to children of all ages about sex.

The one tip that seemed to recur in my own search for advice is that the conversation has to be age-appropriate. You may want to talk about good touch-bad touch with the younger ones while being more candid and mature with teenagers. The bottom line is that they need to know they can talk to you.

This isn’t a conversation I’m looking forward to. But if the opportunity should arise, I think I’m a little better prepared.

You should be, too.

On most nights, she insists I read her a story that's usually connected to a princess. Her latest favorite, Sleeping Beauty. She even has coined her own song called "Ana Princess Rock Star." She sings it around the house.

All very cute. But it got me thinking. Why does she always want to emulate a princess? And it's one that's usually saved by a prince.

I know my niece, now six, went through the same phase. And my daughter went to a birthday party recently where all the little girls dressed in their best princess outfits. So she's not alone.

Naively, I asked my wife why all the princess stuff with little girls this age. Her answer: "Thank Disney."

Since Ana's birth, generous family and friends have given us Disney DVDs and books with stories like "The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast and Cinderella."

It all indoctrinates little girls into this Prince Charming myth that many carry into adult. I never really thought about, of course, until I saw it my daughter.

Don't get me wrong. Disney's not going dictate my daughter's view of the world as she grows. As parents, my wife and I will. Nonetheless, I can see how a corporation like Disney can have a real impact.

What are your thoughts?

A study released this week by the Pew Internet & American Life Project shows that not only wasn't that true, the opposite happened. The technology has allowed us to have a "new connectedness."

Cell phones, e-mail and texting allow us to keep in touch when we're not together. Families go on-line together; I am always asking my kids to show me how to find things on the Internet and visa versa.

But the technology can also create tensions. "Those with multiple communication devices are somewhat less likely to eat dinner with other household members and somewhat less likely to report high levels of satisfaction with their family and leisure time than are families with lower levels of technology ownership."

Have you found technology has aided you in relating to your kids? Or is it more a source of friction?

Someone please remind me why it's worth $150 for a parent and child to ride four or five rides
and spend the rest of the time fighting over what souvenirs to purchase.

One of my sisters spent a fortune flying here from Oklahoma to take her three-year-old to Disney World. But he didn't feel well and screamed his head off most of the time. He even threw himself on the ground and kicked his legs while flailing his arms. That's something I thought was made up by TV actors.

He wanted to buy a plastic sword, and then he wanted to buy a gun instead. And then it was something else. He wanted to be carried, he didn't want his cousins to share the stroller with him. Etcetera etcetera.

He's really cute, so I found the whole thing amusing. But I felt sorry for my sis who spent all that money.

You can't really count on kids to actually enjoy the place. That's the problem.

So I’m looking for recommendations for day cares in Tamarac or thereabouts. The I-95 corridor up to Deerfield is also an option. We may stay where we are, but it’s worth seeing what’s out there. Suggestions?

We boarded in Mary Brickell Village and headed north for the downtown loop. Crossing the Miami River gave me pause, and I did have thoughts of tipping. But everything was fine, and we continued on our loop. Our car lacked sufficient air conditioning, so I was ready for some fresh air by the end. But no matter: it provided lots of excitement and plenty to tell mom about later.

Mary Brickell Village, by the way, is a surprisingly “walkable” neighborhood once off the Metromover. It’s not Manhattan, but it makes for a pleasant afternoon walk when the weather cools a bit.

And that is free, too. Except the lunch.

I'm going to start by quoting the UN's Social Perspectives on Economic Development: "poverty eradication is an ethical, social, political and economic imperative of mankind and [we call] on governments to address the root causes of poverty, provide for basic needs for all and ensure that the poor have access to productive resources, including credit, education and training."

A big task, but that's the path out of poverty. To further illustrate...