Amanda Bynes - Another Cautionary Tale
Sad. That is the word that comes to mind when I think about Amanda Bynes. This woman is unraveling in front of everyone and yet she seems very alone. Where are all her people? I suspect there were plenty people available to go to movie premieres and red carpet event with her back when she was on the A list. I am sure there were plenty of friends available when she was taping her tv show. Where are they now? Why isn't anyone helping this young woman?
I can't help but wonder again, why would any parent allow their child to get involved with Hollywood? Ok, I can hear them all now, “my child loves to perform”. This is usually the reason you hear from parents. To that I say, let them perform. Let them perform in Community Theater and local dance recitals and talent shows. Encourage your child to sing at church and join the school choir. But also let them be a kid and grow up in the safety of a community that loves them and will keep them grounded. If your child loves to perform, they love to perform and won’t care if its in Hollywood or their hometown. I also think parents say "this is a great opportunity to earn money for college" How many child stars go to college? Yes, a few might, but I don't think many do.
If you told a parent that engaging in a particular activity had a 90% chance of harming their child, sometimes even resulting in death, would they allow it? If you told a parent that engaging in a particular activity had a much higher rate of their child becoming involved in substance abuse, would they allow it? Well, that is what they are doing when they hand their child over to Hollywood.
We see it over and over and over again. Think of a child star. Think of how it ended when they became an adult. Britney, Lindsay, Todd Bridges, Danny Bonaduce, McCauley Caulkin, Tatum O’Neil, Corey Haim, Dana Plato, Drew Barrymore, etc.. I literally could go on and on. Think of tv show or movie of your childhood where children were a part of the cast, how did it go for them as adults? A lot of them were badly damaged or killed by substance abuse or suffered mental health issues. Right now we are just starting to see Justin Bieber have some issues, and I pray this kid has good people to help him through because it can go very wrong very fast.
My point is, it doesn’t end well for so many of these kids. Yes, a lot of teens go through some rocky times. I just happen to think it is more likely to happen to Hollywood kids and it affects them much worse than your average child.
I pray for these former child stars like Amanda Bynes and Lindsay Lohan. I pray someone loves them enough to be tough with them. So far, for Lindsay, everyone has failed her. It would appear the courts have taught her she can disregard them and it will be fine. No wonder she doesn’t take anything they dish out seriously. These young women need a firm, loving hand to reign them in and require better of them. I pray for these young women.