Very true, but I have been sober and fine free for 2 years.
What is your opinion on strictness in parents? How strict should parents be and what is just absurd?
So you were how old when you weren’t sober and fine free? How old were you when you were first fined?
I was struck by my ignorance about fines for selling some flavored nicotine vapes. I guess there are new laws in California, Florida, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina and Wisconsin. Googling vape fines was educational too. It appears there are really tight regulations in India and more moderate ones in Australia.
To the OP, is the fine structure for under 18 sellers really akin to the following: 1st offense -$1,000 with 2nd and 3rd higher? Maybe that’s only for unlicensed retail?
I was 13 when I got my first fine and 15 when I got my last fine.
Thing is, those laws (and other laws about products that are generally legal to sell *) are targeted at retailers. I’m not going to get a fine if I bought some flavored vapes in Connecticut and “sell” them to you in New York. ( “Sell” often means something different in the context of laws than it does in everyday speech). Now, I don’t know where the OP lives, but it’s way more likely that the fines/suspensions had to do with her selling/possessing any sort of nicotine product on school grounds or possibly selling/possessing any nicotine product while she is under 18
Iowa is listed in her public profile.
It’s not the selling, it’s the possession and distribution of tobacco underage. In Iowa it’s illegal to sell tobacco and alcohol underage much less possess it.
Was it your parents, and not you, that was fined?
These weren’t THC vapes?
What were you getting sober from at such a very young age?
Yeah, your a problem teen.
You wouldn’t ever leave my house unaccompanied by a responsible adult.
You would be in an alternative school setting with no freedom at school.
License to drive? Oh no. Would not happen. If you have substance usage problem in your recent past. I will not be the responsible parent and you go out a kill a family of 4.
Face it, you caused this whole situation.
As long as I was your parent. My job as a parent was to raise a law abiding child to protect the world world from your(a teen) criminal behavior. Its my responsibility to save you from yourself from your baser desires.
I would be remiss if I didn’t. Then it would be my fault.
I took this very seriously raising my teens to be upstanding adults.
If you are who you say you are, tell the whole story. The truth, young lady.
I was fined, but my parents paid the fines, except for the community service I had to do.
Which is why I said this
In the part you quoted, I was specifically talking about laws prohibiting flavored nicotine products.
No, THC is illegal in Iowa.
When I was young, before I moved here to Iowa to live with my bio dad (the one i’m living with now) and my step mom, I lived in a meth house. I was addicted to second hand meth before I moved here. I am now 6 years sober from being high on meth pretty much my whole life, then when I turned 13 I asked my parents if I could try one of their vapes, and they said yes. 2 years of selling and using tobacco products because we needed money for rent. I have never drunk, or done anything more than tobacco willingly.
And you care it’s illegal? Nah.
I’m outta here. Carry on.
If my parents flip out that bad over a milk jug, I’m not about to tell them no about something. IDRC if it’s illegal or not, but I had also mentioned I was addicted to it also, so I’m not perfect, yes, but I’m only tryna make sure my parents don’t flip out over me telling them no. I’m on a better path now, and haven’t done anything illegal since my sophomore year. I do plan on moving out and keeping minimal contact, because I don’t want to ruin my future anymore than what it is already.
That does sound like a rough family life. My and my sister’s best friends’ family was an exact image of this back in the 80s. All five teenagers left forth with as soon as they could. Three of them as adults now have responsible jobs that appeal to them. Anyone can have a functional life eventually so one could say the same for you too.
I’m sorry you had caregivers who let you become addicted to drugs at such a young age. I am really sorry for that. It sounds like your parents might be enabling the tobacco stuff, and I’m sorry for that too.
It sounds to me like you’ve learned some hard lessons already. This will serve you well as an adult because in adulthood there is nobody around to check your behavior. You live or die by your own choices. It’s liberating but it’s also a lot of responsibility, and it can be really stressful, especially when there’s a rupture with your family of origin. I speak as someone who became an adult at age 17. You’re about to learn a lot about survival.
My best advice is just prepare as best as you can. Think about the life you want to have and make a plan for how to get there. Don’t just let things happen to you. Don’t just follow the path of least resistance. Be intentional in the decisions you make. And you will get there.
Following on this advice: i always tell my kids to do the right thing, not the easy thing.
That is all I got…