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Parents' responsibility vs. children's rights

Yet again, the courts have taken a stand favoring the granting of "rights" to some groups while removing them from others ("Mom's eavesdropping violated privacy law," American Scene, Nation, Friday).

Ignoring the details of the case and focusing on the broader issue, what the Washington Supreme Court did was grant broad privacy rights to minor children while depriving parents of one means of carrying out their legal responsibilities for monitoring their children and their children's behavior.

What comes to mind is the Columbine High School massacre. In that case, the parents of the killers both implicitly and explicitly were held responsible by the media and by the nation for not being aware of their children's activities and for not intervening. Had they done so -- by listening to their children's telephone conversations or monitoring their Internet activities, for example -- they may have saved many lives.

As a parent, it seems to me that the courts cannot hold parents responsible for the behavior of their minor children while simultaneously granting rights to their minor children that deprive parents of the very means to carry out their legal responsibilities. Which way do the courts and the court of public opinion want it?

GORDON E. FINLEY

Miami