The Center for the Next Generation is promoting an effort on behalf of America’s children, Too Small to Fail. The group reports that Ann Romney’s horse got nine times as much attention in the last election than the needs of children did.

Last week I made the mistake of Facebooking my surprise at learning that the kindergartners at the elementary school across the street were participating in Red Ribbon Week, a drug awareness program.

An onslaught of opposing opinions ensued, but this one caught me off guard:

“Don’t be naïve—we live in the world. The sooner we can equip our own children and prepare them for what they may inevitably face once they leave the warmth of our homes, the better off they will be.”

After teaching college for a few years I’ve realized two things: (1) how young adults sincerely want to make their parents proud, and (2) how parents communicate, directly or indirectly, that their children are failures. A previous generation of parents was happy having kids who simply were “good,” but today’s parents want kids who are good and “successful.” And students who have grown up in conservative evangelical churches are not immune from this parental pressure.