You said it, "any responsible adult" and the fact is there are way too many parents who do do meet that criteria. I understand that there will be variations and disagreements on parenting technique and philosophy but that's with parents who have a technique or philosophy. I think many parents have the sperm and egg donor philosophy.

The kids got good grades not because of lots of guidance. I think in this particular case it was a combination of a pretty bright kid and a school where A's might actuall mean B's or C+'s. Know what I mean? Even if the parents were doing something right, it's a darn shame they let up and their blindness is costing them.

Well put. I think many would agree that some people need to pass a minimum competency test before being allowed to procreate.

Perhaps; however there is no manual for raising children so it seems to me that if that test were administered many of us would have failed in the beginning. But the solutions are often found when new parents are guided by respected successful parents. (grand parents). Of course there are many other factors that figure into the parenting process but i can say for sure that young people are looking for stability and a definate moral compass to follow. When they get definite guidelines they know what to expect and even though they may not care for the guide lines they will look back and be thankful that their parents were successful in following thru.

Certainly. I know I started from ground zero when we had our first kid. Now we have a second kid and I'm still learning. I didn't mean a parenting test, I meant a test for mental competency in general.