Back when I was in school, the kids that made bad grades were just dumb, and the kids that misbehaved were just jackasses. Now they either have ADD or a ‘learning disability’.

I think my insensitivity topped yours, so you are off the hook.

That being said, the rates of “ADD” diagnoses in baseball are ridiculously out of line with the general population (and I suspect that, really, most kids diagnosed with the disorder are being drugged into docility for the benefits of someone other than the kid).

The idea that a disorder which negatively impacts concentration is somehow much MORE prevalent in baseball (a sport which demands near-Zen-like concentration from its greats) is almost self-refuting.

To dismiss all kids who have problems with symptoms emblematic of ADD/ADHD/bipolar as ‘brats’ or ‘jackasses’ is just as troublesome as overpathologizing, if not more so.

ADD is a real and serious affliction which can be treated effectively by drugs like Ritalin, Adderall, etc. Unfortunately there is a problem with over/misdiagnosis (I think) and it hurts the credibility of the medical establishment. But that doesn’t mean you should disregard these illnesses completely….

ADHD, as it is called, is a neuro-pathic disorder than, when correctly diagnosed, can cause a tremendous problem in a child’s life. As a person who grew up with ADHD, I can say that it erodes self confidence, and places a panoply of challenges. I’m not saying that as a personal attack, since many people truly believe ADHD to be simply “being hyper.” However, it is far more than that