By ALLISON LORD — Caribbean (read bio)

(©) 2010 Lord Sisters. All Rights Reserved.

I was in fourth gear cruising the twelve mile zone in my Mercedes convertible when I first thought of writing this article about Lindsay Lohan, the young people of today and the parents behind those kids.

There was so much to say that I couldn’t breathe, drive and write all at the same time. But out of the thousand paragraphs that infiltrated my mind, I finally settled on some of the significant thoughts that I would definitely write.

When a young person constantly lands in court with DUIs, driving charges, probation violations, drug abuse, failed stints in rehab, wears a SCRAM bracelet by court order, and suffers from eating disorders I think it’s time for someone, ANYONE to step in and help.

Such is the regrettable case of beautiful but troubled Lindsay Lohan, unfortunate role model for millions of teens and tweens everywhere. Apart from Rosie O’Donnell, who has come forth to offer help, there doesn’t seem to be any serious ‘takers.’ No one is offering or has offered a path or even a trail for Lindsay to get back on.

In the last few years Lindsay Lohan has become more famous for being a fallen tabloid star, deadbeat actor, alleged drunk, substance abuser and addict than for her acclaimed talent as an actress.

A decade ago what Lindsay had was a promising career as an A-List star. She was considered one of the most talented young actresses of her generation. Mark Waters, who directed Lindsay in “Freaky Friday” and “Mean Girls” has said that ‘her talent was undeniable.’ Yes, we all seem to have forgotten that Lindsay.

Now she is a source of ridicule and fodder for the media and tabloid covers; her image being more suited these days to TMZ than respected entertainment industry trade papers.

While her defiant, complacent attitude and sense of entitlement don’t endear her to us and elicit very little public sympathy, I am empathetic towards Lindsay Lohan. My heart does go out to her. Beneath the bravado, I see a seriously sad, lost, troubled, desperate, scared, pathetic and misguided child on a train of denial, destined to collide with destruction unless she changes tracks…pronto.

The question is, how does one go from A-List to Z-List so quickly? True, Hollywood offers many temptations and dangerous traps that ill-prepared young stars fall into, but I seriously believe that in Lindsay’s case there’s more to it than meets the eye.

First, I believe something terrible has happened to this young lady in her personal life – something that has not yet been disclosed and probably never will – that set her on a downward spiral. I will eat my shorts if I am wrong. No one behaves in that manner, doing such a sudden radical 360º and not have something traumatic at the root of it.

Second, I take issue with Dina and Michael Lohan, Lindsay’s fame-seeking parents. Yes sireee, I blame them too for Lindsay’s downfall.

To many of us, Michael and Dina are not ideal parents by any stretch of the word. Dina, a former Rockette, and Michael, a semi successful actor who spent four years in jail for security fraud act like they deserve a spot in the limelight. They have been elbowing each other and their daughter to the side, fighting for the front page of any newspaper, including tabloid covers for as long as we can remember.

As a mother I openly and loudly do not support that kind of behavior of wannabe, so-called “star” parents. At 24 years old, Lindsay is an adult, but her infantile antics clearly display that she is still a child who needs tremendous (parental) guidance; but how can Dina and Michael give such direction when they obviously need it themselves?

When Dina goes to nightclubs with her fragile daughter it says a lot about her level of parenting. In defense of Michael Lohan, regardless of his motives, he is at least attempting to be the father he apparently has never been. Both Michael and Dina Lohan need to put away their differences. Stop bickering and competing in the limelight to show who “loves” Lindsay more and fight to save your child’s life!

I say stop competing with Lindsay, neither of you has one-sixteenth of the talent she has in her little finger, so accept the fact that you’re not going to be stars. Stop being afraid of losing her “friendship” and find your way back to being her parents again.

Today, parents want so much to be their children’s friends that they have forgotten how to parent. They are scared shitless for their children not to like them, forgetting that they are not there to be liked by their kids but to give guidance and love, lots of love, and more love, unconditional love no matter what and get respect from them in return.

To me the stage parents are the most despicable. They see money bags marked on their children’s foreheads and all parenting guidelines go out the window.

When my son started in the entertainment industry as a young actor, I would go on set with him most times and I could tell from the other young actors and their parents, who was going to be in the spotlight as a star parent, who was going to self destruct as a star, and who would handle success well.

Take for example Dakota Fanning, Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, Kristen Stewart, Selena Gomez to name a few, I think these young people are grounded and have parents with their best interests at heart. Miley Cyrus on the other hand, seems to be heading in a direction I would question, but I see her parents as nothing like the Lohans, so I think Miley is still in good hands… for now.

I understand it could be hard to discipline a child when they are the primary breadwinner in the family, or when they pay your salary as “manager” of their career, but when that prevents mom and dad from being, well, mom and dad when necessary, that NEVER ends well. There are certain principles that children have to abide by and respect is at the top of my list when it comes to parents.

Unfortunately, all these senseless reality television shows portraying real families seem to be doing the very opposite – promoting overly ambitious parents who either want to live vicariously through their kids or steal the spotlight from them, not to mention widening the lack of respect between the parents and children.

When I was growing up I couldn’t dream of talking back to my mother like I see Khloe Kardashian talking to her mother on their reality show. I watched that show once and never made that mistake again. I have absolutely no respect for that particular Kardashian. It took me years to know my mother’s first name and when I did, it never occurred to me to refer to her by her first name. And if the thought of any demeaning, non-respectful insulting names ever crossed my mind and she sensed it, I would be searching the web to find the best dentist to repair my crushed jaw. Kim Kardashian on the other hand is different; she shows some kind of class…sometimes.

The 24/7 coverage of these questionable role models by the electronic mass media is especially troubling, creating lots of wannabe “Lindsays.” But of them all, THE Lindsay Lohan is big business.

The media knows that the public thinks Lindsay is a train about to wreck and they can’t get enough. They can’t look away. So the mass media continues to fill her tank with fuel to make sure that when she does crash, it will make a big explosion.

My island style upbringing would definitely put the brakes on Lindsay’s collision course. I say give her to me and I will show her how to find her way back to the wonderful human being she was meant to be, help her regain her self-respect, public support and become a productive member of society once again.

There is nothing Hollywood loves more than a good comeback story and there are many filmmakers, who would be willing to welcome Lindsay back into the film world. She is not so lost that she cannot come back. Let’s not forget she is a pretty little white girl and she can act to boot! Robert Downey Jr. and Mickey Rourke did it and she can too, only if she can defeat her demons.

After Lindsay has done her time in jail and has received treatment for her alleged addictions and is ready for her “comeback,” I trust Judge Marsha Revel will be given due credit as the one who stepped in as the much-need authority figure, without fear or malice, to save Lindsay Lohan’s life.