Problem #1: over-population of a nation 

Each generation exponentially requires more resources.  When funding or food or employment is scarce, we as a people need to face the inevitable - the numbers just don't jive.  We don't have enough funding to pay enough teachers to take care of enough students to ensure that enough of them grow up and manage to find enough employment to earn enough to take care of the next generation.

http://stateofworkingamerica.org/files/book/Chapter1-Overview.pdf

Problem #2: policies are dictated by oligarchy

We elect a few rich people to make decisions based on the best interests of the numerous poor.  Check into the pay grade of our "public servants", and don't forget to note severance packages.  Democracy looks good on paper, but practice will always be dictated by human behavior.  In "nanny state" fashion, our government has stepped in to fill the gaps created by the baby boomer generation who bucked tradition & raised their children without structure.    

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/10/rich-people-compassion-mean-money_n_1416091.html 

Problem #3: our own evolution

Having developed compassion over the last thousand years (as opposed to throwing deformed babies over cliffs and letting them starve to death), we have recently created a plastic bubble around our children so that they may avoid any sort of negative encounter with the rest of the world.  Our hospital systems are overwhelmed with germaphobic porphyrians, and I think it's because kids don't have enough dirt in their diet.  That's not a scientific fact, but seriously - I'm sure your grandfather ate a worm or two in his heyday and managed to survive long enough to raise your parents & not end up in prison.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/darell-hammond/play-is-under-attack-in-o_b_947151.html  

Problem #4: snowflakes

Helicopter parenting has taken over in recent generations, which to me signifies a growing fear of self-efficacy as a parent (peppered sparsely with what seems to be their own abandonment issues).  Coupled with the idea that all children are super special and particularly fragile, parents are crushing important developmental boundaries in favor of making sure their preciouses remain under radar.  "The road to hell is paved with good intentions" seems fitting here, as I'm sure most of these kinds of parents truly only want the best for their offspring. 

http://www.naturalnews.com/039119_helicopter_parenting_children_mental_health.html

As a nation, I believe that there are definitely two sides of the respecting children coin.  I believe the culmination of our problems lies in not finding a balance.  To make matters worse, we live in a "what's good in theory is not good in practice" sort of world, where policy often times gives way to unintended consequences.  The most respect we can afford our future generations is learning to temper discipline & structure with reality - kids need to be kids.  Basically, what she said: http://ideas.time.com/2012/06/12/should-we-stop-telling-our-kids-that-theyre-special/