When David Browne (Buddy Ebsen) told Andy he should just let Opie 'decide for himself' how he wanted to live… Andy had these words of wisdom. 'No, I'm afraid it don't work that way. You can't let a young’n decide for himself. He'll grab at the first flashy thing with shiny ribbons on it. Then, when he finds out there's a hook in it, it's too late. Wrong ideas come packaged with so much glitter that it's hard to convince ‘em that other things might be better in the long run. All a parent can do is say 'wait' and 'trust me' and try to keep temptation away.' Somehow... we have lost the basic truth. It’s our job as adults to protect children