Opinion: A prince of a parent

Prince Charles too often has stumbled in his roles as husband, father and future king. But the way he handled his son, Prince Harry, after learning the boy, then 16, drank alcohol and smoked marijuana last summer suggests Charles may not be so cold and clueless after all.

Harry reportedly had been drinking at a country pub near his father's estate, and had smoked pot at private parties and at home when Charles was out of town. After staff told Charles, he sat Harry down for a talk and then arranged for him to visit a drug rehabilitation center. The scared-straight tactic appears to have made an impression. Harry's back at school, and Charles is back to his royal duties.

His swift and firm handling of Harry probably is the best any parent could do. There's no magic to helping modern-day teens, only a chance to act before the warning signs spell serious trouble.

It is difficult after all these years to imagine Charles as a thoughtful single parent guiding his kids through adolescence. The House of Windsor breeds a different kind of man. Maybe a little of Diana's touch rubbed off on him, or maybe Charles' own upbringing at the hands of an emotionally stilted father made him want better for his sons. Either way, Charles taught Harry that our choices have consequences. It was a valuable lesson and becoming of a father who commands the global stage.

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