Posted on 03/25/2009 7:26:37 AM PDT by Notoriously Conservative
I don't know the status of parenting in America. But I know a little about the status of education in America. Parents' growing inability to impose manners and limits on their kids when the kids are in school is reflected in record dropout rates, as well as teen drug and alcohol abuse, teen sex, and unwed pregnancies. Maybe it's parenting that's on the decline, more than the schools.
Exhibit A: My wife and I have just been seated for dinner when the maitre d' walks over and seats a young family at the table next to us and the kids start carrying on like orangutans on a leash.
The parents are going, "Timmy, that's not nice, don't throw your food, stop stuffing your mashed potatoes up your nose." Are mom and dad having fun yet, picking food up off the floor, apologizing to people like us, and wiping food flung across the table off their faces?
Some parents still have this attitude that their kids are too special to be burdened by discipline. And the rest of us are supposed to put up with their little mutants. That attitude really pisses me off.
I hate to break it to them, but the kids aren't special, and I don't have to put up with their behavior. If you can't control your obnoxious little brats, leave them home.
They don't belong out in public annoying other people, period. I don't remember a generation of kids ever so indulged and enabled to behave so badly. What's going on?
I remember as a kid I was expected to behave myself out in public or suffer the wrath of one very angry father. And of all the things that used to piss him off, those expectations didn't seem unreasonable. Something's gone terribly wrong here. My guess is it has to do...
(Excerpt) Read more at notoriouslyconservative.com ...
Okay, just noise in the channel, I guess. He sets my teeth on edge and makes me snarl.
Amen my wife’s sister and husband are in their late 30’s and have a 3yo & one 6mos. They are doing it by the “book”. Our D-I-L is an OB RN and says those babies can’t read them books.
Both my buddies and their wives I've mentioned in this thread are awesome parents.
Should God ever bless me with kids, they're both going to be getting a lot of phone calls, to get pointers from.
Probably the best would be to my wife, "lock Dave in a room, and don't let them have any contact with him." :)
Man if it got that far I started wondering who'd come to my funeral. If I didn't die, my name would be "That Boy" for a few days.
Today there are millions of busybodies just waiting for some parent to impose physical discipline on their children. I've seen it personally. Some years ago I witnessed one young mother being accosted by another young woman because the former physically corrected her child for acting up in a discount store. The mother told the young woman to mind her own business, and the little fascist busybody actually tried to flag down the police to have the mother arrested!
See my post #61. You’ve got people screaming at you to get your kids under control and you’ve got other people screaming at you to get your hands off them. I just stay at home a lot these days—helps to save money too.
I disagree. Your situation is in no way shape or form anything like the one I am talking about. Treating a teenager as an adult is just the next step in the "child's" own move toward adulthood. Additionally treating a child or teenager like an adult often just means giving them more responsibility and expecting them to take more responsibility for their own actions.
We were discussing this issue at dinner last night and trying to explain the concept of "different frames of reference" to Jax. She was having a difficult time grasping how her frame of reference could be so different than the other girl because they are in the same grade, in the same school, in the same GS Troop, were in the same karate class, arein Sunday school together, etc. To Jax everything is the same between the 2 except the other girl has a younger sister and an older step brother, and Jax is an only child. So we started pushing her to give other examples of the differences between them.......then she got the concept.
AS I said, she's her mother's daughter and the big highlights of differences she pointed out all dealt with politics :) Including that she has met the Vice President and the Governor of Delaware even though they are democrats........needless to say hubby and I cracked up at that remark!!!
SNICKER SNORT..............
From what you’ve said in this thread, I have great confidence that if and when the time comes you will also make an awesome dad!!!!
Thanx.
Just wait until 13. It’s getting scary around here... :)
I don’t know about the author- but I cut slack to those with young children- but children should not be taken to a nice restaurant until they have manners- whatever age that may be depending on parents. I hate to go to a nice place where we are spending a good bit of money for a nice relaxing meal and adult conversation and have to put up with ill mannered children. The worst are the 8-13 year olds I see that have never learned manners and are allowed to get away with everything including running around personally bothering other patrons.
Fussy babies and onery toddlers I can deal with- past that I want to personally bust their butt and their parent’s butts.
LOL!!!! I have been noticing that with a couple of friends...I’m not looking forward to it, I assure you :)
You and me both ---- and I have a 10yo :)
We live in Southern California, and were stunned while driving through Utah once, at the degree of harmony, obedience and discipline displayed by families with their children in the grocery stores we entered.
Young mothers with several children were calm and their children orderly.
It was amazing and so refreshing. When I grew up, we knew in no uncertain terms, that the very worst thing we could ever do was to embarrass our folks in public. Before we went anywhere, Mom would stoop down, eyeball to eyeball, and remind us exactly what was expected of us.
Of course, we were raised by our own stay-at-home mom. That was an era when ‘love’ meant caring enough to teach, and expect, obedience. Good was its own reward ~ we weren’t bribed with candy.
Parenting ? What Parenting ? Children raise themselves, or they are raised by their 2 Best Friends. Either way, society is the loser .
That is a WONDERFUL story!!! Thanks for the giggle! LOVE IT!
We got one of those every Christmas in our stocking.
'Made me >>>cringe<<<. We KNEW what it was really meant for!
Interesting. I just moved into a new place and the folks upstairs are apparently training the Lipizzaner Stallions.
Their kids must be terrified of the horses, because I hear them yelling and screaming at the same time.
Our governor is a Democrat, too. I think exposure to the wider world, including elected officials, is very beneficial to children. They can learn to be polite and respectful without being awed or cringing. “Look him in the eye, shake hands firmly, and say, ‘Nice to meet you, Senator.’ “
Elen and my Girl Scout troop are the same age as yours, and they can be a handful, but there’s agreement among all the parents that leaders and adult helpers don’t have to take any static.
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