Posted on 07/20/2011 9:17:32 AM PDT by Kaslin
Eliminating towering monkey bars, tall slides may be safer, but it can keep kids from conquering fears
When seesaws and tall slides and other perils were disappearing from New York’s playgrounds, Henry Stern drew a line in the sandbox. As the city’s parks commissioner in the 1990s, he issued an edict concerning the 10-foot-high jungle gym near his childhood home in northern Manhattan.
“I grew up on the monkey bars in Fort Tryon Park, and I never forgot how good it felt to get to the top of them,” Mr. Stern said. “I didn’t want to see that playground bowdlerized. I said that as long as I was parks commissioner, those monkey bars were going to stay.”
(Excerpt) Read more at today.msnbc.msn.com ...
Awesome
Remember Red Rover, Red Rover? :-)
I remember when I mastered the monkey bars - I came home with blisters on both hands. I felt great. Another fun thing was rubbing the slide with wax paper: speed and skinned elbows, knees and backsides.
Here in a small town I got caught behind a school bus one time, no biggie, right? There was a stretch of 6 adjacent houses and the bus stopped 3 times to let a kid off at each of 3 houses.
These were relatively young kids, but not so young that they couldn’t walk the length of a yard or two.
I thought I was in the twilight zone.
Strong tort reform measures would go a long way in allowing kids to enjoy play grounds again. Cities, towns, townships, school districts, park districts, all are concerned about lawsuits if a child is injured in a playground accident.
The British system prevents frivolous lawsuits ... if you initiate a lawsuit and lose you pay all costs including the legal costs incurred by the defendant.
Yep, and we ate the same garbage, just actually used the energy we consumed.
....’let Texan come over’. : )
Remember “Johnny on the Pony”
“Remember Red Rover, Red Rover? :-)”
Hey, that’s racist! Uh...nevermind...
Only if they don't serve monkeys and make them come in the back door.
Remember “Johnny on the Pony”
Same game as buck-buck? Played that in high school in Venezuela. Of course, we got it from listening to Bill Cosby.
Colonel, USAFR
Exactly right. We are raising a bunch of little wusses who won't have the courage or guts to defend the country and maintain its greatness. I've always been of the opinion that, before the age of 18, a boy needs to break a bone, get in at least one good fight and get taken home by the cops at least once.
Exactly right. We are raising a bunch of little wusses who won't have the courage or guts to defend the country and maintain its greatness. I've always been of the opinion that, before the age of 18, a boy needs to break a bone, get in at least one good fight and get taken home by the cops at least once.
Or "Smear the Queer."
Better yet, break a bone while in a fight with the cops trying to take you home.
I don’t know “buck-bucK” JOTP involves two teams...jumping on each other...do you need MORE details?
That would be the one - first guy holds on to a tree or a phone pole, next guy onto first guy’s waist, other team jumps on them and tries to knock ‘em down. Today, they’d all be charged with assault.
I always thought monkey bars were the bars in a jail cell.
Just this morning, a woman strode out from between two cars in the parking lot with giving me or my car the slightest glance. I could only stop for her because I spotted her head moving some time before I arrived where she was heading, but on another morning I might not have.
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