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 ...
Liberals have done to playgrounds pretty much the same thing they’ve been trying to do to our society for years.
Monkey bars ? That’s racist.
This “wussification” of america is an on-going phenomenon..
Your thinking of the ‘little monkey’ bars.
Soon, playgrounds will be obsolete. Gone are the days when kids would hit the outside for hours on end. At one time, obesity was the exception, not the rule.
We don't want another weak, sad, generation of euro-esque metro children.
“Children need to encounter risks and overcome fears on the playground,”
...exactly. Monkee bars are character builders. I don’t remember one time where a kid was seriously injured at a playground. If a kid feels he can do it, he’ll do it. If not, he’ll pass. Of course there’s always peer pressure but that further builds character.
First, hang all the lawyers....
at least euro kids have to walk to the metro or bus stop... try getting an american kid to walk a block ...
They’ll be playing on the Wii-ground in the safety of their own homes under the watchful eyes of the parents and likely the state.
When I was in elementary school, circa mid to late ‘70s, some kid got a broken arm on the playground equipment. All equipment was removed for about 5 years after that. This was in Valdosta GA.
“Liberals have done to playgrounds pretty much the same thing they’ve been trying to do to our society for years.”
Another thing that’s ridiculously too safe? School busses. I was taught to look both ways before crossing the street. Kids boarding or leaving the school bus don’t so much as glance at opposing traffic. One day I saw this young woman walking across five lanes (two each way with turn lane.) She never glanced at the direction traffic came from. Cars slammed to a stop as she reached each lane. It suddenly occurred to me that she was one of those school bus kids all grown up. Since then I’ve often seen adults crossing the street with nary a glance either way. Traffic looks out for them instead of the other way around. Before flaming me with “it’s for the CHILDREN!” what about the guy heading home with two drinks in him. (They’re everywhere and they drive everything from beaters to BMW’s.) We live in an inherently dangerous world and we shouldn’t impose on others to look out for us. That’s not their first interest; but it should be our first interest.
Does this mean they’ll allow dodge ball and tag again?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rqv38fP7cr0
“The monkey bars came in...we lost 124 kids in one day.” -
Back in college, my fraternity roadtripped in a schoolbus to an away football game. We had 40 or so guys and girls and a few kegs of beer, with my buddy (who was a part time schoolbus driver) driving.
We stopped for ice and supplies in front of a 7-11 and were basically goofing around in no rush to get there. Then I noticed that traffic was backed up in both directions for as far as the eye could see.
We forgot to close the schoolbus door, and inadvertently imprisoned hundreds in traffic. We closed the door and all other drivers were free at last.
The movie starring Sean Astin was how I found out about the Vonnegut short story.
I drive or walk around my Ward on Saturdays. The two parks are empty. When I was a kid if you didn’t get to Devir Park by 9 o’clock with baseball glove on handle bars and bat under your arm you sat out until someone had to go home. And if any perv tried to touch us the fury of 18 little baseball bats would have come upon him and Officer Butch would take him to the city line and toss him.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.