> If I get even the slightest hint of my 4 yr old son starting that kind of crap,such as trying to act up in a store,I gently remind him with a firm enough arm tug to get his complete attention,and whisper to him that if he continues on this course of behavior,he will NEVER forget it. So far,I've only had to do that twice. He will NOT throw a fit in public,but does all he can to try and run out in front of me,but he hasn't gotten unruly and embarrassing yet. That was the plan all along,and other parents tell me about once a month or so how well behaved he is,along with his daycare teachers. He gets away with more with my ex wife than he does here,or at my mom's,they are on the side that thinks stuff like "time out",and not correcting certain behaviors physically works. If I had been in the situation this parent was in,not only would that kid be on the phone with 911 begging the cops to come save him,provided he could speak,I'd be kicking myself in the ass later for putting the X-Box I bought him out in the road and running over it,while waiting for someone to post bail for my ass. I actually thought about calling the law about a justified ass-whippin' my own Dad put on me as a kid,and his answer was as clear as the message. "Go ahead,call Children's Services. When they come get me and take me to jail,they will take you to a juvenile detention facility before they find someone to take you,which is just like the real jail. Older,tougher,far more streetwise punks than you will beat you worse than I did,and maybe even rape or kill you,just like they will be doing to me in the real jail because I beat my kid,which is the same as molesting you to them. In the meantime,the job I work 60 hours a week to support your punk ass will go away,so no money will be coming in,and your mom and little sisters will be out in the street with no money,and might starve or freeze to death. Or,they will leave you here with your mother and 2 sisters,take me to jail,and you'll have to support the 4 of you,which you can't do because no one will hire a 13 yr old. The phone number is 379-1880,the phone is right there." Needless to say,I changed my mind.
Kids now don't fear/respect their parents,or their elders for that matter like they should. I'll give another example I saw in the local Wal-Mart recently. I get in line behind a nice looking 40-ish woman and her pretty hot but exceedingly shallow 17-18 yr old daughter,who were in a conversation when I walked up. Mom is trying to explain how to make spaghetti to her,and she's looking off in space,flipping her hair,and messing with her pink Razr. Mom busted out,"you haven't heard a word I've said,you have a date with this guy in 2 hours,which you agreed to cook for,and you don't have the slightest interest in how to make this?" The daughter's answer defies explanation. "Mom,any man that gets this p***y can afford to hire a chef,so I'll never HAVE to make spaghetti." Mom's expression told me "sorry you had to hear that,can you please excuse us",and I walked away to find another line. I can't imagine how I would have reacted in her shoes on that one.
The real question is,who do we blame? We can't blame the kids themselves,they weren't taught how to behave correctly,because "society" says it's not right to whip a kids ass for acting up. Kids by nature are going to do whatever they can get away with,good or bad,unless they suffer the repercussions or are told what the repercussions are ahead of time,and fear them. You can't blame the parents in some cases either. The kids for whatever reason have become standoffish,out-of-control,and vindictive,the type that would actually call the law or Human Services and press charges on their parents for being corrected,and no parent wants that to unfold,so they loosen the reins so to speak,only to have it blow up in their face. The laws and lawmakers have decided that there isn't much of a difference between giving a kid a good,spanking and breaking their ribs. A nice,stinging of a slap to the face of a child where an imprint is left isn't much different than breaking their jaw or knocking teeth out. Spanking a kid in public can get you charged with a felony,even if the kids themselves don't report it,because of snitches. I say blame the same people that brought us Political Correctness. Tommy D