I know not every parent believes in "Physically Disciplining" your child

[Anonymous]

dedicateddad wrote:I have been nothing but polite to anyone who has contributed to the conversation...

Do you get out much?

[dedicateddad]

Are you asking me on a date? You anonymous vixen you! I'm a happily married man....A/S/L?

[Anonymous]

dedicateddad wrote:OK maybe not everything....Segregation was not very cool....there was less access to information...but for the most part people would consider that era to be a much better time. I'm sorry I didn't know that I couldn't take a little license and use blanket terms here without some arrogant a-hole nitpicking everything. I'll take a writing course as soon as you learn that being a dick on the internet is weak and doing it anonymously is even weaker. I'm not on here to start fights and criticize peoples writing. I'm here to have discussion with other parents of teenaged kids so that I can share my perspective and listen to that of others. I guess I'm also here so that I can listen to idiots complain about bullshit. And by idiots....I am not counting those who disagree with my parenting style or opinions...just the ones who have nothing to contribute like the anonymous pussy who thinks I could benefit from a writing course.

All that shit about hanging black folks from trees was not very cool. And the fact that gays and lesbians had to kill themselves if their "secret shame" were found out, as opposed to having healthy long-term relationships was uncool, too. Also the women having no rights or opportunities, and total acceptance of domestic violence was a real downer.

Great time to be a white man though!!

Sunday, Monday, Happy Days! Wednesday, Thursday, Happy Days!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our son doesn't dare talk back now. Seems like we're pretty smart, if you ask me.

Mission Accomplished!

Of course, you could've saved yourself the trouble and just had his tongue surgically removed at birth. After all, if you're not going to bother earning your kid's respect through real guidance and discipline--but rather through "feats of strength"--you may as well take a *real* short-cut.

[dedicateddad]

Yeah I addressed that black folks and women had it pretty bad in a separate post so nice try but no....I guess I didn't include other minorities or the gays who also were getting mistreated as well. So for that...I apologize. if you are gay or a minority other than black. If you are neither then shut up whitey!

[Anonymous]

"Our son doesn't dare talk back now. Seems like we're pretty smart, if you ask me."

Seems like you're just the type to get dumped in a crappy old age home.

Sayonara!

[Anonymous]

So...what's your point? That "Shut up or I'll give ya a taste of the back of me hand!" doesn't work for women or kids anymore? Or just kids? Or what?

[Anonymous]

dedicateddad wrote:Yeah I addressed that black folks and women had it pretty bad in a separate post so nice try but no....I guess I didn't include other minorities or the gays who also were getting mistreated as well. So for that...I apologize. if you are gay or a minority other than black. If you are neither then shut up whitey!

You left out a lot of others. Are you really so clueless and/or poorly educated that you don't know basic American History?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

dedicateddad wrote:Yeah I addressed that black folks and women had it pretty bad in a separate post so nice try but no....I guess I didn't include other minorities or the gays who also were getting mistreated as well. So for that...I apologize. if you are gay or a minority other than black. If you are neither then shut up whitey!

You left out a lot of others. Are you really so clueless and/or poorly educated that you don't know basic American History?

Granted times in Nazi Germany were pretty bad if you were a Jew, but let me tell you something, the streets were clean, the trains ran on time, and the kids were f-ing polite. Ok, it was pretty bad if you were gay or a gypsy, too. But c'mon people, wouldn't you rather go back.

Oh, forgot about the Jehovah's Witnesses.

[dedicateddad]

Wait a minute...I'm sorry I didn't realize we were compiling a list of society's ills throughout American history...I thought we were talking about why everyone's kids are running around like savages with no respect....OK should I start pointing out how bad things are in America now? Rampant unemployment? Homelessness is way worse now...how many wars are we in currently? IS OUR PRESIDENT EVEN AN ACTUAL AMERICAN CITIZEN!!!! OK I'm kidding about the last one I'm just trying to make a point....if we want to have historical pissing contests then let's start a new thread. I want to talk about "spare the rod spoil the child" in here.

[Anonymous]

I thought we were talking about why everyone's kids are running around like savages with no respect..

Sorry, I don't see it. My kids (and the kids of my neighbors) are respectful, and seem pretty well-adjusted. Certainly more respectful, intelligent, and well-adjusted than the collection of miscreants I grew up with.

Things were great post-WWII because we had massive post-war growth stemming from the near total-destruction of every other developed country in the world. It really wasn't until the 80s that some countries (like Britain) managed to catch up. "Homelessness" was certainly an issue--though not the sort we think of today with insane individuals pushing shopping carts through the streets. We used to just round those folks up (along with other deviants) and forcibly institutionalize them.

Humans are a race of chicken littles: the sky is always falling, no matter what era we live in:

"When I was young, we were taught to be discreet and respectful of elders, but the present youth are exceedingly disrespectful and impatient of restraint".
Hesiod, 8th century BC

"What is happening to our young people? They disrespect their elders, they disobey their parents. They ignore the law. They riot in the streets inflamed with wild notions. Their morals are decaying. What is to become of them?"
Plato, 4th Century BC

"The young people of today think of nothing but themselves. They have no reverence for parents or old age. They are impatient of all restraint... As for the girls, they are forward, immodest and unladylike in speech, behavior and dress."
Attributed to Peter the Hermit, AD 12743

More about the never-ending free-fall of modern society here:

http://www.anxietyculture.com/antisocial.htm


That feeling of decay is eternal. It's always with us. But when you look at the objective measures that many PPs touched on, you can actually see that our society is becoming *more* decent with every passing decade. Not less.

[Anonymous]

Everyone's kids aren't running around acting like savages with no respect. That's just the stuff you see on tv, while you ignore all the really terrific young people who are out there volunteering, shoveling their elderly neighbors sidewalks (yes this happens regularly in my neighborhood), workign hard in school and in activities, etc. My kids and most of their friends are perfectly respectful and polite most of the time. In fact, the only asshole kids I know of have the asshole parents who have bad tempers, yell a lot, and probably smack them around.

The truth is, millions of us have managed to raise perfectly nice kids (including my parents) without using force. If you can't teach your kids how to behave respectfully with "beating" it into them, you just aren't a particularly imaginative parent.

[Anonymous]

Just in case you missed it, the best quote of all:

"We live in a decaying age. Young people no longer respect
their parents. They are rude and impatient. They frequently
inhabit taverns and have no self control."
Inscription, 6000 year-old Egyptian tomb1

[dedicateddad]

I see these kids on a daily basis. Today there was a girl in the CVS with her mother when I went in. She called her mom a shithead or something like that in front of 20 people...in the same store there was this girl probably abut 11-12 dressed so whorish I couldn't believe it....right next to her mother who looked like a perfectly normal person. The little girl started yelling at her mom because she wouldn't buy her the Juicy perfume and was making a huge scene. She actually threw herself down on the ground (which I thought kids outgrew by 11-12 more like 5 or 6) and her shorts were so short I could have seen whatever I wanted to if I wasn't a good person. I went to my nephews high school football game and there was a whole group of kids picking on a smaller group of kids in front of us and being real assholes and saying wildly inappropriate things evern though there were really young kids nearby. Then there was a group of kids spray painting on the wall behind the shopping center. The important message they felt everyone needed to read....."CUNT"

[Anonymous]

Wow. Where do you live, if you don't mind my asking?