tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-679982583847135662.post8448315838078923423..comments2022-07-27T00:08:13.293-07:00Comments on The Original Dragon Mother: Parenting then and nowKazhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06883203750700550391noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-679982583847135662.post-39883546951497936902012-05-29T21:01:32.419-07:002012-05-29T21:01:32.419-07:00Excellent post! It asks some tough questions and m...Excellent post! It asks some tough questions and makes some good points. My parents took the same approach you describe from your childhood. My parents set the guidelines - strictly - on things they objected to. It's interesting that none of the four kids ever had drug problems or major issues that are seen frequently now. Hmm - Maybe they had something there? (I hate to admit it ...)<br /><br />Looking forward to the next!Jan Leehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17683428918882225751noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-679982583847135662.post-82456795059666455432012-05-29T03:13:56.101-07:002012-05-29T03:13:56.101-07:00Hey Jack,
Welcome to Dragon Mother! I haven't...Hey Jack,<br /><br />Welcome to Dragon Mother! I haven't been game so far to share it on Facebook, which is what I do with Books Anonymous...for precisely the reason you stated in your opening paragraph!! <br /><br />I just get so riled with so much of what I see around me and in the press these days, and so we'll see where this one goes.<br /><br />Gotta say - I did enjoy your comment/post(!), and you cracked me up at the end. I'll have a think and keep going - maybe with more on this topic, or it could be a tangent. <br />KKazhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06883203750700550391noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-679982583847135662.post-5667793157219397642012-05-28T23:37:53.501-07:002012-05-28T23:37:53.501-07:00Hello, my friend. I'm proud to be your first f...Hello, my friend. I'm proud to be your first follower, even though I haven't the slightest doubt that you're going to get in a lot of trouble over this, possibly irreversable. There came a point where I stopped fighting this battle, concentrating most of my effort on countering the gang influence. I wasn't completely successful, but both my boys are alive, and neither of them are facing the prospect of dying in prison, which is more than I can say for a lot of their friends.<br /><br />I didn't realize that it was all right for me to stop worrying about the computers until later. I question whether screens are really stealing childhood, or enhancing it. Everything is done on screens anymore; childhood evolves with the technology. As a child of the fifties, I played with mechanical toys that used wind-up mechanisms or battery power. The grandparents who raised me used to chase hoops or shoot marbles, if they had time to play at all between milking the cows and working in the coal mines. I watched a lot of cowboys and indians, war movies, and cop shows on that TV that everybody was so sure was going to warp my morals and outlook, but you know, I've never committed a murder, nor even an assault, never robbed a store, never sold a single packet of drugs. All the bleeding heart hanky-wringers assured me that playing video games would destroy my sons' lives, as children are obviously too ignorant to seperate the events of Grand Theft Auto from real life, and would grow up to be killers, rapists, and thieves. Well, one of them founded his own business, and the other is a civilian security specialist for the U.S. Army... and he still plays violent video games. Maybe the ignorance kicks in later?<br /><br />Tech evolves, and as tech users, we have to evolve with it. I used to change the channels on that old black-and-white TV by getting up, walking across the room, and turning a knob on the front. Today, our TV doesn't have knobs, and if the grandkids want to watch it, they'd better know how to manipulate a fairly complex remote or two. I had the great good fortune of growing up in the time before the lawyers and politicians decided that childhood was too hazardous to be left in the hands of children. To my mind, it isn't screens that are stealing childhood, it's all the self-important busybodies who feel it is their God-given right to mind everyone else's business for them. Lighten up, people. The children are all right, but may not be for much longer if we don't leave them alone.<br /><br />First, understand that I am playing devil's advocate here, offering a disparate view for your consideration. Second, my views are colored by my life in America. My understanding of Australia is that you still have some common sense over there, that is, if you stab yourself in the eye with a screwdriver, you don't then sue the toolmaker on the grounds that his negligence somehow caused it. Over here, we order hot coffee, spill it on ourselves, and sue the restaurant because we got burned. Over here we have fireplace logs made of pressed sawdust. Their sole purpose is for burning in the fireplace, get it? They come with a warning, so help me, that says, "DANGER: MAY CAUSE FIRE." Ya' think? But they know that somebody is going to burn their house down with one of these, and sue them, and their defense will be, "We warned you!" They have no choice.<br /><br />Maybe you're right, at that. Maybe it's the screens that cause all the insanity. All I know is that I shared cola from a glass bottle with my friends, rode my bike without a helmet, and went for rides in the backs of pickup trucks, and here I am. Heck, we even played with BB guns, and I don't remember a single eye being put out. My mantra: Let the children play.<br /><br />But it seems like the more screens are added to our lives, the crazier the rules get. Yeah, now I think about it, I'm with you. Get rid of all of them!Jack Tylerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14030471723776022615noreply@blogger.com