who's raising our kids?
a father got on the bus this afternoon with his 3 kids. 2 boys, about 9 or 10. and a girl, about 7 or 8. the girl sat near the back of the bus, on a seat over the wheel, beside one of her brothers. the father sat in a separate seat, closer to the front of the bus. as little girls do, the girl delighted in playfully teasing her brother. she had his hat, i think. would not give it back. she taunted him. giggling. waving it in the air. the angrier he got, the more she giggled. then finally, he started hitting his sister.
i'm sitting at the back of the bus, watching these kids. thinking - this is the next generation. when i am old and a little more vulnerable, this is what will be in charge of society. YIKES. what struck me so solidly is the use of violence as a solution. okay, so if you are pissing me off, and i just can't make you stop, then i should hit you? why, exactly are 9 and 10 year olds doing this, and where, exactly, do they learn these problem solving skills from?
now everyone is out there pointing the finger at the tele. okay. its violent. no denying it. but ... i raised 2 boys. they watched the tele. stuff like the power rangers, the ninja turtles -- things with gratuitous violence. yet, they did not resort to violence with each other. never. not even once. i know, that's just one example, it proves nothing. but my point is, parents are responsible for teaching their children about life, for helping them find the tools to manoever thru it. that does not mean plunking them in front of the tele while we go off and try to keep up with the jones'. and it sure would help if news of some unilateral, unecessary invasion were not plastered all over the media ...
just sayin', is all. this is just my opinion - what i see.
i'm sitting at the back of the bus, watching these kids. thinking - this is the next generation. when i am old and a little more vulnerable, this is what will be in charge of society. YIKES. what struck me so solidly is the use of violence as a solution. okay, so if you are pissing me off, and i just can't make you stop, then i should hit you? why, exactly are 9 and 10 year olds doing this, and where, exactly, do they learn these problem solving skills from?
now everyone is out there pointing the finger at the tele. okay. its violent. no denying it. but ... i raised 2 boys. they watched the tele. stuff like the power rangers, the ninja turtles -- things with gratuitous violence. yet, they did not resort to violence with each other. never. not even once. i know, that's just one example, it proves nothing. but my point is, parents are responsible for teaching their children about life, for helping them find the tools to manoever thru it. that does not mean plunking them in front of the tele while we go off and try to keep up with the jones'. and it sure would help if news of some unilateral, unecessary invasion were not plastered all over the media ...
just sayin', is all. this is just my opinion - what i see.
