[thechat] The youth today... [WAS: santa question - quickie]

[Drew Shiel]

At 23:16 26/11/2002 +0000, John Handelaar wrote:

>Jeez, you need to pass a test to drive a moped, but any vindictive
>*lazy* inadequate retard can cause physical pain to a toddler at will,
>providing it's a blood relative.

   While I agree with you on most of the points, and I think Erika's
childminder is going overboard - punishment for mistakes is plain stupid -
there is one thing that's missing here.

   Small children (old enough to walk, not old enough to reason much) will
often engage in behaviour that puts them in danger. Moving towards fires,
pulling on electrical cords, pulling the neigbour's Rottweiler's tail,
sticking forks in electrical sockets.

   When I was a kid, I know I got slapped by my parents for persisting in
trying to do some of these things (and given that my father's workshop was
accessible - and given seven people working there, etc, couldn't really be
made inaccessible - there were plenty of them). This, I believe, got
through to more primitive instincts; that action brings pain. Personally,
I'm much happier I got the slap than got to stick the fork in the socket -
and I'm fairly sure, having seen the sheer persistence of a three-year-old,
that just telling me wouldn't have worked.

   Given that it's impossible to completely make safe a normal household
environment, what do you suggest instead of a slap for this purpose?

   Drew (never having children, and making this surgically certain next year).


Drew Shiel                               webmaster at swiftpay.com
                                                     +353-1-2365705
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