I get a little fed up with, what I feel, is the over-protection of our kids these days. I posted a link on FB today about how the majority of what we hear about the rest of the world from the news media are mostly scare tactics. And I read yet another study yesterday about how much violent crime has dropped in the last 50 to 100 years. But still, we have parents scared to let their kids outside to play without watching them like a hawk.
The simple truth is, there aren't any more kidnappings, child molestations, murders, etc. than there's ever been. In fact, there's less of all of that. The news media will play up every story that's out there, though, because it increases ratings and sells papers in this era of 24 hour news. Yes, pedophilia DOES go on. Kids DO get kidnapped. But overwhelmingly, the people doing these crimes are related to the victims. You should be much more worried about Uncle John than the neighbor down the street, statistically speaking.
And what about child's safety? My kid has to sit in a booster seat, wear a helmet, knee pads and elbow pads to ride his bike, and the bus stops at every kid's house. I never had to do any of that. I walked a quarter mile to the bus stop, and when I rode my bike, I just hopped on it. It's a pain for the kid to ride his bike...he doesn't like to do it. Making the kids walk to a neighborhood bus stop not only forces them to exercise, it makes them socialize with the kids there and would save the school districts money on gas. But heaven forbid mommy can't see little Johnny every moment until he gets on the bus.
I'm concerned that we're raising a generation of kids that are unable to think for themselves and are scared of everything. My son, for example, seems terrified that everything is going to hurt him. He doesn't have the sense of adventure that my generation had...he's been raised in a society where he's been told he needs constant protection. I believe we're doing a real dis-service to our kids...or maybe I'm blind to reality. I don't know. I do know that it's part of my job to teach him to be a productive adult, hopefully without elbow pads and a helmet.
I'm completely with you. Except that I start to freak out when they have been out of my sight for more than five minutes and hyperventilate when I imagine them near any body of water, including a bucket, without adult supervision. But I remind myself to do it anyway. Let them go explore a little, problem solve, make decisions without anyone listening over their shoulder because how else will they learn to deal with the real world?
ReplyDeleteExactly. I'm also worried about the proliferation of 'play-dates'...I never had a play date in my life. I just went and played with kids. What's up with parents scheduling time to take their kids for supervised play with other kids? Kids need to learn how to handle disputes and get along without having an authority figure there constantly. Argh...I'm an old fogey.
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