Something to ponder

[onthetrain]

In the local park there are two young women who have with them a wee boy of about 7 years old. The child is obviously pestering his mum for something and is largely being ignored. He continues to pester... One of the women suddenly cuffs the boy around the ear....

He begins to cry.......

The woman turns to her friend and laughing say's...... "Apparently they grow up to be men you know"....

An everyday sort of incident that may have made you smile or even giggle.....

Now imagine for a moment if you will

What if it had been two men with a wee girl??????????/

[ratcliffe]

What, the wee girl will grow up to be a man ? Now I am scared...

[JonP]

Pretty shitty behaviour whichever way round IMHO.

[Scubee]

Originally Posted by JonP

Pretty shitty behaviour whichever way round IMHO.

That's what i thought.

But it is true that we brainwash our children into thinking the same way we do. It is far too easy to make a throwaway comment which stays with a child forever, influencing they way they see the world.

[ratcliffe]

Kids need a good slap sometimes, its how most of us learnt

[Adrian Kelland]

Originally Posted by ratcliffe

Kids need a good slap sometimes, its how most of us learnt

Unfortunately they learn that it is OK to hit other people.

[Letz]

I'm not going to deny that there are times where a slap, not any kind of 'hit', may be prudent but generally it is the message that needs to be considered.

Children should not grow in the belief that it's okay to exert physical punishment if you are the bigger, which is pretty much how it seems to them. They can grow to think it's ok to hit anything or anyone (this includes animals) that are smaller and cannot hit back.

Adults, particularly parents, are the primary influence on children and very strongly in the first years to about 6. That is their only real frame of reference and consequently how they believe things to be. Parents are to be believed, trusted. It is not just physical actions, it's attitudes and behaviour too

Just my 2p but something I feel quite strongly about

[Kirstie]

Originally Posted by Adrian Kelland

Unfortunately they learn that it is OK to hit other people.

I dunno about that. When I was especially naughty, or was about to do something potentially dangerous (and telling me off would have been too slow to prevent it) I'd get a smack on the hand or, for grave misdemeanors, an open handed slap on the back of the thigh (ouch! ).

I've never hit another person in my life.

[Letz]

Originally Posted by Kirstie

I've never hit another person in my life.

That's not what I heard

[Kirstie]

Originally Posted by Sixsquid

That's not what I heard

That's not to say I haven't been sorely tempted on occasions