You know its a funny thing where you can get inspiration and ideas from, books, paintings...TV. Like this blog for instance, I have a head full of ideas about what to write but I need to mull it through my mind before I can write it down...otherwise it becomes a jumbled mess...Like my last blog.
Strangely enough watching Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory has triggered a particular pet peeve of mine. Children...or rather their parents and the lack of discipline that is rampant in todays society, especially here in the UK. How did we, as people, reach the point in society where everything has become about "me", we're all selfish, I think that will always be a part of human nature, but there are some things that you just can't be selfish over, and your kids are one of them. Honestly, if your not willing to give 100% of yourself to your children then chances are good that you shouldn't have them.
The world is made up of checks and balances, we learn early on that every action has a reaction, that if you do wrong there will be a consequence. But it seems that for many parents these days, they seem to have little or no control over their own children. Don't get me wrong, I'm not preaching and telling you that you should smack your children but...I do think that you need to have a whole arsenal of weapons under your belt. The same punishment will never work on two different children. For instance, one child could be susceptible to say...the naughty step, but on another taking away a beloved toy could be more effective. However, I am a big believer in watching for the signs and using a firm tone of voice, too many parents its seems use the.."no don't do that...no that's naughty" in a tone of voice that is incredibly passive. How difficult is it really to just say "NO". You don't need to shout or scream just put a bit more force in your voice.
I recently read a very interesting article on the BBC website, there is actually a parent helpline and this year in particular saw a rise in the number of telephone calls they were receiving from parents who were scared of their own children. Now correct me if I'm wrong but...when your 14 year old teenager threatens you with a knife...theres a problem. The thing is, as much as we like to ALWAYS blame the parents (and 9 times out of 10 it normally is), you can't completely blame them for everything. Society is in such a state that parents are constantly working to provide for their children and therefore time is incredibly limited. Therefore it comes as no surprise that parents have been conditioned to spend all their time working and very little time is spent with their children. But what is most shocking is that an increasing number of parents are scared of children as young as 2. What is a two year old doing threatening their parents?! Am I wrong in thinking that this sort of thing even say...a decade ago, would have been.,..unfathomable.
When a 2 year old child begins to threaten their own mum and dad, it shows that there is something clearly fundamentally wrong in society today. The thing is...Children know their rights, even children as young as 7. Respect is no longer a right as an older person, and yes respect ought to be earned and not given HOWEVER, certain forms of respect should never ever be disregarded, especially if adults are to be able to handle children. The respect I am talking about is that of parent to child, the lost respect that a younger generation has for an older generation. Values and morals no longer seem to have any bearing in society, hence the me me me culture that thrives on keeping up with the Jones, the "always wanting more" that the government and society have told us to become.
I know I am not on my own when I say that I don't WANT to live in a world where it is all about me and what I want or what I deserve. Is it so hard to want to live in a world where I don't have to worry about being scared of my own child? or a world that actually respects their fellow man? Probably, because in a way my way of thinking is too simplistic. In a way we can't ever go back to the way things used to be, because we are all so scared of what is out there that we are beginning to be scared of our own shadow. Everyday we see new warnings on TV, in newspapers and billboards causing us to be more scared, more paranoid. Will we soon be living in a future where we become so scared that we're not even able to go outside? Its certainly something to think about.
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