Mr_RobRoy

Besides your skepticism of the concept of tithing, karma, or the reciprocal nature of giving, what in particular is the published "bad advice" in the article that you take issue with? Your comment suggests that it's not really her advice that offends (appalls) you, but rather her writing style. Is that fair to say?

Amen! My favorite thing I've learned as a Boy Scout leader is the EDGE method of learning (Explain, Demonstrate, Guide, and Enable). If we as parents spent more time teaching our kids skills in a methodical way (which doesn't necessarily mean doing so in a lengthy way), then our kids would feel so much more empowered to be truly independent. I've also found that taking the the approach of "inviting" them to learn a new skill (and using the EDGE method to teach it) can be so much more powerful than attempting to force them to learn. When we do that, we often default to teaching them using only one method rather than the multi-method approach of EDGE.

The author makes some excellent points about evaluating information presented to us on the internet. This jumping to conclusions that so many people make when they see a photo, or a video clip (like the Catholic high school student / Native Elder dustup recently) is so toxic to society. We would all do well to not only have this kind of conversation with our kids around the dinner table or on the drive to school, but with our friends and loved ones as well. Great article!

I think that parents who help their kids understand that their siblings have the potential to be their best, life-long friends are doing a wonderful thing for their kids. My sisters and I (2 years between each of us) spent a huge amount of time playing together even up through Jr. High school. We're still very close today.

Yep. That's what my parents did with us. "Just be home for dinner." We'd eat dinner and then run back outside for another 3-4 hours of "night games" in the cul-de-sac. Maybe on Tuesday nights we'd come in for the Cosby Show or something. But that was rare. :-)

True. I remember playing in all of the local construction sites with my friends as a kid. There were nails, wood scraps, tools, and even huge piles of hay used to keep the concrete from freezing at night that we would jump into from the second story of the house. Of course, that was all illegal and likely quite dangerous. But man, it was fun! And the danger part of it was what made it so fun. We knew we shouldn't be there and so we hid whenever a car drove by. But that should be a part of childhood. Exploring and making mistakes.

I do remember getting busted a couple of times. Those were some life-long lessons that I haven't forgotten, that's for sure.

But today, with attractive nuisance laws so strict and the liability associated with those laws so severe, no wonder kids are locked indoors for most of their formative years!

I think you're right. Just unplugging and kicking the kids out the door just isn't effective, ultimately. I think that's true mainly because it takes all of the parents in the neighborhood doing the same thing. Otherwise, your kids end up outside with no one to play with because all of the kids their age are still inside attached to their electronic devices. I think it's much harder today to create alternative activities than it used to be.