What's with kids screaming when they don't get their way? Any kind of outburst in public would have been off to bed with no tv or dinner that night. I was fed stuff I didn't like daily and it was eat it or go hungry.
I just don't understand this whole situation quite honestly. Sure my childhood didn't exactly nurture my 'specialness' but I learnt throwing a tantrum in public wasn't the way to go about life.
<rant parent="yes" kids="3">
Welcome to parenting in the 21st century...
My personal view on parenting is that it's my responsibility to turn my kids into responsible members of society, thus I will use what ever methods is at my disposal (and yes that includes smacking, raising my voice, sending kids to naughty corner and the most heinous of crimes, saying NO)...
But if you listen to some armchair experts on the matter, even saying the word no is a no no. ("No should not be part of your vocabulary" is what is written in half the books I've read and subsequently tossed out) The problem is that these same armchair experts believe you can use adult reasoning with kids, and never punish kids lest you damage their fragile egos...
The big problem is leaving discipline to one side is a very easy option for some parents (the experts all agree with them), which is why we see so many little (replace this with strong language), who have no respect for anyone or anything.
The way I see it, I was smacked, yelled at, sent to naughty corner and heard the word no frequently when I was a kid, and as far as I'm concerned I've turned out ok (no criminal record, decent job, productive member of society) and harbour no ill feeling towards my parents as a result.
</rant>