I don't give a **** who disagrees with this. There's more truth in this than not.
Plus, now that time is passing, all those self-centered, not as smart as they think they are young adults are simply the former children he's talking about.
"every child is clearly not special" George Carlin said it, and by God, so do I.
"If every child is special, then is every adult special? When does the child go from being special, to not so special? If every child and every adult is special, then it loses all it's ******* meaning"
Yeah... it's that thing that's stuck up Chai's butt....
Seeing people without kids complaining about parents is funny.
0 Replies
shewolfnm
3
Reply
Mon 27 Dec, 2010 11:57 am
its called hover parenting
and its annoying as ****.
Kids need to be kids
parents need to back off.
I heart George carlin
0 Replies
wandeljw
1
Reply
Mon 27 Dec, 2010 12:11 pm
@chai2,
chai2 wrote:
The essence of comedy is that it touches the truth wandel.
"The essence of comedy is to make people laugh."
-Steve Allen
0 Replies
Finn dAbuzz
4
Reply
Mon 27 Dec, 2010 01:22 pm
From The Incredibles
Helen Parr (to her son): "Everyone's special, Dash."
Dash: "Which is another way of saying no one is."
0 Replies
Setanta
3
Reply
Mon 27 Dec, 2010 01:28 pm
The problem is the word special. As David has pointed out, everyone is unique. Additionally, most people are ordinary. They have intelligence and talents within the a range either side of the mean, and it is useless to attempt to make silk purses from sows' ears. There's nothing wrong with being a sow's ear in a society which needs lots and lots of sow's ears, from which to make a successful society, which has little call for silk purses. The impetus to make all children feel that they are special may be laudable, but it is misguided. Teachers and parents should spend their energies finding out what skills and talents their children possess, and then encouraging them to use them. They don't need to waste their time attempting to convince every child that he or she is a superstar--we already have too many of those, and they are quickly gone and soon forgotten.
0 Replies
Mame
4
Reply
Mon 27 Dec, 2010 01:29 pm
Well, I have kids and grandkids and I love them, but I would have to agree with GC. Kids are part of the family and have their place. Elevating them to the reason for being is nuts. There were some days when I didn't even like my kids.
0 Replies
chai2
4
Reply
Mon 27 Dec, 2010 01:55 pm
Seems most of you got it that this was not a dart thrown at children, but at the parents who somehow don't get it that their kids, by and large are special only to them.
That video was humor wandel, made me laugh several times, so it must be so.
I just got back from an errand, where I was graced with being able to spend some time with several special children. 2 of them spent the entire time trying to jerk some object out of each others hands, each of them screaming "MOMMYYYYYY....MOMMYYYYYY" They were probably around 5. I think there were trying to win the award of who would end up being the most persistant.
Then there was the 9 or 10 year old special child who stood amongst the rest of her family, intermitently shaking some object she was holding, so we could all enjoy her special talent of being able to create rhythems that are indiscernable to us adults, who have lost our specialness, and can only dream of one day being able to live in a world where we can say to this special child. "Stop that noise, you're bothering everyone in this room, except apparently your mother and father"
You see, even if someone is not a parent, they are not necessarily idiots. Fortunately one is allowed to not have children, and still have opinions about them, and parenting.
I'm not a waitress, but I can complain about crappy ones. I'm not a doctor, but I know a bad one when I see one.
Same as children are not special, and are not supposed to be worshipped, parents aren't special either.
No, seriously, parents just aren't special. No more than I am, or a given waitress, or a particular doctor.
I'm not special, and I don't merit any particular consideration. Parents aren't special, nor are their children.
You can prove by going over an above that you are special, then it should be acknowledged. Just the fact you have a kid? Naw. Just because you happen to be one at this time? Forget it.
Making a child feel special within the context of a loving family is, in my opinion, what is required of parents. No matter what life may throw at them they are special to their family, and can always rely on their family for love and support.
You don't have to feel special to succeed in life, and if you have an unwarranted sense of being special, you will probably fail.
Carlin made the point that kids who are never losers in childhood are not prepared for the adult world where there are winners and losers, and he is correct, but don't underestimate the power of this trend to carry over into the adult world.
No boss, in today's corporate environment, is going to tell a fired employee that they are a loser, and if they do they will put their own job in peril.
There is a political school of thought alive and well in this country that believes it should be the state's goal to make sure that there are no adult losers either, not by handing out ribbons and trophies, or refusing to keep score in contests, but by mitigating the consequences of poor decisions, and confiscating the prizes of actual winners. This latter is made more easy by the assumption that all of life's winners are actually cheats.
A society in which no one loses is not one in which everyone is a winner.
Making a child feel special within the context of a loving family is,
in my opinion, what is required of parents.
OK, but each wise parent shoud watch his back, too.
Tho I have never been a victim personally,
from observation, I am aware of too many instances of betrayal;
sometimes with fatal results. It is not good to trust people.
I wish there were something that we coud put on the American Flag
to symbolize the virtue of distrusting everyone.
David
0 Replies
OmSigDAVID
1
Reply
Mon 27 Dec, 2010 04:43 pm
@wandeljw,
wandeljw wrote:
On second thought, the implications of this subject are massively complex.
I will need to spend at least one year in Tibet to contemplate it fully.
Don 't forget to write.
0 Replies
OmSigDAVID
1
Reply
Mon 27 Dec, 2010 04:52 pm
@chai2,
chai2 wrote:
Seems most of you got it that this was not a dart thrown at children, but at the parents who somehow don't get it that their kids, by and large are special only to them.
That video was humor wandel, made me laugh several times, so it must be so.
I just got back from an errand, where I was graced with being able to spend some time with several special children. 2 of them spent the entire time trying to jerk some object out of each others hands, each of them screaming "MOMMYYYYYY....MOMMYYYYYY" They were probably around 5. I think there were trying to win the award of who would end up being the most persistant.
Then there was the 9 or 10 year old special child who stood amongst the rest of her family, intermitently shaking some object she was holding, so we could all enjoy her special talent of being able to create rhythems that are indiscernable to us adults, who have lost our specialness, and can only dream of one day being able to live in a world where we can say to this special child. "Stop that noise, you're bothering everyone in this room, except apparently your mother and father"
You see, even if someone is not a parent, they are not necessarily idiots. Fortunately one is allowed to not have children, and still have opinions about them, and parenting.
I'm not a waitress, but I can complain about crappy ones. I'm not a doctor, but I know a bad one when I see one.
Same as children are not special, and are not supposed to be worshipped, parents aren't special either.
No, seriously, parents just aren't special. No more than I am, or a given waitress, or a particular doctor.
I'm not special, and I don't merit any particular consideration. Parents aren't special, nor are their children.
You can prove by going over an above that you are special, then it should be acknowledged. Just the fact you have a kid? Naw. Just because you happen to be one at this time? Forget it.
WELL SAID. I believe that now,
and I did when I was a kid.
David
0 Replies
Reyn
1
Reply
Mon 27 Dec, 2010 05:50 pm
@chai2,
chai2 wrote:
... indiscernable to us adults, who have lost our specialness ...
Naw, you're still special to me.
I'm reading along, nodding my head to all you say.
Naw, you're still special to me.
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