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Soygen

Soygen

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lurkingdirk_sl said:
Actually, kids get into trouble, and parents are called in if they refuse to say the pledge, though I'm sure that could be unique to that school.
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Yeah, I don't ever remember there being any kind of enforcement like that when I was in school, but Vandyn mentions state-level laws above. Maybe Florida was just more lenient in their 'muricanizing.
 
Joeboo

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I said the Pledge of Allegiance as a kid. I heard that in recent times though it's an altered version where they removed the "and one nation,under god, with Liberty, and Justice for all" to appease the anti-god crowd. Of course, that may depend on the state as well.

We always said the Pledge, and then sang "My Country Tis of Thee/America" to start our day off in Elementary school, but this was early to mid 80s, when glorious leader Reagan was fighting the hive of scum and villainy known as Communism on a daily basis. We had to do our part...(and also practice hiding under our desks in the event of an atomic bomb, cuz yeah, that'll help), and our principal kept a wooden paddle on the wall of his office and also used it on kids who got in repeated trouble.
 
Vandyn

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joeboo_sl said:
I said the Pledge of Allegiance as a kid. I heard that in recent times though it's an altered version where they removed the "and one nation,under god, with Liberty, and Justice for all" to appease the anti-god crowd. Of course, that may depend on the state as well.

We always said the Pledge, and then sang "My Country Tis of Thee/America" to start our day off in Elementary school, but this was early to mid 80s, when glorious leader Reagan was fighting the hive of scum and villainy known as Communism on a daily basis. We had to do our part...(and also practice hiding under our desks in the event of an atomic bomb, cuz yeah, that'll help), and our principal kept a wooden paddle on the wall of his office and also used it on kids who got in repeated trouble.
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Never got the paddle (or saw anyone get it) but I do remember teachers using pencils (erasers down) on our heads to check for lice every so often. I remember the bomb drills too. It's amazing they do the same kind of things now but for very different circumstances.
 
chaos

chaos

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My daughter says the pledge of allegiance in her kindergarten class. Whatever, it doesn't matter, this is how they teach civics at that age. When we get older maybe we'll have a discussion about what that means. Maybe she will be beyond that. I think the god thing confuses her more, to be honest.

When I lived with my crazy mother for a short time period when I was in 3rd grade in Arizona I had to refuse to say the pledge of allegiance on account of her being a Jehova's Witness. No one cared.
 
Abefroman

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Learn to pick your battles. Getting mad about the pledge is as silly as athiests crying about the word God on money. Wait till your kids hit high school when you really have something to be pissed about.
 
Izo

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So you're saying everyone should have the same issues in mind? What makes highschool problems relevant for parents of preschoolers?
 
Izo

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Brahma

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Christmas time!

My son just turned 13 and is starting to give a shit about his appearance. He asked for a few pretty expensive clothes. Some damn expensive sneakers and a pair of Beats head phones. Lets say 1k for everything he has asked for. Actually less than I planned on spending on him, so money isn't the issue.

For a 13 year old, his head is on pretty straight. Does well/ok in school, plays sports etc. He's a solid kid.

He also NEVER asks for anything, past his birthday and Christmas. So when he does ask I pretty much get it, as long as everything is straight in his life at the time.

The issue is that EVERYTHING he asked for, I am against. I so don't want him to get wrapped up in material and status items. I want him to be his own person, not following the crowd. I don't want him worrying about clothes, and what people think of him. I want him to start the trend. Hope that makes sense.

So the question is do you as a parent eat your beliefs, and just get a good kid what he asks for, knowing that he does his part. Knowing it's Christmas, and it's rare he gets what he wants. Or do I stick to my guns and beliefs and not get his gifts and explain to him why.
 
Joeboo

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Brahma_sl said:
Christmas time!

My son just turned 13 and is starting to give a shit about his appearance. He asked for a few pretty expensive clothes. Some damn expensive sneakers and a pair of Beats head phones. Lets say 1k for everything he has asked for. Actually less than I planned on spending on him, so money isn't the issue.

For a 13 year old, his head is on pretty straight. Does well/ok in school, plays sports etc. He's a solid kid.

He also NEVER asks for anything, past his birthday and Christmas. So when he does ask I pretty much get it, as long as everything is straight in his life at the time.

The issue is that EVERYTHING he asked for, I am against. I so don't want him to get wrapped up in material and status items. I want him to be his own person, not following the crowd. I don't want him worrying about clothes, and what people think of him. I want him to start the trend. Hope that makes sense.

So the question is do you as a parent eat your beliefs, and just get a good kid what he asks for, knowing that he does his part. Knowing it's Christmas, and it's rare he gets what he wants. Or do I stick to my guns and beliefs and not get his gifts and explain to him why.
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You, of all people, are going to set the kid straight when it comes to wanting Beats headphones, right? Don't let your kid start down that path. Next thing you know he's buying $80 gold-plated Monster HDMI cables and Mac laptops. It's every parents worst nightmare.
 
Deathwing

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Oh the irony, you of all people, having a son that wants Beats headphones. Maybe Bose would have been more ironic.

I'm not there yet, my son is 1. My untested opinion is that if he wants something superficially expensive like that, he can pay for it himself. I'm sure that opinion is going to be strained and modified as it's tested. But maybe compromise: he wants Beats instead of better, cheaper headphones? He pays the difference. Obviously out of something like allowance since he's 13. Basically, let him get the Beats or whatever if he really wants to, but it's going to cost him *something*.

Does he understand what he's asking for and what it costs? $1k in gifts for Christmas makes me blush. Maybe this is a good time to start attaching dollar value to some of the things he wants.
 
BrutulTM

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Deathwing_sl said:
Does he understand what he's asking for and what it costs? $1k in gifts for Christmas makes me blush. Maybe this is a good time to start attaching dollar value to some of the things he wants.
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This was my reaction as well. The idea of showering a kid in $1000 worth of presents at Christmas bugged me out a lot more than the idea of letting him have everything he asked for.
 
Joeboo

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I don't know, $1000 doesn't seem unreasonable for a teenager. That's a gaming PC, or a laptop, or a video game system + a few games and accessories.

I guess my only issue with it would be it's multiple completely "vanity" items. The kid basically wants sneakers + headphones. You can get perfectly good, serviceable versions of both for like $200 total. Instead, he wants ones that are $1000 total. It could definitely be a good learning experience. Set the precedent now that the kid can't necessarily always have the top of the line version of everything. Otherwise, next thing you know he's going to be expecting a new Mustang when he turns 16 rather than some hand-me-down 10-year old car(like most people get, if they even get a car at all)
 
Brahma

Brahma

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BrutulTM_sl said:
This was my reaction as well. The idea of showering a kid in $1000 worth of presents at Christmas bugged me out a lot more than the idea of letting him have everything he asked for.
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Thru the course of the year man...I pretty much don't have to spend a dime on him for crap the other kids want. Maybe some cleats or shit like that, that's about it. I need to tell him, he needs shirts and pants or whatever. He just has never cared. Don't get me wrong, I 100% agree with you that 1K is a ton on some Christmas presents, but if you realize that it's over the course of almost a year that I will probably never buy him a thing past necessities...It isn't a bad deal.
 
Brahma

Brahma

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Deathwing_sl said:
Oh the irony, you of all people, having a son that wants Beats headphones. Maybe Bose would have been more ironic.

I'm not there yet, my son is 1. My untested opinion is that if he wants something superficially expensive like that, he can pay for it himself. I'm sure that opinion is going to be strained and modified as it's tested. But maybe compromise: he wants Beats instead of better, cheaper headphones? He pays the difference. Obviously out of something like allowance since he's 13. Basically, let him get the Beats or whatever if he really wants to, but it's going to cost him *something*.

Does he understand what he's asking for and what it costs? $1k in gifts for Christmas makes me blush. Maybe this is a good time to start attaching dollar value to some of the things he wants.
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THIS killed me. I'm like WTF. I was like don't you want some nice Senns? He says to me they aren't cool.
 
iannis

iannis

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I'd cave and get him the fancy shoes that he wants. He's 13, he wants to be popular or at the very least minimize the target on his back. The shit that seems important at that age is beyond understanding.

I'd probably also talk to him in January about what things cost. I mean like nickel and dime shit. It might be a little strange to sit down and go point by point "this is what I make for doing the job I do, this is what our bills are, this is how money works" but it is a little more useful than saying "Money don't grow on trees, boy!" which is the approach my parents took. And tbh I really didn't understand money until I was in my 20's.

If he understands money, then he probably won't fall into the trap you're worried about.
 
BrutulTM

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When every sports star and celebrity are walking around with Beats on their head all the time, of course it's what the kids will want. Kids are stupid remember.
 
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