someone prove me WRONG

I've been lamenting today about how hostile our culture is toward children. It seems, on the surface, that we're unbelieveable child-centered. At least if you watch commercials. But its purely from a marketing standpoint. I don't see much evidence of us really cherishing children in this country. I see much more evidence that we're on a neverending quest to make children convenient to us. From "teaching" kids to sleep on their own through abandoning them to scream in the dark, to micromanaging the bejebus out of them to the point that they can no longer behave like children without being scolded. Heaven forbid we should actually take a moment to consider what our children NEED from US. No no. We must constantly assume that Junior is a manipulative little devil, out to squeeze us for all we're worth. I'll end my rant here, because I've been throwing up for 24 hours and the last thing I need to do is get myself all worked up. So let me conclude by sharing this gem from craigslist:

PoMo-Parenting: Teach your children to behave in a restaurant
Reply to: pomoparenting@gmail.com
Date: 2006-05-24, 5:37PM PDT

I am offering a new service to teach your children how to behave in a restaurant. I am an experienced school teacher with an emphasis in the performing arts. This is how it works: exasperated parents pay me to get angry at their children in a restaurant--in order to "teach them a lesson." It may sound a bit drastic but it's been getting great results! I'll work with you to develop a level of aggression (or lack there-of) that you feel comfortable with. I have three different package deals. (1) I merely tell your child (loudly) to be quiet. This package includes a reasonable dinner for me and a guest + $50 + extra if the drive is far. (2) I tell your child (loudly) to be quiet plus I give them a short lecture on how much other people in the restaurant are bothered by their antics. This package includes a reasonable dinner for me and a guest + $75 + extra if the drive is far. (3) I tell at your child (loudly) to be quiet plus you can argue with me and angrily defend your child so that when I walk off you can complain to your child "see! I got in a fight because of you!" This package includes a reasonable dinner for me and a guest + $100 + extra if the drive is far. I will not under any circumstances divulge our agreement to your child. Other lessons are in development and I am open to structuring novel lessons around your given needs. References available upon request. --Pomo Parenting
no -- it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests


I suppose you would have to suspect the worst of your children....otherwise what happens if they are behaving much better than before and this crazy broad still comes up and screams at them? And it's always good to see that guilt (I got in a fight because of YOU) costs a little extra. And one more thing. References available? What does the concerned parent look for in hiring someone to scream at your child in a restaurant? Just curious.