Bronwyn ““Flat Cat and Friends” and they loved it."

I wonder what sort of lessons your daughters drew from this sick little game.”

Some simple arithmetic
A sense of humour
A sense that the world is a place in which death is always around us.
A sense that life is not necessarily fair, especially if you are a kangaroo happily bouncing across the Hume highway to get a drink.
A sense that talking about things like death was not something to fear.
The ability to talk about issues with their parents, rather than obsess about them alone.

A lot of good things came from that game Bronwyn, far more than the perverse interest generated from them being told to look away from the nasty dead cat on the road.

The best thing is they have grown into fabulous adults, who will make wonderful parents and will doubtless teach “Flat Cat and friends” to their own children and recall how they played it with me in the car on long journeys.

Re 'Flat Cat',

Got to wholeheartedly agree with Col there. A lot of great things to teach your children in that list.

I think the posts of Bronwyn and Col show that the onus is on Parents alone to decide what material is suitable for their children, and that it's a very personal choice.

We should leave it up to individual parents to decide, as they know their own values and they know their own children.

Usual suspect,
Have you ever tried to take a girl’s magazine (which normally contain nothing of any positive value) away from a teenage girl.

I would recommend wearing ear muffs or some type of hearing protection if you do try.

Girls are sexualised hormonally.

Girls who miss out on their NATURAL father suffer from premature sexualisation. Repeated research has proven that girls without their natural fathers (especially girls who have a 'step-father') are at risk.

We know about family breakdown in our communities, where a child's NATURAL FATHER is living elsewhere or known...

Repeated research shows this has a HORMONAL EFFECT of fathernessness on girls...

Natural fathers protect their girls. Repeated research has proven that girls without their natural fathers (especially girls who have a 'step-father') are at risk.

They are three times more likely to become pregnant as teenagers and suffer from premature puberty. Girls who grow up with a man who is not their Natural father are likely to reach puberty in primary school!

Ther are also three to 5 time more likely to become pregnant as teenagers, have more sexual partners and related ill-effects like STD infections.

This is AFTER controlling for income, race, and other likely causes. Studies have considered Maori, Hispanic, European, Afro-american. It's not an effect of Race, not Class nor poveerty, it's FATHERLESSNESS.

Children NEED their NATURAL PARENTS.

ABC TV http://www.abc.net.au/catalyst/stories/s958787.htm
New York Times: http://partners.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20001224mag-puberty.html
New Scientist http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg16422062.400-daddys-girl.html
Citations http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1467-7687.2004.00380.x
Citations http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1467-8624.00569

PartTimeParent@pobox.com
www.Fahters4Equality-Australia.org

HRS: << Have you ever tried to take a girl’s magazine... away from a teenage girl. >>

Why don't you just buy your own?

Well, this thread of posts has been rather interesting reading indeed. There are many things I agree with, and obviously like all of you, some that I don't.

I agree with Melinda's article, and I gree with the fact that parents should take responsibility for parenting their children, instead of blamming the media. I also agree that the media/internet etc.. do have to take responsibility also - we are all part of society and all contribute to it in different ways. As a parent and as teacher I have seen some great parenting and I have also seen some children who have been harmed badly because of the lack of responsible parenting and allowing children to 'do as they please' or even encourage, in my opinion, viewing of films & TV and internet content beyond a child's years. (And in lots of cases things damamging to adults also - yes I also believe 'what goes in comes out' when it comes to individual viewing choices).

It is obvious that we live in a world where the is such wide-spread opinion and there are going to be many who try to convince many that their opinion is the correct one - we all want to be right, of course!

I have found it quite amusing (& frustrating) that the posts in this thread are saying 'Parents are responsibile for parenting' in one breath and in another condemn parents for shielding the children from harmful 'stuff' that they believe their children shouldn't be exposed to (perhaps until a particular age).

continued next post.....