It's 11pm...do you know where YOUR kid is?

I do.

from JoeUser Forums

*I was going to post this on Saturday but got sidetracked...*

It's 11 o'clock on a Friday night.  My kids are in our house...two are sleeping and one's watching TV.  I KNOW where they are.

Do you know where YOUR kid is?

I do.

Your kid is the one I just caught under my carport, poking around at stuff that doesn't belong to him.  The one who cussed me out when I told him to leave.

Your kid is the one that's part of a group of kids that roam the streets at night with baseball bats in hand, looking for something to break.

You kid is the one who spray painted curse words on the fence that separates our subdivision from the main street.

You kid is the one who sniffs Sharpie markers and leaves the evidence all over the playground where the little kids play.

Your kid is the one who urinates all over the swings and the slide at the aforementioned playground, so that little kids who don't know any better can run home to their momma's covered in your kid's piss.

Your kid is the one who tortures cats that are outside at night.

Your kid is the one who took my kid's basketball away from him and then cussed at me when I asked him to give it back.

Your kid is the one who drove your car through my friend's and neighbor's backyards, wrecking patio furniture and swing sets and nearly running someone down in the process.

Your kid is the one who smokes and spits and sets fires to people's sheds.

Your kid is the one who pushes little kids around and laughs when they cry.

Your kid is the one the cops are constantly after.  Don't you ever get tired of the police showing up at your house?

Your kid is going to be the one destined to have a long and illustrious career in the federal penitentiary system unless his changes his tune pretty quick.

 

It's 11:15 pm.  Do you know where your kid is?

misc
5,595 views 20 replies
Reply #1 from JoeUser Forums Top
The issue is "do you CARE where your kid is?"

It's one thing when you were a GOOD parent for your kid's whole childhood and then when he's older he goes berserk, but it's a WHOLE nother ball game if you don't give a shit. And that pisses me off. Argh.
Reply #2 from JoeUser Forums Top

It's one thing when you were a GOOD parent for your kid's whole childhood and then when he's older he goes berserk, but it's a WHOLE nother ball game if you don't give a shit.

Well, this kid is 14.  I can't say whether his mother cares or not, because I've never actually spoken to her.  My husband has, though.  Numerous times.  There's always an excuse, like some other kids dared him to do it or he was set up....it's never his fault.

Way to teach your kid personal accountability, huh?

Sins of a Solar Empire II
Reply #3 from JoeUser Forums Top

There's always an excuse, like some other kids dared him to do it or he was set up....it's never his fault.
Way to teach your kid personal accountability, huh?

Kind of goes hand in hand with your other article last night.  Marcie is right, and so are you.

Reply #4 from JoeUser Forums Top

Kind of goes hand in hand with your other article last night. Marcie is right, and so are you

Yes, it does, but this kid is white.  

There are things that the Air Foce can do about it.....they're fixing to get kicked off base.  He can be barred from the installtion, permanently if necessary.  He can come on for medical care, but he'll have to be escorted and he'll have to sign in and out.

 

Reply #5 from JoeUser Forums Top
There is no excuse for half the crap on the list... especially the driving a car through someone's back yard. I'd have nailed the little bastard to the wall for that one and demanded payment for damages or threaten pressing charges.

Some things are just kids being kids, like running around making a lot of noise, or just being underfoot (though not at 11pm) or whatever. But it seems we want to lump everything into the "kids will be kids" excuse... which is a cop-out. If I screwed up as a little kid, I got in trouble.

One of my friend's parents would always call and yell at my mom in the spring and fall because he'd come over after school and play out in our back yard and in the trees, his mom would get all pissed at mine because she let him play in our yard in his good school clothes. Like it was my mom's fault. It's your kid, you make sure he changes first. This is the same woman who called my parents all irate because one winter we were building a snowman in their yard, the kids had to go in so I figured I'd continue the process in my yard and started rolling the base of the snowman home. She called, got my dad and yelled "Your son is taking snow out of our yard!" (it was a snowday too, so there was a LOT of it on the ground) My dad's response: "So?"..... She didn't speak to my parents for months after that

Some parents need to get a good swift kick to the butt sometimes, they just don't get how dumb they're being.
Reply #6 from JoeUser Forums Top

There is no excuse for half the crap on the list... especially the driving a car through someone's back yard. I'd have nailed the little bastard to the wall for that one and demanded payment for damages or threaten pressing charges.

The cops busted them for that one.  They had to go to a juvenile board hearing over at legal...and the mom's explantion?  "They were just playing manhunt".

Utter bullshit.

Reply #7 from JoeUser Forums Top

One of my friends took his wife to las Vegas on Business, and left his late teen children in the care of his brother.  The son decided to go for a joy ride (legal), but this one was doing baseball Mailboxes!

They got caught.  My friends response? (the kid was 19, but still living at home) Grounded except for work and school for 3 months!  And they had to pay for the mailboxes too.

he is a good kid.  Just had bad judgement on that night.  And he paid for it.

Reply #8 from JoeUser Forums Top

he is a good kid. Just had bad judgement on that night. And he paid for it.

I'm sure theis kid has some redeeming qualities too, but I haven't had the opportunity to see them yet.  And, as far as I can tell, his punishments aren't too severe....because every time he gets picked up, he's right back on the street 2 nights later.  The Juvenile Discipline Board is a closed case and the records are sealed, so I don't have the opportunity to go see what happens like I do at Magistrates Court or Court Martials....or else I'd have been there.  But, when I mention his name to the attorneys I work with they roll their eyes and ask what he's done now.

 

Reply #9 from JoeUser Forums Top

I'm sure theis kid has some redeeming qualities too, but I haven't had the opportunity to see them yet. And, as far as I can tell, his punishments aren't too severe....because every time he gets picked up, he's right back on the street 2 nights later. The Juvenile Discipline Board is a closed case and the records are sealed, so I don't have the opportunity to go see what happens like I do at Magistrates Court or Court Martials....or else I'd have been there. But, when I mention his name to the attorneys I work with they roll their eyes and ask what he's done now.

You see, that is the difference.  The parents.  Both kids did something bad (a prank if you will).  One set nailed the kid and made him pay! (a 19 year old on restriction?  That hurts!).  The other did nothing.

parents, The real Anti drug (deliquent).

Reply #10 from JoeUser Forums Top

You see, that is the difference. The parents.

Exactly.  Every parent has a responsibility to their children that goes beyone providing basic sustenance and shelter....but the military has ways of making lackadasical parents toe the line.  See, they're held responsible for their dependent's actions.  They are the ones who are accountable.  People get paperwork for failure to control their dependents.  They can also get asked to vacate base housing, and their dependents can be barred from base.

This behavious has to be stopped, and if the parent's won't take action, the military will.

Reply #11 from JoeUser Forums Top

but the military has ways of making lackadasical parents toe the line.

being a Military Brat, I will tell you that their 'ways' are no better than the local sheriff locking them up overnight.  In the end, if the parents are not parents, it makes no difference.

Reply #12 from JoeUser Forums Top

I will tell you that their 'ways' are no better than the local sheriff locking them up overnight. In the end, if the parents are not parents, it makes no difference.

No, but their actions can adversly affect the parents career.  Sometimes that's all that's needed.  Unfortunately, people are still going to do the minimal amount of parenting necessary.

Reply #13 from JoeUser Forums Top

No, but their actions can adversly affect the parents career. Sometimes that's all that's needed. Unfortunately, people are still going to do the minimal amount of parenting necessary.

yes, and some (since the kid is a teen) are so close to their 20, they dont care either.

Reply #14 from JoeUser Forums Top
Hell, in my experience, military kids are generally worse. You get the learned hatred of authority, the us vs. them syndrome of the military vs. civilians variety, or that lovely thing of comparing their parent's rank to that of whoever confronts them. (officer's wives are also especially notorius about this last.)

Either that or they're perfect angels. Meh. Like everything else around the military, either really great, or damned awful.
Reply #15 from JoeUser Forums Top

Hell, in my experience, military kids are generally worse. You get the learned hatred of authority, the us vs. them syndrome of the military vs. civilians variety, or that lovely thing of comparing their parent's rank to that of whoever confronts them. (officer's wives are also especially notorius about this last.)

Then you get me.  The nastiest cuss you ever want to know.

Grown into a man.  Some do actually.

But my Step was an NCO.  I detest Officer wives to this day!  officers are ok, in moderation.

Reply #16 from JoeUser Forums Top

I detest Officer wives to this day! officers are ok, in moderation.

I have a story about that..

I was working at legal, and I had a line of people waiting.  Some lady comes in, marches right up to my desk, and says that she needs to get a power of attorney.  I explain that so do the rest of the people who are waiting in line, and that when I've helped them I'll be happy to help her.

Her: "But I need one"

Me: "and you'll get one, just as soon as I can get to you.  I won't send you away empty handed"

Her: "But I need one now"

Me: "I can't help you right now, right at this second.  As soon as I can get to you, I will, I promise.  I'm the only one here, so I'm afraid you'll just have to wait."

Her: "but i need one"

Me: "and you'll get one, so please, just have a seat and bear with me and I'll be right with you."

Her: "But my husband's a Captain"

Me:  "And my husband's a Tech Sgt.  You point is what, exactly?"

Of course, not all officer's wives are like that.  I find that Junior and Company grade officer spouses are the worst...once their husband's make Major they're past the "my husband is an officer" stage.

Some of the brass are cool.  My husband's commander came out to see us this evening...he rode my friend's husband's Harley (he's in Baghdad so he can't ride it and he worries about it) and when he was done he hung around and chit-chatted with us.  He's good like that - he doesn't have a wife so I think he feels like he has to play the dual role sometimes, you know, be the commader's wife and all.  He's yet to bake brownies though...

The attorney's I work for are cool too. I think it's the pilots who have the real issues...and that's partly because some of them have huge ego's to start with.

But anyway, we were talking about hooligan children...

 

Reply #17 from JoeUser Forums Top
It's a shame when we have to suffer the effects of lazy parents. But that's how things are these days. Some people are just too self-involved as a result of the whole "me" thing they couldn't care less what their kids do unless it has direct repercussions for them.

I grew up an Air Force brat and while we did get into normal kid mishief, we wouldn't have dreamed of pulling some of the crap described here. We wouldn't have been able to sit down for a month. And deservedly so.

Things must have changed a lot on bases, or it was just an Air Force thing, but every base we lived on had a kerfew for dependent children which was enforced. And a kid causing this kind of mayhem would certainly have meant NJP for the service parent.
Reply #18 from JoeUser Forums Top

Things must have changed a lot on bases, or it was just an Air Force thing, but every base we lived on had a kerfew for dependent children which was enforced. And a kid causing this kind of mayhem would certainly have meant NJP for the service parent.

There is a curfew.  However....people don't want to get involed.  They see kids doing stuff they shouldn't be doing, and rather than tell the kids to knock it off or calling the cops to report it they walk away and pretend they didn't see it. 

I'm not like that.  I tell kids that they're being jackasses and to cut it out.  I call security forces on them.  I'm a bitch about stuff like that.  I don't care if they don't like it.  I don't care if they think I'm a bitch.  I hope they think I'm the biggest bitch on the base if that's what it takes to keep them out of yard and off the street, if that's what it takes to stop them from peeing on playground equipment and huffing markers. 

 

 

Reply #19 from JoeUser Forums Top

Of course, not all officer's wives are like that. I find that Junior and Company grade officer spouses are the worst...once their husband's make Major they're past the "my husband is an officer" stage.

Cause then they pick on the junior grader officers and leave the enlisted stiffs alone!

Reply #20 from JoeUser Forums Top
I was one of five children, and in my neighbourhood, one of probably 20 kids. We all played together, we all looked out for each other and we all caught trouble if one of us did something dangerous/stupid/destructive. I feel like saying 'most kids these days...' but don't want to sound like a crotchety old bastard

Way to teach your kid personal accountability


This may be off-topic, but given some of the examples in the press these days of how adult individuals, corporations, churches and governments are shirking their responsibilities and 'blame', no wonder some kids are confused about what is 'right and wrong'.