Heh,

not for sale. I'm only glad terrorists aren't anywhere near as creative as me. I am also smart enough not to actualy build most of the things I think up.

in the USA, we have what is known as,"the good Samaritan" law.. if you do something, that ends in you breaking the law, but was critical at the time to solving the problem, you cannot be held responsible.. IE, you find someone hurt badly, and your alone.. you have not the skills to fix them, and end up killing them in the process, but had you not tried, they would have died anyways..

i realize this is hardly the case, but if the daughter lost her cherry, to someone over age and she a minor, it could be similar, assuming you were forced to keep surveillance on her, for past criminal, or questionable actions.. she may just need watched 24/7

anyways.. i can see both sides..

as a parent, i can say with a certainty that parenting is not the only factor in children growing up to be evil, or misguided..

i find it mildly insulting, that anyone would assume such.

i have seen children who ended up wrong, becuase of peer pressure more often..

i suggest.. you rephrase the statement maybe..

And what else is a factor? helping a child deal with peer presure is part of the deal as much as changing diapers. I do not believe that delinquent behavior is genetic, although I expect it's possible to have mentaly sub-normal, or naturaly gullible children who are more vulnerable.

There certainly is an age at which a child becomes fully responcible for their actions. However, I would argue that if you have not equiped them to deal with the world reasonbly by this point, somthing has royaly been screwed up, and there is nowhere else to look but to yourself.

I view parenthood as the gravest respocibility an individual can ever assume. I do not feel that it is apropriate to disown that respocibility after the fact.

I supose I may have a rather extreeme view of things. I was shaped by my parents in a very strong way, as I was home-schooled. Plus I am not a parent nor will I be anytime soon. hence, I'm willing to admit that my perspective may be a bit one-sided.

i take my responsibility as a parent quite serious, but i have also come to terms with the fact that ultimately, children will do what they will do.

you can instill only so much into a young mind, if they are not predisposed to the notion of mature responsibility, or honesty, or any other virtue you may hold dear, there is no way you can force it into them.

my job as a parent, is to provide everything within my power, that they may need throughout their lives, its up to them to use what i give, its not up to me to see to it that they use it.. kinda that free will thing you all spout so liberally

if my children do anything, ANYTHING AT ALL, that i find unacceptable, they know the consequences of those actions.. minor offenses, may include a royal bitching out, serious offenses can, and would include disowning them for life. this may sound harsh, but they know the limits of my acceptance and if the line is crossed, then they also know the price, if they feel its worth it.. thats their choice.. who am i to chose for them...

i do not make these statements lightly, my children know i am quite serious, and willing to go the distance... it may, or may not keep them on the path to responsibility, but its the best i can do.

if more parents stopped coddling their delinquent children, we would prolly have far less problem children.... prolly.

all children will ultimately control their own destinies, let us all hope they chose wisely

Bravo, sir; yours is one of the precious few official maps that are genuinely fun.

Ahem, I think the problem with children is the lack of a strict morality. An ethically liberal society like ours (that is to say, pretty much any moral code is allowed if not accepted) is a nice concept, but in reality we see that in a place where any moral doctrine is accepted, there tends to be none that actually is, on a widespread basis.

So you see the two sides: a deeply conservative society which creates many individuals who have ideas that end up being too similar for growth, or a morally liberal place that creates strife, tension, and screws up a lot of people.

In terms of genes versus experience, well, genes only determine one's potential, not what they will actually do. Someone born with amazing math ability in Ethiopia may never pick up a textbook, much less a pencil, and nobody will be the wiser.

Though I be a young one indeed, I see the skill of parenting as identifying these traits one's child has, demonstrating behavior (especially around the opposite sex) and teaching the kids how to act based on their environment.

Before I have kids, I want to be completely happy with my own life and free from any emotional problems/hangups/whatever. I am not in that situation yet.

Parents are human too, and it is very easy for them to project their own problems onto their children. Some of the most striking examples are those disgusting kiddy beauty pageants, where 5 year old girls are made up like sexy adult women and trained to smile and curtsey and dance for the judges. The reason that they are doing this is almost always that their mothers wanted to feel beautiful and glamourous and to be the prom queen, but never succeeded and as a result suffer from low self-worth. Mothers live vicariously through their children at these shows, but in the process they steal away their daughter's childhood innocence.

Don't get me wrong - I dream of the time when I will be ready to have kids! But I'm not yet a good enough person for that responsibility. I refuse to screw up a child's life just because of my own problems.

Don't you mean, "lifelong commitment"? Children don't stop needing parents after they hit 18. Granted, they tend to want less to do with their parents, but still mum and dad often clean up the mess when something goes horribly wrong.