Society is not exempt from responsibility for their influence on children


The subjects of bullying and punishment, punishment for bullying, and using shaming as punishment are all such complicated subjects. Everyone’s easy answer is always that it is ALL on the parents. And while that is technically true, it is so much deeper than that. Even the best-intentioned parents do not always have the best tools to guide their children. Sometimes it is simply a matter of educating them. Other times it is a host of other things. Further, the society that we live in bombards children with mixed messages, and messages that are entirely opposite of those that parents try to send to their children. Children constantly see images of people, especially celebrities, doing things without repercussion, which the majority of the rest of the population would be punished for. Then the children are left mystified when they are punished for something that they see other people doing without punishment. And parents are mystified when their children copy the actions of those who do not get punished. It does take a village to raise a child. Now that we have the internet, that village has gotten a whole lot larger. And it is a whole lot easier for that village to make mistakes. I think people have lost sight that essentially everyone is responsible for everyone’s children, because the children watch everyone. Not just their parents. Matter of fact, it is an arguable fact that the rest of society has more influence on children. Especially the powerful, as children naturally tend to follow the popular and powerful. Of course parents are ultimately responsible for their children, but the rest of the world is not exempt from responsibility.

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