Irritated

[poyre]

Ok, on one hand, I have a friends Journal who points to the article about the cafe A Taste of Heaven and their policies on children. http://www.detnews.com/2005/editorial/0511/20/A23-387307.htm This of course was implemented because yuppie parents are

Comments

[miniluv]

The thing I find the most amusing is that the business aren't asking people not to bring kids in. They're asking that parents tell their kids to use indoor voices, and if they start acting up to please take them outside and deal with the situation before returning inside. This is what every "good" parent I've ever known does when their children act up. Nobody expects perfection out of kids, just a general sense of manners and attentive parents.

Apparently though I'm on the wrong side of the value judgement, since I don't consider the "normal behavior of children" acceptable in public places. We as a society place equal value on individuals, and therefor I have every bit the right to sit and enjoy a double decaf halfcaf latte with a twist of lime in quiet. Same as the mom next to me with or without her kids.

I'm with the owner here, who correctly identified the sense of entitlement as the root cause of this problem. Proprietors of establishments never used to need such signs, because parents understood that they didn't have the right to allow their children to be as disruptive as they wanted, whenever they wanted. My usual perception of this is that people wanted all the cute, fun parts of having kids without sacrificing any of the freedom they enjoyed whilst childless.

For the record, your kids will remain most welcome at our house as long as they continue to be the well behaved and well parented little humans they currently are. I'm immensely comforted being friends with you and azzna, since you've restored some of my faith that people of my generation are in fact capable of raising children worthy of praise for their behavior.

[azzna]

Damn it. I was trying to provide more screwed up geek children into the world. I appear to have missed my goal somewhat if my children are not total heathens. This is all Chris' fault.