Guilt Free Cell Phone Smashing

I would never, ever shoot my kids laptop. Not in a million years, because we’re more of a wood splitting family in these here parts. We make the kids split wood and pick up dog crap as discipline. And when we’re really mad? We have an maul and sledgehammer and ain’t afraid to use it.

Didn’t want to talk about the gun toting dad who shot up his angry teenager daughter’s laptop over her irate parent bashing post. Because I tend to shun popular culture.

But the disgust shown by perfect parents commenting, counseling, tweeting, facebooking and bereaving over this ‘horrendous dad’s violent abuse, humiliating response, and uncontrolled anger’ at his daughter got me rethinking my stance on gun control.

(That’s a joke. I think guns should be regulated. For everybody. Yep, rip that Constitutional amendment from your cold dead body, I do.) 

But I think parents of elementary school age kids who think they know exactly how to deal with eye-rolling, moody, hormonal raging teenagers with a kinder, gentler approach are in fact themselves sadly misinformed, and have a rude pubescent awakening about to hit them upside their do-gooder head.

I love teenagers. I love mine, yours, and those struggling to find their way, those already changing the world, and my heart breaks for those without anyone to love them. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to sign up for an ass whup from any of their moody selves and let them get away with it.

Pushing the limits and raging against the machine is a teenager’s job: it’s what they do. And it’s our job to let them know exactly what’s acceptable, and what is not. When we fail to do so, we create little monsters who grow up to be entitled, self-centered brats. Is that someone you want to hire? Work for? Marry your kid? Parent your grandchildren? Educate, doctor, construct, delegate, finance, legislate your future?

Didn’t think so.

I think that dad showed incredible restraint, calmness, and control illustrating his disgust in his kid’s Facebook rant. Clearly, not his first walk in the park of teenage misery. He done good. He coulda done without the firearm, but that’s how his family rolls.

I’m here to tell you my scientifically proven case study is exactly one: I have one down, three to go, and I’m well aware this childrearing ain’t for sissies, and you better have your A game ready to roll by the time they hit middle school.

And here’s the proof: before all this hoopla about the “over reacting violent dad,” our very own Kid#1 posted this exact on my FB page.

I hope someday, the aforementioned “bad dad” gets a similar post as well: