# Doper parents: Are these kids spoiled? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 18, 2013, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175 "2013-09-18T20:19:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![a35362](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/1 "2013-09-18T20:19:06Z")
Jimmy Kimmel occasionally pulls these pranks on his show: he gets people to play a joke on a family member and videotape it, and then he plays the results on his show. Go to YouTube and search for: hey jimmy kimmel I told my kid I ate all their Halloween candy and watch a couple with the most page views. I’m curious to know whether Doper parents (or anyone, really) thinks the kids who scream and cry are what you would call “spoiled” or whether they’re justifiably freaked out by what has happened. Some of the parents sound like they’re not hiding their amusement very well, meaning the kid knows that Mom and Dad are laughing AT him and his predicament. If I were a kid, that might be enough to provoke tears (if not screams) all by itself – forget the loss of the candy. And how do you expect the kids will act around their parents after this? ---
**Author:** ![a35362](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/2 "2013-09-18T20:21:23Z")
Oh, and see also: hey jimmy kimmel I gave my kid a terrible Christmas present although these are not so uniformly traumatic: witness the little blonde girl who gets a half-eaten pb&j sandwich. ---
**Author:** ![OleOneEye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/f14d63/32.png) [@OleOneEye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OleOneEye)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/3 "2013-09-18T20:30:04Z")
> [@a35362](#): > > the kid knows that Mom and Dad are laughing AT him and his predicament. If I were a kid, that might be enough to provoke tears (if not screams) I think this about says it all. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![pbbth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f9ae1b/32.png) [@pbbth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pbbth)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/4 "2013-09-18T20:49:55Z")
I don’t know whether or not the kids are spoiled, but I do know their parents are dicks. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/5 "2013-09-18T21:01:15Z")
I wasn’t spoiled as a kid (we were broke as hell) but if that happened to me, with the candy at least, I know I would have freaked the fuck out. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/6 "2013-09-18T21:01:21Z")
If the kids are 5 and under, they may not necessarily be spoiled if they react poorly to an adult stealing all of their candy. By the time you’re 8-10, kids really need to have a better grip on the seriousness of losing some candy. The Christmas present videos seemed more spoiled-kid to me. I mean, unless the parent is really playing up the present as being the “big gift” or, like the 3DS joke, play off the idea that the kid wanted one gift really badly and got a gag version of it, I think the reactions were pretty poor. Who hasn’t gotten a crappy gift at Christmas? If you’re throwing a tantrum every time you get a pair of socks, you have problems. I did like the little girl who was happily trying out her new bar of deodorant. ---
**Author:** ![CrazyCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CrazyCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyCatLady)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/7 "2013-09-18T21:04:10Z")
> [@a35362](#): > > I’m curious to know whether Doper parents (or anyone, really) thinks the kids who scream and cry are what you would call “spoiled” or whether they’re justifiably freaked out by what has happened. I’m not watching any of the tapes, but I don’t think it’s unreasonable for a kid to get upset about such a thing. If somebody stole something of mine in such a way that I had no recourse and then stood there taunting me about it, I’d sure as shit be upset. And if I were a kid and had normal kid ability to deal with that level of upset, I’d probably be screaming and crying. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/8 "2013-09-18T21:15:16Z")
I could see being kinda confused by the whole thing and the confusion alone making me cry. But throwing a tantrum? Unless we’re taking about a two-year-old or a kid with some pervasive behavioral issue, then yeah, I’m pretty sure that kid is a brat. That may or may not be a symptom of overindulgent parenting, though. ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/9 "2013-09-18T21:17:49Z")
No, they’re not spoiled. Parents build up Halloween and Christmas to be a huge deal so of course kids are going to be upset when that gets torn down. In their little minds, it’s the equivalent of the prank where the guy takes a blindfolded half-court shot to win a big jackpot and then the crowd goes wild even though he misses to make him think he won. Is that guy spoiled? ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/10 "2013-09-18T21:21:11Z")
What kind of person plays tricks like that on their own children? ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/11 "2013-09-18T21:24:04Z")
Seriously, literally taking candy from children, with intent to upset? Dick thing to do, in my opinion. To your own kids? Yuck! ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/12 "2013-09-18T21:37:14Z")
> [@Cheesesteak](#): > > If the kids are 5 and under, they may not necessarily be spoiled if they react poorly to an adult stealing all of their candy. By the time you’re 8-10, kids really need to have a better grip on the seriousness of losing some candy. Losing some candy is one thing. Having your parents steal from you, or try to dick you around is something else. Furthermore, being spoiled is not the same as having a tendency to overreact to things. A spoiled kid might well be _less_ likely to react badly to losing some candy, because they get plenty of candy all the time. ---
**Author:** ![Kaio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c68b51/32.png) [@Kaio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaio)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/13 "2013-09-18T22:10:41Z")
> [@CrazyCatLady](#): > > I’m not watching any of the tapes, but I don’t think it’s unreasonable for a kid to get upset about such a thing. If somebody stole something of mine in such a way that I had no recourse and then stood there taunting me about it, I’d sure as shit be upset. And if I were a kid and had normal kid ability to deal with that level of upset, I’d probably be screaming and crying. I think this is it. Having someone lord their power over you hurts. It’s less about not getting to eat candy than it is knowing someone thinks so little of you that they’d make you a target and use your hurt feelings for their own amusement. cf. bullying. What shitty parents. Like kids don’t have enough of that to deal with from people who AREN’T adults. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/14 "2013-09-18T22:25:47Z")
> [@Kaio](#): > > What shitty parents. Like kids don’t have enough of that to deal with from people who AREN’T adults. Or event adults who aren’t _their parents_. I think the reactions are completely justified, given the average child’s emotional control. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/15 "2013-09-18T22:34:36Z")
And then air it on television to boot! Gee, and we wonder why some kids are bullies? Where do you think they learned how to do it? :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Incubus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c68b51/32.png) [@Incubus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Incubus)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/16 "2013-09-18T22:47:59Z")
If anything, the joke teaches kids the concept of sarcasm. It’s mean spirited to do on younger children who might not understand, but an older kid? People are judging the cruelty of the joke by the overreaction of some kids. While I wouldn’t consider kids spoiled just because they get upset, the reaction some older kids have with this is rather telling. My brother in law played this prank on his son last xmas. His son, who was ten, looked annoyed, but accepted the gift and thanked his dad. This special snowflake was mature enough not to make a scene. He got his actual gift afterward, but the real gift was to learn when someone is pulling your leg. ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/17 "2013-09-18T23:17:51Z")
> [@Incubus](#): > > If anything, the joke teaches kids the concept of sarcasm. It’s mean spirited to do on younger children who might not understand, but an older kid? People are judging the cruelty of the joke by the overreaction of some kids. > > While I wouldn’t consider kids spoiled just because they get upset, the reaction some older kids have with this is rather telling. > > My brother in law played this prank on his son last xmas. His son, who was ten, looked annoyed, but accepted the gift and thanked his dad. This special snowflake was mature enough not to make a scene. He got his actual gift afterward, but the real gift was to learn when someone is pulling your leg. Sorry, I don’t buy it. I mean, not that I don’t believe your story, but I don’t buy that pranking your elementary-aged kid for your own amusement is teaching a valuable lesson in an appreciable way. Being the victim of a person playing with your emotions so they can get a laugh is not a good feeling. No one, of any age, should be expected to be happy about it. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/18 "2013-09-18T23:27:37Z")
> [@CrazyCatLady](#): > > I’m not watching any of the tapes, 1995 called and wants its vhs camcorder back! ---
**Author:** ![Flywheel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Flywheel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flywheel)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/19 "2013-09-18T23:29:49Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > What kind of person plays tricks like that on their own children? [This guy.](http://assets.amuniversal.com/33db9df82508102d94d7001438c0f03b) ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175/20 "2013-09-19T00:25:44Z")
“Hey, Jimmy, I’m willing to humiliate my children on tape in order to get on TV! And it’s not even a prank - I’m actually humiliating them for real!” Those children have a good reason to cry. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-parents-are-these-kids-spoiled/669175.md?page=2)