Yeah, but bear in mind we only have the victor’s account, and it’s most likely fantasy anyway.
Because people rarely actually think of these sort of things in the moment. Far more people say they have these badass comebacks than actually do them.
Personally, I was with all of you when I read the title and thought the man was the parent. It could be an awesome lesson for the kid if done right. But some stranger doing it because he’s pissed at the parent? Forcing the parent to not give the child a pie? Yeah, I don’t support that.
For all he knows, the kid is like I used to be, where the punishment would have just made the crying worse. And, no, Rick’s solution didn’t work either. It’s why I wound up getting my head examined–nothing worked.
Seconded, thirded, whatever number it is. I don’t believe this story and if I were sure someone did this I wouldn’t take his version of events at face value. And yes, at a glance it’s a funny revenge story and I think everybody has felt like doing something like this. But when you think about someone taking this to real life it’s just weird. The guy spends $35 just to be an asshole to a stranger and her child? Neither the parent nor their child is going to learn anything from this, and now everyone else in the story has that much more shit to deal with. That’s not so heartwarming.
Even if I was bribing the kid with M and Ms (which I’d never do), if the goal of keeping them “under control” is accomplished, you are still wrong.
But don’t worry. If I have to carry a kid out, we are definitely on our way somewhere worse. Zero rewards will be issued.
In an adult version of the OP, I once bought a round of drinks at a bar for everyone except for one guy (an asshole who had run out of cash, was trying to get people to buy one for him, and hadn’t tipped the bartender a cent). Cost $60 or so but was worth it.
Seriously you can’t leave a cart alone for 5 minutes in your grocery store?
You never have had to go to the bathroom while shopping?
Get real.
Aah going for the, what was his name? Kel Varmson latex division?
Yeah you are putting forth his scenario, so in that case I’d shoot the kid.
I mean what else can you do?
Neither the OP or my story were life or death have to be there cases. Your adding that is just a straw man.
Dude must have been a big fan of 30 Rock
(Link is an article that doubts the veracity of the story).
Snopes take on the story
As someone who had this used on her as a kid, I approve.
My mother was the only parent around at the time & she had no problem leaving her cart (parental inconvenience! gasp!) & letting me cool down for 10 minutes in the car while she was just out of -my- sight.
This of course was the 1 tip she followed through with at my grandmother’s suggestion. A lot of the time grandma was actually parenting me & my sister.
Mom was pretty much 1 of the typical party breeder types with unruly kids. Grandma was a gentle instructor with gentle, appropriate punishments.
(We had to sit on the stairs for 15 minutes to calm down.)
Mom would nag, threaten & become abusive, moreso as we got older.
It seems a lot of parenting is like training & raising a dog. My grandma’s methods worked quite well on my pets. (settle down in crate instead of the stairs, gentle consistency, with love & respect together.
Although like dogs, you might have to “alpha roll” them when they start feeling too big for their britches. 
)
Here’s a repost of the original thread in Re
I donno, but it sure as hell sounds like it’s made up to me.
“Splurging” at Burger King? Seriously? The woman was running after him, but he got away because of all the other lines in the food court? Seriously?
They have 23 pies? How many frozen?
I love the lower class “she gets up in my face telling me I can’t tell her *nothing *about raising her child” (my emphasis). Nice touch, and plays on stereotypes.
I’m surprised that this wasn’t started off in the Pit, because any tread about kids in public seem to head there.
For Rick, I’m happy that you raised perfect kids. I wish I knew the secret. Mine reside somewhere within the normal range of child behavior.
For Princheste, if the story were really like it’s written, which obviously, it not, I’m sure that you wouldn’t tolerate that behavior either.
I like how the original story is reported as news on 8/10 by the Daily News, after being posted on Reddit on 8/5 and decried/debunked/removed by 8/8.
Great news source, man.
I once had a mother whose kid threw a tantrum in the checkout line hand me a toy and say “We are not buying this.”
Kid, inflamed: Why not?
Mother: Because you did not behave right in the store.
Kid: That’s not fair!!
Mother: I make the rules, and it’s fair.
Kid: Can’t we please buy it?
Mother: No. And I am not discussing it anymore. You did not act right.
Kid: I’m really sorry.
Mother: I’m glad you are sorry, but we are not getting it.
Kid: I’ll act right next time.
Mother: Then we’ll buy it next time
Me to Mother: Thank you.
I see the story is also supposed to have happened two years ago in Canada, and the poster didn’t have a receipt because of bedbugs? The proliferation of excuses actually makes this less believable.
TokyoBayer perfect? Hardly. I mean neither one of them is the CEO of a Fortune 500 company. But both of them are college grads with no long term debt as a result, both are gainfully employed, and are productive members of society.
You know some people in this thread are starting to piss me off. I relate one story about my experience raising my kids and I get accused of lying or raising “perfect” kids.
The positive side is some people that actually, you know tried to raise good kids agree with me.
I’m not going to say I had perfect kids either. In fact, when a high schooler in the next town was arrested for threatening a teacher because he wasn’t satisfied with the grade he received on a test, I briefly thought, “I wish my son cared a little more about his grades. Maybe not that much, but still.”
This whole story is a far sadder indictment of professional journalism, news values, and general credulity than it is of parenting.
The fact that an anonymous Reddit story was considered a valid source for a news story in the first place is sad enough, and the fact that so many outlets ran the story without even doing any further checking of follow-up is disgraceful. I guess that’s what happens, though, when news outlets fire most of their actual journalists, and prioritize light entertainment over investigative reporting.
Well, it’s the Post. But it still falls into the category of too good to check.
Spiteful and unrealistic aren’t the same thing. I can see many people being willing to spend $35 to spite someone.
I didn’t say it was unrealistic because it’s spiteful.
From my perspective, the person who hurled the term “smug” as well as other epithets (e.g. “trite”) several times across multiple posts at others whose view didn’t match his own enlightened one is the one whose meter needs recalibrating.
I’m not unsympathetic to your position. But it seems there was a parenting fail on your end as well, in that you were never taught that it’s not just what you say, but how you say it.
Most others in this thread have managed to express differing views without resorting to personal snark.