What the hell is wrong with society??

The BBQ Pit
#1

Now, I don’t mean teenagers, I mean kids. Like 10 year old kids. I was at work today, bagging graceries like the good slave that I am, and I saw my manager pull aside a 10 year old kid and start talking to him. I was close enough to hear what was said, and it went something like this…

Manager: “I noticed you taking this from the store without paying for it”
Kid: “Well, I didn’t have the money to pay for it”
Manager: “You know that’s stealing, right?”
Kid: “Yeah, so?”
Manager: “Well, stealing is wrong and illegal. You can get in a lot of trouble doing that. If you really wanted it, you could have asked your mom for money or come back later to pay for it”
Kid: (Laughing) “Hahaha, what do I care if it’s wrong?”

(At this point, the kid’s mom walks over…)

Mom: “What’s the problem here? I’m in a hurry to go home.”
Manager: “Ma’am, we caught your son stealing from the store”
Kid: “It’s only this cheap thing”
Mom: “I don’t care, I’m in a hurry to get home. Go out to the car”
(Kid leaves, cussing out the manager)
Manager: “Ma’am, you can be in serious trouble for this too. You might want to talk to your child about stealing”
Mom: (Screaming) “Don’t you dare tell me how to raise my child! I’ll raise him how I damn well want to, you stupid bitch!” (At this point, she throws a $5 bill at the manager to pay for what her son took, and stormed out of the store)

Ok…What the fuck is wrong with that woman? Doesn’t she realize how she’s raising her child will lead him to be one of the social degenerates that ends up in prison for grand theft auto, or grand larceny, or whatever other crime he may commit because of the lack of a good upbringing. What the fuck is wrong with a society that allows dumb assholes like this mom to raise children? It makes me fucking sick.

That stupid bitch needs her head examined, and that child needs to be put into a home where he will get a real upbringing. This is just one example of the pathetic state of our society. I used to have some sort of hope for the future of this country, but with sights like this every day, that hope grows dimmer.

I hope some sense will break through the fucking skulls of these dumbass parents, and these bratty spoiled kids need to be taught major lessons. When a kid laughs when he is caught stealing, you know something is wrong there.

#2

I agree. The worst part of it is the cyclical nature of the problem. The mother probably has a hard life, and can’t figure out why. She has kids who are destined for a hard life and can’t figure out why. And so on. Meanwhile, honest members of society such as the shopkeeper are hurt in their wake.

#3

Sometimes I wonder if Darwin may have been wrong…

#4

there goes the neighbourhood :wink:

#5

No, Darwin was assuredly correct. This little punk will surely have himself locked away from all hopes of reproducing (except maybe with “Bubba”). If not, his mother will probably take care of it with a fender to a tree.

#6

Or, contrary to that, he’ll reproduce wildly with some poor girl then get his loser-ass locked up and she’ll be stuck on the outside with a child she didn’t want and a father who could give a fuck less and couldn’t provide for his family if he was on the outside with them. Said child grows up unloved and fucked up, just like his dad, and his mother were when they were younger.

And thus is the cycle of the problem…

-Sam

#7

As much as I hate to criticize this party of criticizing society, none of you here think that you could be susceptible to affirmation bias, do you? I mean, we do not really know for a fact that kids these days are worse than they were 20, 30, or 50 years ago.

#8

I would have called the police and pressed charges to the fullest extent of the law.

Or I would have been tempted to do something which would have gotten me fired - Such as beat both of them senseless with a garden hose or something…

Yer pal,
Satan

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#9

It’s truly a shame how often this happens.

If you don’t have kids like the one described in the OP in your town, watch an episode of Maury Povich or Sally Jesse. They are all over the place. “My 10 year old smokes, drinks and beats me up!” “My 8 year old dresses sexy and does drugs!” It’s absolutely horrible. Just today (well, yesterday, I guess) I was watching Maury and it was an updates show. There was a 7 year old on there (and I remember watching the original episode) that called her mom “a bitch, a whore, a slut, because she pisses me off!” A seven year old. Just watch. You will be amazed.

#10

why do some people/kids lack the ablility to forsee the consequenses of their actions? exacly the reason you mentioned monster104, upbringing.

when are people going to realize that it is everybodies elses buissiness how you bring up your child, that child is going to affect the lifes of everybody around it when it grows up.
consider this:
arent parents responsible for their kid? should they be the ones who get into trouble when their underage kid steals something? at what age is the kid supposed to take responsibilities for his own actions? what do you do when a 7 year old swears at you, even if you are not even related to that child?

bj0rn - just some thoughts

#11

This, I agreee with 100%.

I’ve said this ever since the media began screaming “What is this country coming to? What is wrong with the youth of today?”

20, 30, 50 years ago, lots of things that occur in society today were very silent events back then.

Teen pregnancy happened quite often, but it was so hush-hush that statistics weren’t kept, elaborate stories conceived, family and friends were deceived.

Drug abuse has always been around, alcohol, partying, anger, mysoginy, sexual and physical/mental abuse were quite pronounced, yet society chose to look past most of them because it cast a dark shadow upon us all. Media coverage wasn’t what it is today either, and I think that also has quite a bit to do with it, and reporting agencies didn’t exist to combat these social ills and record the incidences.

Recently, there have been very public incidences of hate and murder by children. Since it seems so odd that it should be happening, we blame it on society and TV and video games, not on parenting, untreated mental conditions or abuse, or any of the many situations that can cause such disasters.

-Sam

#12

Not stealing, but related I think.

My mother was in the supermarket and two girls in expensive private school uniforms about 17 asked her for money.

They had $5, but they wanted to buy the more expensive flowers. Not for a funeral or sick relatives, they just fancied them.

A lot of kids have grown up in an environment where there is “spare” money. If they don’t get stuff they want, they think it is because someone is being mean, not that there are unpleasant trade-offs to be made.

One way or another, they are going to be very disappointed.

picmr

#13

It really worries me too, and if you’re not their parents you can’t do shit. Like I’m sure that store owner wanted to do something, but he was pretty much powerless.
Sorta like last friday, I skipped outta work early, so the subway was pretty empty esp. in the last car. There were about five 10-12 year old kids in the car with me, and one scared looking lady. These kids were loud and obnoxious, and they started running down the length of the car taking flying kicks at the locked door to the (unoccupied) conductor’s booth. Again and again they did this, and I felt like telling them to stop or at least sticking my foot out next time they ran past, but I knew if somebody older like me stepped in, what with my tie and suit, they would be hostile, and feel the need to prove their cojones totheir pals. Yes, I could have decked them, but smacking a 10 year old is a lose lose sitch. And what if one had a gun or a knife? That’s not entirely unreasonable nowadays, esp. considering the subway line I was on. So I sat there and did and said nothing, and by the time I reached my stop the door had been kicked in, the lock was twisted into an unusual shape, and I was furious with myself and those kids. :mad:

#14

when I was growing up in the 50’s and early 60’s I knew that just about anyone I knew could disipline me. I mean, that within reason, an Aunt, Uncle, or close neighbor could swat my butt. I also knew that I’d be getting it again ‘double’ from my folks if this happened. This basically taught me the ‘conciquences of my actions’, something that appears to be lacking in todays youth. There are many different ways to enforce acceptable behavior from kids, but at one point, a good butt smacking may be needed. I don’t condone child abuse, but little minds do not become logical until the teen years, and sometimes physical enforcement is the last resort. Today, we have to be concerned about the government stepping in to protect our kids from abuse, sometimes warranted, sometimes not, but the children now realise that NOBODY can touch them. Not the teachers, not the cops, no relatives, so no responsibility for their actions. Parents now seem to be in the postion of the child running the family. Ever read ‘Lord of the Flies’? Scares hell out of me.
I have 3 basic rules for my kids, now all teenagers.

  1. No stealing.
  2. No lieing.
  3. No cheating.
    I will enforce these to whatever ends neccessary. Once they learn responsibilty for their actions, my work as a parent is basically done. I’m 2 for 3 right now and the 13 year old will learn to comply also. It’s not easy to be a responsible parent and much easier to give up, or follow the 60,s and 70,s crap of letting the kids be ‘free spirits’ doing what they want. Of course, this is just my opinion, but I still get unsolicited compliments about how all of my kids are polite, helpful, or well-mannered. I tend to take this as doing something right.
    With that said,concerning the OP, I’d of smacked that boy’s butt right there in the store, had he been mine, and made him apologise. But hey, I’m an asshole!
    later, Tom.
#15

There’s also the fact that we really notice the kids who are being a pain in the ass, whereas the ones who are neither overly polite NOR little hellions pretty much pass through our radar unnoticed.

I have also found that VERY frequently if you teach a kid common MANNERS, reasonable behavior tends to follow. A lot of parents who were not raised well honestly don’t know how to teach their kids manners; they weren’t raised to always say, “please,” “thank you,” and “excuse me,” and even if they WANT their kids to be mannered they often start teaching them too late. My oldest kid’s first words were an indistinct but identifiable “thank you,” because every time he wanted a bottle he’d go, “Ehhh?” And we’d say “please” and hand it to him, and then say, “Thank you, [mommy, daddy, whomever],” so it’s just become part of how people talk.

When I go to my sister’s (she has four kids, good god), we’ll both automatically wait for the “please” and if necessary prompt the “thank you” from both of our kids, who range in age from almost 1 to just 10. I have been to houses of other folks with kids, and it’s, “Mom, I want a drink.” Mom gets the drink. Kid goes off and plays. Doesn’t sound like a big deal, but in my house the kid would have said “please” before I even moved toward the cupboard, and “thank you” or they’d get it taken away. As a result, aforementioned friend doesn’t understand why she can’t get her 6-year-old daughter to respect her…and even though my 5-year-old doesn’t always LIKE what I have to say, he’s far more willing to listen when I explain because I also ALWAYS say “please” and “thank you” to HIM.

I wish I could think of a solution. Mandatory parenting classes are not an answer, because the people who already know how to deal with their kids will be insulted…as will the people who don’t. You can’t imply that people don’t have to raise their kids; saying “You are a shitty parent” to a parent is like saying “Jesus Christ was a lying sack of shit” to a Fundamentalist.

#16

What’s wrong with society?
Most people are shallow, brain-dead, pussies.
I mean, c’mon. You expect children to give you respect but you give them more respect than they are worth. For the love of God, stand up to these people!

1.monster104 recounted a story about a store manager who caught a kid stealing, was yelled at by a parent, and then did nothing.
Don’t be a pussy! I’m sure the local police force would have been more than happy to reinforce a lesson on stealing. The manager definitely could have had store security restrain the mother and child until they got there. Instead, he let them go, and proved to them that you can do what you want and get away with it.

  1. Spider tells us about a group of kids destroying public property. And he/she does nothing. Why? Because he/she was scared! WTF is wrong with you?

For once, people, take a little goddamned responsibility for the society around you. You don’t always have to wait for someone else to do it for you.

Sorry for the rant, but this is a serious pet peeve of mine.

#17

When I was a kid this kind of behaviour would have spelled my doom or at least doomed my ass and any priviledges I enjoyed.

I had two of the kindest loving parents a kid could hope for but they were not students of the new school of parenting we have today. They came from the school of spare the rod and spoil the child.

They taught me manners and how to behave properly, they also impressed on me that there were consequences for my actions.

We are fortunate that we have good kids, not perfect but pretty good. They have their moments. I can’t see them ever giving lip to anyone as was described in the OP.

#18

Awww, that’s so cute, the tuff guy from Arvada,CO thinks I should stop being a pussy. Lemme guess, you played high school football, didn’t you? Fuck you man, I made it perfectly clear I was equally pissed off at myself for not doing anything, but I happened to be riding the 2/3 train in the Bronx just as school had let out, with no legit authority figures standing around. I’ve lived in NYC my whole life, and I’m not going to sit here and try to say I’m anything close to a street tuff, but no suburbia living shit can tell me that I am a “shallow brain-dead pussy.”
And you were nicely gender neutral in your reply to me (I’m male), but my god man, get your head outta your ass. You think a young woman on the subway should stand up to a pack of today’s younguns?

I was 17 the first time I was held up with a gun, and the kid on the other side was my age. Read a newspaper and tell me not to flinch when a kid reaches into his backpack. Jesus Christ, you live in CO, need I jog your memory?

#19

This is bigger than you Monster, this is bigger than all of us. 8.8 was nationall be an asshole day. I have three independent accounts to back this up.

  1. Big black guy with HUGE head is outside where I’m eating lunch. He’s following his companion/girlfriend/whatever, calling her Bitch this and Bitch that. REALLY REALLY LOUD. He has her on the edge of tears. I was about to go and intervene somewhat, I’m not sure why the businessmen standing next to him did nothing :rolleyes: When, a small twentysomething asian woman across the street yels “Hey, don’t treat he like that”. Well, he give a look, and takes off after her, yelling the same shit “Don’t talk to me like that bitch, I’ll beat your ass down, etc, etc”. She duxks into a store. He turns around to find his original victim has run off. So he paces around for ten minutes still mumbling and yelling. Luckily, his friends had some decency and didn’t tell him where she went, even though they clearly saw.

  2. On the bus, 22 Fillmore. As I sit down, I notice a young twentysomething, attractive,white or latina woman talking on the phone( known as PW). Next to her is an older whit woman (known as OW). PW turns to OW and yels “You better be thankfull I’m so fucking nice, someone else would have beat your fucking ass down”. OW mumbles something, sounded like an apology. PW- 'What’s that bitch?". On an on, basiclly hurling verbal abuse for two or three minutes, until PW got off the bus.

  3. Walking past the gas station. A red new VW beetle. A younng yuppie woman is pumping gas. An oldr, 60ish homeless black guy comes up and grabs a window scraper. He approaches the car. Her boyfriend/companion/whatever, yuppie asshole boyfriend gets out and starts screaming. “get away from the car. Just back off. blah blah blah”. He grabs the scraper and pushes the guy. As I was the only one around I went over. I basiclly got in between them, and told him to cut it out or something. His female companion was also grabbing at him and telling him to get back in the car. He goes off on me, pushes me in the chest, and starts screaming. At this point the homeless guy has run off, so I just turn around and start walking. He still stands there and keeps screaming at me.
    Now normally I go weeks without seeing any assholes in SF. Three in one day is too much of a coincidence. Also, coupled with your story, it leads me to believe something is off in the cosmic forces.

#20

Oh, blow me, Spider. I used to live in Chicago. On the south side. Which will give your neighborhood, I suspect, a run for its money any day of the week. Don’t give me that holier-than-thou “I’m from NYC so I’m a god” shit. This isn’t the '50s. Just because I live in suburbia now doesn’t mean that I always did. You should watch yourself when you make snap judgements.

You’re right, though, a young woman probably shouldn’t be approaching a gang of punks in NYC. I didn’t really think that with a name like Spider that you’d be a woman, but better safe than sorry. :slight_smile:

And no, I didn’t play high school football. I went to Manual High School in Denver. I don’t think there were any white guys on the football team.