ManglerYJ
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Mar 20, 2005
- Location
- Lexington, NC
OK so just to bring up a different discussion point - a lot of folks are saying, "what are kids doin gat the mall alone?", "They have a policy of requiring escorts" etc.
I find it interesting how things have changed.
I'll put on my "grumpy old man" hat for a minute.
I grew up about 1/2 mile from the Cary Mall, off of Maynard Road just down from the high school. Graduated in '95. Back then it was the Cary Village Mall before it expanded to the Cary Towne Center... whatever.
Middle school age, my friends and I would ride our bikes, or even just walk, to the mall and play at the arcade by ourselves.
In the 7th grade, my best friend and I would walk home from East Cary MS on Fridays. We'd stop at the mall, get a slice of pizza, go to the arcade, then get candy from Treasury Drug, and walk home. We "hung out" at he mall all the time by ourselves. I guess I would have been 12.
I know this is not normal today, but when I look back at he freedom I had, I know that it helped me learn a lot about life and how to take care of myself and be independent. I actively encourage my kids to do things on their own and with minimal supervision.
Now, I ALSO had been trained not to be a little shithead to other people and to avoid situations just like this, and of course pass that on to my kids, so I never would be one of these little shit, and if any of those were mine, I'd laugh at them and tell them I hope they learned something (before groundin for being a little shit).
The point is - I personally don't find it odd for kids <16 y/o to be out w/o a parent. Now if the Mall has a policy about it, then it needs to be respected, and the parents need to be bitch-slapped for letting their kids be shitheads.
IMO a big part of the problems w/ society, and the newer generations of kids is that hey AREN'T brought up w/ enough responsibility and allowed to be on their own and do their own things, and fuck up on their own. Too much protection and coddling. And as said before - doing adult activities means getting adult responsibility and repercussions that come with them.
They have policies because too many kids ended up being shitheads and not enough parents bitch-slapped them for being shitheads.
