"I'm warning you!"

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A kid was arrested for stealing a Pop-Tart. As an isolated incident, this seems ridiculous. Of course, there's always the possibility that the kid has a long standing problem with stealing and ignoring his mom's instruction. It's not that he took something worth so little. I'm going to guess that it's because she had repeatedly said, "I'm warning you!" He didn't listen, and she asked the police to help her teach her son that stealing is very wrong, whether it's a Pop-Tart or a million bucks. The police felt it was worth the lesson. That should tell us something. They're professionals; they deal with people hooked on bad choices every day. If we, as a culture, are too quick to call the whole thing "stupid", we reiterate to the kid that it's ok to defy the limits. I'm pretty sure there's a long story to this, and the obscenity that the mom directed at the reporter indicates that the mom has had it. It's not a polite response, but how many of us have been snarky with the world when someone has pushed every button he/she can find?

I've actually heard of this parenting method before. Police will often help parents scare the "livin' tar" out of a kid who just doesn't care to listen. I've also heard somewhere that if you let a child do what he wants, ignoring rebellion after rebellion, the chances are pretty good that he'll just keep right on going. I know, I'm a stubborn old coot. Whatever. I have at least some kudos for a desperate mom who felt she had to do something before a behaviour became a lifestyle. I sincerely hope the kid learns to work with his mom. I also hope the mom gets the support she needs to raise this boy to be a responsible, giving member of society. Was there a better way? I have no clue. I'm not in the home.

I guess the whole situation begs the question, "What would you do if your son or daughter simply didn't care to listen to you? How far would you go to build character into the child?"