Posted on March 21st, 2013 by lskenazy
Readers – We all want some sensible safety precautions taken in schools, but as far as I can tell they were all in place about 50 years ago and don’t really need to get more persnickety. But just as something there is that loves a wall, something there is that loves another layer of excess [...]
Filed under: Bad Laws, Rules and Verdicts, Infantilizing young folk, Insurance repercussions, Miscellaneous, School and Zero Tolerance and Bullies, Uber Safety | 64 Comments »
Posted on March 17th, 2013 by lskenazy
Hi Readers – Out of the blue, Disney has declared that no individual under age 14 can enter its parks solo anymore. According to NBC News: The child’s parent or guardian would then be contacted if the visitor is underage, and that adult would need to physically come accompany the child into the park. Disney chose [...]
Filed under: Bad Laws, Rules and Verdicts, Infantilizing young folk, Insurance repercussions, Miscellaneous, Other Places Other Eras | 111 Comments »
Posted on March 15th, 2013 by lskenazy
Hi Readers — Over at CommonGood.org, I’ve got an essay about the family that found a paring knife at the bottom of the birthday cake they bought for their 2-year-old at Walmart. The teary-eyed father lamented, ”We’re not going to get that second birthday back ever.” Ohmigod–he’s right! How is anyone expected to recover from a blow [...]
Filed under: Breaking news, Crazy Parents, Insurance repercussions, Marketing Madness and Gadgets, Media Madness, Miscellaneous | 72 Comments »
Posted on March 7th, 2013 by lskenazy
Readers, once in a while – if you ignore the school safety drills involving real helicopters and the school boy suspensions involving imaginary guns – you can feel like things are going in exactly the right direction. This is one of those moments. Look at this article, “Call to Ditch Red Tape on Playtime Safety”: [...]
Filed under: Bad Laws, Rules and Verdicts, Creating Community, GOOD News, Helicopter Effect on Kids, Insurance repercussions, Miscellaneous, Parks, Playing and Playgrounds, School and Zero Tolerance and Bullies, Zingers and retorts | 19 Comments »
Posted on February 25th, 2013 by lskenazy
Hi Readers — Paxton, a small town in Illinois, where the land is flat as flat can be, is about to lose its only sledding hill to the Abominable Insurance Man. So says Esquire: …The Paxton Park District’s insurance provider ruled that its sledding hill is too risky. “The insurance would have skyrocketed if someone was [...]
Filed under: Bad Laws, Rules and Verdicts, Insurance repercussions, Miscellaneous, Other Places Other Eras, Parks, Playing and Playgrounds | 51 Comments »
Posted on February 19th, 2013 by lskenazy
Readers — As we continue to document the infantilization of young people, including how and why this trend began, here’s a bright trail to one of the culprits: The insurance industry. Remember, insurance has nothing to lose and everything to gain by taking all freedom and responsibility away from minors. If kids were all in [...]
Filed under: Infantilizing young folk, Insurance repercussions, Marketing Madness and Gadgets, Miscellaneous, Stupid Advice, Walk to School / Stay Home Alone / Wait in Car | 130 Comments »
Posted on February 13th, 2013 by lskenazy
Hi Readers — I’ve got sons, so I have not been privy to what’s happening to Girl Scouts. This letter, in response to the blog post about Iowa Girl Scouts selling four of its rustic camps for being TOO rustic, has me dismayed. – L. Dear Free-Range Kids: I co-led a troop from 1st grade-6th grade. [...]
Filed under: Helicopter Effect on Kids, Insurance repercussions, Miscellaneous, Other Places Other Eras, Parks, Playing and Playgrounds | 87 Comments »
Posted on February 11th, 2013 by lskenazy
From the Brave New World of Fearing Everything (probably including lawsuits), as sent to us by Judy in Warrington, PA: . Dear Free-Range Kids: Today at Wegman’s, I was unable to purchase a King’s Cake (Fat Tuesday tradition) with the lucky baby trinket hidden inside. It seems it is now a choking hazard, even though [...]
Filed under: Bad Laws, Rules and Verdicts, Insurance repercussions, Miscellaneous, Worst-First Thinking | 41 Comments »
Posted on February 1st, 2013 by lskenazy
Readers — If you want to watch the decline and fall of Western Civilization, check out this article in yesterday’s Washington Post about a suburban D.C. school, Stratford Landing, whose PTA purchased a rather cool-looking piece of climbing equipment. They bought it, using bake sale and other fundraising money, from a playground company that naturally [...]
Filed under: Breaking news, Helicopter Effect on Kids, Insurance repercussions, Miscellaneous, Parks, Playing and Playgrounds | 105 Comments »
Posted on January 31st, 2013 by lskenazy
Hi Readers — One of you just sent this Facebook page about plans to stop letting kids play on this fabulous old locomotive located at the Dennis the Menace park in Monterey,California. The reasons? Take a guess. I’ve dropped a note to the activist running the FB page, haven’t heard back yet and wanted to [...]
Filed under: Helicopter Effect on Kids, Insurance repercussions, Miscellaneous, Parks, Playing and Playgrounds | 48 Comments »
