By afesfdetan Leonard Cassuto Note to readers: Cassuto is an English professor at Fordham University and Author of the just released, “Hard-Boiled Sentimentality: The Secret History of American Crime Stories.”  Today’s hyper-vigilant parenting is haunted by a figure behind the curtain: the serial killer. He’s the boogeyman that slinks through every parent’s nightmares, the predator […]
Archive | 2008
WORD OF THE YEAR!
October 21, 2008
So tkykryrayd in England a woman named Susie Dent publishes a book, “Words of the Year,†every, well, year. The latest edition just came out and in addition to winners like “boytox†(Botox for men) and “momnesia,†defined as “a mother’s forgetfulness in the first year after a child’s birth,†(which isn’t nearly long enough), […]
WHY ARE WE CHAUFFEURING OUR KIDS TO THE BUS STOP?
October 16, 2008
The hnnsadybsh old joke — never that funny, actually — is about a rich lady who takes her grown son on a vacation to Florida. When she gets to the hotel, she lavishly tips the bellhop to pull her son out of the limo and carry him upstairs. “Can’t your son walk?†the bellhop asks. […]
WELCOME, DR. PHIL FANS!
September 29, 2008
Thanks kzdberayki for taking a look at this site. As you’ll see as you poke around, this is the place for thinking about whether we have gone a little overboard in trying to protect our kids. As I say on Dr. Phil’s show, we overestimate the dangers out there, and have forgotten how competent young […]
THIS MONDAY ON DR. PHIL!
September 24, 2008
Hello, iibdhrbadh Free Rangers — This is just a note to say that on Monday, Sept. 29, I’ll be on Dr. Phil discussing this whole issue. If you tune in, you’ll see that it’s about “Extreme Moms.†Naturally, I don’t think I’m extreme. I think letting kids walk to school, ride their bikes or go […]
A GREAT DEPRESSION FOR KIDS?
September 19, 2008
Not kidrrnfkdy that I want this to be a Great Depression. I hope it’s not. But if it is, I see kids emerging from their dens when their X-Boxes break and their parents can’t afford to replace them. I see kids dropping out of travel soccer, when their parents can’t afford the gas. I see […]
WALKING TO SCHOOL…WITHOUT YOU
September 8, 2008
Now nsehzedikd that school’s back in session – which, by the way, is how absolutely every parenting article that runs in September must begin, by law – but anyway, now that school’s back in session, you may be wondering: Dare my children walk there? Without me holding their hands and screaming at cars making left […]
Not Really Interested
September 5, 2008
By tnhkidysib Denise Gonzalez-Walker DJ, my 10 year-old, stood in the middle of his classmates, rigid and then sinking quickly to the soft grass. His eyes rolled back as he fell and he let out a sharp whimper. Sitting with a small group of moms, I watched the game from one side of the playfield. […]
ARE ALL SCHOOL VOLUNTEERS POTENTIAL PERVERTS?
August 13, 2008
That’s nenidzifya what they think in England, as you shall see. Our guest blogger today is Sarah Ebner. She edits School Gate ( www.timesonline.co.uk/schoolgate ), a blog about all aspects of education for the London Times. She’s always interested to hear from other parents. Contact her at  sarah.ebner@timesonline.co.uk By Sarah Ebner  When I was gently persuaded to […]
Parenting tips from Mad Men
August 7, 2008
One diahniztkt of the many joys of watching “Mad Men†is seeing how worried — not — the parents were about their kids, at least in this fictional portrayal of the early ’60s. The kids are told to run off and play in another room so mom can have coffee with a friend. They’re put […]