Early days
When we were much younger, our parents, guardians and
even teachers at school used to scold us in different ways anytime we did
wrong, which was like speed bumps prepared on the road for us whenever we moved
too fast. Although we used to resent their judgment at the time, thinking they
hated us, but after getting used to it, it all seemed quite normal.
Interestingly, as we grow older with respect being
reciprocated to us by both old and young people, while we witness the disgust
and resentment being given to our peers that used to be recalcitrant and
incorrigible when were all kids, the picture gets even clearer. The timely
spanks and reprimands sure paid off in molding us into mature adults just as
only the test of fire makes fine steel, diminishing the tendencies of future
belligerence and juvenile delinquencies.
“Withhold not
correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not
die. Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from
hell”…Prov. 23:13:14
Culture
There is no contesting the system of rebuking faulting
children; even history clearly spells it out from the biblical chronicles, to
law and even recorded lives of great sages and thinkers. Discipline of children
has been with us for as long as we can remember.
Imagine you had a farm and you found that several rodents
and pests constantly spoil your crops, what would you do? Create a pest control
system of course. Similar thing applies to a horse or cattle that wouldn’t move
in your desired direction, you’d instinctively either shout at them or
traditionally flog them.
Ultimately, same thing applies to children, when they do
wrong and we don’t want them to repeat it, we impulsively punish them, and
truly from experience we know they get the message even when we stand the risk
of losing their trust and affection, but in the future we usually discover that
the risk is well worth it. In other words, we have a natural inclination of
reprimand as not just a cultural heritage, but also as a guiding light for
future prosperity of our children.
“Eliminating
corporal punishment (deciding to spare the rod) means more than foregoing
bottom spanking. It includes a slap on the wrist, the smack on the face and any
other body parts that may be struck”…Unknown
Due to the fast paced rate at which we interpret in different
ways the very knowledge we’ve lived by for ages, theories and their
reverberating impacts such as insecurities and the complexities surrounding
them, it has however stereo-typically become imperative for steps to be taken to
protect overzealous chastisers of infants.
In the wake modern civilization which ushers in new fears
and pressures, perceived under-achievements of misguided young adults and
perhaps even taxes, many adults out of frustration and self inflicted
misfortunes have used transferred aggression to injure, permanently disable, or
let innocent children slip away from this world. With the nasty acts left
unchecked, and like the stagnant water which stinks and breeds flies and
reptiles, it slowly degenerates, and by implication translates into an access
path to deal further abuse on children, with their obvious vulnerability giving
the abuser more guts and opportunity to ill-treat children in other possible
ways.
In the light of this, it is however justifiable for
governments of developed nations to make laws that protect children, and
therefore by repercussion, like a growing glow which emanates in the dark
destined for expansion, the tendencies of spoiling children arise to the extent
that in the quest to provide an enabling environment for children to express
themselves without fear of criticism which could impair their self-esteem, we
also give them an opportunity to be rude, flagrant and incorrigible.
For instance, seven year old Jimmy has broken several
items around the house probably due to a combination of carelessness,
inattentiveness and roughhousing. This time he has broken a favorite vase of
yours. After you have dealt with your anger and let him know you’re upset with
what he did, to discipline him by having him help with vacuuming and dusting
might not help you, but it might change his behavior.
Jimmy’s carelessness could be a sign that he doesn’t feel
important to the household or family. It can be the child’s way of
communicating that he needs more attention.
“Nigeria reserves
the right to make her own laws without apologies to other countries. Between
Europe, America and Africa there is a large culture gap. Some of the things
that are considered fundamental rights abroad can be very offensive to African
culture and tradition and to the way we live here”…Labaran Maku (Former
Nigerian Information Minister)
Diverse
Orientation
The western world have a reputation for fighting for and
preserving human rights, they also are known to be innovative, creating new
things that help humans adapt better to the same planet earth that we are
constantly insecure about, claiming that it is choking and trying to kill us
all, even when our insensitive activities have awoken a slumbering leviathan
called global warming.
Anyway, the gap in ways of life between tribes and races
along religion and ethnic lines from time immemorial have steadily caused
several degrees of culture shock, creating fear and uncertainty between
business partners and tourists especially overseas.
Our diversities are explicitly appreciated within the
corridors of education that has brought about mysterious theories to the needed
resources which other parts of the world have been able to identify maximum
(exploitive) use for.
The multiple systems and complexities of nature continue
to spiral through a seemingly unending vicious circle and which we are saddled
with the opportunity to unravel in order to remain relevant and even alive.
“The child that you
do not build will eventually sell the fortune that you built”…Yoruba proverb
Literally, it gets better, and by better in this context
I mean worse. What’s worse? The same situation of juvenile delinquencies that
has sky-rocketed in the past century due to child indulgence and our insensitivity
to the incorrigible acts of kids that stare us in the face.
If we could only be more observant, pro-active and
empathetic about the matter at hand, we might be saving ourselves or delaying an
impending and looming danger knocking on the doors of the future.
Let’s look at it further this way; a school of thought
tells us that kids are extremely innocent, this therefore implies that all the
bad things that kids do can actually be blamed on their parents, guardians or
primary contacts and influence. For instance, kids don’t know racism, terrorism
or even homosexuality unless someone misguides them, and with the spate of
their consistency and the way we treat them, they have apparently come to stay.
I recently came across a quote which says “Part time Christians cannot defeat full
time devils” (apologies to folks of other faith), and it kind of makes
sense, how do you defeat desperate people who are ready to die for their cause
when you are not only inconsistent in your acts and policies, but when you also
compromise standards?
“The secret to
success I don’t know, but the secret to failure is trying to please
everyone”…Abraham Lincoln
You probably got
it wrong
I saw an action movie sometime ago titled ‘Airforce one’,
the movie featured veteran actor Harrison Ford as United States President and
it sure was an intriguing, fast paced act about a terrorist attack on America.
In the course of the movie, while the vice President vaguely suggested that the
President negotiates with the terrorists, a simple quote stayed with me. The
President simply asked, ‘if you give a mouse a cookie?...the vice President who
was a lady promptly replied ‘it’ll ask for milk’.
This tells us that if you negotiate with a bad person,
he’ll try to exploit and even further destroy you. Same thing applies to a
regular person that finds that he or she can get easy bread from you, they’ll
definitely come back for more, I would.
The United States recently agreed to gay marriage in all
it’s states and they are urging other nations to do likewise. This has inspired
or incited other groups to lobby for more rights such as adultery, pedophilia,
incest and other forms of experimentation that have always been known to be
wrong.
All these are happening right in the midst of allegations
of aiding of international secrets, war crimes, high level crime deals and
affiliations with terrorists, also while other pressing issues such as poverty,
hunger and stylish racial profiling prevail.
Look around you; it’s all psychology borne of the earthly
principles. If you want to get things done perfectly you simply have to be
patient and plan for the long term, and this means you should brainwash
children. That is why kids that are recruited early into sports, academics,
work, war and terrorism do exceptionally well.
In conclusion, not that I’m giving up on the future, it’s
their prerogative to take care of themselves and the planet earth as they meet
it, but it’s actually up to us to make it up to them so that they don’t curse
us for the actions we’re taking or not taking, because if we choose a part time
shift to fix the world, the full time devils might just win after all.
Thank you.
Sources:
Google
Holy Bible
Positive Parenting
Brainy Quote
Good reads
No comments:
Post a Comment