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You left out the most important step: make sure kids understand the reason for those rules (other than "because I say so"). Speaking from my experience with my parents, yours is a great recipe for having your kids think you're an asshole when they're older.


Another important lesson: obey the same rules.

Nothing is more infuriating than parents setting rules that only apply to their children for arbitrary reasons.


I don't think my parents are assholes. Sure, I did when I was a teenager, but that's because I was egocentric and had poor impulse control - in short, a teenager. Thank god my parents were doing their job instead of trying to be my buddy.


Because explaining a reason to teenagers (who despite having a lot of bluster, are usually fairly bright) is somehow asking too much.

You use terms like "because I said so" with a 2 year old who literally can't understand why you shouldn't play in the street.

Don't insult other people's intelligence, much less your kid's. There's no excuse for that.


Agreed, but...

Funnily enough, my 2 year old understands exactly why she shouldn't play in the street; Every time we go for a walk around the block and a car passes us, she tells us all "look out for that car, it might hit us!".

And then again, I know plenty of other 2 year olds who can barely talk, let alone say something like that.

And then I know 2 year olds who have dexterity and body awareness that makes my daughter look like she's walking around with a blindfold and her arms tied together.

If being a parent has taught me anything, it's that kids are just incredibly different from each other. Oh, that, and that nothing good can ever come of a parenting thread on Hacker News ;) So many strongly held opinions from such small samples (often zero!).


Kids are also like the parrots, though. They can say things they don't understand.




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