I don’t want my children feeling superior to others, that they are owed something from them. I want them to learn that persuasion and negotiation, kindness and acceptance, are the best ways to make and keep friends. That when they view others as an opportunity for mutual benefit, as versus someone to be used and then discarded, they will develop better, stronger, and longer-lasting relationships with others.
Tag: responsibility
Treat Your Children Like They Deserve Great Things
If the world is abusive, you are probably a negligent parent by not abusing your child. As a huge advocate for children, gentle parenting, unschooling, etc. that would seem like a crazy position, but roll with me for a minute.
Statist Projection
Anarchy doesn’t preclude working with others; only ruling others or letting them rule you. Yet, I can’t begin to count the number of times a statist has said something to the effect of “anarchy is anti-social” or “anarchists can’t get along with others.”
Rights and Responsibilities, Again
Your rights are your responsibility. My only responsibility concerning your rights is to not interfere with you exercising them. I am responsible for not violating you, and if I do, I’m responsible for that, too.
Responsibilities
One common thing people say in order to trivialize rights is that there can be no rights without responsibilities. That is probably true, but it doesn’t make rights any less important, and most responsibilities don’t seem connected to rights at all.
The Castile Doctrine: Cops Without Consequences
On June 16, a jury acquitted St. Anthony, Minnesota police officer Jeronimo Yanez of all charges in the 2016 killing of motorist Philando Castile. That acquittal was, in a sense, also a death sentence — not for Yanez, but for future motorists unfortunate enough to encounter cops like him.
Parenting is Hard
That is a giant understatement. Parenting is big, important, magical, crushing, uplifting, ridiculous, fun, blissful, overwhelming and so many more adjectives. It’s a roller coaster of every possible emotion you can imagine, and a few you can’t imagine. Here is just one of my stories that illustrate a little bit of parenting madness with a sweet resolve.
Equality of Opportunity?
Many conservatives and capitalists are fond of saying they don’t believe in equality of results but rather equality of opportunity. I believe this is a horrible strategy, and I believe it is bad philosophy; both politically and personally.
Remember Why You Act
Though daunting as it may be, accept that you will never flawlessly live up to your own standards. No one is perfect in their actions. The heroic person is willing to try, without end, despite falling short of his ideals.
Be Careful What You Aim For
One way or another, everyone alive today navigates in a world that grows denser with competing ideologies. The level of devotion solidifies to match the breadth of possible alignments. There are now more people who are more sure of the rightness of their increasingly opposing values. Conflict is inevitable. Clarity is essential.