February 16, 2009

A FREE BOOK ON Free Range Kids. “Over the past 30 years activities that previous generations of children enjoyed without a second thought have been relabelled as troubling or dangerous, and the adults who permit them branded as irresponsible. No Fear argues that childhood is being undermined by the growth of risk aversion and its intrusion into every aspect of children’s lives.” Yes, when The Dangerous Book for Boys is seen by some as actually dangerous, it’s time for a response.

Posted at 9:00 am by Glenn Reynolds

Ain’t it the truth? No way in hell that you could today raise a boy as I was raised.

Working for pay while under-aged. Unrestricted access to guns. Leaving the house after breakfast, and not returning until dark (since we didn’t have a phone, no way to check in anyway). No helmets for biking, skating, etc. Free run of a small town with no questions asked. Felt completely comfortable talking to strangers. No adult-supervised activities of any real consequence (as a matter of fact, we were expected to find our own amusements).

I just realized…I was underprivileged. Day-um. Wonder if there is a government-sponsored remedy for that?