Kids and Privacy
Robert Jamieson, a Seattle newspaper columnist, writes about the Washington Supreme Court decision that a mother violated her daughter's privacy by eavesdropping on her phone conversation.
I agree with Jamieson when he says "Parents who do not snoop become moot."
It still bugs me that the parents of the Columbine Killers professed ignorance to the fact that their sons were building pipe bombs and buying guns. In that case the parents never even ventured into their kids' rooms. If they had, alarm bells most certainly would have gone off.
My own kids are already learning about privacy, especially as each of them wants to get into the others' toys and banks. But they're also learning that privacy is a privilege, and that their mom and dad have their eyes (and ears) open.
If we aren't aware, it means we don't care.
I agree with Jamieson when he says "Parents who do not snoop become moot."
It still bugs me that the parents of the Columbine Killers professed ignorance to the fact that their sons were building pipe bombs and buying guns. In that case the parents never even ventured into their kids' rooms. If they had, alarm bells most certainly would have gone off.
My own kids are already learning about privacy, especially as each of them wants to get into the others' toys and banks. But they're also learning that privacy is a privilege, and that their mom and dad have their eyes (and ears) open.
If we aren't aware, it means we don't care.
Permalink posted by Idaho Dad at 10:01 AM
2 Comments:
I agree. I mean, I hope I have the kind of relationship with my daughter and, if we have other children, with them that we can be frank and honest even when it's uncomfortable, but if not, I'll snoop as much as needed. There are to many folks these days who have no idea what their kids are up to.
When my children were younger (they are all adults now), I replaced their bedroom doors with screen doors. They were free to hang a curtain across it that had to be opened when they weren't inside, but I could hear clearly through it. I could see at a glance the state of their room without entering it. It gave them privacy with supervision.
We were all happy with that arrangement, and as adults, they plan to do the same with their own children. Their friends have also emulated it for their children.
A parent's job is to teach and meddle in their children's affairs until the children are mature enough to face up to the consequences of their own actions. If we aren't involved in our children's lives, what was the point in having them? We are more than breeding machines.
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