cmitchell
Veteran Member
Yesterday, one of my students failed the written test for the learner's permit ... for the 2nd time ...
Not the sharpest knife in the drawer, eh?Yesterday, one of my students failed the written test for the learner's permit ... for the 2nd time ...
You've got my vote for parent of the month!Funny dialogue in this thread.
My daughter failed the written exam before she took it...........LoL
Let me explain, Miss PITA, know-it-all INSISTED she did not need her birth certificate as part of the paperwork to take the test. I tried to be a patient, understanding Dad and explain/reason with her that this was not the case and you need the birth certificate.
After her continued protests that she did NOT need the certificate I angrily drove her to the DMV any way to prove a point.
After standing in line and about 20 seconds after her telling the clerk hello, she was asked for her birth certificate : )
It was a quiet ride home.........LoL
All so true. As usual I agree with everything you write. We have graduated licensing in Massachusetts. I logged over 50 hours driving with my 16 year old son. Doesn't sound too bad until you try it, but it's a major commitment. It didn't help that he inherited his driving skills from his mother's side of the family. During that 50 plus hours I had to grab the wheel several times and steer from the passenger seat. The worst occasion was when he lost control of my truck on an icy road and I had to control a fishtailing skid with traffic coming in the opposite direction while yelling at my son...."Off the gas! Off the gas!"The evidence thus far is showing that the graduated license programs put in place by most states is simply pushing the age of first licensing back a couple years, and also pushing back the big bulge of teen driving accidents a few years.......
.......So it used to be the biggest lump of accidents was kids aged 16-18, basically wrecking cars when they were immature and inexperienced drivers. Now these graduated license restrictions put such a hassle on parents and kids that a lot of them simply aren't doing it. With families often having both parents working, who has time to spend 50 hours (longer than a standard work week) behind the wheel with their kids? Including something like 20 hours of night driving? Not a lot. So the result is now that kids simply wait to turn 18 where the just walk in and get a license without all the hassle of instruction required. And the result from that is now we've pushed the bunch with the most accidents up to the 18-20 age bracket because we're just delaying the inevitable.
Oh, you provided your son with another car after he destroyed the first one? What was his excuse for hitting that tree? Bad weather? Too much speed? Distracted by having friends in the car? Texting? The tree jumped in his path?When I was a kid I was contemptuous of the "rich kids" who wrapped Daddy's car around a tree and as a reward received another one. Now my son is one of those kids.
Yes, I did. This one's a Volvo with lots of air bags.Oh, you provided your son with another car after he destroyed the first one? What was his excuse for hitting that tree? Bad weather? Too much speed? Distracted by having friends in the car? Texting? The tree jumped in his path?
Volvos are safe cars. But I'd still like to know how he explained the tree to you. Without a good explanation, I would have taken his driving privileges rather than buying another car for him to trash.Yes, I did. This one's a Volvo with lots of air bags.
If my kid got into an accident due to phone usage, that would be the end of his/her driving privileges in any of my cars. That's a one-strike-you're-out way of ending the game for me.Gotta love those "smart phones"....
Yes, that's one approach. I've spent a lot of time thinking about this. Older people, like me, tend to see this as a moral issue. When I was a kid you didn't damage or destroy your stuff because if you did it was no longer available to you. So carelessness or thoughtlessness was seen as a moral issue. But it's not really a moral issue, it's an economic issue that was framed as a moral issue as a way of controlling behavior.Volvos are safe cars. But I'd still like to know how he explained the tree to you. Without a good explanation, I would have taken his driving privileges rather than buying another car for him to trash.
I've always made my own luck. That's probably why this looks more like an economic issue to me now.I don't buy into the moral issue vs. economic issue argument. To me, driving is a privilege, not a right. Not only is your own safety on the line, but so is the safety of all around you. Not only is experience (hours behind the wheel) a factor, but so is maturity. Not all 16-18 year olds are mature enough to handle the responsibility of driving with safety in mind.
Not being able to avoid a stout tree doesn't do much to prove to me that a kid is capable of protecting his safety and the safety of others. Just because your son is safe in his new Volvo doesn't mean that those around him are safe too.
Good luck.
This sounds like a comment made by a person who is making a lot of money and is proud of it, and therefore finds it easy to repeatedly buy cars for his kids. Congratulations. I'm happy for you.I've always made my own luck. That's probably why this looks more like an economic issue to me now.
Glad I don't live in MA.Yes, I did. This one's a Volvo with lots of air bags.
Well, as I said above, this is a situation about which I've thought a lot. One of my conclusions is that it does not make sense to artificially impose my own (relative) childhood poverty on my son.This sounds like a comment made by a person who is making a lot of money and is proud of it, and therefore finds it easy to repeatedly buy cars for his kids. Congratulations. I'm happy for you.
I make good money too. I could repeatedly buy cars for my kids too. That doesn't mean that I would, if reckless carelessness was the cause of my kid's accident.
I agree that, to a large extent, people make their own luck. But if the next time your son doesn't hit a tree but instead runs over a mom pushing her baby in a stroller, how much of an opportunity to make his own luck do you think that baby will have?
Only because your relative childhood poverty has absolutely no bearing on whether your son is mature enough to bear the responsibility of protecting himself and everyone else in his vicinity.I'm curious as to why you're so emotionally invested in a situation you know almost nothing about.
In your opinion.Only because your relative childhood poverty has absolutely no bearing on whether your son is mature enough to bear the responsibility of protecting himself and everyone else in his vicinity.
A parent's financial ability to provide his child with _____ (fill in the blank) does not mean that the parent should necessarily provide it.
Sermon, I think that guy is made out of stone.....In your opinion.
I look forward to next Sunday's sermon.
Back in the day, you could disipline your kids with a belt of a spatula even in public without being arrested. Nowadays, you can't lay a finger on your kids or even yell at them or call them names without serving time...It's actually interesting though that now kids are driving later. It has to be a side affect of the economy, because kids these days are at an all time low in maturity. .
Those with effective parenting skills are perfectly capable of disciplining their children without using a spatula or a belt or calling them names. I'd suggest NOT using the above methods of "discipline" if you want to be truly respected by your kids. Being an effective parent doesn't involve being a tyrant. Parents are supposed to love, nurture and build up their children ... not beat the crap out of them & put them down by calling them names to get compliance.Back in the day, you could disipline your kids with a belt of a spatula even in public without being arrested. Nowadays, you can't lay a finger on your kids or even yell at them or call them names without serving time...
The maturity has dropped as the lack of disipline grows higher.
This trend will only get worse as time goes on...