Reese Witherspoon: "I Wouldn't Want My Kids To Miss Out On Being Teased Or Bullied"

White Rain

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"It makes you who you are" she also says.
WTF? I think she is normally a good mom, but what kind of mom would want their child teased and bullied?
Surely she didn't mean this the way it sounded.
What about the kids who come home crying everyday and have low self esteem?
What about the kids who fear going to school because they get picked on?
What about the kids who get fed up and come to school blasting guns/bombs?
Don't teasing and bullying make them what they are as well?

http://justjared.buzznet.com/2008/02/11/reese-witherspoon-kids-2/
 
She has to be insane ... I would do just about anything to prevent my child from experiencing the living hell of bullying.
 
"It makes you who you are" she also says.
WTF? I think she is normally a good mom, but what kind of mom would want their child teased and bullied?
Surely she didn't mean this the way it sounded.
What about the kids who come home crying everyday and have low self esteem?
What about the kids who fear going to school because they get picked on?
What about the kids who get fed up and come to school blasting guns/bombs?
Don't teasing and bullying make them what they are as well?

http://justjared.buzznet.com/2008/02/11/reese-witherspoon-kids-2/
IMO.

I don't think she meant it in a bad way. I took her remarks to mean that she wants them to experience things they would normally experience, because those things can build character. I'm sure she means some of the normal joking kind of teasing. I know I was teased, and I think everyone is.

I think she seems to be a good mom and I think her remarks are taken out of context.
 
Jesus, you really can't say anything these days, can you?

IMO totally taken out of context.
 
She just means she doesn't want her kids to be protected from *feeling bad*. She wants them to develop coping skills to handle real life.
I get it. Kids are so overprotected from feeling uncomfortable these days that when a curve ball hits them they don't know what to do.
 
Jesus, you really can't say anything these days, can you?

IMO totally taken out of context.

One mother told me she homeschooled her children because she couldn't afford the drugs and weapons to send her child to public school.

*I* laughed. The other parents around took her word for word and were very upset.

Context is important! I'm sure she meant "socialization skills".
 
"It makes you who you are" she also says.
WTF? I think she is normally a good mom, but what kind of mom would want their child teased and bullied?
Surely she didn't mean this the way it sounded.
What about the kids who come home crying everyday and have low self esteem?
What about the kids who fear going to school because they get picked on?
What about the kids who get fed up and come to school blasting guns/bombs?
Don't teasing and bullying make them what they are as well?

http://justjared.buzznet.com/2008/02/11/reese-witherspoon-kids-2/

No, kids should not get bullied, but on the other hand we shouldn't blow sunshine up their asses to the point that they think they're entitled to the world.

Head on over to the crimes in the news section and take a gander at the threads where sons blow away their families because their parents said "no".

Lori Drew didn't like her kid getting "bullied" (what 13 year old girls don't have petty squabbles?) and look what happened? She bullied another kid and got her killed.

You can't protect your kids from everything. The result these days is a bunch of wussy super-children who when they hit the real world run straight into a brick wall of disappointment.

These are the kids who end up killing themselves or killing a bunch of other people because they don't know what it's like and can't handle it.
 
My child is a perfect example of one who had too much sunshine blown up her *advertiser censored* (as you put it.) :)

She feels WRONGED if someone looks at her funny.
 
IMO.

I don't think she meant it in a bad way. I took her remarks to mean that she wants them to experience things they would normally experience, because those things can build character. I'm sure she means some of the normal joking kind of teasing. I know I was teased, and I think everyone is.

I think she seems to be a good mom and I think her remarks are taken out of context.

I agree 100%. Kids who are protected too much have no coping skills. The get into college or get a job and they can't handle criticism and they fail. Parents who overprotect their kids are setting them up for failure.
 
IMO.

I don't think she meant it in a bad way. I took her remarks to mean that she wants them to experience things they would normally experience, because those things can build character. I'm sure she means some of the normal joking kind of teasing. I know I was teased, and I think everyone is.

I think she seems to be a good mom and I think her remarks are taken out of context.

I'm with you on this, Idaho. Being teased and/or bullied is a normal part of the childhood experience. I don't think there is a single person in the world that hasn't had to cope with both - as children and as adults. It does help you build character. We do have to learn to deal with jackasses if we are going to have a peaceful, productive life.

Now - as grown-ups - it is our duty to know and to react appropriately when it is too much and is crushing a child.
 
“We all sort of deal with that in our own childhood or raising children. I wouldn’t want my kids to miss out on any of that teasing and bullying. It makes you who you are–when you don’t make the soccer team and you can’t… The thing that drives me crazy today is everyone wins the award. Everyone wins an MVP. No. They’re not! I distinctly recall the two weeks of crying because I didn’t make the volleyball team. It made me interesting."

I think the whole quote from the article makes more sense. It looks to me like she's saying she disagrees with the current, "Every kid is #1 in everything" parenting philosophy, not that she wants someone to beat up her kids regularly...
 
I especially appreciated what she said about every kid in the school being awarded MVP. I think she is so right, children must learn how to handle disappointment. Not mention how to come in second or third, etc...
I would like to point out that I do feel it's unnecessary to drive home the fact a child comes in last.
 
I especially appreciated what she said about every kid in the school being awarded MVP. I think she is so right, children must learn how to handle disappointment. Not mention how to come in second or third, etc...
I would like to point out that I do feel it's unnecessary to drive home the fact a child comes in last.

George Carlin has a funny bit about this in his upcoming comedy special on HBO in the first week of March. Catch it if you can. Not only is it funny, but it's true. People are giving out awards for 2nd, 3rd, 15th, and other forms of mediocrity, place their kids on unnecessary pedestals. He calls them diaper-sniffers.

When I have kids I expect them to lose at something, and to be disappointed, and I will say "losing is a part of life", and I'll help them use that as a learning tool and as motivation to try their best at everything they do.
 
What would Reese Witherspoon know about bullying and teasing? She is a former cheerleader, debutante, grad of an all-girls school.

There's a big difference from good-natured teasing because someone is your friend and teasing by an individual or group who has nothing to do with you. Bullying IMO is enhanced teasing by a hate-oriented group. No kid should be subjected to comments or physical confrontations that hurt them.
 
Now - as grown-ups - it is our duty to know and to react appropriately when it is too much and is crushing a child.

PERFECT!! I completely agree. I hope when the time comes I able to separate the instances when I should let my child figure it out and encourage them to stand up for themselves, and when I need to step in. I don't think I'd ever be too lax about stepping in, but I think all parents feel heartbreak for their children, even when what they are going thru is really just the normal youngster's angst.
 
What would Reese Witherspoon know about bullying and teasing? She is a former cheerleader, debutante, grad of an all-girls school.

Cheerleaders aren't exactly nice to one another.

Actually, none of these things you listed necessarily exclude you from teasing or bullying.
 
What would Reese Witherspoon know about bullying and teasing? She is a former cheerleader, debutante, grad of an all-girls school.

With respect, none of the above make her exempt from bullying and teasing.

ETA: I guess we posted the same thing at the same time!!
 
I taught school for years and have not encountered a popular kid that was teased/bullied. Cheerleaders can often make snide remarks, but IMO that's not teasing nor is it bullying.

I've seen kids teased and harrassed. Teasing is often a daily taunting, commenting on clothing, appearance, answers given in class. Bullying takes teasing to a physical level.
 

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