Your opinion stated as fact, but your opinion only nevertheless. I would say tht society started its downward spiral when the notion of socialism got started. Video games & TV being irrelevant.
Forcing children to labor to take care of what should be their parents' responsibilites is nothing more than a microcosm of the welfare society. The government forces you (assuming you even have a job and pay taxes) to labor to pay for other peoples' children. Children that you had no part in producing and were never asked is it was OK with you to pay for them. The Duggars are doing exactly what the government does, but on a smaller scale - forcing their children to labor to take care of other children that they had no role in producing and no say in the production of. I stand by my statement that theirs is a shitty childhood.
I'm starting to think that perhaps yours was, which is why you keep going on and on about it.
Try minding your own business. I see no indication that these children are being abused in any way. Throughout human history, children have always labored. In fact, that used to be one of the primary reasons for having children, to work the land when Mom and Dad got too old.
Having children for vanity is a 20th century phenomenon.
Why are you refering to helping out around the home the way families always have “being forced to labor doing the parents job”? You make it sound as though the kids are doing all the work while the parents do nothing. There is nothing wrong with changing a diaper while mom continues with the school lessen rather than disrupt the class.
As I said earlier, you should see what all those kids get to do. You should have so much fun.
Oh brother. Your a nut. You talk about forcing kids to do chores or watching the siblings. And you say that you aren’t a socialist. What you want is for these kids to get their food and room and board for free. Why shouldn’t they pay some of their way. You are the socialist because you want the kids to be fed and boarded for free without responsibility. See how it works? You are the big socialist!!!!!
On the other hand, I know three women who were the oldest child, or one of the older children, in large (10+ children) families who have elected not to have children. They're well-adjusted individuals, generally, and two are deeply religious. The problem is that they spent their childhoods raising their younger siblings. Instead of looking forward to the joy of motherhood, they feel as if they've experienced some of it, and that they missed part of childhood.
I understand the concept of chores. I understand the concept of helping your parent with your younger siblings. In the case of the Duggars (and I'll admit that it's one of my daughters, and not me, who watches the show), I sometimes feel as if parenthood is a multi-level marketing plan. Children of a certain age have designated 'buddies' who are older children, who are responsible for them, and those older children have designated 'buddies', who are still older children, who are responsible for them.
While this has the possibility of teaching strong sibling love . . . it means that some child-parent connection is missing.
If my sibling buddy is responsible for helping me dress, as a toddler, where's that magic 'getting dressed' time with mommy or daddy? Love multiplies. One-on-one attention doesn't. Even if you designate a period each day to have one-on-one time with a child . . . it's not the same. At some point, you're being raised in a group home. A group home with values and a lot of love. But a group home. And your guidance is coming from other children, not your parents.
I welcome comments from others that may help me see things differently.
I am worried about Mrs. Duggar's health after her last pregnancy, but I support their right to have a twentieth child.