Bad parenting

[Pop Centurion]

While waiting for the bus back to Pop there was this really cool frog jumping across the chains that divide the lines. As the frog was walking along one of the chains, a boy around 10-12 yrs old ran over and flipped the chain up real hard sending the frog air born. His family which consisted of 5 adults were all laughing and encouraging him. A bunch of people in line were shocked. The frog was okay because it jumped and scaled one of the poles. I would never cause a scene at Disney especially with children around but if he tried to do it again, I was definitely gonna say something to the family.

[pink]

You never know what kids are going to do next so there was nothing the parents could have done at that point, but they shouldn't encourage him by laughing. I hate when people abuse animals, I really upsets me even if it is just a wild frog.

[Pop Centurion]

True but when I say encouraged I mean they were actually telling him to do it then laughing about it. He seemed like a bad kid because they just let him do what he wanted without saying anything. After we got off the bus back at Pop, he was kicking the trash can, yanking on all the chains trying to pull them off the poles, then as we entered the gift shop, he spit on the outside glass. All the while the parents said nothing.

[KT1234]

I'm sorry you had to encounter a kid like that. I'm 24 and that bothers me a lot--always has and I think always will because my parents NEVER allowed me or my sister behave like that. I feel like witnessing something like that is one of the most frustrating, disappointing things to have to deal with at WDW. It really can put a damper on your day to see someone with such a disregard to the people and things around them---and it's even more upsetting to see that it's a child who is being taught that it's ok to be like that. Unfortunately, it's that passive way of parenting that creates difficult adults.

[brownie]

That's too bad. Hopefully it didn't have too much influence on any other kids that might have seen it. I always take opportunities like that to talk to my sons about the situation we saw and what our expectations are for them.

[Mousemates]

True but when I say encouraged I mean they were actually telling him to do it then laughing about it. He seemed like a bad kid because they just let him do what he wanted without saying anything. After we got off the bus back at Pop, he was kicking the trash can, yanking on all the chains trying to pull them off the poles, then as we entered the gift shop, he spit on the outside glass. All the while the parents said nothing.

NOT "seemed like a bad kid because they just let him do what he wanted" BUT "Became a bad kid because they just let him do what he wanted." Sadly, these same parents will likely wonder why their (then) teenage son gets into so much trouble and treats them with such disrespect and will likely lament "I just don't know what went worng, I mean we always tried to let him do whatever he wanted."

[Disney Doll]

That's too bad. Hopefully it didn't have too much influence on any other kids that might have seen it. I always take opportunities like that to talk to my sons about the situation we saw and what our expectations are for them.

Yep. I very loudly take the opportunity to explain why what we witnessed was wrong and just because some people allow their children to behave like that doesn't make it right... It usually does the trick!.

[SFTrny]

This is certainly one of the hardest moments to preserve the magic. The whole frog story sounds pretty clear cut, but there is such a wide variety of parenting obvious at Disney (or really any place this public). I often start to spool up when I see what I think is very poor behaviour...both on the part of kids as well as parents.

I hope that you and your family were able to get past this and enjoy your own vacation!

[DisneyOtaku]

Just to throw a spin on things, while I think the kid was wrong for what he did, I noticed you said:

"True but when I say encouraged I mean they were actually telling him to do it then laughing about it."

If the parents were telling him to do it (very bad parenting), perhaps it was a way to reach out and get approval? It just seems that since the parents were encouraging him, he might not have behaved poorly in the first place.

I still agree that it's bad parenting though, no matter how you spin it.

[grumpyguy]

my wife calls me a "disney cop" because i have been known in the past to not let things like what that kid was doing go without speaking up.
while i am at my wdw i don't...
-walk past trash on the ground.
-allow smoking out of the areas set aside for it
-any defacing of wdw in anyway (gum on the wall at sm)
-i do confront unruly teenagers i stopped some spiiting on people at rnrc (that wasn't pretty)
-anything that loses the magic while i'm on an expensive vacation ain't happining.
i think the biggest thing being lost by todays kids is respect.i don't mean to be on a soapbox but something as special as walts world to some of us needs protecting and preserved.
the frog thing i probably would have just grumbled under my breath hoping that family was going somewhere different than me.however spitting on the glass would have
brought the disney cop out for sure!!
love and respect for wdw!!!

[KT1234]

-i do confront unruly teenagers i stopped some spiiting on people at rnrc (that wasn't pretty)
-anything that loses the magic while i'm on an expensive vacation ain't happining.

can i just say on behalf of a lot of people, THANK YOU for doing that. I hate it when I'm at Disney and I see teenagers acting out for one another...acting disrespectful to each other or the environment around them or worse, swearing and being obnoxious to those around them. Disney is a kid and family friendly place and to have behavior like that there has always bothered me since I was a kid. It is an uncomfortable situation but if more people spoke up, I bet that would stop a lot of them. To sum up, thanks!

[Jen C.]

Yep. I very loudly take the opportunity to explain why what we witnessed was wrong and just because some people allow their children to behave like that doesn't make it right... It usually does the trick!.

I do this too!! I raise my volume enought ob e heard and thoroughly explain how what we just witnessed is not expected. Love it!

[kemps@wdw]

That's what my 15 yr old DD would call a TOTAL LOSER! And the parents... As my daddy used to say... "that's what's wrong with kids today...no discipline and no resect for others!

[MegaDisney]

Reminds me of riding the bus to work a couple of days ago and listening to a mother behind me talk about how her kids were taken away from her years before due to drug use, then she went on to say that her now teenage daughter had anger issues. She then lamented that she didn't understand where the girls anger came from and that it must be the fault of Child Protective Services or the foster parents because "she didn't get it from me!"!

Some people are clueless and should just not be allowed to breed!

[pdrlkr]

[joonyer]

I can almost guarantee he is headed for jail before he reaches age 21. I have seen it many times in my profession (judge). Someone who has no respect for others (persons, property, or animals) is almost guaranteed to run afoul of the law. And I'll bet his parents will be complaining loudly about "injustice" when it happens.

[Minnie Imagineer]

I hate when anyone is cruel to an animal...you can only blame the parents. With kids like that (you know, the ones who kick things and are acting like a little wild animal that has been given red bull) I wish there were child straight jackets sometimes. My parents would never let me bahve like that- especially in public

[crazypoohbear]

I probably would have gone over to the kid and told him what he did was mean and how would he like it of someone did that to him.

If the "parent" said anything I would have said "they you disipline him because someone has to."
I usually refer to these kids as "society's kids" We are going to end up paying for them, they will end up on welfare or in the prison system. Either way,it's our dime

[jonahbear2006]

Cruelty to animals is sociopathic behavior. They say it is the children whom are mean to animals that have deep issues that need to be confronted or it can turn them into serious trouble for society in the future. Not having compassion for life makes you incapable of having respect for it, as well. This child should have had his bare butt spanked in front of the witnesses and taken back to his hotel room for a long needed nap cause obviously he didn't get enough rest the night before to be allowed out of bed. If you stay calm and collected, yet discipline with assertiveness, your child will fear your authority and grow to respect yours and others.

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

Unfortunately, this is how a lot of violent criminals get their start by being cruel to animals....and when he's caught and on trial, that same family will be wailing and begging for leniency that was never given to the victims....parents, please think