COMMENTARY | A video response from a hurt dad posted on YouTube has gone viral. The video was shot after the dad discovered a disrespectful post left on Facebook by his daughter about how she was treated more like a slave than a child in the home. At the conclusion of the video, the disgruntled Facebook dad takes a 45-caliber handgun and destroys the child's laptop to prove a point. Responses to the video are outrageously supportive, but I can't find one reason to support a father who chooses violence over intelligence when disciplining a child.
I Have a Few Problems With This Dad's Parenting Tactics
The dad in the YouTube video clearly states that the teen comes from a broken home. There are a mom and a step-mom in the picture. Teens growing up in a broken family need emotional support and consistent discipline. I certainly hope this dad is not going to shoot up everything when his child does something wrong. You didn't sweep the floor; let me empty an entire clip into the broom. You didn't feed the dog; I'll just shoot him to prove a point. Using violence is not a form of safe, effective, consistent parenting.
There's also the factor of shooting a good laptop just to prove a point. There are tons of organizations that could use a laptop just updated with $130 in software, as Mr. Facebook Dad clearly wants the world to remember he just added to the computer. Instead of donating the laptop to a worthy cause, he blasts the thing with exploding hollow point bullets.
When the dad is addressing the post updated by his teen, he refers to the fact that she needs to get a job. Most businesses will not hire a 15-year-old due to strict labor laws, but there's more to the story than just being able to find a job at 15. If this teen is getting up at 5 a.m. to get ready for school and falls into bed at 10 p.m. exhausted, when is she supposed to work? Sure, she can work part time on the weekends, but most businesses want part time workers to work at least 15 to 20 hours a week and working more than 15 hours a week has a detrimental effect on school work, grades and school attendance.
This Isn't the First Time a Dad Has Responded to a Child's Facebook Update
In August 2011, one dad stumbled onto a Facebook post updated by his teen son and instead of shooting hollow-point bullets into his laptop, the dad took the high road and updated a clarifying post on his son's Facebook page. This is an educated, rational way to reign in an unruly teen; not shooting the child's laptop and posting a video on YouTube.
Summer Banks is a Featured parenting contributor for Yahoo! Voices. She practices lenient parenting with her four children. Summer can be contacted on Twitter via @mothersummer.
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