The Internet’s Defense of Bad Parenting Is Insane

**Jo Frost** (0:00)
So good, so good, so good.

**SPEAKER_2** (0:03)
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**Matt Walsh** (0:27)
Recently, I commented on a video of the super nanny. Apparently, that's what she's called. I've never really heard of her, but she made a good point about the way parents today raise their kids or fail to. I guess we'll play the video. Here it is.

**Jo Frost** (0:39)
I'm going to say something that might make you uncomfortable, so sit tight. We are slowly disabling our children, and I don't say that lightly.
I say that because I work with families continuously every day, and I'm seeing a pattern that's growing. Children who are capable, but not being taught. We're pushing children along on bikes instead of teaching them how to ride them. We're keeping children in strollers who should be walking, climbing, building strength. We've got four-year-olds still using dummies when that was only ever meant to be a short-term aid. Seven-year-olds who can't brush their teeth properly without an electric toothbrush. Eight-year-olds who can't sit at table and use a knife and fork. Nine-year-olds who don't basically understand bathroom hygiene. And I find myself asking, when did we stop teaching these life skills?
When?
And before you get defensive, I understand modern life is busy. I do. But this isn't about time. It's about intention. Because every time we step in and do it for them, or avoid teaching because it's slower, messier or inconvenient, we take away an opportunity for them to become capable. And children want to feel capable.
So we go back to basics, parents. We teach the bike ride in with support. Then without, we remove the dummy when it's no longer needed. We show them how to brush their teeth properly, not rely on this electric tool. We sit at the table and we teach them how to eat properly. We guide, we repeat, we expect. Not perfectly, consistently. Because independence isn't something that just happens. It's taught parents. And if we don't teach it, we can't be surprised when it's missing.

**Matt Walsh** (2:42)
So that's what she said. I commented on that and said, she's right. Of course, mealtime is a big part of the problem. Lots of parents negotiate with their children, allow them to not eat what was served or just serve them chicken nuggets or mac and cheese for every meal. They don't teach table manners. They don't require that their children asked to be excused before leaving the table. They let their kids use electronics at the table, etc. Complete disaster. And plenty of comments responded to that. Plenty disagreeing, or in some cases agreeing. So we'll go through some of the comments.
Stephanie says, I'm Gen X. Nobody taught me these life skills. We had to figure this out ourselves. Are kids getting too dumb to do this? Nobody taught you life skills? This is totally a Gen X thing, by the way. They love to brag about not being parented. Gen Xers love this. There's not a lot we could say about Gen Xers, or that needs to be said, but this is one thing about Gen X. They love to brag. They love to brag about not having any real parenting, as if that's something to be proud of. Well, if nobody taught you life skills, which is really like the whole job of a parent, that's basically your entire gig, and if no one did that, I can guess two things about you. One is your parents sucked. Two, you probably don't actually have those life skills to the degree that you think you do.
This is something you hear a lot from people, they'll say, well, that's how I was raised, and I turned out fine. I was raised that way, look at me, I turned out fine. Then you look at them and it's like, yeah, but no, you didn't. Actually, you didn't turn out fine. It's always the most dysfunctional people with lives of pure misery. Lives that you look at them and you're plunged into despair just by looking at them, and they're always the ones that go, I turned out, hey, I turned out fine. No, you totally did not turn out fine. You actually turned out really poorly. Apparently, no one's told you this, but because you don't have a parent to tell you.
Let's see. Dwayne Harris says, to say that we're more busy than our ancestors is wrong. They got up at 4 AM and worked till the sun went down outside and then did chores inside till midnight. They didn't waste time with social media and chit chat and TV, and somehow they found time to raise not one, not two, but average of seven children, how to wipe their own ass, have manners and respect elders by six years old. It's us, we're too consumed with ourselves. Yeah, I couldn't agree more.