You may never wake up with this feeling in your life. Maybe you already have. I hope you do one day.

[AlabamaLibrul]

I woke up today and had what alcoholics call a moment of clarity. I'm not gonna take any stupid bullshit any more. It's on me and everyone else to create the world we wish to see around us on a daily basis. I didn't wake up thinking I was going to do anything remotely related to that today.

This kid across the street from me, maybe a third grader, was throwing pretty large rocks at a cat while I was inside writing another article for a penny a word on the latest stock that was going to the moon, the services of a window company in Newark I had never heard of, a locksmith in England. Latchkey kid.

I decided to do something about it.

"HEY KID!"
A defiant, squeaky, eight year old "What?" came from his mouth.
"CUT THAT OUT"
"Huh?" He's either hard of hearing as well as nearsighted, or he's being a shit.
"CUT IT OUT"

He stared at me for a few seconds, and my dog and I went back inside. Turns out that cat belongs to his next-door neighbors.

Good ol' dad, the cop, came to bat for him when he got home. I barely know these people, and from what I know of them, I don't think I want to get to know them better. I told him I wasn't interested in anything he had to say, and to take it to the neighbors with the cat that is now limping around.

The whole thing was kind of surreal. I'm used to the city mentality. You mind your own damn business, and you don't yell at someone's kid when you're not involved. But I did anyway.

I'm still not even sure I did the "right thing", in the grand scheme of things, by doing what I did. In 2010, "it takes a village" isn't exactly the norm, what with everyone being gifted and precious. But if I don't want to see these things, if I want to pretend we are still civilized, I have to make sure it doesn't happen.

It's all kind of odd, and really inconsequential, but I hope I wake up feeling like this every day.

[Kali]

1. I have NO problem disciplining other people's kids

if they are hurting animals, other people, property, or being too loud in inappropriate places. Fuck 'em!

NOBODY has ever complained or argued with me either (shut up, MFM :P ) If you can't control your brats, somebody is going to have to sooner or later.

NOTE: to preempt whoever, I of course normally use distraction, talking, and setting examples before I just yell at random brats. However in the OP's situation I would probably do the same to stop the potentially harmful behavior quickly.

On the other hand maybe the cat was stalking birds and the kid's a bird lover? :shrug:

[ceile]

2. I would have thrown a rock at him.

;-)

[CBGLuthier]

3. I saw a neighborhood kid chase his sister with a rock

Now this kid was already known to have "issues." He was around 12 and the sister he was chasing, with a large rock in his hand, was around 14.

So I yelled out for him to know it off.

Next thing I know, him, the sister he was chasing and his other sister were all confronting me angrily for interfering.

His mother came out, making excuses for her special little shit. I told her I didn't care if he killed her whole fucking family but if he came near me again it would be the end of him.

This was years ago. He sits in jail now. Worthless little fuck thief.

Nowadays I stay in my house and mind my own business. The world is full of lunatics and they don't need me provoking them.

[mrmpa]

4. about 5 years ago

I saw a boy about 12 shove his sister about 10 up against a fence, yelling at her and punching her. I cornered the kid up against the fence and told him not to go anywhere. He had a cell phone in his hand, I asked for his mom's number, he hesitated giving it to me, until I said if you don't give it to me, I'll call the police. I called mom and she was there in about 3 minutes, I told her what I saw, the daughter was visibly shaken, the boy was also shaken (from getting caught & ratted on). Mom got them in the van, really said nothing to me but looked shocked. Either she was shocked by what her son had done, or that a stranger called her. I hope because of what her son had done.

This all occurred in the parking lot of a small shopping plaza, where I noticed that other people walked right past the boy as he assaulted his sister.

[elleng]

5. You did good. We ARE the 'village,'

and if we hope to live in a civilized society, we must do whatever we can to help create it.

[seabeyond]

6. yes, we create what we live. the cat appreciates it. decade ago told my neigbors i am an "it takes

a village" kinda parent and if they see my kids doing something i need to know about.... here i am. halloween, introducing my self, house to house, lol. was a blast. and kids heard well.

[mzteris]

7. somebody has to speak up

and if there's no one else who can or will, then yes - you should.


I've embarrassed by kids so many times over the years when I "gently" intervene in another kid's behaviour if it's going to get them or someone else hurt or they're going to break something or they're being egregiously annoying to the people around them. Of course, "the look" is quite often enough. :D

[MiddleFingerMom]

8. Early grade school, I got into a "little-kid fistfight" with a slightly older, BIGGER kid...

.
.
.
.
...who eventually had me pinned on my back and was just punching me
without any response. We were young enough that it just meant a bloody
nose and great embarrassment. He was slowing down and tiring and losing
his anger. I was crying and hurting... but I KNEW that my asskicking was
just about over.
.
.
MiddleFingerMomMom came FLYING out of our house, grabbed him under
the arms, and dragged him off of me saying, "You give him a chance to
DEFEND himself!!!" (I believe that came from the Irish side of her/my
background.)
.
.
So, he was re-inspired... and I had to suffer through a SECOND complete
asskicking -- nose twice as bloody and me twice as humiliated.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
MFMM had meant well... bless her heart.
.
.
:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:
.
.
.
.
.

[nolabear]

9. I'd suggest you now find a way to positively reinforce the lesson.

When someone is yelled at, especially if it's someone within a family that has a bit of a chip on its collective shoulder, it's easy for them to convince themselves that you're the bad guy. MUCH easier to feel than shame. You can take the shame out of it by doing something that recognizes that he's a person and did as good a thing by stopping as he did a bad thing by doing it. And enlisting the parents, though you're not on a good foot with them at the moment, will help the whole situation. For example, you could find the kid a copy of some cool book about animals and write him a note saying "I know I yelled at you for throwing rocks at the cat. I really like animals and thought this might explain why. See you around the neighborhood!" With the folks' permission give it to him and give him, and them, a chance to become friendly again.

I think you did the right thing, and that this would reinforce all the important relationships in a way that might really change his ways.

[Demoiselle]

10. I thank you on behalf of all cats everywhere....

and, for that matter, all people everywhere, too.

[kimi]

11. A few years ago

One of my boys, about 9 at the time, was repeatedly harassed by a neighborhood kid who was a little younger. I went and talked to the mom, and she said to me flat out "Just call the cops, he's out of control for me." I was really shocked. But soon after that, my son was walking home from the pool with his friend, and this kid clocks him over the head with a heavy stick. I DID call the cops, who responded and took pics of the scalp laceration and went and talked to the mother and other kid. Well, she was furious with our whole family - "What the hell did you do that for? How dare you? What kind of neighbors are you?" blah blah blah.

Come to find out shortly thereafter that the ex-husband of this woman is on the list of sex-offenders in our area, and then shortly after THAT bit of news, the house where they lived was foreclosed on, and they moved. Kind of tempered my anger towards them, but -- eh, that kid, and more importantly the mom, needed a lesson in civility. I still have mixed feelings about the whole thing. If he'd brained my kid though, my feelings wouldn't be so mixed.

[Odin2005]

12. I would have given the brat a stern lecture. I grew up in a little town, BTW.

[dgibby]

13. If I'd done something like that when I was a kid,

my dad, who was a cop, would have seen to it that I ate standing up for the next month. He did NOT tolerate that stuff.

[Skittles]

14. I've lived city for decades, and I've never heard of that kind of "mentality"

where you'd ignore any kind of abuse - I mean, seriously

[NV Whino]

15. When it comes to disciplining bad behavior,

just call me Skittles. The kids are so surprised that I've never had any repercussions.

[raccoon]

16. I think you did the right thing. Kudos to you. nt

[pscot]

17. +1

Well done.

[Arugula Latte]

18. Yes you DID do the right thing.

The poor kitty needed someone to speak up for him/her.

(That little shit is probably going to grow up to be a sociopath like George W. Bush.)

[Heidi]

19. I find that doing the right thing feels SUPERB, and I'm glad you're enjoying it, too.

You're not gonna change that kid's father's mind, but your voice of objection may save that kid from becoming fully his father's son, and it may very well have save another sentient being's life.

That's damn good work for the greater good. :thumbsup:

The cat and I thank you. :hug: