Children Running Wild in Public Places

[harllee]

Maybe I am just getting old but it seems to me lately that when I am in a public place (like a restaurant, a music venue and even church) there are groups of unsupervised children running wild, bumping into people and screeching. Usually these children appear to be ages 3 to 10. Their parents are no where to be found. Last night I was at an outdoor music event with a dance floor. Children took over the dance floor (not dancing, mainly running in circles) and when we tried to dance we were almost knocked over. We spoke to the manager of the venue and they said they could not find the parents. We gave up and left. Any one else noticing this? Any suggestions? Should I just stay home?

 

[Koolau]

We don't get out much any more, but yes, kids-gone-wild seems to be fairly common these days. We NEVER allowed our kids do that. Our kids were no angels, but we didn't allow them to be rude to anyone (not peers, not older folks.)

We used to get compliments on how well behaved our kids were even when we weren't around (school or church outings, etc.) It IS possible to teach children common courtesy.

So sorry your evening was ruined.

 

[Midpack]

IME most parents supervise their kids, but invariably some don't. And if you ask the latter parents to intervene, there's a 50/50 chance they'll laugh it off. We don't let the behavior of others run us off though, your choice.

 

[braumeister]

It's probably because I chased them off my lawn.

 

[Spock]

Same thing happened the other night at a restaurant. The place is an event venue with seating for the restaurant, so there is a large (basketball court sized?) area where the kids were just running back and forth and screaming.

It's not new behavior and seems to happen when kids "group up" at events. A contributor might be that kids aren't given opportunities to be active any more... being in a large open(ish) space is an infrequent experience so they go nuts.

 

[JoeWras]

When we were kids and did this, mom or dad would pull us over and give us a few quick swats on the butt.

Do that today and CPS takes away your children.

I actually have some sympathy for parents in this situation because today, the only thing you can do in public is reason with a child. You can't grab them by the wrist. You can't raise your voice (verbal abuse). You can't do anything.

"Reason with a child." Yeah... Right. Maybe for the top 5%.

 

[yhoomajor]

Let kids be kids.

 

[JoeWras]

Let kids be kids.

At the park.

 

[harllee]

Let kids be kids.

And knock people down?

 

[harllee]

I told a friend about the issue with the wild children last night and she told me of a couple of local restaurants that do not permit anyone younger than 18 to come in--I will be checking them out.

 

[Spock]

Let kids be kids.

Sounds like my last HOA community meeting.
Topic was kids taking over streets with ATV/UTV/dirt bikes and the do-nothing-parents barked back with "let kids be kids".

 

[zaqxsw]

Kids on the streets with ATV/UTV/dirt bikes can't be tolerated. It's illegal and very unsafe for everybody. Imagine killing a kid. Just call the police IF you have responsive police dept. A new issue. Luckily, we do.

What was amazing was the kids repeated it in spite of the police. That was the last time as the police then contacted the parents. In a nearby town, the police confiscated a dozen of "illegal" ATV/UTV/dirt bikes. They are gone.

Kids ignoring the police is unheard of in my past...

 

[CardsFan]

I have found, that as I get older, I actually enjoy watching kids run a round and have fun (no grandkids of our own). Now, if they are taking over the dance floor, bumping in to people, screaming, crying, etc., then someone needs to get them in line, or take them home.

But, some of my favorite memories are taking my friends grandgirls out on the dance floor at Ocktoberfest (maybe 4 and 6 at the time). Yeah, we took up a lot of the floor, but they had a ball. And meantime, their 89yo great-grandpa found a big bosomed fraulein to dance with. He was having fun too.

Anyway, I just see to many folks at the condo pool complaining that "there are too many kids", when for the most part they are behaving pretty well. If you don't want get splashed, don't sit next to pool. And, actually, I see more people get wet when a grown man decides it is time to cannon ball and splash everyone.

JMHO

 

[harllee]

I love to see children dancing, especially with their parent/grandparents. In fact, I have taught dance lessons to children and I loved it. I tried to get the attention of some the children last night to get them to dance but they paid me no mind. It was suppose to be a dance floor and they turned it into an unsupervised playground. Where were their parents? Sad.

 

[CardsFan]

I love to see children dancing, especially with their parent/grandparents. In fact, I have taught dance lessons to children and I loved it. I tried to get the attention of some the children last night to get them to dance but they paid me no mind. It was suppose to be a dance floor and they turned it into an unsupervised playground. Where were their parents? Sad.

Yeah, I get it. Supervised kids can be a blast. Unsupervised can get out of hand pretty quick. Sometimes there is a fine line, but usually it is pretty obvious some parenting is required, but missing.

 

[jazz4cash]

Management is negligent if they “don’t know where the parents are” and choose to ignore the issue. We’ve had shopping malls step-up enforcement of rules for unaccompanied minors (teens) due to bad behavior.

I love to see kids dance too but there’s a time and place.

 

[jollystomper]

I have not noticed any change. I cannot remember the last time I was in a restaurant that had young kids running around unsupervised - unless one counts those places you expect to see them in that mode (e.g. Chuck E. Cheese, fast food restaurants with playgrounds, amusement centers).

When the towns nearby have outdoor concerts with dancing, there are kids running around, but not to the level I consider unusual or getting in the way. Certainly there are exception situations, but I have not seen trend of it getting worse, at least where we live.

 

[jim584672]

Time to get out the belt!

 

[Qs Laptop]

I've seen signs like this one in restaurants and some public offices, like the DMV.

 

[FindingForward]

Yeah, I get it. Supervised kids can be a blast. Unsupervised can get out of hand pretty quick. Sometimes there is a fine line, but usually it is pretty obvious some parenting is required, but missing.

There are parents. I love the kids who have parents. Then there are breeders. Not fond of them or their kids.

 

[Car-Guy]

 

[pb4uski]

Maybe I am just getting old but it seems to me lately that when I am in a public place (like a restaurant, a music venue and even church) there are groups of unsupervised children running wild, bumping into people and screeching. Usually these children appear to be ages 3 to 10. Their parents are no where to be found. Last night I was at an outdoor music event with a dance floor. Children took over the dance floor (not dancing, mainly running in circles) and when we tried to dance we were almost knocked over. We spoke to the manager of the venue and they said they could not find the parents. We gave up and left. Any one else noticing this? Any suggestions? Should I just stay home?

Should this be in "The moment you realize you are old" thread?

 

[erkevin]

I have to admit that scenes like this make me chuckle; I was an elementary school teacher and principal for 30 years. These kids are someone else's problem, I am no longer responsible "Not my circus, not my monkees"

 

[Sojourner]

Let kids be kids.

Would you say the same thing if it was a bunch of large dogs running around chasing each other, bumping into old people in, say, a public park and knocking them down? Would that be that okay with you just because "dogs are being dogs"? There is such a concept as parental (or pet-owner) responsibility, where you don't allow your kids/pets/whatever to recklessly annoy people out in public and intrude upon their personal space.

 

[Lorenzo]

Just saw this thread. Yes, giving one's children a longer leash than when I was that age seems to be the trend. But only in certain respects. For example, in the '60s and '70s we kids played in the woods far from our homes, skated on iced-over ponds, rode our bikes far from home (without helmets), explored construction sites, and basically did whatever we wanted so long as we were home by dinner time. Nowadays, the streets and woods are apparently deemed too dangerous, but in places where the parents remain nearby they seem to allow their children to run around unchecked. In contrast, when our parents were nearby we were expected to remain more or less quiet.