Tracy Press

lwest,

I don't know how old your children are but when they leave your home all dressed up nicely, it will be peer pressure that will lead them to start sneaking around and doing exactly what,(a controlling parent, possibly like yourself), you don't want them to do.

I understand about seeing a homeless person and what you think about them when you see them standing at walmart begging. You must have missed the article in Our Town about one of out local homeless beggars who had a background about what led him there and that there is still hope for him.

Be a role model for your kids and teach them not to be prejudice of people for the way they look and for all the other things that give children an impression of people in general, such as weight, skin color, if they have an impairment or if they are an old crippled person.

Kids see all and tell more then you know. They look up to their parents every move then all of a sudden they have their own ideas and they are off and running. They will be OK if they wear baggy pants.

I absolutely did see the article in the newspaper and I think it is fabulous that someone took this gentleman in. All he needed in life was a chance and he finially got one.

I also thank you for pointing out how I should be raising my children without prejudice. I think I have done a very good job in that area. I have never in my life been prejudice and I will not tolerate it in my children.

Unfortunately my kids don't go out all dressed up. They wear clothes that they choose to wear with some exceptions ie, no baggy pants. As for being a controlling parent? I guess you could say that I am to a certain extent. Especially if you consider setting rules and boundries control.

Luclily I have a wonderful relationship with my kids. My adult daughter has shared with me that she never felt the need to sneak out and do things behind my back because I was always willing to talk to her and consider her requests. Sure she wanted to do things that I had to say no to but for the most part she was a great kid who never gave me any problems therefore she had appropriate freedoms as she grew up.

My son who is still in school does struggle with wanting to dress like the other kids. Thats ok with us as I mentioned. His father and I will not allow him to wear baggy pants that hang below his belt line. If he wants to wear them he has to wear a belt to hold them up.

Maybe I did not articulate my stand to well. I dont believe in judging someone based on appearance. Like I said, if I had done this during my life some of my greatest friendships would never have happened.
I do believe in having respect for yourself and for others around you. I personally am offended to have to be looking at someones butt crack or the 12 inches of underwear that are hanging out of their pants. Do I judge these people? If I were to be totally honest with you then yes, I do. I judge them on their ability to portray themselves in public.

If I read this thread correctly the comments made were about the police stereotyping people because of how they dressed. This does happen and can be avoided by making different choices with your clothing options. I really don't have much respect for parents who allow their children to call all the shots without any boundries being set. I also cannot imagine why parents would allow their children to dress like a gang member when they are not one. Or are they? I am sure that there are parents out there that turn a blind eye to what their children are doing. I try to be in the know at all times but realize it isnt always possible.

I think we have beat this thread like a dead horse. Looking forward to more lively discussions on another topic.

For Bill Johnson and maybenotdumBcommenT, by your rational, would you be opposed to dressing in some Los Angeles Dodgers garb and hanging out at McDonald Park? Maybe get a pick up handball game with some of the boys who hang out in the park? Or, grab your skateboard and hang out at El Pescadero Park dressed in blue?

Can your kids wear a Dodgers cap to school? NO, and why is that? It is because thug gangsters associate themselves with particular colors and sports teams to express to others their gang affiliations. It is not stereotyping, that is the way (unfortunately) it is. If your caught wearing the 'wrong' colors stand by for the harrassment and fights that are going to come from the gangsters.

It is hard to believe the police will stop someone just on how they are dressed, there has to be some other characterics with the person. If that was the case, a whole lot of heavy people would be stopped for wearing spandex.

Gary,

I think lwest got it right when he (or she) said this thread is beating a dead horse. Some people are OK with stereotyping others and being afraid to wear a certain color just because some idiot wannabe ganster has claimed it as theirs. I am not one of them, nor will I ever be, and my child is not going to lose out on his personal expression because of a few retards.

lwest,first of all,is a good parent.You have great guidelines.I hope you understood it was in general and not all kids are like this.So I wanted to rectify that.

I had the same issue with my son as you did with yours at that age and he turned out fine,thank goodness.My friends son gets stopped periodically but he doesn't wear the baggy pants and always looks presentable to me.He is a great kid as well.He got in trouble for not wearing a helmet and it put him in the spot light for awhile by one particular cop."Stereotype"?Most likely. I think boys get targeted more then girls,in my opinion.I don't think all police are like that.

From what my friends son says,if they wear any three articles of clothing,(including shoelaces)to school they have to change their clothes.

Gary,I have stood at McDonald park collecting trash and helping clean up the neighborhood along with a handful of volunteers.I bring my dog to the 'dog park' all the time but I don't carry a weapon,just a phone for emergency's.

I don't know what you mean by my rational.What I was saying is that kids can sneak out with things their parents are totally unaware of and put it on on their way to school.Some parents are not even at home when their kids leave for school.If there is trouble at school and a teacher sees them they have to tell them the school has rules to keep the peace.That is if they don't get spotted by the police and look like a gangster wannabe before they get to school or in a fight for dressing the wrong way.

BTW Gary, the crack about heavy people wearing spandex was uncalled for and insulting because you insinuate they are doing something wrong. You should have chosen a realistic analogy.

lwest,first of all,is a good parent.You have great guidelines.I hope you understood it was in general and not all kids are like this.So I wanted to rectify that.

I had the same issue with my son as you did with yours at that age and he turned out fine,thank goodness.My friends son gets stopped periodically but he doesn't wear the baggy pants and always looks presentable to me.He is a great kid as well.He got in trouble for not wearing a helmet and it put him in the spot light for awhile by one particular cop."Stereotype"?Most likely. I think boys get targeted more then girls,in my opinion.I don't think all police are like that.

From what my friends son says,if they wear any three articles of clothing,(including shoelaces)to school they have to change their clothes.

Gary,I have stood at McDonald park collecting trash and helping clean up the neighborhood along with a handful of volunteers.I bring my dog to the 'dog park' all the time but I don't carry a weapon,just a phone for emergency's.

I don't know what you mean by my rational.What I was saying is that kids can sneak out with things their parents are totally unaware of and put it on on their way to school.Some parents are not even at home when their kids leave for school.If there is trouble at school and a teacher sees them they have to tell them the school has rules to keep the peace.That is if they don't get spotted by the police and look like a gangster wannabe before they get to school or in a fight for dressing the wrong way.

BTW Gary, the crack about heavy people wearing spandex was uncalled for and insulting because you insinuate they are doing something wrong. You should have chosen a realistic analogy.