[zzalpha]

I can't help but laugh watching HN commenters, who probably have no kids of their own, take shots at your parenting style.

You sound like you're crushing it. Keep it up, man.

Personally, I grew up in a single parent family as a classic latchkey kid and greatly contributed to the household out of simple necessity. The life skills I learned were invaluable, and you're doing your kid a great service by having them learn those lessons.

[jacobolus]

I’m not trying to “take shots at” anyone’s parenting style. Merely pointing out that parenting styles and the general societal context has changed very dramatically in the past 50 years, and modern kids in urban areas of rich countries are raised in a way dramatically unlike most kids in history, and in general with much more pressure and much stricter constraints on their time and activities, much more sitting still, and much less unsupervised time. I can’t imagine that this is a very controversial claim, as a simple statement of fact. (Obviously some kids in the past had shitty lives working in textile factories or whatever, but society has decided that forcing children to do commercial work is exploitative, and banned that.)

My kid is 14 months old, but I can’t really predict what his days will be like in 10 or 15 years. I’m by no means sure I’ll want him roaming around doing the stupid seemingly dangerous shit that kids used to do 50 years ago. I’m pretty ambivalent about the form and content of standard schoolwork though, and I don’t know if I will be willing to subject him to 10+ years of it. I never really played video games much, but I can empathize with the kids who would rather play video games than do hours or pointless homework every day.