I. Hate. Child Leashes.To me, there is no symbol, no outright disregard for all that is intelligent and a sure sign that the person shouldn't be a parent than having this kid on a LEASH!
Today, I went to a corner store in Center City to get something real quick. While on my way, I saw a kid. I thought he was adorable, and I then noticed something else while on my way into the store: A leash. A. LEASH. Attached to the other end of this leash was a father. The man had to be about 300lbs, 5' 6", and looked like some cross between a gansta and a punk, emphasis on the former rather than the later. While I've gone on and on about how I hate it when people stare at me, people judge me, etc... well, there are exceptions to the rule. Like doing something that doesn't just harm yourself, but an innocent child.
To quote the Simpsons, "This leash demeans us both."
To me, the leash shows you don't care about the kid and their emotional well-being. It means you're treating them as nothing more than a status symbol, an accessory... that you can not, and will not, be bothered with doing what you need in order to keep them in line, to help them grow up into responsible members of society. It means that, instead, you treat them as a pet; to be trained, to be obeyed by you.
You SUCK! You sicken me!
To me, the ONLY time, THE ONLY TIME, you put a kid on a leash is if you don't have a choice. If the child has some sort of emotional problem, A REAL ONE, where they could otherwise really, really, REALLY do something harmful to themselves without knowing it... yes, I can understand it. If your child is a god-damn hellspawn, by all means, do it. This kid wasn't. He was a sweet, little, adorible thing. Not misbehaving, not suffering from anything... just standing there.
Do me a favor: The next time you want to put your kid in one of these "harneshes", think for a moment that your not doing it keep your child in line. Instead, you're humiliating both yourself AND your child.
Photo thanks to Mick Laders.
