Spoilt

Want to know why this old fogey thinks the country is going to hell in a hand basket?

It's because of heliocopter parenting, the latest epidemic:

But in a follow-up column and podcast, Skenazy recounted her correspondence with parents nationwide, which proved that hovercraft parenting knows no geographical boundaries. A dad in Park Slope, Brooklyn won't let his 9-year old cross the street to go to the playground. An Atlanta mother doesn't allow her daughter to walk alone from the front door to the mailbox. A suburban lawyer makes his 11-year old call home immediately after walking one block from her own home to a friend's house. All this despite the fact that we now know "stranger danger" pales in comparison to the violence and sexual and emotional abuse too many children suffer at the hands of adult family members or acquaintances. And that the number of child abductions has been falling steadily for years.

You musnt' forget, there's a boogie man around every single corner!

By the way, this totally destroys a child's self-esteem .... just as much as a parent who beats a child.