Sometimes that iPad is there for you not the kids, try raising an autistic kid with unlimited energy, when you get them in a restaurant or bus, if the iPad is gonna keep him quiet and occupied, that means you don’t have to hear him complain. Kids aren’t robots, they’re people, and some have special needs and get overwhelmed in the fucked up world we made. If super kitties is gonna keep him relaxed for a bit so be it.

[–] DmMacniel@feddit.org 23 points 3 days ago (4 children)

Most often the iPad is not for the kids but for inattentive Parents that just want to doomscroll in peace and not deal with their offspring.

[–] Korne127@lemmy.world 26 points 3 days ago (3 children)

I used to think exactly that and judge that heavily, but after my sister became a mother, we talked about this and she said essentially, that you don't know them, you don't know the day they've had and what they have done all day and what happened before. And that having a child is so hard that sometimes you just need to do things that are maybe not optimal, like giving them coke or letting them be on an iPad in public to avoid another hour of screaming, but that doesn't mean they are not doing super much before. Because everybody has a breaking point and you cannot be perfect, but you don't know the arguments or deals or time spent earlier, and sometimes it's necessary to also keep care of yourself and relax a bit when you're done.

[–] HybridSarcasm@lemmy.world 6 points 3 days ago

I had a similar change of perspective when I became a parent. We do our best to raise our kids to be the best people they can be. But, if we want to do normal people things and that requires some screen time, so be it. I know what’s going on with my kids and idgaf what others think.

[–] tatterdemalion@programming.dev 1 points 2 days ago

We might not know the parents, but we do know that iPads didn't exist in the past and people still managed to raise kids.

[–] DmMacniel@feddit.org -3 points 3 days ago (1 children)

And that having a child is so hard that sometimes you just need to do things that are maybe not optimal, like giving them coke or letting them be on an iPad in public to avoid another hour of screaming, but that doesn’t mean they are not doing super much before.

mhm yes, because instant gratification is always a trait to foster...

I saw it in the development of my nephew that he gets so easily frustrated and also scared to break anything, because toys like the iPad are expensive as heck (and when its broken it can't give him any dopamine shots).

So we get highly temperamental kids that have super short attention spans. Hurrah for dumbification of your civilisation. Two hails for our corporate overlords!

[–] volvoxvsmarla@sopuli.xyz 10 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Congrats, you perfectly missed the point of the message you replied to.

Maybe your nephew gets the iPad all the time and that messed up his frustration tolerance. Ok. You might have a closer inside to how he is parented. When you see someone outside with a kid on an iPad you cannot know these things about them. Whatever it looks like to you, you're judging strangers based on a one point observation.

[–] TankovayaDiviziya@lemmy.world 12 points 3 days ago (1 children)

My colleague is real nice and all, but exactly why she gives iPad/phone to her toddler is exactly for the reason you mentioned. A lot of parents are lazy. And we wonder why the younger generation is turning right, because techno-fascists know how glued we are now to digital devices.

[–] DmMacniel@feddit.org 3 points 3 days ago

and thats terribly sad.

[–] buzz86us@lemmy.world 7 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Parking them in front of YouTube kids isn't the right idea though.. The content they show is just ridiculous.

[–] DmMacniel@feddit.org 1 points 3 days ago

yes of course its not the right idea and right thing to do, we all know it in here.

[–] moakley@lemmy.world 3 points 3 days ago

You don't know that it's "most often".

That's just how you feel about it. You're being judgmental but don't have any idea.

[–] HybridSarcasm@lemmy.world 8 points 3 days ago

Thanks for this thoughtful and considerate response. As a parent myself, your kindness is so appreciated!

[–] Track_Shovel@slrpnk.net 2 points 3 days ago

Hey, super kitties is quality content compared to YouTube. We have a YouTube ban in my house - the only exception is if it's an actual show that can't be found on streaming services.

The rest of this is spot on. We use iPads to keep our kids quiet in public places that are boring to them, like restaurants or planes.

We've all experienced an annoying kid in a restaurant, or a crying baby on the plane. It sucks, but usually that's short lived. This post just seems like child-free snark/elitism signaling to me.