Parent Sells Pot Smoking Teen’s Guitar Hero III On eBay
By William on Thursday, December 6th, 2007 at 10:23 AM PST In Nintendo
Here’s the deal:
So I spent who knows how many hours of my life trying to get “Guitar Hero 3” for the Nintendo Wii for my 15 year old son who has been begging for it since he was born (well not really but he’s wanted it for awhile). So after waiting in lines and going into every game store in the city over the last 2 weeks (practically being laughed at when I asked for guitar hero 3) I finally got lucky and got one at EB Games (they just got a shipment of them 25 minutes before I walked in!).
So I was so relieved in that I had finally got the Holy Grail of Xmas presents pretty much just in the nick of time. I couldn’t wait to spread the jubilance to my son.
Then, yesterday, I came home from work early and what to I find? My innocent little boy smoking pot in the backyard with 2 of his delinquent friends.
Now I know santa applies the “naughty or nice” paradigm to determine who gets what on Christmas. My son (Isaac) hasn’t exactly been Mother Teresa this year (he got suspended for fighting in the spring, among other things) but I thought I could still justify getting him this present. Maybe it would make him stay home more and “rock out” on this fake guitar thing. He pretty much spends all his free time at his friend’s house playing it anyways (while high on marijuana, I would imagine).
Anyways, I am now finding it hard to justify rewarding him with this gift after he so greatly disappointed me. I know smoking a joint isn’t the end of the world, but if you can convince me that he deserves the gift, then I will end the auction. You will have to be very convincing. I am an elementary school teacher and I know that rewarding bad behavior is just asking for more of the same…
After I caught him getting high on my patio I did the typical yelling, screaming, kicking out the friends, etc… but I had not decided on a suitable way to punish him. As of the time of me writing this, he does not know I got him Guitar Hero 3. I will show him the auction once it is posted and we can watch it finish together. Sort of a “Father-Son bonding experience”. While I doubt this will keep him from ever smoking pot again, I think it will make him think twice before doing illegal (well I think pot is still illegal in Canada) drugs on my property.
I am still considering getting him a game for his Nintendo. Maybe something like Barbie as the Island Princess or Dancing With the Stars. These games are in stock everywhere I go, and I know he will just love them.
Merry Xmas Isaac. I hope you’ve learned your lesson. –Father.
simple. just give hiim the guitar and hide the game and give it to him later.
One thing I am confused by. Its a repeating theme I am reading over and over again this is a quote from NEO but he is just one of many who parrot this theme.
“You were BAD and so you can’t HAVE it!! Ahahaha! This PROVES to you that I have the ultimate power here, I can take away anything I give you!”
I wonder why this is a problem. PARENTS DO have the ULTIMATE power in the family environment and that is PRECISELY as it SHOULD BE anything less and you HAVE no family environment.
I see it every day. Misbehaving children Children ABUSING there parents. Children THREATENING there parents and those threats actually having TEETH (dyphus etc..)
When you remove ULTIMATE power from the parents you remove ALL power from the parents. THE MOMENT the kids figure this out your job of parenting is OVER. Your power to guide the life or your child is permanently handicapped if not utterly eliminated.
The Guidance and POWER you exert over your child is all that will guide them through the rest of there lives.
They need to learn right from wrong and they NEED to understand the consequences for violating right from wrong can and are severe.
Taking away a stinking video came is NOT severe by any stretch. Selling it on ebay and making him watch is poetic.
If you guys think taking away and selling a video game is SEVERE unfair punishment then you guys are either also children and have no comprehension of severe and unfair OR you have a whole crap load of growing up to do.
Smoking pot could potentially DESTROY his life PERMANENTLY especially if he lives in a country where it is illegal and has draconian laws such as in the US (not sure of canada’s laws in this regard)
I mean we are not talking about an in pain leukemia patient are we ? AND on top of that it does NOT MATTER if its legally or morally right or wrong. Its his parents wishes and his parents power is ULTIMATE or non existant. that is HIS CASTLE. HE makes the rules there within reason.
If mom and dad say you are to be home by 8pm it does not matter what is normal or what is considered acceptable THEY SAID 8pm THATS IT. Final End of discussion PERIOD.
When you are mature an adult and have your OWN PLACE to live that you pay for yourself THEN that will be YOUR castle THEN you can make the ULTIMATE RULES for your domain. Thats just the way it works. AND baring insane conditions I see NO problem with this. IN FACT any other conditions are EXTREMELY dangerous and asking for much trouble. JUST LOOK at the children in the USA my country today. its insane.
Parents get fined or even GOTO JAIL for things there kids to and when they try to correct them they are fined imprisoned or told NO you can not do that.
When the parents say well TELL ME HOW to do this if I am not allowed to correct them and all the “system” has as an answer is this.
Thats not OUR problem its your child. Just don’t break out rules.
They REMOVE the “ultimate” power of the parents and they say tough tiddies when we say well then how the hell do we fix this? They want to dictate terms without providing alternatives to the problems THEY THEMSELVES created with there laws.
NOW they want to outlaw spanking? What the hell is going on here. I am not talking about pants down bloody behind with a strap I am talking grabbing your kid in the supermarket and giving him a little wop on the ass. They want to make such things illegal!!
AND YOU WONDER why we have the society we have today? instead of harsh treatment and hard knocks they just put you on ridolin and declare you to have ADD.
I think this kid got off REALLY freaking easy. After all he can later go and BUY another guitar hero III or EARN one from the parents when he does well.
VIOLATING the rules of the household ESPECIALLY something as important as substance abuse….. HE IS A CHILD he has not the maturity age or mental faculty to decide for himself objectively what is good and bad for himself. THATS HIS PARENTS JOB. Period End of Discussion.
When this is forgotten we are in for a ton of nasty smelling stuff.
And in the unlikely event the story IS true.. well you should be ashamed of yourself for using this issue with your 15 year old to inspire apathy and gain publicity to eek an extra buck or two from your damn auction.
Because that’s the point I think most people are missing here… this little story isn’t really about your kid, is it? It’s about your auction. Period. So the way I see it you’re either a loser… or an even bigger loser. ~M
You know, I’m an ex-kid myself, and if my parents had *publicly humiliated* me as a punishment for something minor like this — something that hurt no one else, was not dishonest and not particularly dangerous — it would have severely damaged my relationship with them.
A few more points to ponder… First, cannabis is decrimininalized in most of Canada — it’s just a ticket in practice. It’s well known that if it wasn’t for heavy pressure by the United States, it’d be totally legal.
Second, I grew up in Canada, and every year some kid would die tragically by drinking too much and falling asleep on a park bench in the winter. You should be glad that your kid is smoking pot rather than drinking alcohol — it’s a much safer drug.
Finally, he was smoking pot in your garden. Clearly he thought his house was a safe place. No more. Now he’ll just go elsewhere to smoke it.
I predict this is the end of an honest relationship with your kid. You’ve taught him a bunch of lessons, all bad. If you’d sat down and had a nice chat with him, you might have learned a lot. Now he won’t trust you again. I wouldn’t, either.
(John — I don’t understand why you think theft is at all morally similar to smoking pot. In a free society, smoking pot would be completely acceptable and encouraged over alcohol, alcohol being the drug that’s the leading cause of violent crimes, the leading cause of car accidents, causes heart disease, cancer, cirrosis, and countless other problems. Theft is not just a crime, it’s morally wrong.)
That’s low… even for you dad…
I hate u, and i’ll hate u for the rest of my life…
Dad sold your copy of guitar hero that you were supposed to get for Christmas? All the more reason to toke up
Wow, everyone here is *really* overreacting on both sides of the debate.
1. ITS JUST A STUPID GAME. Likening taking away a video game to taking away a puppy is waaay off. A pet is something to be nurtured and loved, interacted with, and taken care of. A video game is just a diversion from doing anything meaningful. Not quite a valid comparison.
2. If this is a real story (I have my doubts) then the father is just trying to get through to his son in a way he can understand. I mean, sheesh, he’s not abusing the kid. Can you really blame him for this?
3. Finally – to those saying “its just a joint, be glad he’s not doing meth”. C’mon, quit with the self justification and moral judgments. If it violates the morals and lifestyle he is trying to teach his son then who are you to judge it?
Thank you very much for posting this story!!!
I have been racking my brain trying to come up with a Christmas themed horror film to release next year and this is perfect.
Plot:
Isaac, a generally good son, gets caught smoking pot with his friends in the back yard. His dad tries to get through to him by selling his most wanted Christmas present on ebay while making him watch the bidding war! But now, he’s about to find out, that teaching his son a lesson, isn’t so easy.
Highly resentful about the loss of his Christmas present, Isaac quickly turns to meth to deal with the pain. After a 3 day binge, he finally sleeps; and that’s when he dreams of the perfect plan to get back at his father…
An Axe to Grind for Christmas (Rated R)
Coming to theaters everywhere December 2008…
Wow Chris Taylor Jr., you are blatantly wrong on so many levels it’s scary.
Now, before I say anything else, I’m going to point out that I am 19 – A stage of my life where pot is very, very prevalent, and also a stage of my life where I’m making the transition from child to adult.
First of all, you act as though pot is the worst thing in the world and will, without a doubt, destroy your life. I’ve personally tried pot about two years ago (and I highly, highly doubt you ever have) and decided that I did not like it and have since never considered it again – I’m constantly offered (being at college) and I always say no. I’d say a large majority of my friend smoke pot and their lives are affected very, very little if at all. The valedictorian of my High School was a huge stoner, for christ’s sake.
Secondly, you act as though a 15 year old has no mind of his own and is utterly incapable of making his own decisions. Though this may have been true for you, I can promise you it’s not for 99% of other 15 year old childs. In fact, I have a 15 year old brother who is more than capable of making his own decisions because, guess what? He was raised properly by a father who respects his children and doesn’t practice this “ULTIMATE” control you so heartfully love. It is true that parents should have this ULTIMATE power, but it is very, very wrong to practice it frequently and show it off as you think is so admirable. This will only lead to a sheltered child who, when he or she is forced to live on their own (ie college), they will be clueless and unable to make their own decisions. Trust me, I know too many people like that. Want an example? One of my friends from High School, Lance Healy, actually hung himself about a month ago because he was unable to live by himself at college. If you don’t believe me look it up yourself on the University of Maryland website.
I’d also like to point out this quote from Chris Taylor Jr. so the rest of you can laugh:
“HE IS A CHILD he has not the maturity age or mental faculty to decide for himself objectively what is good and bad for himself. THATS HIS PARENTS JOB. Period End of Discussion.”
… and simply say wow, your view of children is so misconstrued, I pity any children you may or will have and hope they don’t end up like my friend Lance.
The fact is, selling your son’s GH3 in front of his face is being far more immature than a 15 year old child smoking weed. Your child will learn absolutely nothing from this and the relationship between you two will forever be damaged. There are much more appropriate ways to punish your child, and you can read any of the suggestions posted by the competent people in this thread. “Period End of Discussion.”
I apologize for this rant, but after reading some of these posts, and then Chris Taylor Jr.’s, I couldn’t help it.
I personally believe in the old adage of let the punishment fit the crime. I would probably ground the kid, still give him Guitar Hero 3, but take the power cable to his Wii. And it wouldn’t be a simple grounding for a week or so, it would be three months. That way, he would have to sit there and look at the game for three months before he could play it again. And the grounding would include not being able to go to his friend’s house to play it there.
On top of that, I would let the parents of the other kids know what I saw. They would determine their own punishment, but my kid’s interaction with those friends would be monitored, if not supervised. This would send the message that I don’t want my kid to get in with the wrong type of people.
Pot is something you don’t want adolescents to do. It would be the same punishment I would do for underage drinking. Just like with drinking, I would want to show my son to respect marijuana like he should respect alcohol and use it in moderation. I personally think Pot shouldn’t be illegal and that the laws cause more problems than they solve.
I think what I would want to express to him would be to think about what he does before he does it. And especially not to fall into what his friends are doing. I’m all for fitting in, but be smart about it.
@XD Oh the ignorance:
4. Neo… learn how to correctly type please, if your such an amazing intellectual with great insights on what this man should really do to take care of his son, show it in the way your communicating, otherwise, you are totally irrelevant to the majority of readers.
Please refrain from criticizing someone for how/what they type when you can’t even figure out the difference between your and you’re. Here is a hint: BOTH instances of your in your comment should have been you’re. When you try to belittle someone for poor communication skills while showing a lack thereof yourself you succeed only in looking like an ass. As for being irrelevant, as long as his points are logical and well thought out I’d have to say that a few grammatical and/or spelling mistakes hardly make his points irrelevant.
@WryTerra: Actually, Christmas is about conversion of pagans to Christianity. Christmas falls within a few days of the winter solstice which is an important day in several older non-Christian religions. This is clearly not by coincidence as tax time, which is roughly when he was supposed to be born according to the popular stories, was a bit earlier in the year in ancient Rome (August I think, though I could be wrong).
@Karkerjax: Actually, a lot of the shit in cigarettes is added in. That said, even without the added crap they are none too good for you. And not I don’t smoke (either substance) and never have.
@k_lid: To be honest, if I were your kid and you did something like this to me I’d probably do something very similar in to you retaliation. I’d write down everything you did from that day that was a legitamit disappointment or outright parenting mistake and next Christmas I’d have spent the entire year finding the perfect gift. Then I’d sell it on ebay while publicly humiliating you by airing all of the things you’d done that weren’t perfect over the year. And then I’d rub it in your face by either making you watch the auction with me or yelling out from the room with the computer “OH HEY! Only 1 more hour and I’ve gotten $50 extra cause you made some mistakes.” Hell, I’d probably even keep track of all the times you were speeding with me in the car and serve them to the cops. Thats illegal right (speeding)?
To be fair, I agree that the child doesn’t deserve the gift. I’d probably simply return it and calmly explain to my son why I did so and how disappointed I was in him. And I’d ground him. Probably for quite a while, although in fairness he and I would also have had a talk before he was 15 about why I felt marijuana is inappropriate for someone of his age. Honestly, public humiliation is the best way to destroy your relationship with your child.
All that said I doubt this auction is real. A large part of the reason I say how I’d react is that someone, somewhere will think this is a wonderful idea and actually do it. Hell, this might even be that someone. Honestly, this is probably the most inappropriate punishment I could think of, and not because he is losing the game. That I agree with on some level (not what I’d choose personally but I can see it as valid). What I don’t agree with is this massive public humiliation factor. A twist on all of this: it got dugg. Chances are ALL of his friends read digg. Think about that. You want the eternal resentment of your child? Pull a stunt like this and prove you never moved on from a mental age of 15.
I have read every single reply on this blog
To my amazement it has not been pointed out that the seller of the guitar has openly admitted he would smoke marijuana when he was younger, and had done so multiple times. Read through the comments page and all his replies! Hypocrisy much?
Honestly, this situation really depends on your kid… I mean the way he reacts to it will really be the final judgment on if this punishment is alright. Getting caught smoking some pot by my parents and just having them take away a christmas present, but at the same time making it a “humorous” punishment, would be 100000 times better than having your parents look down to you as a drug addict for years to come. But like I said it all depends on your kid.
And about pot, Everybody makes a big deal about pot, when really it isn’t that bad. I have a degree in botanical science, and marijuana has little to no harmful long lasting effects. Sure it may kill a few brain cells, but standing near a running car does too. People think weed is so horrible and that it’ll lead there child to do something wrong and end up getting hurt. A man once told me this: “I’d rather have my child smoke pot then drink. If he gets drunk he’ll try to drive and get in a wreck and die. If he smokes pot, he’ll sit on the couch, with a box of twinkies, and watch cartoons.” And like someone said if his grades are good then so what? It is EASY to maintain good grades in school and smoke pot, as long as the kid is still motivated. AND yes I have and still do smoke marijuana.
Wow, this thread is getting long. Growing up, I would say my parents were relatively on the mellow side, punishment-wise- but I sure knew what would happen “when your father got home”. When I was a kid, probably around 14 (I’m 37 now), I screwed up (bad report card?), and as punishment my parents forbade me from going to a friend’s birthday sleep over- a friend who had just gotten PAC-MAN for the atari 2600!!! (kinda dating myself here) ZOMG!!!! Yea sure, in hindsight the game sucked, but I vividly remember being SO MAD AT MY PARENTS, HOW COULD THEY DO THIS TO ME!?!
So mad in fact that 23 years later I still remember the punishment but not the crime.
Pot beats Guitar Hero 3 hands down any day.
Okay, wow this got beyond the amount of attention needed, this will end up on CNN….sure of it. Kid smokes pot, now he won’t get Guitar Hero as a gift, he should sell his accumulated pot he has left, and buy it with his own money, showing his dad he is a true Business person that wants to succeed in this fast growing world of nonethics.
-Peace in the Midwest
Lets go over this.
1 > Pot In Canada
Actually, if you follow the actual legal status of marijuana as a substance in Canada, the laws governing its legality have been thrown out of court as unconstitutional by a judge in Ontario. It currently holds no status as a controlled substance. Even if we consider that this judge may have screwed the pooch, so to speak, there’s still the fact that pot’s a very well accepted recreational drug, that has been chemically proven not to be addictive (if you’re curious, look it up, it doesn’t alter the brain chemistry permanently like nicotine, caffeine, or cocaine).
2 > Trust Abused
Here’s the deal as I see it. If you’ve made an honest effort to sit down with your son and talk about drugs, and you have explicitly forbade him from smoking pot, discussed the reasons for this ban and talked this issue over thorough, then I think we can say your trust has been abused and he deserves to be punished. If on the other hand you’ve never really discussed the matter, and are “flipping out like a moron” because he’s done something you don’t like, then you’re the one abusing his trust in you. If he doesn’t trust you to be fair, his respect for your rules will be demolished, and he’ll have no reason to feel you’ll be fair about any of the rules you set, why should he follow your rules if you’re not going to discuss them and enforce them fairly and calmly with him?
3 > Bonding
This is a great chance to sit down with your son and have “the talk”, its a great chance for the two of you to settle your asses down somewhere and truly talk man to man about the kind of life he’s leading, the direction you feel he might be going in, and about growing up and accepting responsibility for ones actions. This is a great time for you to discuss your fears and uncertainties about how he’s running his life, and to stress to him that you want him to be successful in life, and that you see his current actions as potentially damaging his chance of success. At this point you’re going to have to deal with the consequences of this discussion, you’re going to have to know something ‘about’ smoking pot, the ramifications, what it does to you, short and long term… In essence, you’re going to have to be the rational, caring father, who is intelligent and knows what he’s talking about. This will prove to your son that you’re angry and frustrated, but that you love him.
All you’re doing right now, is proving you’re an asshole.
Hrm. Ebay is one thing – but finding out “Will it Blend?” is another. You’d have to chop the guitar up a bit first, of course. Less money in the pocket at the end (because you’re looking at 4 bills for the blender) – but OH SO SATISFYING.
To all those that say “the pot isn’t so bad” – it’s not, if you’re an adult. The problem here is the betrayal of trust and the sense of entitlement that the act represents. There’s a social arrangement that you reach with kids that age, that you hope they understand – I fund your life (housing, food, clothing, recreation, and so on), and in return you need to live within fairly broad rules – pass your classes, keep your body and living space reasonably clean, be civil to your siblings – and don’t smoke the reefer where I’m gonna catch you (or better yet, at all until you’re old enough to live under your own roof). I think he’s lucky – if my dad had caught me doing that, the belt would come out…
Rofl, Krakerjax, I second that bet, this is probably all his friends trying to get him GHIII XD it’s not even that great a game in my opinion.
I would save it for the next year, that way, he doesn’t get it right away as a punishment.
Chris Taylor Jr: The WORST person in the world!
I am a psychic. I can see that Chris Taylor Jr is a republican nerd that taps his foot in mens bathrooms. He was abused as a child and since then has hidden his latent homosexuality. He believes every word of the bible as fact, cavemen rode on dinosaurs, and that the world is flat.
“Taking away a stinking video came is NOT severe by any stretch. Selling it on ebay and making him watch is poetic.” Sounds like he wants vengence over a supposed “child”. Some “children” are working at 15 and trying to support themselves and their family. Only in developed countries we coddle our children until 18 because thats what’s acceptable in our countries.
If we don’t let the “children” make some choices for themselves, then how are they going to make decisions for themselves.
I bet it will be interesting when you are an old man and your children make the decision to put you in a home for all the decisions you didn’t allow them to make when they were budding adults.
Hey Chris, let me put it in terms that you can understand. Your rant makes you a sith, and everyone else are rebels… so seriously think over your life, or be proud that you are lawful evil.
nahhhhhhhhh im high as hell now. all i can say is this is a bogus story. beyond that weed is chillll
To put it very basically, you are an asshole. I imagine despite your kid already feeling like shit, and while you are not only ruining Christmas for him, you are also forcing him to bear witness some ridiculous contrived punishment, and to top if off you are probably going to be an asshole to him about his friends for the coming months, or perhaps he will never live it down. It sucks man, try being 15, it really sucks.
You know how not to make your kid shape up? How about giving him good enough reason to hate you and want to rebel against you, that might help.
If he’s doing pot, he probably doesn’t think that it’s “evil” or anything. Once people are 15 we tend to have our views pretty much decided for ourselves. That means that when you punish him so severely for something he sees as alright (I’m not going to take a stance on that issue right now
)he’ll get pissed at you and that could last a long time. The problem is you’re an elementary school teacher so you think you understand anyone younger than 20 years old.
Same with all sorts of teenagers: Calling them “2 of his delinquent friends.” and saying things like “(while high on marijuana, I would imagine).” is not a good way to deal with them. Like some other people have said, why not try and talk with him or something.
The funny thing is that everything you said made sense in the end when you said you were an elementary school teacher.
Hi,
I just wanted to chime in here. As a very straight-edge student who never did anything bad (bad in the sense of trouble making) until after I graduated high school, I totally disagree here. I would rather have smoked pot in high school, than afterwards. The reason being is that high school is a much better and safer place to get it out of one’s system.
When I was in high school, I got good grades by doing nothing. I would sleep most of the afternoon after I got home, and then hang out with my friends the rest of the evening. As long as your kid knows his boundaries, what is expected of him, why not let him partake in an activity that is much less detrimental than drinking or most other taboo things for that sake? If you are the parent who wouldn’t bat an eye if your son drinks a few beer’s in high school, then dont look like a hypocrite to him.
When I was 15, I was rebellious, and I still am. Forcing things on me would only make me resent them more. Having tried my first joint after high school, I ended up liking it more than I thought. So I went through my stoner phase and whatnot, which is a little easier to get carried away in a college atmosphere where one has more freedom, then when living at home with his parents.
Lastly, I think if you set some boundaries, as to how he shouldn’t be smoking pot your son will get the idea eventually. If he comes home lit every night, then obviously do what is right and give him a punishment he wont forget. However, if he and his friends get decent grades and are just experimenting with pot (and only pot), and he is lit once in a while, then you probably have nothing to worry about. He very well could just get bored of it, or the cool-factor will run out, and that will only strengthen his mindset in one way or another on the subject.
I don’t advocate smoking pot to anybody. I just realize that in the grand scheme of things, like binge drinking, it is a far lesser evil.
Okay..
A) In canada pot is not illegal (in BC anyways) selling it is tho.
B) When you say “your” property it really isn’t yours its still the governments considering you need 32185928502 papers to just cut a tree down from it (exaggeration on the numbers)
C) are you kidding me? what do you think rockstars did? lets see.. cocaine, PCP, MJ and probably worst stuff then that. If anything GH3 would keep his mind off MJ
Man, listening to kids (and adults who don’t have kids) give PARENTING advice is always good for a laugh.
Until you have real responsibility in life (and I don’t mean paying for your own car insurance), you have no idea what you’re talking about.
But keep posting, it’s amusing.
Did the parent ever instill in the child that this was not allowed in their home (mainly because possession of this drug without a prescription is illegal in the United States)? Maybe with some positive upbringing, this whole situation could have been avoided.
Totally Fake Ebay story.
The guy bought Wii GH3, found out it had mono sound, and wants to get rid of it now that he opened it.
Lots of free publicity, and hand-wringing from immature bloggers. Bet he’ll sell it.
@ The Fire Truck. If I’m a parent, the last thing on my mind, when my kid messes up is wondering if he is going to be mad at me. It’s called discipline, everyone has been through it. If you show your kid love and respect, then you shouldn’t worry about what he/she thinks when you punish them.
Some of you people are so materialistic, it makes me sick. You are acting like this guy selling a toy is the end of the world. Talking about it like the father is taking his love away. It’s a toy, and the kid will be pissed, but you know what, he brought it on himself. The kid knows it is wrong, I’m sure when his Dad caught him he wasn’t like, “Dad, why are you mad?” He knew damn well.
The kid is 15 years old. You can’t put him in his room anymore. I’m sure if he is smoking pot, he will have no qualms about sneaking out of his room if he grounds him, so this punishment is perfect. It has a great lasting effect. It might not get the kid to stop smoking pot, but he will remember that. If the kid doesn’t straighten up, he will find himself without a College to go to after high school. (I’m not saying this is because of the pot, I know so many kids in my school who are brilliant). But he sounds like he has had problems before (suspended for fighting etc.)
Good move.
M,
This has nothing to do with a stunt trying to sell things on eBay.. we have nothing to do with the seller. It’s simply an interesting auction.
ya from what i know about teenagers smoking pot and being punished for it, id have to definitely say that you’re son is gonna go straight back to the ganj, live life a lil maybe you guys should share a joint
I’m reading what these idiots are writing about how “that won’t stop the son from smoking” and I don’t know whether to laugh or to cry. I mean this is a perfect illustration of what good parenting is all about. It’s textbook really, and my skin cringes thinking that some of these people will have to raise their own children someday (some even someone else’s children if you catch my drift) and prepare them to become the obnoxious, irreverent, and ignorant assholes of tomorrow.
Why is everyone going on about how horrible it is to lose a Christmas present?
Christmas isn’t about presents.
Even you Neo are falling into that trap.
And that kid should be bloody grateful he has a parentt who cares about him.
And you’re right, what works with one child may not work with another. So all your “high and mighty” posturing is pretty much wasted space. So maybe it wouldn’t work with your kids. Did you stop to think that it might work with his kids and that he knows this because HE knows them?
I mean, he’s only someone who has been looking after the kid for 13 years.
If his son keeps his grades good and doesn’t get into any more trouble let him
blaze. Talk to the son about it.
punish him in another way for the mj. Not by taking away his GH3 at Christmas
Thats just cruel.
He should’ve just broken the kid’s fingers and then given him the game anyway. Hard to play Guitar Hero or work a lighter with broken thumbs. That would certainly stop him from smoking for awhile, and made for some poetic justice to boot. Man, I hate teenagers.
The kid, like most 15 year olds, is probably bored as hell and smokes pot out of boredom. I did plenty of stuff when I was 15.
Anyway, give the kid is Guitar Hero and he’ll probably be too busy playing it to even think about smoking pot.
Or buy him an instrument, something to spend his time with.
Your kids are going to try various things regardless of how fantastic your parenting is. I’m 23, and kids during my that did NOT “try things” were extremely rare. I’m sure nowadays it’s even more rare.
Kids are looking to experience life just as we were at their age, it will happen. Try and guide them down the correct path, don’t shove a fork in their road and expect there to be no resentment that sends them further down the opposite end.
This is what I don’t understand. (I mean, I understand the -concept- just fine; it’s the reason I usually never, EVER get involved in comment threads like this one; it’s just its application here that astounds me.) It’s this attitude that seems to come through in a lot of these comments that someone has to “win” the argument. It’s not an argument! In the end, all of your comments are equally in the same place as mine, ultimately: they ARE just your opinions.
I’m passionate about mine; so is everybody else. I stopped to put in my two cents, not because I felt the need to “correct” someone else or to re-inforce my position by “winning” an Internet argument. Gosh and golly, people, in the end here’s the truth of it: it’s NOT your kid. And as much as I wish that the father might “see the light”, maybe this WILL work. And he ought to know. (It’s funny how many people come down with a condescending attitude and yet haven’t even stopped long enough to READ the article; they repeatedly refer to the father as Isaac, or mix up the son’s age.) A lot of you seem to be taking the “undisciplined child” as a personal affront. *shrugs.*
It shows a lot of good points; last night, thinking it over, I wondered if some of the other commenters weren’t right, and this wasn’t actually a clever scam, or even a troll – “Let’s see how much iracity we can create online!”, I’ve seen it a LOT – but either way, NONE of these opinions are going to change anything, not one single ASPECT of it, unless the father chooses to change his mind or be influenced or convinced by the arguments. And since he’s already (apparently) publicly stated that
a) He ALREADY showed his son(Isaac) the auction, and he already knows; and
b) He intends so far to stand by his decision,
–then it seems rather pointless to descend into actual arguing. I gave my opinion because the original auction asked for it, or was open to it… after that, it’s out of my hands. All of yours, too. I’d REALLY hate to see this descend into pure wankery, not with how civil it was at the beginning. Stop calling each other “idiots” and “fucking morons”. Everyone is someone else’s “fucking moron” on the Internet; you can’t escape it. But you CAN learn.
Jesus. Now I’m in for $0.04.
YO MANG! A NIKKA”S GOTTA GET HIIIIIIIIIGGGGGHHHHHH.
PHO DAAIIIYYSSS
This kid is lucky the only punishment he’s getting is having his toy taken away. If he was my kid, I’d drag his ass down to the police station and let the cops book him for possession.
When I was young my parents had all of my presents wrapped and waiting under the tree for a solid week before christmas. There was one large package that I eyed for a few days before giving in to the temptation. I opened a corner to see what it was and it was the giant pirate ship lego set that I had wanted for a really long time. My parents happened to find out I snooped and without saying a word to me, took it back to the store. Come christmas morning, my beloved ship was nowhere to be found and I couldn’t say a word about it because I wasn’t supposed to know it was there. To this day I can still look back on that and think about what a little patience would have done.
Maybe now he could go buy a real cheap accoustic guitar, practice some basic cords and before you know it, be touring the world snorting crack and shagging bitches.
Talk with him, find out the truth about pot. Don’t punish him for smoking pot, it’s better/less dangerous than drinking alcohol. Punishment never works…He would probably smoke pot again, becouse he enjoy’s it like everyone enjoys alcohol. If you are a teacher, teach. Learn him to use it like an adult if he is going to use it. Selling the game, how is that supposed to help?
Err for all you people out there that say ‘oh he could have done worse’. That is just the lamest argument of all time. There is always something worse. ‘He shot and killed somebody, oh but it could have been worse’. Blah blah. You know what, when I was kid, I was punished for doing something my parents told me I couldn’t. Parents need to get a grip and start parenting like this man did. Kudos to you dad!
He did something wrong, very wrong. But taking away his christmas present! Come On! I’m a teen myself and if my dad ever did something like that, I would just be infuriated and ignore his advice. If, on the other hand, he took away my Wii for a month and had a big talk with me, I would learn my lesson. I think.
This is such an obvious attempt to gain attention to his auction. He registered on digg the other day and posted this auction twice. This sorta thing has already been done before. More like creative marketing instead of creative discipline. what’s the point of writing a huge article on ebay?
FAKE!
just wait till he starts having sex/WO condoms accidentally has a child before getting out of high school,or how about drinking and driving.He could get a gun and go shoot up schools…Get it he could do a lot worse, yet you guys are fanning the flames that pot is bad.How about cigarettes,Xanax,Valiums,Ecstasy or even coffee or Aspirin anybody…He could go to sniffing,Huffing,or gangsta(shitty wannabe gangster)yet he picked the safest way to get a high and we all get high one way or another.Yes showing the effects will hopefully stop him from smoking pot but making him HATE CHRISTMAS will affect the next generation of their families kids for sure.Name one person who has overdosed on pot in the last thousand years,10 thousand,since man has been around?Just because the government made a law to help their buddies doesn’t make pot bad.There’s some serious health benefits for people who have severe diseases so don’t be putting pot in the bad light because the government doesn’t want you smoking pot they want you to take pills instead.
As usual this highlights what is wrong with the world today. What ever happened to communication? Obviously the pot smoking is only a SYMPTOM of other problems the kid is having. It would be a huge mistake to humiliate your (the) son by showing him his most prized gift being auctioned off. Better to just tell him that you were planning to get it but have changed your mind and that if his behavior gets better, then maybe he can get it later. (it will probably be cheaper in 2 months anyway). Have you ever heard about those idiots who try to housetrain their dog to not defecate in the house by rubbing their noses in it?? Doesn’t work and neither will showing him the ebay sale. I think it’s a wake up call for both father and son. Maybe the father is missing out on communicating with his son and feels the need to demonstrate his “love” by buying $100 gifts. C’mon, I know we can do better than this.
Personally, I think it’s a great idea.
Sell the Guitar Hero. Take away the Wii. Ground him for a few months (6?), so he can’t go hang out with his pot-smokin’ friends. Make him WORK HIS ASS OFF during those 6 months – re-paint the house, clean all the floors weekly (vacuum, mop, etc.), and he’d damn well better get straight A’s. No TV, no internet, nothing in his room but a desk and a bed.
Some people would call that harsh – I call it a learning experience. Any child of mine that was caught smoking pot would be lucky to be ALIVE, much less severly punished. And the source of his pot…? Child would reveal the source (or else things could get MUCH MUCH worse – imagine eating porrige 3 meals a day ontop of the above), source WILL be revealed to police…
Bottom line, I think this is a good start.
You’re a piece of shit. Marijuana is not a drug. It isn’t illegal because it “fucks people up so much that they do irrational shit.” It’s illegal because of taxations and uncontrolled business. I praise your son for doing what he likes. Stop your conservative bullshit and live and let live. He has a mind of his own, let HIM decide what he wants to use it for, asshole. You fucking baby-boomer parents kill me. You’re so worthless.