[MarchHare]

- The new family parking spots, seriously is it that hard to walk an extra 30 – 50 feet in a parking lot? My mom did it. All my friends’ parents did it. Why are new families today so different?

The first time I saw one of those spots, I was shocked that it was actually closer to the entrance than the handicapped spot. I can't imagine the thought process involved with some idiot thinking that a mom+kids needs to park closer to the entrance than someone with a physical disability.

- Sanitizing your hands before touching a baby – really? Is your stupid kid going to die if I touch them without sanitizing my hands?

If anything, that's actually harmful for children over the longterm because their immune systems won't develop properly without being exposed to bacteria, viruses, and other microbes.

- Second hand smoke I can understand, but 3rd hand smoke? Are you even kidding me right now?

This is the first time I've ever heard the term "3rd hand smoke". Is the complaint that if you were around someone who was smoking, the parent won't let you near her child? That's beyond stupid.

My own recent anecdote:

My band has an upcoming gig at a neighbourhood block party. Our singer (who lives in the neighbourhood in question) attended one of the planning sessions for the party to find out what time we'd be performing and what we'd be doing in the case of bad weather, etc. One of the party's events prior to our set is a talent show for the children of the neighbourhood. My friend asked if there would be a prize awarded for the best act. He was instantly shot down by the parents at the meeting who said, "If we picked a winner, that would mean some children would have to lose, and we can't have that."

I wish I was making that story up.

I shudder to think what will happen to these overly-sheltered children later in life when they're passed over in favour of another candidate for a job or receive a negative performance review. I'm only 30, so I don't want to sound like a grumpy old man talking about how "I had to walk five miles to school in the snow", but many parents today are raising a generation completley incapable of dealing with the harsh realities of the world.

And one more thing: on my first day of grade 1 in 1985, I couldn't wait to ride the school bus by myself! You can be damn sure I didn't want my mother walking down the street with me to the bus stop or following the bus in her car. I wanted to prove that I was a "big boy" who didn't have to hold mommy's hand all the time.