To think this is vile

[Ispywith]

To get a child of 7 for Christmas their own Xbox, tv & DVD player bla bla bla. Saw it on thread about what people are getting their kids got Christmas. Is it me or is this madness?

To be perfectly honest, I really don't have any great interest what games consoles other families have. It's your decision and it has nothing to do with me. I was merely trying to open up the discussion and bring a more intellectual / academic slant to the witch hunt which had evolved in the early pages. Apparently this isn't an appropriate thread for that (perhaps I should have guessed that). I must say that I am shocked at the rather angry and aggressive attitudes of quite a large number of posters. If you are totally confident in your decisions then you shouldn't get so cross when someone else has a differing viewpoint. Different doesn't = wrong, in either direction.

As for the lady who said I shouldn't talk about this topic because I didn't know what I was talking about ... I may not be up to speed on all of the new, whizzy games consoles and all of the various controllers designed for them. I am however a retired teacher (very early before you say I am old and therefore out-of-date) and an educational psychologist with a PhD in Child Psychology. So I do know at least a little bit about the subject matter in hand ...

Surreymummy, I didn't say you shouldn't talk about the topic, I said you shouldn't judge when you don't know what you are talking about. You talked about 'sitting in front' of a screen rather than interacting with friends - that's not what games are like these days - if you are going to pontificate, be sure you know your subject.

There is no intellectual/academic slant to the discussion - the OP started a thread about a thread (frowned upon) to sneer at another poster (frowned upon) for buying her DC too much (none of the OPs business). That's why she got the replies she did. No-one is angry, but this is Mumsnet, not FluffyBunniesNet.

My post was aimed at showing you there are more to electronic toys than you may have realised, and that judging people for their harmless parenting decisions is not on.

I hope that makes things clearer for you

So what? All you have done is to post in a very unpleasant and judgmental way. Why did you want to 'open up the discussion and bring a more intellectual/academic slant' to it? How fucking patronising!

Oh, and a search of your name shows that you are very new to MN. I think that you will find that we are all quite capable of opening up discussions ourselves in any manner we see fit. We don't require anyone to try and moderate them to their own taste.

Oh and 'new whizzy games consoles and controllers' - the Wii has been out for about 5 years, the kinect about 4 and they don't have 'controllers' as such. The human is the controller and has to be active for the console to register them. HTH.

Don't you think anyone else 'knows a little bit about the subject matter in hand' either?

I only have one child so any toys/consoles/TV are entirely for his own use. I think DS got his first Wii console at age 7 or 8 - a freebie given with my Dsis's phone contract and she didn't want it. When DS was 10 he got his first laptop - given free by a government grant, so clearly there are policy makers who don't think it's unreasonable for a child of that age to have their own! And he got an Xbox for free when he was 11, through a different government-backed charity.

I can't say that DS is spoilt - in fact he fits various government criteria for being in poverty and disadvantaged, actually.

Some of my best childhood memories with my boys involve the 3 of us squashed up on my sons bed playing Mario kart on a gamecube.

Mine'll get a small orange, and the parking ticket I received when I stopped to get out of the car to buy it.

cantspel I LOVE playing bowling with ds and my mum on the wii - it turns into a riot. I have mobility problems so I find real bowling too hard.

Just Dance is hilarious too

surrey you sound like a bit if a Luddite to be honest.

One has to move with the times.

Yep my will never ever have a telly in their room just like I would not put a tv in MY room.

Gosh, you ladies do get cross don't you! I'll stick to my old-fashioned ways, thanks. I know how I want to raise my children and it's not in a "shouty-aggressive-sweary-coarse-don't-you-voice-your-opinion-if-it's-not-the-same-as-mine" manner. Ironically, all that has happened is that my point has been beautifully proven. Thank you!

How

How presumptious are YOU begonia?! How stupid to presume I shut my kids away in their playroom. Playroom is actually just off my kitchen and I never shut my kids away to play. I prefer hands on parenting - maybe you should try it.

Your actually quite hilarious dear!

I'm the biggest luddite going. Doesn't stop DS having a wii.

Wow, can't quite believe how rude some posters are being.

Gimme, what on earth gives you the right to criticise begonias parenting. How do you know she isn't just as "hands on" as you?

And surreymummy, oh dear. Words fail. I do laugh at holier than thou posters who try to bring psuedo-intellectual ramblings to threads.

It's incredibly important children keep up with technology as well as play outdoors, read, have nice manners and a million other things.

I don't know quite why the mention of buying a child a piece if technology brings out the smuggity smug smug.

And tvs in rooms. It really is each to their own, no big deal?

I'm used to having one tv in lounge do right now I'd privacy say no. But I Never say Never! Dosen't mean I judge any one that does for a single second.

I've only ever had a tv in my room once and it was lovely. It's more laziness in getting ariels sorted than moral fibre!

The OP is called Ispywith - it's at the top of every page ...

What on earth is a "pacific individual circumstance"? I suppose you mean specific?

Oxford isn't generally referred to as "pseudo-intellectual" (note the correct spelling).

Sorry dear I'm on my new whizzy I phone and the keyboard is rather whizzy and a bit small.

I'm thinking of a few traits I would not want to bestow upon the fruit of my womb.

Boastful
Patronising
Narrow minded.

I think I'd rather them play on a few too many games, personally.

Thank you BeerTricksPott3r! This really is marvellous fun!

PickledFanjoCat - it's very difficult not to be all those things when you are as innately brilliant as I am. What's more my syntax is excellent ...