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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

That old chestnut again (earrings) but this took the biscuit.

98 replies

ijustwanttoaskaquestion · 05/12/2009 10:06

I couldnt help myself it just came out of my mouth "oh my God, why would you do that??"

Went out for dinner with DP and DD, family resturant, hungry horse - lots of families. Anyway, There were we, DD (4) looking like an urchin child - unbrushed hair, scruffy clothes from being a cat in the school nativity play. Sat down was a perefectly presented family, little boy sat with the requisite spiked hair, spotless clothes. Beautiful little baby, i mean beautiful, still with a bobbly head, must have been no more than two weeks old, if that. So, being the broody mare that i am, im cooing like mad - only to see the biggest pair of gold studs in the poor little mites ears . I was visibly horrified, gasped, walked off muttering, why would you do that?? Spent the rest of my meal getting daggers from the mother.

They were very English, there was no cultural reason for the mutilation of their child. What is wrong with them?? FFS - i cried when my DD had her injections, most mums hate it but of course we do it, its for their own good - but what justification for firing an object, bigger than any needle through the thick skin of your babies ear? WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY????

More importantly i feel, who the hell did it?? FFS? Can you really turn up at Claires accessories on your way home from the labour ward with your baby requesting them to be peirced??

I was 10 before i was allowed earrings - i passed out from the shock of the pain.
As for the argument that the baby wont really feel it or remember it - oh, stick it up your arse!!! ~I was actually a member of an anti tail docking organisation and read a paper by a respected vet that suggested that neonates actually feel pain more acutely than older dogs - i see no reason why this doesnt translate to humans.

Why is the peircing of children still leagal?? Its illeagal to have facial peircings done under the age of 16 (isnt it?) so why can we continue to do this to young babies - shame on them

OP posts:
Elfytigga · 05/12/2009 10:08

Erm, you do know you've opened a can of worms here don't you.

GetsThePopcornTiggaxx

Tortington · 05/12/2009 10:11

i can't get worked up about it - a baby got it;s ears pierced - crass and not my cup of tea

but 'OH MY GOD WHY WHY WHY MUTILATE A CHILD' meh

RealityIsHungover · 05/12/2009 10:12

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

Alambil · 05/12/2009 10:13

it's barely akin to REAL mutilation...

Get worked up about female circumcision if you want to object about severe, real and very, very painful mutilation of human beings

Earrings aren't in that league.... at all.

daisydora · 05/12/2009 10:18

Are you sure they weren't clip-on's??

ijustwanttoaskaquestion · 05/12/2009 10:21

reality, um, thanks for saying that- lol i didnt want to use the C word But then hang on a minute, I was in the hungry horse too

Lewis, i agree, re the circumcision - obviously.

Daisy, even if they were clip ons - they were an arront to my very conservative taste!! lol

OP posts:
NancyDrewRocks · 05/12/2009 10:22

Not only is it a hideous look but it is the equivilant of marking chav across the poor childs head. Even if you liked the look ()why would you choose to wear your thick credentials in such an obvious manner.

ijustwanttoaskaquestion · 05/12/2009 10:22

affront, affront to my very conservative tastes even

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scottishmummy · 05/12/2009 10:23

your ire is a bit disproportionate to the circumstances

go find a proper cause to harrumph about. then you can drone on about that too in an indignant manner

Besom · 05/12/2009 10:26

I don't understand it and I don't approve of it.

But, I would never make my views known to anyone who had got this done. I would consider that to be rude. It's not really very high on my list of 'things not to do to a child'.

ijustwanttoaskaquestion · 05/12/2009 10:28

I wonder when it stops becoming chavvy!! When the child can choose to have it done i suppose.

Its a bit like saying, well, you're beautiful, but you would be more beautiful if you had some chunks of gold in your ear - im sure once the child is old enough she will graduate to big ol' hoops like her mother's!!

Thing is, i suppose im quite chavvy really, often have my hair in a "croyden face lift" and eat in places like the hungry horse - but I think its wrong to do this to such a young child, seriously, she was no more than a few weeks old - what about the risk of infection?

I dont get worked up about it really, but this was the youngest i have ever seen this done and i have to say, it did make me feel quite nauseous. That and the twenty onion rings that DP ordered cos our eyes were bigger than our bellies!

OP posts:
ijustwanttoaskaquestion · 05/12/2009 10:30

But scottishmummy, dont we come on mumsnet to harrumph and drone in indignant manner about all sorts of trivialities, from fruit shoots to grape stealing?? ~I would have thought it just the place to do my droning thank you very much

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scottishmummy · 05/12/2009 10:32

dont like pierced ears on babies but cant stretch the hyberole to abuse

ijustwanttoaskaquestion · 05/12/2009 10:34

Anyway, thats me done, i'm off, I will leave you guys to enjoy the popcorn while i scrape my hair back into a pony tail face lift to cover the fact that i haven't washed my hair this morning.

Anyway, who am i to judge, i stood and laughed while my 15yo DD had her lip peirced and paid for her to have a tattoo across her back for her 17th birthday - but that was the thing wasn't it - her CHOICE

OP posts:
scottishmummy · 05/12/2009 10:35

there is no one else you wrote majority posts.

ijustwanttoaskaquestion · 05/12/2009 10:37

No, i dont suppse one can SM, the mum clearly loved her children and maybe thought she was doing the best thing for some warped reason, she certainly didn't mean to harm her.

But if someone stuck pins in their childs ears for the sake of cruelty, that would be abuse woudnt it? But its the same pain

Anyways, i said i was going im off to the school fair to buy some wriggly worm covered fairy cakes and give DD money to buy tomobola tickets to win herself some fruit shoots and alcohol for me

OP posts:
ijustwanttoaskaquestion · 05/12/2009 10:38

you're here SM!!! [poking tongue out] forgive my familiarity, we've spoken before - (LEM) if you remember me - but then you probaly don't i'll stop talking to myself then !!

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HappyChristmasFromKimi · 05/12/2009 10:51

I think ear rings in small babies is vile, so chavy and in boys it is worse.

RockBird · 05/12/2009 10:59

It does annoy me tbh and I would be . Bad enough on toddlers but a newborn? Apart from the fact that it looks horrible and hurts when it's done, pierced ears hurt like buggery to sleep on until they're healed and as most babies turn their head to the side when asleep it must cause some pain then. Poor little scrap.

whifflegarden · 05/12/2009 11:00

scottishmummy

serenity · 05/12/2009 11:10

I hate earrings on babies, but you were unbelievably rude. Very, very unreasonably rude over something that isn't currently illegal (although I'd like it if it was) and is none of your business.

MadameCastafiore · 05/12/2009 11:12

Bloody hekk you feed your kids that shit they serve at those chav magnets love and you are insensed about a bit of ear mutilation!

Lauriefairyonthetreeeatscake · 05/12/2009 11:17

yep, 'gasping and walking off muttering' when the woman had only just given birth is awfully rude.

yanbu about the piercing though, awful thing to do to a tiny baby in my opinion.

misdee · 05/12/2009 11:19

i saw a baby a similar age to my dd4 (1ytear old) getting prepped to have her ears peirced in claire's yesterday. i had to look away as i couldn't bear it.

why would you do that to a baby?

carrieNchild · 05/12/2009 11:19

See I would have judged you for not bothering to make sure your daughter was tidy for dinner.

TBH I don't know why you bothered to mention that your dd was scruffy and the boy was spotless but I then I don't understand the need for all the downwardly mobile bragging anyway

YANBU to dislike earrings in babies/young children though