2022.04.14
from 9 Ways To Imagine Jeff Bezos' Wealth, via kottke
"Well, Sheriff, maybe I do look at things differently than other people. Is that wrong? I live by my wits. I'm not above bending the law now and then to keep clothes on my back or food in my stomach. I live the kind of life that other people would just love to live if they only had the courage. Who's to say that the boy would be happier your way or mine? Why not let him decide?"Hm. Lately I've been thinking about how my worldview is extremely anti-authoritarian - since there's one shared reality, any authority is legitimate only so far as it reflects reality... but with so our limited, idiosyncratic, and often conflicting viewpoints, we can never be sure which viewpoint is the most accurate reflection of reality.
"Nah, I'm afraid it don't work that way. You can't let a young 'un decide for himself. He'll grab at the first flashy thing with shiny ribbons on it, then when he finds out there's a hook in it, it's too late. The wrong ideas come packaged with so much glitter it's hard to convince him that other things might be better in the long run, and all a parent can do is say, 'Wait. Trust me,' and try to keep temptation away."
And that has informed how I deal with kids (and has for LONG before I was able to put this worldview into words - I used to just call it "I treat them as small adults"). Like not totally, sometimes I lay down the law to keep them from harm, and I certainly get into teacher-not-learner mode, but I'm inclined to take them seriously, and they seem to appreciate it not being talked down to.
So I guess my problem with Andy Griffin's wisdom is... I'm not sure adults are good at identifying shiny ribbons and glitter with hooks either.
(UPDATE: as Matt directed my attention to: a parental assumption that society is somehow going beyond "some people are gay or trans" and somehow packaging that as "ribbons and glitter", and so that parents are right to do whatever it takes to steer there young'uns away, is also pretty bad)
