Personally, I'm not a fan. I really don't know what you people who own them are thinking. Why not get something cute and furry? What's so attractive about an uncoordinated, shameless little simian that can look you in the eyes while it's knuckle deep scratching its own anus? And you can't neuter them, either. Eventually they're going to grow up to be cunts. I'm sorry, but we all know this. Every one of us from the ages of thirteen until our mid twenties were atrocious human beings. If you were to meet you as a teenager you'd instinctually punch yourself in the face. For instance, there's a kid who lives in my area. A year or two ago I was walking out of the alleyway and I saw him and his friend removing a brick from the wall. Me: "Why are you doing that?" Kid: "What?" Me: "Why are you vandalising that wall?" Kid: "We're hiding something." (It's worth pointing out here that they were indeed hiding things behind the loose brickwork.) Me: "Well, what are you hiding?" Kid: (straightfaced) "If we told you that it wouldn't be worth hiding." Now, that's great. I love them when they're like that, but do you know what I saw today? The same kid strolling past with his shirt off, a can of beer in one hand and a cigarette in the other. He made a point of pausing mid stride and spitting. I mean, two people spent twelve years refining this and I'm supposed to give them another ten?
I think kids are awesome. Sure, they have their faults, but compared to the rest of the age groups in the world their faults are minor. They are the only people in this world who are uncorrupted to some degree. They are also the only people who seem to find life to be truly enjoyable and exciting. The look on a kids face the first time he or she sees a giraffe or an elephant is amazing. The only thing that makes kids fucked up is society. Society takes the beauty of that child's mind and molds it into a tool to consume and consume and consume. Kids are amazing little beings until age 11 or 12, then bam, adolescence hits and they start being more and more conditioned. children aren't to blame, how can they know any better when it's all that is being shoved into their faces the moment they turn on tv and watch douchebags on mtv show them how they should live their lives. Those kids you mentioned only think that is cool because their role models tell them it's cool. It's really hard to avoid when tv promotes alcohol and cigarettes and sex and stupidity. A few kids make it out all right, chances are they are the same kids who will be eating shrooms and smoking weed in 10 or so years... or they are just too intelligent to be influenced by all the bullshit. Probably both...
kids are humans: all of the same faults, all of the same beauty. some aspects are still developing and some are disproportionally magnified. the bald greed of a 4 year old is a horrifying thing, left to their own devices they would eat themselves to death rather than share one cracker with their own family. conversely the purity of their love is astounding, to hold them and to feel their heart beating against yours when she whispers "i love you daddy" is to know true unadulterated love. to hate children is to hate ourselves.....something i am as guilty of as anybody. I love and hate my four year old everyday. it is frustration and succor rolled into a single teary eyed, bright faced, mudstained ball. don't get me wrong the whining and the crying make me drink, and the self absorbed nature of children is morbid to the point of criminality. but, as one poster mentioned, thats life.