Keeping them busy

I have got to complain about this.  Really.  I mean, it may be a little hypocritical, but still.

I remember when Ladybug first came home I swore I would not get a DVD player for the car.  I did not have one as a kid...she did not need one for the car.  And then I got one.  She is allowed to use it for long car rides only.  It is not mounted.  Let me define "long car ride" for you: anything over 12 hours.  I can not listen to her music for 12 hours and I need some peace (I do some of my best thinking on the road).  She even knows better than to ask for it for anything other than a long car ride.

But I have to say that I am rather horrified at the number of children who are purposefully pacified by electronics.  Last month I took Ladybug to get her flu vaccine at the doctors.  We waited in the pediatrics office, let me repeat that PEDIATRICS OFFICE.  There were plenty of families there waiting for appointments of one kind of another.  Parents and kids.  The oldest child there was about 7 (just guessing, did not take a survey) but most were under the age of 4 years old.  Not one, again, NOT ONE, child was empty handed (except mine).  They had hand held games, small computers, iPads, cell phones (their own or their parents).  All were playing games.  Ladybug felt left out.

I recently bought a new phone -- it was time for an upgrade.  I went in with my list of requirements and talked to someone about the possibilities.  With the list of phones (which was short) I went home and researched them online.  I read customer reviews.  The phone I ended up buying had one major fault by those who reviewed it.  No games.  NO GAMES!  It is a phone.  Not a gaming system.  When the sales clerk asked me what I wanted the phone to do I responded, "Make and answer phone calls."  Really.  Why does my phone need games?  Oh, so I can let my child play mind numbing games while in public so everyone things I have a well behaved child.

But the most shocking thing I saw recently is this...  I was out to dinner for the office Christmas party.  I had dropped Ladybug off for an overnight with a friend (another single mom who agreed to share with me as her Christmas party was the following night).  We went to a nice, but still family friendly restaurant.  We were sitting, chatting, drinking, waiting for our food when the table next to us was seated with 3 couples and a baby.  By "baby" let me define: less than 6 months.  They say hello and sit.  Then the mom of this baby begins hauling out the "necessary" equipment.  Which included... a DVD player.  A DVD player!!  For a 6 month old!!!  Really!

Am I the only one who sees a problem with this?

Mean Mama