If this is your child because of YOUR social media addiction,

FUCK YOU.

The first thing angered parents often say is "Don't you dare tell me how to raise my kids."

My response: "Put your damn devices down and actually raise your kids."

Catch the double entendre?

People are often defensive when they're emotional or insecure, which means they're probably ashamed that there's some truth to it. Regardless, for the kids, calm down and rationally think about whether there's any truth to the advice before shutting down.

Where are your priorities these days? The best time to fix them is now.

If this is you above, or you're naive enough to not know for sure, don't even finish reading this. Go hug your kids.

In the long run, your children are likely going to emulate you, or they may retaliate if they're smart enough to reject the selfish norms they were exposed to without an escape.

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Some raw authentic background:

I was a kid whose Father was always away for business. For example, I once famously called his secretary when I was little to schedule a baseball catch, and she was so moved that she stormed into his office to tell him that things needed to change. He changed jobs shortly after, but it wasn't enough to address the lifetime of lies he kept from me that came out when he disowned me shortly before his death.

He resented me from top to bottom because I rejected the norms and expectations he forced upon me, yet here I am -- working for myself for over 5 years after quitting from golden handcuffs at a bank most people beg to work for. It was a losing battle with him because I was dealing with the projection of his own Father's emotional and verbal abuse on me. The buck stops with me, but I'll be damned if I keep quiet when I see Steem constables and leaders giving anyone shit when they're clearly setting a terrible example for their kids. Everything is on the blockchain, so their kids will see one day. Wonderful.

Anyway, one of the last things I said to him in defense of his attack before we barely spoke again with his cancer-riddled brain losing grip was that "I spent my entire life trying to not be like you." Whether or not he was physically capable of understanding my point, it came out naturally because that was the truth. I saw him stressed and distracted from work (think: today's social media here), have two heart attacks, be enslaved to his bosses, and often be too tired to do much when he got home.

I did forgive him on his death bed, the hardest thing I've ever done in my entire life (to give him peace in exchange for my suffering), but I tried to do the right thing in the moment. He didn't deserve it. I deserved the peace.

Sob story... no. Truth... yes.

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Back to the main point:

My last post got me fired up on this clear-cut issue which you may appreciate if this is up your alley:

"A Developing Social Media Bubble - Are You Using It To COMPLIMENT Your Life, Or Using It To COVER UP Your Life?? A Potentially Pyrrhic Victory"

Anyway, I see people posting images of their kids without any concern for the risks this poses for them. It's cute clickbait or maybe art, but it's also fairly unwise.

I've also seen several Steemians in person consumed with Steem drama and can only extrapolate to imagine that this happens at home, where their families suffer more. Even if they're spending time with them, their minds may very well be preoccupied or stressed, so that the children aren't getting the quality attention and love they deserve. I pray that I'm wrong, but where there's smoke, there's fire.

Alright! A whale upvote and I got retweeted!!

^{Lord help us.}

I don't have kids. Maybe I'm not allowed to say anything, but too bad. Post and politic publicly with monetary gain, and you're likely to get some normal objections. Do it repeatedly and eventually some questions may need to be raised.

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It's time to stick a fork in it:

If parents are religiously blogging, Steeming, Tweeting, on Instagram, vlogging, or consuming social media for whatever reason, they're CLEARLY not spending quality time with their children.

There are exceptions, but they're rare. Likewise, as @mineopoly pointed out on my last post, parents are most certainly influencing their offspring that this disconnected and self-absorbed nature is normal, and it's certainly NOT. It needs to stop. It isolates them. It makes them feel unimportant and sad. Ironically, that's exactly what many social media maniacs are trying to address like a drug online. It hurts yourself and others around you, but social media seems a bit more important on the priority list for some -- or it's hard not to think that.

Don't have kids? How about how this impacts your spouse or significant other? Same thing.

Do you think the hundreds of hours a year you pour down the drain to build your "brand" and "investments" could've been better spent with your loved ones and/or friends to keep relations strong?

The answer is a resounding YES.

Wake up. Do something about this if this even remotely sounds like you. If not, well I just wanted to write my thoughts out in case it helped someone.

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Thoughts? Too strong? Right on the money?

Something has to give.

@steemmatt