You are very right on some of the points you've emphasized. I like that. i don't want to be controversial in anyway, but as a Nigerian, I grew up in a family where the opinion of every member was taken into consideration whether old or young. And that independent thinking has really helped me a lot in life. Maybe I was lucky,. but I have had the opportunity to make my own decisions and take responsibility for it knowing that my family supported it. I guess it's time we actually start enabling a new generation of "free- thinkers' because that is the only way we can succeed anywhere in the world, whether home or abroad. If you don't trust a child to take responsibility for his actions at some point , he would hardly become a problem solver. I hope we the new generation can bring up our children differently. At the end of the day, everyone would bear most of the consequencies of the decisions they made, or that was made for them at some point in their lives. @illiminatus thanks for sharing! As a Nigerian, it's heart-warming for me to know you raised these issues. Have a lovely weekend!