Is it standard practice to put your kids in strait jackets?
Because a store in Brazil seems to think it is [link]. They're marketing a new range of toddler equipment called "control toys", which includes a teddy bear patterned strait jacket, a purple highchair with pink arm and leg shackles, and smiley face ball and chain with convenient ankle strap!
Hmm, well I suppose that's one way to make sure the kids don't mess up the house.
The kids in the pictures all look terrifyingly happy, even the one they've got strapped into the the disturbingly titled "Baby Trap Chair". Colour me suspicious, but I don't think I've ever met a three year old that would have been happily and willingly shoved into a strait jacket, strapped to a chair or shackled to a giant grinning ball.
But then again, is it really any different to the kid leashes people sometimes use? I recall my parents using them when I was a toddler, and I turned out okay. I know there's a lot of criticism aimed at parents who use them, but I'm not sure I think it's a bad thing. Is it really that different to making a child hold your hand?
But if we're being realistic I suppose we have to acknowledge that there's an enormous difference between hooking a curly plastic phone cord to the back of your kid's backpack and strapping a toddler's arms and legs to a chair.
Okay, okay, I'll admit it, they're not real products. It was just a practical joke played by the store. They set up the display and then recorded the reactions of the people who came in. When the outraged shoppers picked up the boxes they found an advertising message on the back that said "There are better ways to discipline your child ... watch Super Nanny".
Well that's a bit harsh. What could the kids have possibly done that would deserve having to watch Super Nanny? That show is awful!
