political differences with your kids

I wonder if there's an element of adolescent rebellion involved, him trying to establish his own position in distinction from his parents.

it would be weird if there wasn't

lol @ communism

ask him what he thinks about the Frankfurt School, then you'll know for sure

I know at least one guy he's been friends with since elementary school comes from a very conservative family. I don't really know any of his other friends because he doesn't bring anyone around the house anymore. He just goes off into the neighborhood with his little bmx gang.

It's interesting, because he used to spend TONS of time with my MIL and FIL (they live a few blocks away). He'd go over every week to watch football and baseball, but stopped doing so recently and I couldn't figure out why. They are both fairly middle-of-the-road Dems, but also on a very surface-level, repeating the talking points from the news, "Oh boy, that Trump..." kinda people. I'm a Dem too obvs but talking politics with them often stretches my patience. I disagree with my son's opinions, but like I said upthread, he's bright and intellectually curious and good at arguing points. If he's been harboring conservative ideas, I imagine they'd be absolutely unbearable to be around.

this is an interesting thread, NV's initial reply rings true to me (not a parent, though)

I think it's a bit of red herring, as in not as important as it may seem - as long as there's love and kindness, maybe it doesn't really matter if he believes the Vietnam war was just

iirc I was a Mao apologist around age 14 though I knew hardly anything about Chinese history, throughout my life I've had plenty of wacky ideas - fortunately very few of them turned out to be dangerous since I was never in any real position of power

I think my advice would be to encourage him to read books, I think books are very valuable resources in developing the idea that the world is very complex (and I think, in a way, books can be a kind of anti-dote to the internet) (of course there are also plenty of shit books but no need to recommend those)

The books idea is a really good one! I might have to think about that a little more.

iirc I was a Mao apologist around age 14 though I knew hardly anything about Chinese history, throughout my life I've had plenty of wacky ideas -

Heh, yeah. Something is emerging out of the fog of my memory where I dropped some teenage communist knowledge at the dinner table and my old man (who, as stated above, has always been a very progressive guy) had to give me some guidance.

How's life, from a neurological view, you don't need to worry too much. I can't explain it much better than this so:

"Imaging studies of the teenage brain show that it undergoes a colossal makeover between ages 12 and 25. During this period, the brain doesn’t grow in size. Instead, it extensively rewires itself. Scientists once thought this reorganization meant that the adolescent brain was a work in progress, and the rewiring could account for teens’ inconsistency, their incomprehensible and terrifying (at least to adults) risk taking and recklessness, and their near-desperate need to be with peers.

New research suggests there’s more to the story. As National Geographic writer David Dobbs explains, researchers have begun to view

“recent brain and genetic findings in a brighter, more flattering light, one distinctly colored by evolutionary theory. The resulting account of the adolescent brain—call it the adaptive-adolescent story—casts the teen less as a rough draft than as an exquisitely sensitive, highly adaptable creature wired almost perfectly for the job of moving from the safety of home into the complicated world outside.”"

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/a-new-view-of-the-teenage-brain-adaptation-is-job-1-201110013505

I mean i would interpret that as a prime time to maybe not debate but express differing viewpoints with your kiddo if only for the sake of learning that you don't need to be offended or aggressive about someone else's point of view?

Thanks, sunny!

Niels - Cant wrap my head around a kid finding Maoism attractive in any way except as a way to piss people off.

If you go carrying pictures of Chairman Mao, you ain't gonna make it with anyone anyhow.

I didn't know anything about Maoism! (Still don't!)

I just decided to become a hippie/socialist since it seemed the countercultural thing to do (also seemed in accordance with my values/upbringing and the music + parties were great) and I found a book on socialism in the library which was very apologetic about every socialist/communist regime and I internalized that apologism, I guess

agree completely w/ Lennon

reason I remember the Maoism thing is that I had a friend who had been to China and who was like Niels you don't understand anything about Chinese history and frankly it's disturbing the way you defend Communist China and instead of accepting her very valid points I deferred to poor paraphrasing of something I read in a probably very unreliable socialist history book

I've discovered over the past few weeks that his friend group (who he NEVER brings by our house - he's always just "going out" and roaming the neighborhood) is pretty racially diverse. That puts to rest the worst of my fears - that the conservative tendencies he has shown would draw back and reveal some white ethnostate alt-right maniac. If I don't have that to worry about, I feel so much better about him sorting out his political positions on his own, or with his friends and classmates.

Yay!