What I mean by that is, people tiptoe around their kids so much these days because they're afraid literally everything might "traumatize" them.
Like, for instance, when I was a kid I watched the brave little toaster......It scared the fudge out of me, but, I don't regret it......Much.
And there are lots of other scary or emotional shows or movies that I watched as a kid, but, I feel them made me better in a way.More emotionally mature, ready to deal with things like this were I to ever encounter them in the future.

On the flip-side, not too long ago, we had people complaining about Pixar's "the good dinosaur" because there was a scene in the movie that made kids sad.Claiming that it was emotionally troubling or some such nonsense .I say, if you can't tell the difference between moving and "emotionally scarring" then I think you should check when the last time you felt an emotion was (I'd love to see how these people would react to old yeller, heh).

Anyway, in the long run, I don't see this helping kids.I see them growing up to be the same sheltered pampered little brats the were when they were kids.Thinking the world owes them kindness and respect because they never grew out of that phase when they were kids.They were never told they had to because "that would traumatize them".So those same people grow up and treat their own kids the same way and so on and so on, and I don't see anything good coming from that.

So I'd like to hear your thoughts on the matter.How were you brought up as a kid?How much were your parents willing to expose you to?Do you feel that your childhood experience prepared you for at least a few of life's problems?I mean, that's what childhood is right?A time to learn about the world around you before you're thrust into it to fend for yourself.Either way, I'd like to know your opinions.

I don't know what it was like for kids growing up 2 or 3 generations ago, but I can speak for what it's like for me and my fellow Gen Zers.

Kids are certainly not sheltered these days because it's impossible to be sheltered. Even my toddler cousin halfway across the world in a second-world country has access to an iPad, a Mac, and a plasma TV- a world without the internet is unknown to them (and me). I have seen some of my friends with ultra-strict parents that restrict their access to just about everything fun like computers and partying and limit their smartphone use. And guess what? They post pictures of themselves getting wasted at jams to their 1000+ followers on Instagram and Snapchat.

And that's not bad necessarily. Such experience prepares one for a much less restricted life after education. That's how I was (or rather, am being) brought up and I can tell you how much seeing some of the world's rawness helps you out with making tough decisions and preparing for the future.

Conversely, I feel parents are too lax on their kids doing inappropriate stuff on the web and in real life. I can't tell you how many times I've seen kids heckling innocent bystanders at Walmart with catchphrases of Youtube Minecraft players and their parents timidly trying to calm them down. This isn't limited to my area either- I've witnessed this in multiple cities and towns across several nations.

What I'm trying to say is while it's foolish and useless to shield a kid from the real world, parents have to keep an eye on how it's their offspring are being affected and to keep them in check.

If it's with things like TV and movies, I think that sheltering them like that is dumb. Just because something has a rating too high for them doesn't mean that they can't watch it at all. People were complaining about an episode of Gravity Falls recently, which is on Disney XD, and those people were right away shot down because apparently they had no idea how ratings work.

I don't think kids are too sheltered, actually just the opposite. I think the parents of today aren't involved enough in what their kids are exposed to or they simply don't care. For example, I have a niece who is now 17, but when she was a child, around 7 or 8, she was exposed to many shows involving sex, gore, and tons of swearing. Her mother, my sister, simply didn't care. It's easier for some to put a child in front of a t.v. and walk away.

Now, my niece is a good kid, but there's no reason to have exposed her to such things at such an early and impressionable age. I think judging each child/teen/young adult individually and gauging their maturity level is important before exposing them to the elements of the world. It helps to keep open communication, show expectations, and define boundaries. How they will view/understand what a healthy relationship is, whether it be platonic or romantic, how they interact with and treat others (strangers and friends), and what they'll view as wrong and right, can all be altered and twisted by the media, people you bring over, and their peers.

Basically, communicate with your kids and try to gauge what they should be able to handle. Discuss what you're watching and who they are interacting with.

As for your comments on kids feeling sad or angry or any other feeling. There's nothing wrong with a child experiencing emotions, it's healthy in my eyes. Of course, like a broken record, discuss it with your kids if you or they feel deeply affected by something.

I know not everyone shares these views, but they are mine based on my own personal experiences. 

I'm some ways I do, and in some I don't. In today's society, kids are trying to grow up way too fast, and are exposed to a lot of things a lot earlier than the generations before them.

That being said, kids now are more likely to live at home with their parents into their 20's and sometimes even later and really a lot of them hardly go outside for anything. In that regard, people are a lot more sheltered than they were 20, 30 years ago.

Spidey243 : As one of those kids from this generation with an overcautious parent I assure you it does nothing. In elementary  school, second grade, I got called a p*ssy more than any other insult. Your kids are NOT innocent.

I personally don't believe in sheltering children because I think it stunts them. On the other hand, you have to make a distinction between exposure and education. My neighbors 3 year old daughter was running around calling her dad a fa**** in the front yard to the top of her lungs. It's not a case of too much or not enough sheltering as it is being totally disconnected and uninvolved with them. I don't think anyone should ever underestimate a kids ability to understand. Believe me, I know who I was when I was little. As far as trauma goes, as long as you don't raise your kid to be a total wuss, it shouldn't be an issue.

In some cases yeah I think people shelter children to much all this video games promote violence and obesity is absolutely rubbish, its all about moderation, and kids retaliate and end up acting out worse than kids were 10-20 years ago, they are more corrupt and rude, thinking they own the place. 

On top of all that social services make it worse, that you cant discipline your children either. That apparently shouting at your kid for being dangerously stupid is child abuse never mind spanking them. And yet people wonder why kids have no respect or responsibility of their actions. They just don't give a flying hoot about anything.

And another thing what is it with parents giving they're 5 year old children iphones and blackberries of their own what use does a child that young need a mobile phone for. 

With the "People scared of things in media traumatizing kids" its just people trying to find something to complain about because they have nothing better to do other than taking care of kids.  

While I can't summon everyone because the summoning system apparently hates me, I got a lot of good insight into differing opinions on this.Some people apparently do think that parents shelter their kids too much, while other think that they protect them too little.Me, I think I can't see where both sides are coming from here.

I think it's really an issue of finding a balance between overprotecting and probably peaking a kid's curiosity and leading him/her to poke into things that really should be kept away from them and not caring what they are exposed to at all.

However, I do think that some people actively target certain things just to nit-pick about them.Even one little throwaway scene or line of dialog that sounds weird if you play if backwards and fast-forward it, is a horrible disaster.But, The glut of toys based on PG-13 movies that are marketed to 4-5 year olds is just business as usual.

So I think people both pay too little attention to their kids and this, in turn, leads to parents overcompensating for that thinking that rather than carefully deciding what their child should and shouldn't see, an overzealous blanket solution will work just as well.And, of course these same people want to impose this view point on kids as a whole because they know what kids want darn it!And that's what really causes a lot of problems.

I don't know if ALL kids are too sheltered, but those that ARE have become a pain in the rear end.

More and more censorship is creeping in everywhere in order to create "safe spaces" in order not to hurt people's feelings. I mean, COME ON! Pardon the language, but such thinking can only be from weaklings. I am not talking about harassment of bullying, both of which should be addressed because they are totally uncalled for.

Safe spaces basically let people live in their bubble, shielded from opposing views that disturb their peace. There are more and more reports of Twitter de-verifying controversial conservatives (when it's not completely shutting down their accounts) whose mere words - that were not aimed at anyone in particular - were enough to "trigger" a reaction from over sensitive users.

This is not a way to have a better society. If anything, this is 1984 taking one more foot hold in our reality. Either it's our ideas or we will hunt you down. This should scare everyone, conservatives and liberals alike, because who know if your ideas will be censored next...

So as long as someone doesn't advocate violence against someone's life or property, let people say whatever they want and stop isolating your children from "disturbing" views you personally don't like. So what if they realize that such policy is bad and should be taken down?

janus : I know exactly what you mean.I don't know if you remember, but, not too long ago people were making a huge fuss about this T-shirt that said young aspiring artist President/Astronaut to the point where they had to pull if from the shelves.Really?You can't even make an innocent joke without somebody taking offence to it?

It wasn't even like is was a malicious comment or anything.Apparently if you say that you prefer one profession over another, you have to clarify that there's nothing better about it, otherwise it's a malevolent insult toward anyone who has an opposite opinion.

I think they have been for the most part. Kids today do not know the meaning of pain. To them,their meaning of a tough time is going without their smart phone for a few hours. Them not being able to check their FB is their idea of hell. And let us not forget the new kid on the block...cyber bullying. Christ...Real bullying is doing it to your face,either with words or fists or them actively messing with you after the school day. Cyber bullying,all you have to do is not look at it and it loses its power.

I mean,you cannot discipline your kids,you cannot have them do anything as punishment,hell,you can't even yell at your kids if they are being stupid in public. They will grow up very spoiled and entitled and think the world owes them. That is a dangerous precedent. And let's not forget how butthurt kids are nowadays. If you say something mean to them or whatnot,that makes the kid a walking trigger warning. And kids are way too quick to pick up a gun and spray lead randomly instead of confronting the person in question and asking for a retraction or just settle it with a fight,then it is over.

Now,I was bullied as a kid,I was made fun of,but I did not want to shoot up my school. I hated the other kids for it and I let them know it by words or fists. I think that if the school drags the kids that are fighting to an UFC style cage,make them both sign a waiver under parental permission,give the little bastards full protective gear,and let them figure it out in the cage that would be better than a bunch of soft weak kids walking around and snapping. Even if the kid lost the fight,at least he had the stones to walk in the cage and settle it.

My peers today fear the inevitable. My peers are too afraid to throw themselves into life's most miserable experiences and fail. They are scared to become failures and because of that they believe they are sheltered from the most gruesome facts of life but in reality they aren't. In fact they are more prone to these aspects and life throws itself at them when they're least prepared. That's what makes life so dangerous because my peers would rather be life's quarry. 

I can't really make a point here that hasn't already been made, so I'll just go with the simple answer of no. Kids are fascinated by what they're not "supposed" to know or see, and will always find ways to learn about it one way or another. My parents tried their best to shelter me from most "bad" things in life, and it just made me weaker in the long run. I've since adapted, but when reality first came crashing down, it wasn't quite as easy.

To be honest I would have to say no, even if kids want to be sheltered they won't because the parent's wont let them. They will teach them what it means to survive in this modern age, which will require telling them about the annoying chore that life is.

18mlivingston : Well, most parents do, but, unfortunately, there are some parents who make their kids feel like their entitled to everything in life, and they grow up to bee spoiled brats.And it's not just the rich kids either.But, I am glad that there are still people who understand that this doesn't help kids in the long run