Creating obedient not thinking and non-critical people…

[Updated August 21, see the end of the posting]. In the morning sofa on Swedish TV this morning: is the government’s investment on uncertain parents* in risk of brushing off old-time’s bringing up of children?

Parents’ uncertainty in dealing with their kids… Yes, how do we deal with our confusion? And where are the roots for this confusion?

I think this fear is reasonable (for neoauthoritarianism and neoconservatism).

The school and child physician Lars H. Gustafsson thinks people want methods (quick-fixes) and wonders:

”Do you want a method for how to be with your husband or your friends?”

He warned for that there is a lot of business in the programs on the market in this area. And he also put emphasis on that there exists a lot of knowledge in the existing profession(s). If he had gotten the money the government is spending now he would want to take care of THAT knowledge.

And yes, that’s true. Came to think on that here they have made cuts in child care, the school and school health care etc. Which means that there are less people (adults) there for the kids. People who have continuous contact with both kids and parents. Being there not just for a parents’ course. But as it is today the people on those places have limited time for each child...

I can’t help thinking quite ironically that what’s done by the government in this case is pure populism? Yes, I get creeps. You want to create obedient and not thinking people (via the parents)???

And who are those programs reaching? The ones that you should need to reach?

And for who are those programs? For the children?

If you really had the children’s best for your eyes I think you would do something entirely else and present this idea in an entirely different way!!! But now those things are done for the parents' sake and "best" and not really for the kids'!? Quite honestly!

Also see postings about conscious and unconscious manipulation.

Addition: On his blog Lars H. Gustafsson wonders when we shall start seeing kids as actors in their own lives and not just as objects for care and health promoting achievements.

And I think he is right that there will probably be reasons to remind about the children’s rights perspective many, many times.

Addition August 21: As my sweetie said

"This is more about PARENTAL RIGHTS than children's!"

Also see the article ”Swedish parenting: Back to a traditional future?”

There you for instance can read:

“It was not until after the end of the Second World War that physical punishment and shaming began to be questioned as methods of parenting in Sweden, Gustafsson writes in 'The return of the naughty step.'

Children's author Astrid Lindgren created the characters of Pippi Longstocking, Emil, Madicken and Ronja and was influential in embedding new attitudes towards children and parenting in the Swedish popular self-identity that led to a re-think in the 1970s and early 1980s./…/

One might ask whether these parenting courses aren't more for the benefit of parents struggling to find a balance to ‘life's puzzle’ in the high-stress, ‘I want it all’ 2000s, than for their children. Children are one more piece of the puzzle needing to be effectively managed; squeezed in alongside a career, a rewarding social life and free-time activities. Hence the focus on controlling behaviour, or perhaps more accurately, output. Gustafsson agrees:

‘The definition of normality has narrowed in today's society. That which was once considered normal is now considered to be deviant. Take sleep for example. Small children sleep badly, that's normal, but parents today live with such tight schedules they cannot run the risk of their child having a bad night's sleep.’

’I miss the children's perspective,’ he concludes.”

Read about limit setting, something that became very popular here during the last last economical crisis almost twenty years ago, here and here.

For what are the limits set and for whom?

It feels as this is more a backlash than a progress in our society!

* Why are parents uncertain? Are nobody wondering? Should we wonder, both as society and as indviduals?

Increasing child abuse...

Göran Harnesk.

[Addition January 31, see the end of this posting]. A Swedish blogger Jenny Westerstrand, PhD in law, wrote an angry blogposting triggered by an article in one of the biggest newspapers in Sweden that the abuse of children is increasing in Sweden. Despite our ban on corporal punishment children are beaten! And this is horrible, and in fact crime! Not only a moral crime. And it causes damage, real physical (neurological) damage. Also see the ACE-study's findings (see link in the labels in the end of this posting!).

”Help, do something!”

she writes (see earlier blogpostings about her writings here). And wishes that any of our most courageous journalists, with sense for justice (and with a hidden camera), would make TV-programs about this.

“It’s so shocking so one want to cry.

Child abuse is increasing and many children are exposed to awful actions [and conditions] by their parents, almost always it’s the father that is the abuser Children’s Right in Society (in Sweden) says.

What are the Swedish men, young as old, doing? Because young women are calling Bris [Children’s Right in Society] and telling that they are abused by their boyfriends too. Why can’t we get any journalism not only telling us about innocent men for a while, but a journalism that sees it from the children’s perspective and dig into the world where violence is an everyday life context for small human beings who are totally defenseless in their own homes, with their own swine skunks to – mostly – fathers.”

Each tenth child is beaten the article says.

The number of children calling Children’s Right in Society to tell about abuse further increased during 2008 (see this report in English). And who are calling? Not the youngest. What are they exposed to?

During the last five years the number has increased with 20 percent.

The Convention of the Rights of the Child says that children has right to become protected from physical and psychological violence (Article19, see here for all the articles).

Last year Children’s Right in Society got almost 22,000 contacts from children and adolescents around Sweden, 30 years after we got the ban on corporal punishment and 20 years after the United Nations Convention of the Right of the Child.

The report from Children’s Right is gloomy reading.

In almost each tenth contact children were telling about physical and psychological abuse. The report is terrifying reading.

Children have told about routine-like violence, where they have become beaten and sometimes even been beaten with weapons like belt and sticks daily, but some have also told about more torture like violence. And some children have also told about how they have become shaken and beaten till they lost the consciousness.

When children are exposed to violence the perpetrator is often a parent, almost always the dad. My addition: but I know of cases where the mother was the main abuser.

According to the report the violence is combined with psychological violence where the children are told that they aren’t loved and worthless and that that’s the reason why they are beaten.

How horrible, and not true! Nobody “deserves” being abused how “worthless” they even are!

Many calls come from young women telling that they have become beaten by their boyfriends. The girl has often moved from home to an older boyfriend (and why is that?) and is exposed to both physical and psychological abuse.

They realize that they maybe are badly treated, but they don’t dare to tell anybody, because they think they have to blame themselves because they have chosen this relation themselves.

One of five children expresses some kind of anxiety. It can be anxiety and agony in children living with violent and abusing parents, worry for friends or anxiety as an expression for psychological ill-health (no wonder the ill-health!).

Some children experience that they are let down by the society. When they have told other adults, as teachers and personnel in social services about the abuse they haven’t gotten any reaction.

“It’s frightening realizing that the children have told something [and somebody] but nothing happens. They are not taken seriously, “

the director-.general for Children’s Rights in Society Göran Harnesk says.

Many children express a fear for the duty to report, a duty which means that all working with children has a duty or obligation to report social evils (bad conditions), because the contact with the parents then is at risk of getting worse.

I would also want to write about an article in Norwegian about “Psychologists are lacking self-knowledge (self-understanding). The psychology profession is lacking capacity to see its own political impact and has overseen the growth of the therapeutically culture.” Addition February 1: see here.

I think they (psychiatrists, psychologists, therapists etc.) too often run the errands of the power! Trying to adapt people to the “culture” in the society and at workplaces (as schools are for children and young people) where they live and work, instead of really questioning it… Are they adapting people to a sick culture that should become changed rather?

Addition January 31: also see this blogposting, about "Normalisation of abuse." I want to write about this posting later too.

(Shock)therapy...

bilder tagna mars 2007 (som det ser ut i år - i februari).

Unga mår allt sämre, se artikel i Aftonbladet:

”Förväntningar på att lyckas och krav på utbildning bakom ungas psykiska ohälsa enligt folkhälsoinstitutet.

Förverkliga dig själv och bli en stjärna.

Annars är du ingen alls.

Samhället ger tusen möjligheter men för den som inte lyckas blir tillvaron svår.

Det är en förklaring till att Sveriges unga mår allt sämre, säger Sven Bremberg på Folkhälsoinstitutet till aftonbladet.se.

Världen ligger öppen för en 15-åring. Du kan bli en framgångsrik artist, en välkänd journalist eller en spännande person som sett hela världen.

Det enda som hindrar dig är du själv. Det kallas individualisering. Det är en fantastisk möjlighet men också en förklaring till att alltfler unga mår psykiskt dåligt, har ångest, går i självmordstankar och skadar sig själva. /…/

’ Sverige är nog det land i världen som kommit längst när det gäller individualisering. Det ställer högre krav på ungdomar i det här landet än på många andra håll.’ /…/

Var samhället bättre för de unga förr, när möjligheterna inte var lika många?

’På ett sätt var det enklare förr. Men det är det här samhället vi har nu och som vi har strävat efter. Istället för att kämpa för att få mat och kläder kan vi rikta in oss på att förverkliga oss själva.’”

Signalen till barn och ungdomar, vilken är den? Du duger och är bra som du är??

Här ungdomarnas egna berättelser.

Göran Greider skriver också idag i ledare "Kall BRIS..." om BRIS-rapporten ovan och om hur unga mår:

”Genom åren har det ofta klagats högljutt över företagsklimatet i det här landet. Mer sällan talas det i politiken om barnklimatet, trots att det borde vara viktigare än någonting annat.”

I en annan artikel står också att psykiatriska droger står bakom 75 % av alla självmord bland kvinnor.

Det står i artikeln (min amatöröversättning):

”’Kvinnorna sökte hjälp – och de fick psykiatrisk medicin,’ för att förhindra självmord och kurera depression sa psykiatriker och läkemedelsbolag.

Det handlade inte om avsaknad av behandling för 377 kvinnor som begick självmord. Nästan en av fem (18 %) fick åtminstone tre psykiatriska mediciner (antidepressiva, neuroleptiska, hypno/sedativa); 41 % fick åtminstone två."

De data som samlats gör att man vill gå ut med direktiv att inkludera varningar för ökad risk för självmordstankar och beteenden för ALLA antidepressiva medel, inte bara för barn och unga, utan också för unga vuxna.

Det står vidare (min översättning):

”I åratal har läkemedelsföretag använt ’utpressningsstrategier’ för att få doktorer och ledsna patienter att tro att de MÅSTE använda medicin – annars. Ledande psykiatriker med finansiella intressen av ökad försäljning har ändlöst skrivit om de ‘skyddande effekterna’ av antidepressiv medicin mot självmord i medicinska journaler.

Skamlöst falska påståenden att psykiatrisk/a medicin/droger korrigerar en kemisk obalans (som avsaknad av serotonin) i hjärnan är fortfarande en del i den officiella drogkategoriseringen./../

Slutsatsen från nu avslöjade data kan bara bli en: i bästa fall kan psykiatriska droger/medicin inkluderande antidepressiv medicin, inte förhindra självmord och, i sämsta fall direkt orsaka dem.”

Vad skulle dessa barn, unga och unga vuxna egentligen behöva??

Och på nyheterna imorse pratade de om Carl Bildts och Beatrice Asks artikel i DN att "Samlad svensk strategi ska bekämpa terrorismen"... Jag slog av TV:n, orkade inte höra mer om det... De skriver bland annat:

”Under 1990-talet har terrorismen blivit en alltmer global företeelse och de metoder som används har blivit allt svårare att bemöta och skydda sig mot. Det allvarligaste hotet kommer i dag från grupper som vill rättfärdiga våld och försöker rekrytera självmordsbombare med hänvisning till extrema uttolkningar av islam.

De stora terroristattentaten i europeiska länder under de senaste åren - särskilt attentaten i Madrid och London - innebar en allvarlig upptrappning av terroristhotet också i vår del av världen.

Trots att det direkta terroristhotet mot Sverige och svenska intressen alltjämt bedöms vara relativt lågt, vore det naivt att tro att det som har hänt i våra grannländer inte kan hända också här.”

Jag utgöt mig åt en person på nätet, i ren uppgivenhet och trötthet, vilken svarade (på engelska, min översättning):

”Rigida och konservativa personer sådana som Carl Bildt vill ha fiender. Nu när det kalla kriget är över och det inte finns några krig i Europa att sticka sin näsa i, vill de ha terrorister. Det finns inga terroristhot och terrorister kan aldrig förebyggas hur stor arsenal av förtryckande vapen och teknologi det än finns. Vad de gör är att få människor rädda därför att rädda personer är lättare att kontrollera. Det är hela idén bakom det.”

Ja, det är en variant av chockterapin som Naomi Klein skriver om i ”Chockdoktrinen”??? Hör dessa ting ihop?? Folk ska hållas tysta och lugna och snälla, med droger av olika slag?

Se tidigare inlägg under kategorin "shock therapy" och "shock doctrine". Och tidigare inlägg om "Andnöd".

I wikipedia står det om förtryck/oppression:

“Oppression is the act of using power to empower and/or privilege a group at the expense of disempowering, marginalizing, silencing, and subordinating another. It is particularly closely associated with nationalism and derived social systems, wherein identity is built by antagonism to the other. The term itself derives from the idea of being ‘weighted down.’”

Se ”More about touching and the need for attention…” och Alice Miller om de politiska konsekvenserna av kränkningar/övergrepp/misshandel på barn.