Experi-Mental Parents

I usually try not to judge other parents as practically every parent will find several parenting methods objectionable. I mean, I am a gay parent, so just that there will invoke the ire of many parents around the world. The fact that I feed my son only Kitkats and Coca Cola might make other parents displeased.

But then there are Kathy Witterick and David Stocker who raise their children gender-less.

http://www.parentcentral.ca/parent/babiespregnancy/babies/article/995112

Baby Storm and his dad.

Baby Storm's gender is a secret carefully guarded by his parents HE'S A BOY, DON'T TELL ANYBODY!!! and known only to a few people. The excuse? To let Storm decide his own gender identity and avoid social stereotypes.

I think they should also cover him in a dark rubber suit so no one will know the baby's race and he could also decide his own race identity. I wish I grew up to be a Chinese woman, but my parents shoved my Russian-Jew-Male identity down my throat. It is still a sore subject that still comes up every Passover meal and turns into a big fight.

The couple's older two boys are encouraged to experiment with their looks and they braid their hair and wear pink dresses. They all co-sleep together on two mattresses pulled together and the kids are "unschooled" which from my understanding is a lot like home-schooling only without tests, report cards, textbooks or any gain of knowledge. I think unschooling is all about throwing crayons at each other and running around in circles while chewing toilet paper, but I could be wrong and some additional research into the subject might be required.

This is all wishy-washy, hippy-trippy, pretentious crap. If only those parents chose to express their "quirkiness" through themselves or through their pets, but not their children.

For one thing, one might think that using your children as guinea pigs for a social experiment is not a great idea. It is very nice trying to break down the doors of conventions and stereotypes, but use your own children as battering rams?

“What we noticed is that parents make so many choices for their children. It’s obnoxious,” says Stocker.

If I let Blake make his own choices he'd be running into the middle of a busy road to get a better view of his favourite cars and buses, play his iPod until his eyeballs would explode, live on jaffa cakes and french fries, sleep in our bed until he is sixty and would relinquish the use of his legs in favour of travelling full-time on my shoulders for the rest of my life. Worst of all, he would chain me to the X-Box 360 and make me play Forza Motorsport III for his viewing pleasure until my arms fall off.

Baby Storm and hisbrother, Jazz.

We all have a gender. With the exception of transsexuals who feel trapped in the wrong body and can nowadays do something about it, most of us don't really have a problem with what's dangling (or as the case may be, not dangling) between our legs. There is no need to confuse gender identity with gender roles. Why not just raise your children with complete freedom and protect them from gender stereotypes and leave it at that?

Like most gay parents, I am also a bit worried of the possibility that Blake will be bullied for having gay parents. Sending my boy out into the world in a pink puffy dress and braids would make me very nervous. But I guess "unschooling" takes care of any risk of bullying by plucking the boys from the real world and storing them in a pink bubble until further notice.

I wonder what would happen to these three boys when they grow up. Will the experiment be a success? Or will they find themselves unprepared to join the real world? Will the kids grow up to be grateful for their unique parents who gave them the freedom to become who they were meant to be, or will they resent their parents and trash them in a tell-all book? Is it really worth the risk? Gambling with your own kids?

I think these parents are attention seeking morons who want to be noticed, hence the many interviews with them all over the world (just google their names). Won't be surprised to see a book pop up on Amazon soon as well. The problem is, why use the kids? If you look at the picture daddy is wearing jeans and has short hair. Is he surrendering to gender and social stereo-types, or is he really that boring that he doesn't feel need to braid his hair and wear pink tutu to work? At least wear a silly hat for Christ's sake. He's not even trying.

I don't doubt they love their children I wish them all the best, but it's all a little bit too creepy, weird and disturbing.

Bottom line: parents should prepare their children for the real world. Not the other way around.

With that said, I decided to retroactively make my own gender a secret. I am not going to reveal it, so stop pestering me, perverts!

Mickey