They're so casual about child abuse

Boomer Story

Yesterday my husband and I went to get ice cream in a nice area downtown by the river. Lots of tourists out and about, but thankfully the shop was relatively empty. We are the only ones in line while we were choosing our flavors when a Boomer couple walked in. The husband goes straight to the bathroom (it's for paying customers only) and the wife goes in line the wrong way to stand over my shoulder to see the flavors. Whatever. We are picking our flavors when she walks around us and does the same thing, leaning basically in front of my husband to look. They didn't get anything, but instead head back outside and sit in the shop's tables out front. It's a nice spot, but still, rude to not get anything.

We take up seats in a corner and are eating when I notice a large family is headed in. They're all ordering while the mom is trying to wrangle her youngest into a high chair. He is fussing and begins crying. I am fine with kids, but the shop is small, so we decided to head out. Kid is still crying as we are passing the Boomer couple (now chatting with other Boomers) and we overhear their conversation:

"Oh sounds like someone didn't get the flavor they wanted!"

"That would never be me, if my kids had acted like that I would have beat their ass!"

My husband loudly mocks them by parroting what they said back to them with a "ha-ha-ha isn't child abuse FUNNY?"

Edit: reading through comments and I'm so sorry to all of you who have experienced abuse as children under the guise of "discipline." My older gen x mother also hit me with a flyswatter, but my friend was hit repeatedly with a belt then forced to do push ups. I am so grateful to see we are changing and breaking the generational trauma.

in BoomersBeingFoolsby Consistent-Exit6813

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biteme789

187

12d

My boomer dad stopped hitting me when I finally hit him back

PhoenixIzaramak

12d

I was 14, a martial artist, and as gently as possible pinned my mother to the floor and told her I was not here to have done whatever it was she was attempting to punish me for, and I would let her back up the MOMENT she was ready to discuss why she was having such a bad day that she felt the need to beat me. Never happened again. Also Gen X.

designsbyintegra

12d

Also a martial artist, and unfortunately my dad had a mean streak when he drank. As a child I had stuff thrown at me, my toys smashed in front of me and a host of other shit that isn’t necessarily to rehash. He went on a bender and I was 14. He pulled the throw shit trick, I ducked and lunged at him. Took him down as gently as I could and we had a heart to heart chat, that was one sided. That one side being mine.

PhoenixIzaramak

11d

I'm sorry your father wasn't a decent person, or willing to try to be one. That is a hell far too common in this world.

My mom was, when she wasn't having an episode, generally a gentle person. The intersections of all her illnesses caused her rage to spike like that. It does not excuse the behavior, but she could be reasoned with if you could get her calm and she would STOP. One of her illnesses was a brittle bone disease, it did not contribute to the violence. So when I say AS GENTLY AS POSSIBLE, i'm not being ironic or understating the effort to protect her. I protected her from herself til she passed of complications of her illnesses this year, I'm in my late middle age now.

Abuse as a result of disease is just as unacceptable as abuse as a result of deliberate cruelty, which you clearly endured. You, and everyone in this thread with stories, deserved infinitely more gentleness in your upbringings. I do, too. I hope we all find our blueprints for peaceful lives that are fulfilling and safe.