Children and the War

I have been wondering how our children are viewing this war in Iraq. I dont have any children myself, but I have been curious if kids are paying attention to all of the media coverage of the war and if so, what are their thoughts and opinions.

Do any of you have children, and if so do they seem interested in whats going on in Iraq? Do you permit them to watch? Even if you dont have kids, if you did, would you permit them to watch everything unfolding on TV? If I had kids, I think I would probably let them watch if they were interested, but I would make sure I was there to watch it with them so (1) if there was something I didn't want them to see then I could change the channel and (2) if they had any questions hopefully I could try to make sense of what they are seeing because we all know we cant believe everything that we hear.

I think it could be alot to handle for a child, they must wonder why we are there dropping bombs and fighting, and even if you tried to explain, do you think they would understand? I guess alot depends on their age how well they comprehend what is going on and why we are over there. I was born in 1970 so I was obviously too young to remember Vietnam and was old enough when we had the last Gulf war so I never really experienced war as a child.

I don't have children yet (the first is due in August .) However, I have mixed feelings about allowing children to view the war on T.V. I believe that children view enough violence on ficticious T.V. shows and video games, which I think, desensitizes them to some extent. I think that if you allowed them to view the war live they might not be able to differntiate as to rather or not what they were viewing was a "show" or was real. If hey are cognizant that the images they are viewing are of actual people dying I think it would be overwhelming for the majority of children and they would not be able to properly process what they were seeing. If, on the other hand, they are not aware that what they are watching is real it might serve to desensitize them even more.
So no, I would not let my children watch the war. I would, however, explain to them what was going on should they be curious and try to comfort them if they were fearful.
Hope this makes sense.
My $.50 worth ($.02 with inflation)

I know children who are deeply involved in politics. They sit dwon and debateover their views. Sadly there are children I met who do not even know who the governor of Pennsylvannia is, and that is their own governor too!

I think it is okay to let kids watch the war. Too few kids know what is going on around them.

I think a lot of this also depends on the age group are discussing. I was assuming young, say 6-12, where they would have little understanding of the concepts involved in war. Now if you are talking about teens I think alot would have to depend on the maturity level. Even if it was a mature teen I would still be inclined to limit the viewing of live killing.

Several kids that I "mother" are in the military. Their reactions vary from dislike intensely to support intensely.

As to the rest, children take their cues from their parents. Mine were little during the first Gulf War (which I did support because we were defending an attack.) I sat them down and we watched some of the tv (I knew they'd hear about it) and we discussed why we were going in and what was happening. We did discuss casualties, and what might be done for the children there in Kuwait and Iraq.

We did not:
- buy guns and start talking about losing our freedoms
- buy gas masks
- set aside survival supplies
- make it a constant topic
- read religious verses
- read books about armageddon scenarios.

If you panic and obsess and depress, I can guarantee you that your kids will go into a tailspin.

I have a (almost 3 year old)daughter. At first start of the war, I had the TV tuned to that channel 24/7! Then I realized that she "was" picking up on it. She was unable to sleep and she said a few things pertaining to the war, she was also having nightmares when she did sleep. Well "dumb mom" here finally put 2 and 2 together and switched channels, now she's ok. So....Yes I think it affects children, especially those who can't comprehend what's going on. But I did sit down and explain it to her the best I could. Now we watch scooby 24/7(don't know if that's much better?) LOL!
MaGestica (PA)

Parents these days must be on thier toes. Majestica scoobie doo is an awsome cartoon, becareful of bugs though that rabbit is an odd one. With games like GTA vice city, and the latest violent actions at schools, children should be taught the difference in makebelieve and the "Real World". The pollitally correct BS we had to live with during the ninties is OVER! Remember the traditions our grand parents taught us and even come up with new ones. But don't let the children believe everything they see, cause they dont know better. We the adults must guide them and teach them, thats our responciblity.

[Edited on 9-4-2003 by ADVISOR]

but I'm more of the mind of letting kids just be kids... I'd answer some general questions about the war, but I wouldn't want them to experience the anxieties about it that we do (especially a bunch like ourselves, hehe...)...so I'd try to keep it from becoming too consuming for them...