Science and Society

LOL! Good for you dad!

I believe what the father did was not unreasonable. He could have turned him in, but chose to handle the discipline himself. Also, he didn't beat his son, he took away something the boy wanted very much. And, I believe in his philosophy that rewarding bad behavior is not the thing to do. There's enough of that going on in the current administration without teaching it to young people. All in all, I think k_lid did the right and reasonable thing. I'll bet it got his son's attention.

Absolutely!!

I agree with Andy, as always. Either we're twins or think alike, which is scary. Anyway, I'd have done the same thing. Although, I wouldn't think twice about reporting my son. You break the law, you get punished. Simple as that. In my opinion, parents aren't very good teachers of cause and affect. Actions come with consequences. This is what I teach my son and twin girls, even in their pre-5 year old age. Way to go dad!!

I don;t think that is unreasonable. A 15 year old kid shouldn't be smoking pot...period. If the kid were 18, bit of a different story. Then I'd advise openly talking to him about it and advising him that it can be a good thing, but it can also easily be abused. But a 15 year old is too young for such responsibility and has no business even experimenting. Good show of discipline by the dad.

Way to go, dad!

I don't think the father is being unreasonable at all. Instead of yelling, screaming, beating, sending his son away, he used a creative punishment.

lol! Though, of course, now the kid probably wants a piece of the 9k his gift raked in, but I bet he can keep dreaming on that one!

Even though this had nothing to do with Bush...someone found a way. CONGRATS ANDY!

I am confused as to why the kid needs to be punished in the first place? Generally speaking marijuana is more good than bad for you.

No pot AND no Guitar Hero III? Worst. Christmas. Ever.

The father did the right thing. The problem with parents today is they reward kids when they don't deserve it. I bet also it was hard to do what he did considering this is the holiday season, most people would bend. Good for him, I just hope the top bidder in his auction isn't a shill, but I doubt anyone's gonna pay $9 grand for that thing unless it was used to beat some Britney Spears to death. lol

Enddate2012, marijuana is, well, sort of illegal in most places, save for California, who are a total different breed of human all together. Anyway, yes, I do know this is in the great northern US state of Canada(Might as well call Canada a state of the US, you're almost like us anyway). I'm sure it's illegal there too. I know pot isn't as dangerous as it's made out to be. I mean, how many stoned drivers kill people every year? And how cool does M.A.P.S.D.W.K.P.V.R. sound? If you cant figure that out it is Mothers Against Pot Smoking Drivers Who Kill People Very Rarely. So thats why he is punished. Because it is illegal and the long accronym people are against people driving while stoned.

"Does the punishment fit the crime?" What punishment? The father didn't give the boy an expensive and hard to come by gift as he shouldn't when the boy is not behaving. As for punishment however, it is not a punishment to not give someone a gift.

I totally agree with the father!!! No way would I give him that gift. It doesn't matter if it was for Christmas, birthday or anything - what he did was wrong. You should never reward bad behavior. You go DAD!!!!!

ROTHFLMHO. This is excellent. If I were the dad, I'd put the 9K in a college or first house fund for the kid.

About time some parent shows some interest in what their kid is doing! GO DAD GO!

Why punishment at all?

Why do things have to be learned from punishment and not more humorous, fun, intelligent and loving ways which would definitely have a more positive and lasting impact.

Four Words: "Father Of The Year." This guy is awesome.

Although I do agree that knowing that your child is smoking pot is disappointing, I do strongly advise that taking prevention steps is the most important thing. And looking at the whole picture, of why is he smoking pot. Sometimes there are hidden messages in their behavior. Having consequences for our choices is a lesson best learned at an early age, but I can't say whats the best method for this situation. Prevention and tough love should be solid answers. So hard to know what is the right thing to do, even as adults. Pray about it and ask God to lead your decision. Thats all I know. Mother of six, and still learning, still praying!!!

$9,100.01? Id be huggin my son for smokin that joint....lol! And then of course reinforcing...never do it again! JK

Yep, Andy found a way to bring reference to Bush administration...... Andy is right, this Dad is holding his kid accountable - something this current administration lacks - holding themselves accountable for the mess in Iraq, the mess with the division of the country, the mess with foreign policy or lack of....

That two people here would even advocate turning in the 15 year old kid for smoking pot blows my mind. I would guess they don't have kids of their own. I wonder if they realize that giving up the kid results in a CRIMINAL RECORD!!! Would you really wish that on your kid? I'm sure he would thank you mightily for teaching him such a great life lesson at 15 when no one will hire him as an adult because of his record. If that's your idea of providing the right guidance for your kid and doing everything in your power to give him the right skills to be successful in life, then I'm glad I never had you as a parent. Oh, and if it is true, please don't have kids. They will be seriously damaged goods, and we've got enough of those people mucking up the gene pool as it is.

Still, our Dad in question did the right thing, unless, of course, he's like many other hypocrites in this world who actually smokes pot himself on the side. In which case, the appropriate thing to do would have been to confiscate the weed and keep the game for himself. Psyche!

He was punished,not because pot is illegal or bad for adults,but if this is an educated man,he knows pot is not good for teens(works differently on a growing brain then an adult).I love his method, sent a strong message to his son-Dad loves you :)

Wait a second , I thought smoking pot & being a guitar hero were synonymous. I'm pretty sure they are. & I am really not joking.

Way to go Dad; hit him where it hurts. He needs to know you are serious and I hope the mom is on the same page with you. In my case the punishment would be laid down on the kid and then the next day he would be pardoned by the doding mom. That's why I'm divorced and my kid smokes pot whenever he wants. Not really! But, I found that a little follow through goes a long way, though probably the threat in this case all that's needed. I'm positive you got his attention with that one.

I agree with the punishment. For you people saying he should turn his own kid in? Wow, i'm speachless. That happened to a buddy of mine when i was in highschool (im 33 now). He hasnt spoken to his parents since and last i saw he was still doing drugs. (5-10 years ago). I'm glad my parents chose to discipline me themselves. A criminal record can ruin your life and seeing you parents being the ones responsible for it, sheesh. He smoked a joint, he's not selling crack.

First, you do not have to "move heaven and earth" to find Guitar Hero III. Try Amazon, it's $50 and you get free shipping to boot.

Second, this guy was not disciplining his child. He was seeking publicity for himself. Disciplining your child does not involve bragging about it on eBay.

all my potsmoking friends and I are scientists and 4 of them have PhD's.

so maybe smoking pot isn't that bad as long as it doesn't interfere with your studies. Guitar Hero probably interferes with studying more than pot does.

Shadow - I would NOT put the 9K into a college fund for the kid. THAT would be rewarding him for the bad behavior. I'd use it to pay bills, etc.

I think in the future we will find pot decriminalized once all the people who don't know anything about stop laying down the rules. It is better than & better for you than any pill a doctor can give you for depression. Jah provide. Praise Jah! RastafarI & I.

I love playing guitar. I played this Guitar Hero thing & it is no way near the joy you get when you play an actual guitar. I have no hankering to play this game after playing it with a bunch of people who don't actually play guitar & seeing how exited they were. Bottom line, put your time & effort in playing real music. It's soothing & rewarding.

i love it! after what i just went through to find and purchase a Wii, my daughter better not even try it! as a matter of fact, i'll just give it away for FREE! to one of her cousins!

Thank you excellent parent! Now really finish off the lesson by putting that money into something that is necessary, like a college fund, or having your son go with you to a non-profit rehab clinic and helping you donate some of those dollars (and letting him see where addiction to drugs can get you...). Good job, Dad.

Sounds like a hoax to me. If he wanted to punish the boy how about just returning the game back to the store he bought it?

What lesson in making 9 grand off your pot smoking sending?

Another Internet hoax, who cares

I vote he give the money away to a needy family. That should further get the kid.

Disappointed You?
HeLOo. It's not about you, dad!

Are you confusing Christmas with being what you think a good dad is? Oh, wait a minute, you're not concerned with being a good dad.
Good parents don't use the word punishment. Sometimes they have to be strict disciplinarians, but I can't go into that here. Why do you think he was smoking pot. Ever bother to talk with him about it?

Alright to Dad. An adult raising a kid. Good parents are hard to find now days. Punishment is a good word.

i think this a good thing and to you have said ill things against this MAN raising his children and all that crap about not useing the word punish i'm not so sure you are correct and justified in your judgment of him,..i don't know about you but i came from a home with very strict rules,... and a few hefty a** whippings and i turned out just fine. how ever there are alot of kids out there who's parents never hit them and they turned out good too.pot smoking doesn't always mean that you are out there dileberatly trying to hurt your parents or to disaapoint them in any way ,.. some kids get caught up in the moment with their friends and the subject comes up. maybe he wanted to check it out or maybe it was peer pressure.. no one but that child knows for sure what the reason was. but that doesn't make his dad a bad father maybe he did teach his child that these things are wrong and then the child did it anyways. that is being preventitive.good for you old man,.. way to go.keep on doing the things you have been with your son and may he grow to be the man you want him to be,... and mostly the man you are. happy holidays

Yeah, over $9K? Sounds fishy. Anyway this thing is actually pretty stupid. Seriously...just get a real guitar. It reminds me of a 'Simpsons' episode where Bart is playing a virtual yard work simulator and Marge says "You can be doing real yard work at home", or something like that.

So, Steve, what have you and your pot-smoking PhD friends discovered or invented that we may have heard about? Oh yeah, you only said you HAVE PhDs, you didn't say you actually use them.

Lori; It would not have been punishment of the guy had never told his son what he had gotten him, but since he did, selling it instead is punishment.

MadisonMonroe1; Actually, I think this IS a failry humorous punishment, as Dad is going to come away with over $9,000 more than he spent on the gift. If they can't both laugh about that, there's something wrong with them.

Zhozi; You've just told everyone all you know about parenting - NOTHING. There ARE books on the subject. Maybe you shhould read one. Disciplining a child sometimes requires punishment.

Just the game? That kid got off easy. Smoking pot is illegal, plain and simple. I seriously doubt the kid had glaucoma. I'd say he got off VERY easy. If that were my kid, I would have sold the game along with the game console, packaged up every single one of his toys, and then make him earn each one back. Each time he does a chore, he earns it.

And if you and your friends really were scientists each with a PhD, you certainly wouldn't risk your reputation in the scientific world doing something as stupid as smoking pot. If you and your friends were actually smart enough to get that many degrees, you'd certainly know better than pot doesn't make you "smarter". It doesn't give you knowledge. You'd know better not to do it.

No "scientist" would be stupid enough to actually think that.

A little pot is good for the soul on the other hand to much and you will become president when you run for office

NO POT----- let them eat MC Donalds if the want to end their lives.

Good Dad!! WE parents live with the PAIN Of Discipline, or the PAIN of Regret. You're being a father, as you should. Whatever you do to deal with the situation, THAT is your decision. YOUR Consistency is critical. STAND firmly by your word and your decision! Years from now your son will thank you for being a MAN, standing your ground, not waivering on your convictions, and being a father to him. Thank you, from a Mother of three teens.

I think what he did was right, if he were to reward him with the game, as fun as it is, he'd end up dropping out of school and b pothead and work at a fast food place for the rest of his life. Good job dad.

no give him it plz!!!!!!!!!!!11111

To TZARAH. First of all I am a girl who loves to play guitar hero and no i do not smoke pot. it shows your lack of intelligence to criticize a game like guitar hero. next time you make a comment on a blog be sure that you can back it up.