Well, I'm not sure that it was actually funny but what I observed at the supermarket today certainly had me scratching my head. As I put my groceries through the checkout a family at the checkout opposite me caught my attention. The father appeared to have his hands full with four small children as he loaded the bags into his shopping cart. One of the children, a little girl probably six years of age had helped herself to a packet of lollies and had wandered out beyond the checkout with them to where her father was. She asked him if she could have the lollies to which he replied, "no, put them back". The little girl ignored her father, sat down on a seat, and proceeded to peel the wrapping from the pack.
I watched as the little girl made a complete mess of the packet of lollies, making it impossible for them to be put back on the shelf for re-sale and wondered when the father was going to take the lollies and put them through the checkout with the rest of his groceries. To my amazement he, his wife and the remaing three children left the supermarket after paying for their groceries, leaving the little girl still sitting on the seat with her demolished, (and unpaid-for) packet of lollies.
Once the little girl realised that the rest of the family had left without her, she ran out in a panic desperately trying to catch them up, her precious packet of lollies still in hand. Her father turned to her, saw the lollies and guess what he did. Nothing. Instead he continued on to the car park and said nothing to his daughter.
I just stood there in bewilderment. Now those lollies probably only cost about a dollar but that's not the point. The little girl is too young to know that what she did has a name for it. It's called shoplifting. The father knew and chose to do nothing. So what sort of message does this send to his child? It's ok. Take what you want whenever you want, even if your parents tell you not to because there are no consequences.
I'm sure he was stressed doing the shopping and taking care of the kids and it was probably more a case of giving in because he couldn't be bothered dealing with it at the time. It's still not right in my book. Whether it's a packet of lollies or a plasma screen television, the principle remains the same.
So what are we teaching our children? Was this a justifiable act on the parent's part or am I beginning to sound like a cranky old man with nothing better to whine about? What do you think?
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As a parent of 3 young children - who now know better than to open lollies in the supermarket - my view has always been that if supermarkets want to leave brightly wrapped lollies and toys at the checkout, within reach of small children, and in an attempt to solicit additional sales, they must take responsibility for those items being tampered with.
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