With Children, how do you instill "do the right thing"?

I fear you may be fighting a losing battle. It sounds as though you are a good parent with old fashioned values of right and wrong that have been picked up by your daughter. This is oviously not the case with the parents of her friends who as children of a 'ME' society have instilled this selfish ideal into their children.

Her friends cry and mope when they fail to get their own way because as behaviorial tactic it obviously works against their parents. Children are very quick to learn new stratagies and are always willing to push the envelope of parental tolerance. Stick to your guns, let her cry and mope, until she learns it doesn't work on you.

If you give in she wins you lose it's that simple. Reward the cheery, kind, loving helpful caring child, it is truly unfortunate that she is in a minority these days but the future of the world needs children like her, not to mention parents like you. Good luck.

Well now..I am very fortunate to have 2 sons and 1 daughter who grew up with the old fashioned values...and my sons children are also being brought up in the same manner, Merlin you are correct in what you say,when kids mope and sulk because they cant get their own way ignore them.. Jersey Girl to give in is to bow down to their demands,they may not apreciate your rules at the time but when they get to bringing up their own children they will remember the things you taught them and bring up their children to beleive in the same set of rules and values.....All my 6 grandchildren know that if their parents ,or I ( grandma! ) say NO we mean it and sulking or yelling will not make any difference..no means no!

I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.