re: Re: Childish things was Re: That Age Thing

> Date: Wed, 21 Feb 2001 17:10:48 +1100
> From: Beth Fulton <beth.fulton@marine.csiro.au>
> Subject: Re: Childish things was Re: That Age Thing
> 
>  >gamer-turned-fundementalist uncle
>  >would bring up, right along with the whole
>  >"gaming is SATANIC" mantra.
> 
> Hey you got one of those too! Well mine's my Dad.....
> On the upside Mark it should be easier to avoid Uncles than fathers ;)
> 
> Who's decided she's just not having that argument with her parents
AGAIN!!! ;)
> 
> Beth

Hey Beth and Mark,

everyone's comments seem to indicate a direction -- how to resolve the
perception of wargaming to the family.	on one hand, we want our
families
good will and support, but on the other, they must respect our
decisions. 
what a dilemma!

my mother used to do the same thing to me, and I am also a conservative
(but not narrow-minded) christian.  apparently she thought wargames
caused
one to crave death and destruction.  I game for the interaction with
others
and history, not the bloodiness.  I explained to her that the evil in
the
world comes from inside us (and that's Biblical), not from a game box;
otherwise, Monopoly causes greed, etc...  now my mom is at ease -- but
the
victory took years to accomplish.  she mostly watched how I lived and
made
decisions.

since most of us on the list are married with children, we must consider
what we introduce to our kids -- even wargaming.  if I show them only
bloody combat where only winnning counts, I failed as a father.  if I
can
teach them about history and the joy of meeting/knowing other people,
then
I've given them something valuable.  it's all a matter of what the goal
of
the teaching is and how it's approached.  our home already has many
lessons
on war, fighting, selfishness, defending what's right, and how to
distinguish them.

good luck to you with your families and wargaming.