Bad Behavior

Many years ago, a man wrote a book that became very popular.  The essence of his book (which later became posters, t-shirts, etc) was that you learn everything you need to know to be successful in life before you start first grade.  Be kind, take turns, share your stuff, naps are great (the Mom of No concurs with that), etc.  If you are quickly approaching old fart-dom, like I am, you probably remember it. Whippersnappers, ask your parents.

As parents, we spend a lot of time teaching our offspring how to behave appropriately.  Don't have meltdowns if you don't get candy at Target.  It's not acceptable to throw your dinner on the floor if you don't like it  (even if the dog really enjoyed it).  Stealing a toy car from the store because you want it and your mean mother won't buy it will get you a very long timeout.  You should respect other people and their property.  Name calling is wrong.  You have to follow the rules even if you don't like them.  Don't be greedy and take all the chocolate chip cookies before anyone else gets one.  If you can't agree what game to play, compromise on a third option.

As they get older, we teach them that telling lies and cheating has consequences, some of them very serious.  Taking responsibility for your actions is important, and if you make a mistake you should own it and make it right.   We teach kids that there is no "I" in "Team", and that leaders should lead by example instead of "don't do as I do, do as I say". 

In short, we expect better behavior from toddlers, elementary school kids and teenagers than we do from candidates for the highest office in our great and wonderful nation.

At some point in the not so distant past, our society has decided that it is perfectly acceptable for candidates for the highest office in the nation to act in a manner that would get any toddler put in the time-out chair, or cause a teenager to get the car keys taken away until he or she turns 30.
 
I'm not going to call out the culprits. You can probably figure it out for yourself after watching about 10 minutes of a televised debate.  If you think that the way they are acting is appropriate and acceptable behavior for grownups, or if you think it's justified,  then the Mom of No blog is probably not for you.   Even worse, the guilty parties don't even bother to attempt to be reasonable people. They exult in their bad behavior. 

As a society, we devote a lot of time to teaching our offspring that bullying is wrong. In recent years, schools and other organizations have expended significant resources to address bullying and the damage that it does.  Exposed bullies are often excoriated on social media.  However, kids learn by example.  Kids are smart.  They see how it is.  We tell our kids that to get ahead, you should work hard, do the right thing even when it's difficult, follow the Golden Rule. Be a good person, and rewards will come.  Then we wildly applaud when politicians walk onto the national stage and act like bullies. Don't do as I say. Do as I do.  Being a bully is acceptable.  Desirable, even.

We teach our kids that when you grow up, you can be anything you want- an astronaut, a doctor, a zookeeper, a librarian, an explorer, a ninja zombie killer.  And, unfortunately, they could all be about to learn that you can be an uncouth bully and be elected President of the United States.