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obinette Reporter
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September 2021
FROM THE DESK OF
ARE YOU A ‘SHARENT’? 5 Things to Consider Before Posting About Your Kids
Jeffery L .Robinette
Hi Friends,
“Men and women are limited not by the place of their birth, not by the color of their skin, but by the size of their hope.” —John Johnson In case you don’t know who Johnson was, by his own account, he was a great-grandson of slaves who grew up shy, insecure, inarticulate, and bowlegged. He wore homemade clothes and was constantly subject to ridicule and insults. Despite these challenges, Johnson grew up to become a major book and magazine publisher and one of the wealthiest people in America.
Here are some habits that can add joy, peace, satisfaction, and success to your days:
Last year, when most activities were off-limits because of the pandemic, I started doing what we all did during our months stuck indoors — scrolling through social media. Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter became the No. 1 way to stay in touch with friends and family. If you’re a parent and the same thing happened to you, keep reading! Social media platforms have a lot of perks for parents. They’re quick and easy ways to connect with people, you can join parenting groups, and you can keep your relatives in the loop on how your kids are growing and what they’re up to. Plus, kids are hilarious and adorable, and pictures of them get tons of likes! But that begs the question: Do those pros outweigh the cons of putting our children’s lives online? One article on Vox claims that today’s kids will have their faces posted in more than 1,000 pictures on social media before they’re 5 years old. That’s crazy to me! It also explained that becoming a “sharent” — a parent who posts information about their kids online — comes with risks. Here are just a few of them: 1. Identity Thieves According to Vox, kids are particularly prone to identity theft because they don’t have credit cards and other commitments that use their Social Security numbers. If you’re a “sharent” and someone accesses your child’s Social Security number through a data breach, they can then go to social media to get vital details like their birthday and home address, leading to total identity theft.
1. Pray for guidance and give thanks for your blessings each day.
2. Make each day a masterpiece.
3. Help others achieve their goals.
4. Drink deeply from good books.
5. Make friendship a fine art.
6. Save for a rainy day.
7. Exercise regularly for good health and strength.
8. Never give up Hope.
You don’t have to be great to start, but you do have to start to be great.
-Jeff Robinette
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2. Pornography Leah Plunkett, the author of “Sharenthood: Why We Should Think Before We Talk About Our Kids Online,” says photos of kids on social media are sometimes stolen by child pornographers. Plunkett told Vox, “A number of the images that are pornographic of children are pictures of real kids that are taken offline and photoshopped or otherwise retouched.” Yikes! 3. Kidnappers and Burglars If you like to post on social media about where you and/or your kids are, you could be tipping off potential kidnappers and burglars. When you post about your kids’ day care, you’re letting the whole world know where to find them, and by sharing details about a vacation, you’re broadcasting that your home is empty. There’s also an odd phenomenon called “digital kidnapping,” where
strangers steal photos of children online and repost them as their own, role-playing as the parent or the child.
4. Screenshots Identity theft, child pornography, and other criminal activity is possible even if your social media accounts are private. If someone you trust screenshots one of your posts, they can post it anywhere and share it with anyone, including total strangers and, if their accounts are public, criminals. 5. Privacy and Consent Apparently, cute little kids grow up to hate the naked baby photos their parents post. According to Quartz, one survey of UK-based kids aged 12–16 revealed 70% of them “felt their parents didn’t respect their online privacy.” Our decisions now — especially if our kids are too young to give a thumbs up or down to what we’re posting — can cause conflicts and resentment later. Since reading up on these issues, I hope we’ll all think twice before posting on social media. If you’ve found yourself in “sharent” territory lately, I hope you’ll do the same! Our kids are counting on us, even if they don’t know it yet. P.S. The Vox article is based on an episode of the “Reset” podcast called “Sharenting: How Much Should You Share About Your Kids Online?” If you want to learn more, you can check it out on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or Spotify.
It Was Justified All Along Remember the ‘McDonald’s Hot Coffee’ Lawsuit?
When McDonald’s refused to pay more than $800, the case went to court, and it came out that they’d known for at least 10 years about the dangers their hot coffee represented, with over 700 recorded burns and several lawsuits. But in 1992, their policy was to store coffee at 180–
Back in 1992, an elderly woman named Stella Liebeck sued McDonald’s in what became known as the infamous “hot coffee lawsuit.” The public relations team at McDonald’s has made sure the case is remembered as frivolous, but, like the third-degree burns Stella Liebeck suffered from a cup of McDonald’s coffee, her lawsuit was dead serious. The facts were simple: Mrs. Liebeck used the drive-thru with her grandson, who was at the wheel. Once the car stopped moving, she placed the cup of coffee she’d just ordered between her legs and tried to add some creamer. The cup tipped over, dumping the contents into her lap, causing third-degree burns over 16% of her body. She required hospitalization for eight days. Whirlpool debridement of the burns and skin grafts followed. She was at least partially disabled for more than two years, and that’s to say nothing of her pain and suffering.
190 degrees F, which is almost the boiling point! Furthermore, McDonald’s higher-ups testified on the stand that no matter what happened, they had no intention of changing their behavior. Unsurprisingly, at the end of the trial, McDonald’s was hit with a $2.9 million penalty. Although the penalty was later reduced, McDonald’s still dragged Mrs. Liebeck’s name through the mud in the press, with their version of the story being the one that stuck in the public consciousness. But it wouldn’t change the fact that they had to pay her around $700,000 at the end of the day — or that their coffee is now being served at a reasonable temperature
For all of this damage, Mrs. Liebeck asked McDonald’s for $20,000 — arguably not even enough to pay her hospital bills.
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And Exercise Through the Fall GET A JUMP ON WINTER BLUES
Less sunlight can have a negative impact on your mental well- being, and as you head into the darker, chillier months, worsening weather and shorter days can make staying in shape more of a chore than a joy. But that doesn’t mean you’re powerless. With a few tricks, you can thrive through the cold season. Finding ways to stay active while cooped up inside has never been easier. Thanks to the pandemic, online exercise courses, at-home workouts, and remote Zumba classes grew in popularity and are still going strong. If you embraced these for your summer workouts to avoid the heat, you can continue that routine this fall and winter and keep up your exercise, mixing it up if one course gets stale. Similarly, winter provides a great time to focus on a new type of fitness goal, like building muscle in an indoor facility or taking martial arts classes at the gym. It doesn’t matter what you do; what matters is that you do it. Stay active! While it’s a bummer that you can’t go trail running or biking, any exercise is better than none.
easier when you can’t go for your morning run, but also, if you’re trying a new sport, activity, or exercise, it gives you a buffer in case you decide it’s not for you after all. Don’t let bad weather or fewer daylight hours be an excuse for less exercise. Your brain will thank you, and who knows? You might actually have fun too.
And don’t wait to get started: Add that “winter workout” into your weekly routine now. Not only will it help make the transition a little
Take a Break!
Easy Peach Cobbler Inspired by MyRecipes.com
Celebrate the end of summer — and peach season — with this simple and tasty peach cobbler!
Ingredients
Directions
• 1/2 cup
1. Preheat oven to 375 F. In a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, add butter and place in oven. Remove when melted. 2. In a large bowl, combine flour, 1 cup of sugar, baking powder, and salt. Then pour in milk and stir until the mixture is smooth. 3. Pour the batter over the melted butter, but don’t stir! 4. In a pot, bring peaches, lemon juice, and remaining sugar to a boil. Stir constantly. 5. Pour peaches over batter, but once again, don’t stir! 6. Sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg, then bake at 375 F for 45 minutes.
unsalted butter
• 1 cup flour • 2 cups sugar, divided • 1 tbsp baking powder • Dash of salt • 1 cup milk • 4 cups peaches (fresh is best!) • 1 tbsp lemon juice • Ground cinnamon or nutmeg to taste
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INSIDE THIS ISSUE From the Desk of Jeffery L. Robinette PAGE 1 Are You a ‘Sharent’? PAGE 1 How McDonald’s Spun the ‘Hot Coffee Lawsuit’ PAGE 2 Get a Jump on Winter Blues With Fall Exercise PAGE 3 Take a Break PAGE 3 Easy Peach Cobbler PAGE 3 Willie the Parrot: The Ultimate Danger Alarm PAGE 4
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Willie the Parrot: The Ultimate Danger Alarm
Willie the Quaker parrot was a pretty remarkable bird. Like many parrots, he had a knack for mimicking certain sounds and words, including barking dog noises, human kissing noises, and a fair share of swear words. However, what made Willie a hero one day was not just what he said, but also when he said it. Meagan Howard, Willie’s owner, brought him over to her friend Samantha Kuusk’s house while she babysat Kuusk’s little daughter, Hannah. Hannah and Willie were both in the kitchen while Meagan prepared a Pop-Tart for Hannah’s breakfast. After placing the Pop- Tart on the table, Meagan stepped away to use the bathroom. While she was away, however, Hannah got her hands on the Pop- Tart and began to scarf it down, lodging a piece in her windpipe. She started choking and was unable to signal to Meagan that something was wrong. Luckily, Willie came to the rescue. Willie began squawking and shrieking, saying the words “Mama! Baby!” over and over again. In a matter of moments, Meagan knew something was wrong. She rushed to the kitchen to find a very frantic Willie and a very blue Hannah. Meagan jumped into action. She grabbed Hannah and performed the Heimlich maneuver until the Pop-Tart piece dislodged itself and shot out of her mouth.
Meagan may have been the one to stop Hannah from choking, but she insists that Willie was the real hero of the story. If he hadn’t used his unique mimicking skills to get Meagan’s attention, she doesn’t know what would have happened. It’s worth noting that before that incident, Willie had never used the phrase “Mama! Baby!” before. He knew something was wrong, and he knew how to get help.
Shortly after the incident, Willie received the local Red Cross chapter’s Animal Lifesaver Award for his heroic actions.
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