Boxing Kangaroo

My picture of a boxing kangaroo was commented upon again today. It pleased an Australian which pleased me.

 I started using it after getting inspired, energised, enthused and downright infuriated at a conference over a year ago. The "incorrectness" of it was deliberate. I have been greatly helped by the work of Prof Janet Treasure and her team and actually quite like the animal models but I came back from that conference convinced that a bit of kangaroo parenting wasn't a bad thing and that some of the ideas being pedalled were so wrong that a bit of violence was justifiable.

No doubt the good professor would be horrified. No doubt those who hold strongly to the belief that environmental factors (in the sense of parenting, early experiences, media etc) cause psychiatric problems would feel vindicated in their judgement that with parents like these no wonder people have eating disorders.

But before boxing kangaroos like me are judged maybe it would be a good idea to ask WHY we are so angry. Before despairing at a parent acting like Chicken Liken maybe we could ask whether there might be any reason to make them believe that the sky MIGHT just fall in. Before calling a parent a tiger maybe we could ask whether anyone told them to act that way.