The Rise of Accidentally Permissive Parenting

My friend Hannah, a single mother of two boys, ages 6 and 9, remembers the first time a teacher brought up her older son’s behavior at school. She had left New York City in the midst of his public-school kindergarten year to temporarily hunker down near family during the pandemic. A few months later, she enrolled him in an in-person private school near where they’d relocated. At an introductory playdate there, a teacher, who had been at the school for 40 years, “very nicely said to me, ‘This is a young gentleman who needs to learn some boundaries.’” Now settled back in Manhattan, Hannah recently received a similar note about her younger son, who is in kindergarten. “I met with the school psychologist because I had noticed a lot of disrespect at home,” she said. The psychologist said the same thing as the small-town kindergarten teacher: The kid needed boundaries.

Welcome back, Jezebel. Good news for fans of Bridgerton: Season three now has a premiere date. There’s a new Modern Love series on the intersection of money and relationships. A reminder not to surprise-gift anyone a pet this holiday season. While we’re on the subject, here’s what happens to all the presents you return. Just 21 free movies you can watch right now on YouTube. From farm to plate, one in four animals raised on factory farms are wasted. And look up tonight.

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