Camouflage clothing for little boys? Who else refuses to buy it?

[greatauntoftriplets]

Two of the triplets are boys, aged 4. Aside from the fact that boys' clothing tends to be far less enticing than girls' (and it all looks the same...), now affordable stores like Old Navy and The Children's Place are pushing camouflage and quasi-military clothing for kids that age.

I categorically refuse to buy this crap, because I refuse to buy into that entire mystique (guess that is the word I want to use) and expose these innocents at such a tender age to the "glamor" of military life.

For the same reason, I refuse to buy them GI Joe or other military toys.

Fortunately, Gymboree refuses to carry military clothing for kids...though they are a bit pricey.

Am I alone here?

[shesemsmom]

1. They don't need it

it gives me the creeps to see kids in it, and they don't need play guns either. That is in my opinion they don't

[Pacifist Patriot]

6. I don't buy toy guns for my children and had to forbid my son

from choosing a pop gun for a friend's Christmas present today. I just don't see the point. My kids have used sticks and barbie dolls to say "pow pow" so I don't see any way around it, but I'm certainly not going to facilitate violent play. They'll have to go with their imaginations I'm afraid.

[shesemsmom]

16. WTG

I just don't think as parents we should promote it

[Pacifist Patriot]

2. No camouflage or GI Joe in this house.

I haven't had to put my foot down because my boys just aren't that consumer savvy, but I certainly won't purchase it. Don't see the point.

[CornField]

3. Me! I won't touch it.

My MIL bought my son a camo pair of pants and I politely handed them back to her. We don't play with guns in my house (toys or real) and we don't dress like commandos. Frankly, it gives me the heebie-jeebies everytime I see a young person dressed in military gear.

[Zomby Woof]

4. ugh

Why is this not surprising? Cryptofascist child fashions. Between that and the "ho" look for pre-teen girls, we're one sick society.

[greatauntoftriplets]

8. Some places have the "ho" look for four-year-olds.

I refuse to buy that for the girl triplet.

[Zomby Woof]

15. I would hope so!

I can't imagine anyone on this board buying that for any young girl of any age. You certainly would be among the LAST I would suspect.

Something I have read once about the link between fascism and illicit and taboo sexuality... the sexualization of children in America fits that thesis to a T. :puke:


I have confidence you will buy something worthwhile, only the problem is, they will outgrow them by New Year's.

[greatauntoftriplets]

19. Hell, I won't even buy her trashy dolls for toys.

No Barbie or Bratz dolls. Instead got her Dora the Explorer. gotta encourage an adventurous spirit and not just interest in clothing, makeup and being a princess.

[Pirate Smile]

20. It is hard to find cute little girl clothes that aren't shirts cut up to

show the belly button or low cut pants, or just Ho fashions.

It is really disgusting.

I always walk through it thinking who is buying this crap!

[bunkerbuster1]

5. Might get it for my little GIRL

just to piss off the local pugs.

(kidding. Wouldn't put my kid in the line of fire, so to speak.)

[Fenris]

7. Ah, the old "Arkansas Tuxedo"

When I did volunteer work at my mom's school last summer (here in Texas) I saw that shit all the time. Depressing.

[4_Legs_Good]

9. I would die before dressing my son in camouflage

I cannot express how adverse I would be to the idea. If any of his aunts or uncles ever bought him such a think I would throw an utter fit.

Now tie-dye, that I can get behind!

All things military are out for as long as I can manage. With all due respect to the vets in the crowd, that is the path I least want him to take.

david

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

10. You can do all this, but some of it is just genetics. I.E. the boys will

just play guns and swords with sticks etc. Seriously. I was totally into all that crap when I was little but it didn't make me into a warmongering, death worshipping fiend.

I did spend half a career in the military though.

I agree with the concept that you might not feel good about facilitating the gun and war worshipping. But there will likely be some degree of that just because they are boys.

[greatauntoftriplets]

13. Very true....my nephew spent four years in the military.

Got out in June of 2003...having spent his entire time other than basic training at Schofield Barracks.

But I will never enable love of the military in these innocents.

[CornField]

21. To me there is a big difference

between playing cowboy and having a make-shift coathanger gun and me (his mom) purchasing him something that looks like the real thing. When he is old enough, I'll have no trouble sending him to a firearms safety course if he's interested. (My 12-year-old daughter went before I allowed her to go hunting with her uncles.)

It isn't just about the guns in general for me... it's about teaching respect for firearms. They simply are never something I want my children to feel comfortable playing with.

[Pirate Smile]

23. I know. My kids make "weapons" out of their fiddlesticks but at least

they have to imagine it.

The boy next door has toy guns and stuff. He always wants to play war.

One day my kids were playing and one said "lets play war". I flinch and go "why don't we play peace corp?" Lame, I know but I am a chick that didn't even grow up with brothers so it all seems rather odd to me and with a brutal war going on right now, I just hate it.

[Pirate Smile]

11. Me too. I don't think it is "cute" to militarize little kids.

I'm rather squeamish about all of this kind of stuff. We don't have any of the toy weapons. We got a pirate costume from my sister-in-law that had a couple of swords. The kids grabbed them and ran around. I got poked with them a couple times within five minutes and they were gone.

[Bluzmann57]

12. I had two sons

well ok one was mine and one is a step son but I refused to buy them toy guns in any form. Camos were not in style way back when, but we wouldn't have bought them anyway. That is one of the only things that my ex and I share a common belief in. We also never bought either boy G.I. Joes because we just didn't want violent images around our children. Period. Some said we were going to make the boys "faggots" or something stupid like that, but hey, the oldest did a three year hitch in the U.S. Army and now has a wife and child, and the younger one has a girlfriend that he apparently is serious about. Some "twisted" boys huh? Cars, ok, tools, ok, music, ok, but we just didn't want them to grow up insane.

[1monster]

14. No camouflage clothing here, either.

Heck, I don't even let my kid have water guns, let alone any militaristic type of clothing.

If one looks around, there are some really nice and colorful fashions out there for boys. I've always liked the khakis teamed with the Oriental motif collared shirts...

[McKenzie]

17. I'm with you on this...

brainwashing from an early age is...well brainwashing.

Glorification of war and military might is not healthy, particularly where young, malleable minds are involved.

[jdots]

18. Camouflage is very big with freeper children

My parents wouldn't buy me any toy guns when i was a kid,which i didn't appreciate till i was about 13.Perhaps some nice little Nazi youth outfits will be in order by summer the rate things are going.

[SmokingJacket]

22. Buy Gymboree clothes from ebay.

They're good quality and are still bright and nice looking second hand. Also Hanna Andersson (sp?).

I hate military anything for kids. Anyway kids look better in brights. Camo is ugly and dangerous: it's deer season up here in the Northeast. A child in camo walking through a stand of weeds looks just like a deer.

To a drunk freeper, anyway.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

24. I've found the same thing shopping for my nephews

It's creeping fascism, and it started during the Reagan administration, when I was buying presents for friends who had babies. It's nasty to see camouflage and monster truck and steroid case wrestler logo clothing for toddlers and even infants.

[borlis]

25. I have three boys and I have never, ever put any camouflage

clothing of any kind on them. Lucky for me they never asked for or wanted GI Joes or any military stuff. My kids used to wear a lot of Gymboree when they were younger and I used to work there.

[donheld]

26. I require my kids to wear them

i refuse to let them wear anything else......oh wait. I don't have kids. What was i thinking :evilgrin: