Today's parents, determined to avoid a Nurse Ratched label, boast a success rate of 25 percent in that age group, with only 60 percent of their children potty-trained by age 3. Children tall enough for the scary rides at Disneyland are on Space Mountain in their diapers. Nintendo 64 operation and skateboarding over curbs, these kids, with their parents' blessings, remain unable to control bodily functions. Pediatricians report treating many anxious children in their soiled Pull-Ups. Children are difficult.
Parents are in charge.
Mollycoddling parents, with the ease of disposable diapers, are unwilling to see this aggravating process through. Potty training is not for children but for parents. It is the first great test of parenthood as well as of authority. Wait until the size 6 Pampers on this one, and you'll find yourself with a teen who has parrot hair, a pierced chin and misspelled tattoos. Pediatricians have the source of children's anxiety wrong.