Children, manners and respect

Do we, as a society, respect children in the manner they deserve? I don't think we do. The way children are treated, even (or rather ESPECIALLY) by their carers is downright rude compared to the way adults are treated.

I know there will be plenty of exceptions to this rule, but as a general theme it is very prominent, certainly in the families I observe here in England (supposedly the home of good manners!)

At a dog event I visited the other day, which was extremely crowded, this was very noticable. People were crabby, not surprisingly, as it was absolutely packed. And all around, I could hear adults speaking to children in raised voices, angry or rude, "Stand back!" "Be careful!" "I'm sick and tired of you!" and more and more.

I noticed that there weren't any adults speaking to other adults like that. How odd....