Alan Day - ALL children have various beliefs foisted upon them by their parents, whether or not the parents realize it. They (the children) may accept it all without questioning for the rest of their lives...or they may in time reject a great deal of it and form or acquire new beliefs.

It's not just a case of religious beliefs either...that's just one aspect of the matter.

People only bitch about it when they see beliefs being foisted on children which are not the same beliefs they themselves would choose to foist upon their children.

I have known more than one person who was brought up as a Jehovah's Witness, believed fully in it till a certain age...and then changed their mind about it entirely and left that religion.

So, do you think it would be nice if some children somewhere were brought up without ANY belief system at all being implanted in them by their parents...............or would it? Would it even be possible to do that when raising children? I very much doubt it. Everyone's conscious view of life embodies a whole matrix of beliefs, and there's simply no way around that, and no way they can't actively or passively pass it on to their children.

Look, it's dead simple. EVERYONE who has children teaches those children to believe in what THEY believe in (whatever the heck it may be). They do it automatically. It happens by example. Children learn by the examples they see in front of them in their own family every day. Later in life they may change their thinking...and many do. I did.

So, live with it. You have no more business bellyaching about the kids of Jehovah's Witnesses than they do bellyaching about how you're bringing up your kids....as long as no violence is done and no civil laws are being broken.

I'll say one thing for Jehovah's Witnesses. They are usually extremely responsible and nice people who make good citizens and don't break laws and commit crimes. Something to be said for that. Do I buy their religious ideas? Not in the least. But I'd rather have them for neighbours than a good many other people I've met.

Your tacit assumption is ("Well, I'm right and they're wrong. My way is better than theirs.") Uh-huh. That just happens to be their tacit assumption too. It's what drives them out to "save" people. Chauvinism all around in other words. Do what you'd like them to do and don't make that kind of assumption about other people.