Childhood is the time when we learn our unconscious value base. Although as an adult you can consciously choose things and after a very long time these choices become habits of thought, they never quite achieve the same instant gut reaction as the stuff we learn in childhood. When you interrupt or shorten or pervert that process it tends to have long lasting effects. This is the old "give me a child till he is 7 and I will show you the man" type stuff. The shopkeeper is reaping what he sowed. (sorry for the thread drift)