eed For Meaningful Dialogue
Privacy between parents and their children is essential for the children's growth and the development of essential parental skills as each learns about the other. No new parent is given a book about parenting and how they should behave. Parenting is more a reflection of hand-me-down ethics, the way we were treated and learned behaviour from our own parents. It is not tied to any established school of thought around what a perfect parent should do. If that privacy is taken away from celebrity parents to have meaningful Alec Baldwin made a very cruel and silly comment to his daughter which was revealed to TMZ and plastered over the internet. I don't think anyone has realised the enormity of what has happened, particularly in relation to his daughter. The contents of that tape recording did not just concern one adult male. It also related to an impressionable and vulnerable 11 year old girl. For the rest of her natural life, everyone who has been exposed to that recording will remember that her father called her "a rude, thoughtless little pig". She will never be allowed to forget it, especially when putting the past behind us is crucial for stable emotional development. That is not a statement to endear anyone or to help their positive growth. It is a highly charged emotional insult and she will be indirectly judged by it in everything else she does.

For his part, Alec Baldwin is also made out to be worse than many other father in his words and actions when it is likely that this was the proverbial snapping at the end of a long tether. At that moment in time, rightly or wrongly, that was the best he could do to stem his feelings of inadequacy and impotence. He obviously wanted to get at the mother, especially in a situation where the call was clearly arranged and he was looking forward to talking to his daughter. Instead, he took it out on his kid. But that merely shows that Alec needs help with his parenting skills, to help him appreciate that words of love move people far more than words of hate. Being angry does not make anyone into a 'bad' person. But he would have had far more impression on his daughter if he had said, and kept repeating with every call, "I am so sorry you do not want to hear me, and that you cannot be there for me, but I want to hear you and am always here for you. I was looking forward to hearing your lovely voice today and naturally feel disappointed that you don't want to hear my voice too. But, hey, that doesn't make you any less of being my treasured daughter. Please call me when you can, but I will always keep trying because I do love you very much and will never give up on you."

She would have remembered that for a long time, even if she still behaved badly.

The Need For Meaningful Dialogue
Privacy between parents and their children is essential for the children's growth and the development of essential parental skills as each learns about the other. No new parent is given a book about parenting and how they should behave. Parenting is more a reflection of hand-me-down ethics, the way we were treated and learned behaviour from our own parents. It is not tied to any established school of thought around what a perfect parent should do. If that privacy is taken away from celebrity parents to have meaningful

to forget it, especially when putting the past behind us is crucial for stable emotional development. That is not a statement to endear anyone or to help their positive growth. It is a highly charged emotional insult and she will be indirectly judged by it in everything else she does.

For his part, Alec Baldwin is also made out to be worse than many other father in his words and actions when it is likely that this was the proverbial snapping at the end of a long tether. At that moment in time, rightly or wrongly, that was the best he could do to stem his feelings of inadequacy and impotence. He obviously wanted to get at the mother, especially in a situation where the call was clearly arranged and he was looking forward to talking to his daughter. Instead, he took it out on his kid. But that merely shows that Alec needs help with his parenting skills, to help him appreciate that words of love move people far more than words of hate. Being angry does not make anyone into a 'bad' person. But he would have had far more impression on his daughter if he had said, and kept repeating with every call, "I am so sorry you do not want to hear me, and that you cannot be there for me, but I want to hear you and am always here for you. I was looking forward to hearing your lovely voice today and naturally feel disappointed that you don't want to hear my voice too. But, hey, that doesn't make you any less of being my treasured daughter. Please call me when you can, but I will always keep trying because I do love you very much and will never give up on you."

She would have remembered that for a long time, even if she still behaved badly.

The Need For Meaningful Dialogue
Privacy between parents and their children is essential for the children's growth and the development of essential parental skills as each learns about the other. No new parent is given a book about parenting and how they should behave. Parenting is more a reflection of hand-me-down ethics, the way we were treated and learned behaviour from our own parents. It is not tied to any established school of thought around what a perfect parent should do. If that privacy is taken away from celebrity parents to have meaningful

m his feelings of inadequacy and impotence. He obviously wanted to get at the mother, especially in a situation where the call was clearly arranged and he was looking forward to talking to his daughter. Instead, he took it out on his kid. But that merely shows that Alec needs help with his parenting skills, to help him appreciate that words of love move people far more than words of hate. Being angry does not make anyone into a 'bad' person. But he would have had far more impression on his daughter if he had said, and kept repeating with every call, "I am so sorry you do not want to hear me, and that you cannot be there for me, but I want to hear you and am always here for you. I was looking forward to hearing your lovely voice today and naturally feel disappointed that you don't want to hear my voice too. But, hey, that doesn't make you any less of being my treasured daughter. Please call me when you can, but I will always keep trying because I do love you very much and will never give up on you."

She would have remembered that for a long time, even if she still behaved badly.

The Need For Meaningful Dialogue
Privacy between parents and their children is essential for the children's growth and the development of essential parental skills as each learns about the other. No new parent is given a book about parenting and how they should behave. Parenting is more a reflection of hand-me-down ethics, the way we were treated and learned behaviour from our own parents. It is not tied to any established school of thought around what a perfect parent should do. If that privacy is taken away from celebrity parents to have meaningful

am so sorry you do not want to hear me, and that you cannot be there for me, but I want to hear you and am always here for you. I was looking forward to hearing your lovely voice today and naturally feel disappointed that you don't want to hear my voice too. But, hey, that doesn't make you any less of being my treasured daughter. Please call me when you can, but I will always keep trying because I do love you very much and will never give up on you."

She would have remembered that for a long time, even if she still behaved badly.

The Need For Meaningful Dialogue
Privacy between parents and their children is essential for the children's growth and the development of essential parental skills as each learns about the other. No new parent is given a book about parenting and how they should behave. Parenting is more a reflection of hand-me-down ethics, the way we were treated and learned behaviour from our own parents. It is not tied to any established school of thought around what a perfect parent should do. If that privacy is taken away from celebrity parents to have meaningful

eed For Meaningful Dialogue
Privacy between parents and their children is essential for the children's growth and the development of essential parental skills as each learns about the other. No new parent is given a book about parenting and how they should behave. Parenting is more a reflection of hand-me-down ethics, the way we were treated and learned behaviour from our own parents. It is not tied to any established school of thought around what a perfect parent should do. If that privacy is taken away from celebrity parents to have meaningful dialogue with their kids, and to get it wrong sometimes, it will be replaced by fear and anxiety around the parenting process. Whoever leaked that tape was not thinking about that young girl at all and the implications for her life in this relentless media age. They were merely thinking of scoring points through embarrassing the actor. But it has drawn the young girl into the open too. Imagine now having to live with a constant headline which, at the age of 25, for instance, still says, "daughter of Alec Baldwin, she was once called 'a thoughtless pig' by her father!" Jeeps!

We go to lengths to protect children from pornography on the Internet, or anything which might harm them. Such private matters regarding children should also be banned from being made public. Adults can defend themselves, children cannot. Bad enough listening to such a tape as a young child than to know that the whole world knows of it too. It must be horrendous for her self-esteem. Furthermore, Alec Baldwin should not have to be apologising on television or explaining his actions to the world when that is between himself and his family, especially when a court is already dealing with the dysfunctional relationship and the tape by curtailing his access. He also needs help in dealing with his frustrations and natural anger against his daughter, not public judgement and vilification. Otherwise, we will simply get more of the same from many similar fathers who could do with that help.

This has been a really tragic case on all fronts. Leaking this document is such a disturbing act, especially with the future implications for this young girl, the person who has done it truly deserves a brisk spell in prison.