Category Archives: Life

Parenting Tips to avoid Parental Liability Issues

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Parenting is an uphill task and should not be underestimated at all. Most parents spend less time with their children and have delegated their responsibilities to the caregivers. As much as you are out there hustling to provide for your family, create time to interact with your kids. Make them part of your everyday life. You do not want your kids to explore things by themselves when you can do it. Creating the bond between you and them is your obligation.

On the other hand, the law covers everything, including the parents’ duties and responsibilities. You will be liable as a parent if your child commits a crime or causes an accident somewhere. At the end of it all, you will incur the losses yourself. Please do not wait until it is too late when the law has to come to take charge. You can do so much to prevent the law from being on your neck.

Below are some parenting tips you can practice to be on the safe side of the law and increase the bond between you and your children.

Educating Your Children

Educating your children is like creating awareness for them. Children have to know the bitter-sweet that life has in store for them. They need to make the right life choices to avoid getting into trouble.

Unfortunately, sometimes children get into pain and suffering like the one caused by car accidents, and the parents will be the ones to take the blame for not educating them.

You need to sit down with your kids and tell them the outcomes of doing certain things. For example, when you have gotten a car for your son, you have to tell him what might happen when he lends it out to his friends. You, as the parent, are in charge of the asset, and in case of an accident caused by that car, you will be held accountable.

Therefore, it is essential to educate your children about the dangers that might be associated with the wrong decisions they make.

Close Monitoring

Every parent needs to monitor their kids closely. Children deserve proper guidance from their parents in the right direction. It is each parent’s responsibility to supervise their children’s activities.

It is okay to restrict them from doing things you disapprove of. That is playing your role as a guardian. Besides, children face bullying and harassment from other children at a certain age. Most of them will be ashamed and won’t tell you as a parent. It is essential to monitor them even in their social media activities because there is an increase in cases of cyberbullying.

Cyberbullying and harassment might lead to low self-esteem among the children, and in later stages of life, they might get into depression. As you monitor their online activities, you also need to control the number of hours online. It is easy for them to get brainwashed.

Besides, spending more time online negatively impacts children’s physical health. This is why most kids today are suffering from obesity. So do not let your kids into health and life problems this early when you can prevent that.

Be a Parent

Some parents are trying to be friends with their children. Your kids ought to know the boundaries, and you are the one to set them as a parent. There should be limits when it gets to becoming friends.

Teenagers desire boundaries because they make them learn and navigate a sometimes complex environment. Establish boundaries to allow your children to find out their interests safely. You have to model them into what you desire them to be.

When you put order into your kid’s development, they may become irritated with you. That isn’t to say they don’t care about you. In reality, when you enforce guidelines and restrictions, children typically bond with you. So go ahead and impose a curfew, restrict them from taking alcohol, and hold them accountable if they don’t obey. In the end, they will appreciate you for that, and you’ll be less likely to need to find a criminal defense attorney for them in the future!

Getting an Umbrella Policy

Children can make mistakes on their own, maybe when driving. They could cause accidents, even though not intentionally. Without a cover, you will incur losses because you will have to get into your pockets to pay for all the damages caused.

The expenses include the medical costs for those injured during the accident and the legal expenses. Having an umbrella will help you save a lot and prevent you from getting into loans, especially if you do not have backup cash in your account.

Your coverage policy might not even cover your college-aged kids. You must organize their insurance needs with your agent because purchasing their own homeowner’s insurance could cancel their protection under your cover. Therefore, it is advisable to get a policy for them.

Consistency With Your Discipline

Disciplining your child entails instilling in them the values of responsibility and self-drive. Your children will be able to take responsibility for their actions and have conduct if you punish them appropriately and consistently. The goal is to help youngsters learn to control their emotions and develop positive behaviours.

The discipline uses reasonable and practical techniques to reinforce proper behaviour while discouraging wrong behaviour. However, some parents believe that correction includes corporeal punishment such as slapping and whipping their children and scolding and threatening them. This is not an appropriate technique to use.

Good discipline fosters self-control among the little ones and also helps kids when it comes to making important decisions in life. So make sure you are consistent with this strategy for the good upbringing of the children.

Conclusion

Parents are liable due to the parent-child relationship and due to negligence. You have an obligation of supporting kids mentally, financially and physically. When it comes to molding their character, you also should be at the forefront.

Above all, you should be a role model to your children. It would be best to lead by example because kids will tend to emulate what you do. As a parent, do not do bad things in front of your kids. They will do the same, and you won’t correct them because that is the impression you gave them.

8 Laws You’ll Almost Certainly Break As You Go Through Life

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We all like to think that we’re law-abiding citizens, dutifully going about our business, paying our taxes to the almighty state, and considering our fellow men and women. But when you really probe the matter, you actually find that most people are breaking the law, either out of ignorance or, sometimes, out of necessity. 

In this post, we take a look at some of the laws that you’re probably breaking right now or, if not, will likely break as you go through life. Many laws that sound good on paper are a nightmare to follow in reality. 

Walking Across The Street

Also known as jaywalking, this illegal activity feels incredibly natural. The idea that you’re not allowed to walk across a street without a crosswalk just feels wrong, particularly if there are no cars coming. What’s more, in most countries around the world, it’s not a crime. 

People get large fines for so-called jaywalking. In some cities, these can reach as much as $200 – or more than a day’s wages for a lot of people. And what was the harm that was done? Zero. 

Failing To License Your Dog

Many people think that getting a dog license is just something that you do so that you can more easily find your hound if it runs away. But that’s not how things work legally. In many parts of the country, dog licenses are a requirement. In other words, you have to have one or face a fine. 

Fortunately, they’re not expensive. The most you’ll pay is around $100 and more like $30. Just don’t forget to do it. If the authorities discover that you don’t have a license, they may take the opportunity to behave punitively. 

Sharing Medication With Other People

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You’re allowed to consume your prescription medication (lucky you), but according to the law, you’re not allowed to pass it around to friends and family. The thinking behind this law makes some sense when you think about it: you don’t know all the side-effects of the drugs that you take. You never know how other people will react. 

However, according to studies, the majority of people – around 60 percent – dole out prescription drugs to members of the family and friends. In the eyes of the law, this could be seen in just the same way as handing out illicit drugs. After all, many of the basic substances and compounds in these medications are identical to what you buy on the black market. 

Forgetting To Update Your Driving License After Moving Home

This law applies in most countries around the world: the need to update your driving license information when you move home. 

Think about it this way: what would happen if you got a speeding ticket? Well, usually, the officer with the speed trap would take a note of your registration and send it off to some central bureaucracy for processing. They would then send any fines to the address associated with your license.

Unfortunately, if you’ve moved to a different address and don’t have mail forwarding set up, you can find yourself in a lot of trouble. The authorities will continue sending summons and fines to your previous address and then bailiffs will use various databases to collect large sums of money from you – often thousands of dollars. What’s more, they have ways of finding out your new address. It’s all rather scary! What was a small $150 fine could balloon into a payment of $5,000 plus a court appearance. No, it’s not the same as second degree murder, but it can set you back. 

Peeing In The Street

Civilization imposes some heavy penalties on us. And one of them is not being able to unzip your fly and pee wherever you like. Drunk college students beware!

In the US, most states prohibit outdoor display of genitalia. In some states, it is only illegal if you intend to stimulate sexual desire. However, you may also be found guilty of other public indecency laws, so peeing with your ding-dong out isn’t advisable. 

Smoking Certain Substances

According to statistics, around 10 percent of people regularly smoke weed. Unfortunately, you can get arrested if the cops find you carrying weed. While it is legal in some states, it is not in others. 

If you’re using weed for medical reasons and can prove it, you can usually avoid detention. But smoking weed is one of those activities that many people assume is fine now but, actually, it isn’t. 

If you notice your local sheriff or police department is on an anti-drug push, don’t use weed in public. These are the times of year when you are at the highest risk of being charged with a crime. 

Drinking Under The Legal Age

You’re not allowed to buy alcohol until the age of 21 in the US and 18 in most other counties. However, the majority of people under the legal age have tried it, and, according to statistics, actually consume around 10 percent of all alcohol bought in the country. 

Because of this, disobedience of this law is actually extremely high. Most young people can’t legally drink, but do so anyway. 

In many states, local politicians can set their own drinking laws. They have the power. However, they also face disincentives from the federal government if they try to change the current 21 status quo. 

Unfortunately, this law isn’t harmless. There’s evidence that postponing the drinking age actually makes alcohol more enticing. It is not a regular part of family life so it becomes taboo. 

Talking While Driving

Not all states ban talking on your phone while driving, but most do. Most also ban texting while driving (more than those who ban talking), and around a dozen prevent drivers from touching their cell phone at all while they are at the wheel. 

This means that if you’re using GPS apps on your phone, you’re breaking the law, but if you’re using them on your vehicle’s infotainment system, that’s okay. Who said that legalese had to make sense? 

Helping Your Older Loved Ones Navigate Hearing Loss

As we get older, life becomes more challenging for a whole host of reasons. It could be mobility or the loss of loved ones, after retirement, many people have difficulties adjusting to their new life without a sense of purpose or belonging and these issues can result in feelings of isolation or depression.

Certainly, as we move through different stages of life, the challenges are different – but this doesn’t have to mean that the challenges are negative or debilitating. Life is for living and different phases of our natural evolution also offer us the chance to experience richer, fuller lives armed with a diversity of life experiences and skills. 

Now, one of the most important challenges that many of us will face is experiencing the issues that age brings with it, and often this means, hearing loss. If you’re concerned that you might be showing signs of hearing loss, then you should take action as soon as possible. Early diagnosis is key and as the adage goes, prevention is better than cure, so the earlier you see an audiologist the more options you’ll have at your disposal to address any issues.

However, when we start to see these signs in our older relatives and loved ones, it’s important that we understand the challenges they’re going to be facing and how we can support them constructively and lovingly, and most importantly, with empathy. This is especially true if they’ve never had hearing issues before and are facing a new reality, which could be causing feelings of anxiety and stress.

So, we’re going to look at a few ways that you can recognize signs of hearing loss in older relatives and what you can do to make their lives a little easier.

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COMMON SIGNS OF HEARING LOSS

The first step to finding help for your relatives and loved ones is to recognize when things are not going exactly to plan with their hearing, and while some signs are more obvious it is likely that at the beginning phase of hearing loss, the clues are going to be less obvious.

You may notice that they’re having difficulty hearing other people clearly or that they misunderstand what you’re saying to them, a scenario that can be more obvious in noisy places.

If they start to ask you to repeat yourself and this happens in greater frequency or if listening to music or watching the television needs a higher volume than normal, this is a sign of deteriorating hearing.

Missing telephone calls or not being able to hear the person on the other end, finding it difficult to keep u with conversations, and if you notice that they become stressed or tired after engaging in a conversation may well mean that it is time to get that audiologist check scheduled.

While these signs are common in most people, you also need to pay special attention to your Dad and older male relatives or loved ones because men are far less likely to speak up about hearing loss, just something to be aware of.

WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU NOTICE SIGNS OF HEARING LOSS

When you notice that your loved one is showing signs of hearing loss (and they have not said anything to you yet), it’s important to proceed with sensitivity and understanding. Try to imagine yourself in their position and realize that this is one stage of life that we’d all rather not have to experience. So empathy and patience are your two most important keywords.

The first thing you’re going to do is have a conversation with them. Discuss your concerns and the reasons why you’re worried, let them speak, and accept that this first interaction may not go exactly as you want it to, but patience is key and handling the situation delicately is a great departure point.

The next step is to schedule a hearing exam with an audiologist. They’ll be able to ascertain the extent of damage and at what stage of hearing loss they’re at. Based on that assessment, they’ll also be able to recommend a treatment plan moving forward and offer advice on how best to cope with the current state of hearing loss.

Your audiologist will also recommend the appropriate devices if they’re necessary and this is also your cue to learn everything you can about those devices, how they operate what hearing aid programming tips you’ll need to enjoy optimum levels of use and benefit from them.

The more you know, the better you’ll be equipped to help your loved ones cope with this new change in their lives and it doesn’t have to be all doom and gloom. People with hearing loss live rich, varied, and interesting lives, just like everyone else does.