Emotional Blackmail

I know, I'm back one day and I'm complaining already. Not cool. But listen to this:
Last Thursday, while I was trying to die peacefully, my daughter brought home this from school.

It's a magnet that was made out of a piece of artwork she did in class. It took her two days to draw the picture (by the way; it's a rainbow with unicorn-pegasus-horses flying around. What would those be considered? Unisuses? Pegicorns?? Hmm... Anyway, they are NOT goats, so don't think that, because that's what I thought and I got a STERN 6 year old lecture on art appreciation because of it) and then someone took the picture away forever pretty much and turned it into a magnet. So I looked at it, and thought, oh, what a nice art project she did, I'll hang it on the refrigerator, but then she produced the REST of the information that goes with the magnet, and it went something like this: "Congratulations on your child's lovely artwork. We made it into a magnet for you. If you want to keep it, send us $6. If you don't want to keep it, just send it back in by Friday. If you want to keep it and then buy more stuff with this picture on it, send us more money, and here's the list of prices for you"

Uh, EXCUSE ME???

Is this NOT emotional blackmail? You bet it is. What child has ever created anything that they DON'T consider a masterpiece? My kids are insanely prolific artists. We can't keep up. Half the things they make are -uhm- practice pictures for better things. But do they allow me to throw them out? Of course not. I have to sneak them out in the dark of night to the recycle bin and then bury them under last week's newspapers, just so my kids have no chance of seeing them there. So you let this child work on a picture for two days and then take it away and she'll never see it again unless it's in magnet form, and is there any way she's not going to think it's fabulous and want me to keep it? They're going to get my $6, I guess.

What about the kids and families who don't have $6 for this little venture? How crappy are those parents going to feel, turning away something their child has made? Was the idea here to alienate those people?

All in all, this whole thing is not cool. I don't enjoy being forced to purchase something I wouldn't have purchased at all. I would much rather she brought the picture home so I can save it for her or even frame it for her if she liked it enough. Instead, I have an overpriced magnet.

This school district is doing Spring pictures basically the same way. I don't even know why they are doing Spring pictures, as school pictures were "officially" in the fall. But here we are in the Spring, and I get a notice home saying that there are Spring pictures on Friday and every child will get their picture taken, and they will be sent home, and if I want to keep them I can pay then. Well, guess what, folks? I don't want them at all. School pictures were done in the fall, and we all just went as a family to get pictures taken and that means my daughter too. So I don't need it. But there's no way to opt out. The pictures will be taken no matter what. And I'm going to send them right back. Nice try.

So here's my final word on this whole thing, you ready?

Hey American businesses: Is it not enough that you try to sell crap to children all hours of the day on TV (which is why we only watch PBS--no commercials--ha ha suckers)? Now you need to "force" the product into their hands and then ask for payment? I know you know what kind of a position you are putting parents into. We don't like it. We will remember it. You have lost my business, and I will complain to the PTO about this whole affair.

Hey school district and PTO: Shame on you!! By doing this, you are no better than all those stupid commercials on TV, and you are supposed to be above all that. You're an educational institution, not a mini-mall. Yes, I know you need to raise money for things. I fully support that. But forcing children to carry home products that the parents do not want or need is unfair. You are not making this voluntary, you are essentially making it mandatory, and I don't appreciate it. You need new ways to do things. Let's work on it together, shall we?

Sincerely,