I'm 19, live at home b/c I'm paying my way through college. I do what I want, but if my parents are against it, then I'll stop. I'm still afraid of my dad. When did it become this way that we all seem to think that once you're 16 or 17 you should be able to do what you want and "screw parents". I think that we should try to step back a sec and see the issue and what one should do about it while respecting parents. I can see after you've gotten to a certain age that you shouldn't even have to bother with them, but until then I think we should at least respect them. does anyone else agree or am I just old fashioned? What age should we be making our own decisions, and "f' parents"?

Believe it or not, it's actually refreshing to see a 19yo that feels this way. Respect goes both ways. Your parents respect you partially because you respect them. You also HAVE to respect them because you are still living under their roof, but even so, you should ALWAYS respect your parents (unless they are literally abusers/druggies/alcoholics or the like, and even then you should listen to the advice if it's GOOD). Far as I'm concerned, the only time you should HAVE to make your own decisions is when your parents die. They want you to succeed on your own, and you can ALWAYS ask advice. It's when you move out that they turn to "advisors" rather than "rulers". They should also give you MUCH more latitude in the decisions about YOUR life as you get older and show you can handle things. Most of them can also be great "advisors" when you get married, and/or have children of your own. I understand that some parents aren't 1) worthy of respect (see above) and MAY make bad decisions (again, see above), but I think the vast majority are more concerned that you survive and succeed on your own, for when they are no longer around to help. BTW: What's "w/e" in your question?

"What age should we be making our own decisions, and 'f' parents"?" ... I don't think a person should take that attitude at any age, respect is always a two-way street. As long as a child is dependent on their parents for a roof over their head and food on their plate, they need to follow their parent's house rules. For someone to be mature enough to make their own decisions, they have to take other people into consideration, whether it's their parents or someone else. However, when a person becomes self-sufficient, how much they need to consider other people can be less then when they are dependent on them.

I see it as the most irresponsible, disrespectful of people have to resort to asking such questions on answerbag. Most well adjusted families do not have this kind of problem.