How a "Nintendo" ruins your children

[Grey Acumen]

My response to this article was as follows, I actually had to do it in two parts for teh actual comments on the page because it was too long:

Wow... it's amazing; all the parent has to do is restrict the children's ability to play the game. I recall a long time ago, we used to call that "being a parent"
Mistake #1: Doing something for her children with the hopes of getting them to like her more. They are the kids, you are the parent, you don't need the approval of someone with less than half your living experience.
Mistake #2: thinking that kids will prefer brain exercises over entertainment.
Mistake #3: making it the "family's" DS. No. It is either for one child and that's it OR it is the PARENT'S Ds and the children have NO right to play it. It is a reward or treat that is earned and rationed.
Mistake #4: Letting the kids play it at inappropriate times, like at the table, as close as I can tell is because she's scared "that her kids won't love her anymore"
Mistake #5: Not invoking serious punishments for taking the DS without permission. If that had happened under my watch, that would have earned loss of DS privileges, erasing all data from their choice games, and also taking those choice games to a completely different location, such as the desk at work, the glove compartment of the car, or small unmarked box under the sink, the games are nice and small and much easier to hide than the entire DS, and the threat of losing any progress they have made in their favorite games will do a great deal to deter any attempts to steal, as there is little point to playing when you can't make any progress.

Mistake #6: Not bothering to teach the kids a little something called "responsibility" and instead deciding to place the blame on the console.
It's so much easier to place the blame on video games and TV and loud music, and even easier to blame things when you can call them a drug. It's not our fault, it's an addiction! Us mere mortals are helpless against the all powerful addiction! it's like mind control in a bottle!
It's one thing to have lovely, well behaved children that read, walk the dog and play the violin because there's nothing better to do, it's another thing to have children who will do those things because they want to, and are able to ration their entertainment to balance with their responsibilities.