*checks watch*

[conuly]

Three comments before I moved into an outright kinda-flame. I guess maybe I'm the one having the bad day, huh?

For the record, children under a year definitely aren't capable of manipulating others. It's got nothing to do with intelligence - some of the smartest people I know can't manipulate others! And some of the smartest people I know are babies! It makes a neat little Venn diagram, meeting in the middle for a small slice of the population in both groups!

I'm dating this yesterday, because I didn't post then, because I was sleeping.

Comments

[mayna.livejournal.com]

You have to sort of define "manipulate" there... manipulate with trickery, no. but figuring out how to get you to do what they want, they sure do do that. Even dogs can do it. My dog whines and paces and goes to the door and back to you over and over to get you to go open the door to let him out.

[conuly]

Do dogs at that mental age (let's see... prior to two months, I'd say, based on what I know of cats, which is really bad) do that, though?

Your dog is, in human terms, an adult, and has been since one or two years old, right?

It's not about intelligence, that's what I keep saying.

Though you're right, of course - I still don't think that babies that age cry just for attention unless they're seriously deprived.

[mayna.livejournal.com]

You have to sort of define "manipulate" there... manipulate with trickery, no. but figuring out how to get you to do what they want, they sure do do that. Even dogs can do it. My dog whines and paces and goes to the door and back to you over and over to get you to go open the door to let him out.

[conuly]

Do dogs at that mental age (let's see... prior to two months, I'd say, based on what I know of cats, which is really bad) do that, though?

Your dog is, in human terms, an adult, and has been since one or two years old, right?

It's not about intelligence, that's what I keep saying.

Though you're right, of course - I still don't think that babies that age cry just for attention unless they're seriously deprived.