it doesnt affect my decision on what I wear or my wife and daughter. yeah I get some complaints about the age of my daughter and what she's wearing and that she's topless with me and my wife, but I simply ask them:

Is she YOUR daughter or mine, and if there's a problem, then look the other way down the beach."

As I've stated, my daughter doesnt leave my eyesight when she's either at a nude beach with us, or topless or in a thong with  us. If she's with her friends, she'll dress according ly for the area.

Without posted exactly what Thongman said, I'll just compeltely agree with him because he mirrored what I was going to say. If we venture out to a part of the beach where there's alot of kids and families around, we'll dress accordingly, but we usually go to an area that wont cause problems because we always choose to either go nude or as minimal as possible without offending others.

My daughter is almost a teen now but has been thonging for atleast 3 years. This has indeed cause a serious stir up with a female member in here, which I havent seen for a long time. But yes, we're bringing up our daughter in a very respectful and healthy way.

If a parent confronts us, I'm usually the one that handles things. We've been approched by lifeguards and such, but we rarely visit indoor pools in skimmpy apparel.

For men the presence of children seems to be a big fear in American society with the social pressures on sexual abuse and parent's fears of sexual predators.  (yeah like any predator would call attention to himself in any way- that's why you don't see bright orange sharks or yellow hawks)

For females it's quite the opposite!  Some of the sexist females in the smallest suits I've seen on American beaches have had kids in tow.  Recently on South Beach several days in a row I saw a foxy mama with with a small toddler, a gorgeous tan topless in the tinist G string, (I couldn't ID it very well- possibly a Roma chip).  

Once her husband was there, asleep on the towel in a bikini.  She was talking to some other young mothers while the kids played.  She was  USAmerican too, not South American as I first thought.  I've seen some thirty something women in thongs with kids or teenagers in tow.

I avoid beaches where there are lots of kids. There are just too many potential hassles. Usually the kids seem to take it in stride. It? the parents that get upset.

Interestingly I?e been to beaches in Guadeloupe, which is in the French Caribbean. There you will see entire families, including the teenagers to the parents totally nude on the beach and not thinking a thing about it.

Once I was one Crane? Beach in Ipswich, Massachusetts when a group of 30 to 40 of French Canadian kids with a teacher-chaperon came walking up the beach. When they saw me in my g-string. They immediately stripped off their swimsuits and dove into the water, obviously believing that they had hit the clothing optional section. A ranger saw them and immediately set the record straight.

It kills me how men get such a bad rap as being stalkers and molesters, however, we are in a sense, the only ones who are ever busted for child porn or child molestation. In turn, men get a bad rap when wearing thongs in public.

I just recently had a run-in with a parent while in NC on the Outer Banks. She came up to me to confront me about what my daughter was wearing. I told the lady we were responsable parents, and that we have brought her up in a healthy manor. This is when Lisa, (my daughter) came out of the water and the lady really flew off the handle! She started talking louder and said "Hell, look, her bathing suit bottom is crammed between her l*bias and she doesnt have a top on!!!  She cant be, what, 12 years old??!"  My wife made a couple of comments, then, as proud as I was, my daughter spoke up and said:

"Miss, I choose to wear these kind of bathing suits, with my parents approval. I think they look nice on me, and my friends agree. I even have a couple that wear the same things I do."

The lady turned around and walked away. My wife made one more commemt with: "If you dont like it, dont look at it".

It's a shame men go thru what they do when wearing thongs. It's a shame we're labeled Gay or molesters.I really hope in the future that America lightens up and stops being so reserved and ass backwards!

It's GOT to!

Our world (yes Everyone!) is just becoming over-sensitised! After the freedom of the 70's, we seem to be retreating back to conservatism and being over-protective. The reasons why are probably good ones (the threats), but the control methods are not. Society and life seems to be gettting ever more less enjoyable and relaxed, and it ain't a good thing!

If we don't lighten up, we'll suffocate ourselves!

It is funny because the pool at my apartment complex that I swim in, and lay out at has a lot of parents with kids.  Usually the parents are much calmer than the kids, because they are a little bit more familiar with this particular type of fashion when I am wearing a tiny swimsuit at the pool!

Thongfreak, I have to hand it to your daughter for having the guts to stand up for herself the way she does!

We find it sad that anyone should consider a "standard" male swimming costume - what the Americans seem to call "speedos" - as anything other than a normal boring piece of swimwear. They are neither brief, small, sexy or daring. Just dull and very very ordinary!

As a maker, Speedo was not a patch on the Jantzen!      Thats what we had as our first swimming costumes,  before we graduated to briefer things.........

kernow34

I was at Ft. DeSoto Park a couple weeks ago, and there was a guy there whose wife was wearing a 1-piece bathing suit, and he and his son were both wearing 1" speedo-type suits!  I thought it was kind of cool!  They weren't wearing thongs, or even rio-backed suits, but it was cool that no one was wearing dork shorts, and everyone was wearing lycra!

If a parent wants to wear a thong or g-string when they're on the beach with their children, what's the problem with it?  It is no one's business but theirs!  I don't see how it would harm their children!  If a couple of parents are on the beach with their children, and they're wearing thongs or g-strings, how will it harm their children?  Could someone please give me a good answer to that one?  What is the harm in a parent being on the beach with his or her child and wearing a thong?  At least he or she is comfortable!  If they are much more comfortable wearing a thong, it will be more enjoyable for them!  Regardless of whether their kids are wearing "regular swimsuits" or thongs, at least if the parent is more comfortable, they are going to have more fun, and the kids are going to have more fun!

There are millions of kids who are neglected and abused by their parents, but a few people freak out over other people's kids wearing thongs with them!  At least the parents are spending quality time with their children which more parents need to do!  But like I said, people worry about parents letting their kids wear thongs on the beach(while under the supervision of the parents!) if they want to!  Thongfreak and his wife let their daughter wear a thong at a very early age, and from what he has said, she turned out having a higher self-confidence level because of it, and it sounds like she is much more secure about herself!

Someday when I'm married with children, believe me, their dad will be wearing either a tiny bikini, or a thong on the beach, regardless of what they're wearing!  By default, I think I would start my son(s) on bikini briefs, and if they want to stay with that range of swimwear as they get older, then fine, at least they know about the benefits as far as comfort goes, but if they want to go to shorts, that's their business.

I think being conscientious around children, and everybody else is important. I do not deliberately thong where I know there are children around, but then I also whatch my mouth when I'm around children.

 On the other side, We have a right to be adults. As I have said, I do not thong or swear in the prescence of children. Nor do I buy them cigarettes, or skin magazines. But I do think all these are perfectly exceptable for adults to do(  and I think that thong wearing to some extent is appropriate for female and male teenagers) and we have a right to partake if we so choose.

  Altimately, it is the parents job to protect their own children and yes, I have heard the old, "It takes a village..........." crap but still it's the parents that get final say over how the child is raised. Therefore, it is the parents who has to make the decision and while I am not a parent, it just seems easier to protect the child from society than it does to change the entire society.

I would also like some clarification on the question, "How does seeing an adult in a thong traumatize a child."

Has there ever been a study on this? or even, What is the logic behind it?

Thonging for some people might have sexual overtones but children aren't going to be aware of this. Chances are, most children have probably seen at least one of their parents naked. Does that traumatize them as well?

I firmly believe that if children are raised to think that the human body is just the human body, devoid of all sexual symbolism, then seeing a naked, or near naked, body will be nothing more than that.

AMEN backstrap!

I see it this way, the human body is what it is, deal with it! If you're too uptight about seeing someone else ina thong, or nude, then frwakin MOVE! Or leave the area! Who cares who was there first! EVERYone looks at their naked body in the miror almost everyday, freakin accept it for what it is!

I have seen the same reaction when I've been thonging.   ONCE a family with two younger girls (young teens maybe) turned and went to another area of the beach.    If I'm arriving at the beach, I don't set up near children and usually not real close to others at all.

There have been MANY times when  couples, families, families with children of all ages, and even guys in board shorts have set up very near to my spot.   Recently, these two guys in their 20s set up near by.  I was a little uncomfortable at first but they didn't say anything negative at all.  We talked briefly when one of them asked for the time or something like that.