Nigel Latta shares his parenting tips

If you ever wondered how the world became so politically correct, Nigel Latta has a theory.
It's a result of the world "going a bit doolally".
A clinical psychologist, author and television presenter, Latta is also a patron of the Yes2Youth Trust and visited Wanganui this week as its guest at a fundraising evening.
His show, The Politically Incorrect Parenting Teens Show, was an irreverent take on helping parents understand teenagers "before they drive them crazy", he said.
Speaking to the Chronicle, Latta said political correctness was a root of some of the troubles parents might be having raising teens. "I think we've been fed this constant and particular ideological diet of how parenting should be and somewhere along the way we've lost track of things.
"So now there's all this pressure put on parents to do things that my parents' generation didn't do."
He said growing up in a world where "kids were allowed to go build tree huts, go fishing off the wharf on their own and ride bikes down hills was actually quite good fun".
Mr Latta said he had wanted to visit Wanganui because it supported the work being done by the Yes2Youth Trust.
"Wanganui is incredibly lucky to have a programme like this running here. It's a bloody good programme and the work they're doing with young kids is amazing.
"We have constant problems with teenagers and people always asking, 'What can we do'? Well, what Yes2Youth is doing is a model of what you can do," he said.
Asked for the best advice he could give parents, he said it was based on building a good relationship with your children.
"But remember it's about reinforcing good behaviour and punishing bad behaviour. With that you'll get through most things," he said.
As for the way he delivered his message, Mr Latta said he did not mind the reaction from audiences he spoke to but had no time for "the little people who sit at home on the keyboards - trolls I call them - little bloggers".
"They're people who would never come up to you and say things because they don't have the stoomph to do that.
"But they and sit and mouth off in their dark little rooms.
"They used to wind me up, but they're actually quite a good source of material for me."
Before his public engagement on Thursday night, he spoke to a gathering of Wanganui teachers and principals at the Wanganui Racecourse and his wide-ranging address was liberally laced with politically incorrect commentary.
He told the teachers that science dictated the type of children parents would have and said if parents wanted to have smart kids "it makes sense not to have sex with dumb people".