Maybe you haven’t heard of the whole “Eagle Dad” thing yet. Try it out for taste.
I’m reserving judgment at present, because the evidence is all premature right now. Reserving it mostly.
The most efficient perspective here comes from realizing that if everyone did this, then it wouldn’t be special anymore. So whether this kid’s going to be objectively better off is in question, but I’m positive that his application to Harvard is already guaranteed to get a second glance.
We can’t use this kid’s outcome as objective evidence; fame begets success begets fame, and so on.
UPDATE: I hadn’t considered one obvious fact. This has been done before- to death, I might add. It seems to work out all right when the parents have a specific talent in mind, like ice skating, golf, or concert violin, and the child isn’t too resistant to the idea. But creating genius in general…well, we’ve got a pretty good idea Eagle Dad’s genes aren’t doing this kid any favors.
I sort of like the Eagle Dad approach better than the mainstream approach of coddling children and teaching them nothing about responsibility or discipline and suing everyone who causes a scratch.
I think that both approaches are over-protective.
I agree, and I prefer a very hands-off parenting style (in the abstract, anyway) that requires the kid to develop adaptability. And wouldn't you know it, that's exactly how my parents raised me (I carry my biases shamelessly these days).
Too bad they never had a clue about money, though; I wouldn't have minded a little intervention there. But who would have predicted my financial death spiral a decade ago?