At Least Shia LaBeouf Admits It

Think parents hang out with their kids on set because they love them and care for them? Nothing to do with money? Uh huh. Shia LaBeouf gave an interview where he stated that when he filmed that Disney show Even Stevens when he was 13, he needed a parent on the set. The only person he could turn to was his just out of rehab dad. He had barely spoken to his dad for his entire life, and now here he was forking over $800 a week to a guy who was only doing it for the money and not because of any paternal affection.

"For him it wasn't about being with a son that he loved. He was rent-a-dad."

Shia did go on to say that living with his dad in a motel for three years did bring them close together and actually gave him the father he had lost forever. Now go ahead and wipe away the tears because honestly, most parents are out there to make money off their kids, and to live vicariously through them. From the stage moms on the set of a commercial to Billy Ray Cyrus to Pimpa Joe and Michael Lohan, parents love living off their kids. It's great. They don't do any work, and generally make more money then any other job they have had before. They get free stuff including drugs, and get invited to parties and get attention and basically live a life they never thought possible when they were the kid getting beat up in high school or selling shoes in Sears. Then one day they have a kid and they get to exploit the hell out of that kid, push that kid and that kid becomes their only source of income. You don't think the kid has some kind of pressure? What about if your whole family relies on your income? Hello Lindsay Lohan.

Parents can all spare me the crap about how they are only looking out for the best interests of their child. No, they aren't. The only thing they are doing is making sure the gravy train doesn't stop, and if the kid has to work 20 hours a day to make it happen, the kid is going to do it. The only time I will ever believe the best interests story is when at least one of the parents still has a real job despite the fact their kid is making millions. Otherwise, they are all greedy. I blame the parents, but I also blame human nature. If someone came to you and said you didn't have to do any work at all, and you would get lots of free gifts and travel and people would know your name and you would earn enough to feed your entire family for the next five years, you wouldn't want that to go away. If it means you rationalize how hard your kid is working and maybe not saying anything when they have a drink or two or use a little white powder, then you figure it is the price you have to pay for living the good life. Unfortunately, it is not you who is paying the price.

How many teenagers do you know who can handle the combination of fame, money, power, enabling, and supporting a family of 5? I don't really know any either. That is why they end up paying the price and parents are there at the funeral saying how tragic it was, and then dividing up the estate.