ReShonda Tate Billingsley/Facebook
ReShonda Tate Billingsley/Facebook

Clutch Magazine reports that best-selling Christian chick lit author ReShonda Tate Billingsley recently posted a Facebook photo of her daughter holding a sign that reads: "Since I want to post photos of me holding liquor, I am obviously not ready for social media and will be taking a hiatus until I learn what I should and should not post! BYE-BYE."

Ouch. Billingsley very clearly very won the battle of the social networking posts with this one. And commenters all over the Internet are praising her creative "punishment fits the crime" approach. Clutch magazine reports:

The photo’s been shared 3,600 times and counting, with most of the comments regarding it being favorable. One poster’s commends Billingsley’s no-nonsense approach: “This is YOUR CHILD, not everybody else’s! You are her parent! I approve because if you don’t do it now, the jails or worse are waiting for her! Thank you for being courageous in training your female child to be a productive citizen of our world.” Another commenter opined, “I am so through with these uber-permissive parents telling us we’re invading our children’s privacy and embarrassing them unfairly by taking control and stepping up to the plate as moms and dads. Go, ReShonda, you have my full support!” Only a very small minority of poster dissented.

Of course, getting the last word online and ensuring a good outcome for one's child are two very different things. Remember, the real issue underlying the post wasn't misuse of networking; it was that the teen was presumably abusing alcohol — a much more serious problem, and worthy of a response that goes beyond a gimmick. So here's hoping that this clever public humiliation sets her straight instead of driving her to drink more.

Read more at Clutch magazine.

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