I dislike kids

I went on a walk yesterday and had an interesting conversation with one of my companions about modern language. One of the words that came up was 'kids'. We were of the same mind on this and it reminded me that I'd written a post in 2015 on just this topic. I think it deserves a rerun as my views have not changed in the intervening period. To the contrary, my antipathy has grown.

I dislike** kids. Don't get me wrong, I don’t dislike children, young people, babies, infants, toddlers, adolescents, teenagers or youth. But I do dislike the universal use of the word 'kid/kids' to describe any and all of the categories of young folk.
'Kid' has its uses, certainly. It can be a friendly word, a loving word, even – in certain contexts. But words have connotations, subtle nuances of meaning that colour their interpretation. When writers begin to use certain words as if one size fits all, meanings get lost and the underlying sense becomes distorted. In addition to conveying youthfulness, the word 'kid' has associations of irresponsibility, poor judgment, triviality and mischievousness. Responsible behaviour is not expected of 'kids'.  “Kids will be kids”.  'Kids' are not to be trusted or taken seriously. In some ways, it's quite a derogatory word and I wince almost every time I hear it.
I realise I am probably in a minority and am flogging a dead horse and I should just accept that people have been using it in the vernacular for years. But I still think that, in most contexts, 'child' or 'children' are much better choices than the rather lazy 'kid' or 'kids'. I'll keep on plugging away but I suspect that the day can't be far off when I'll go to an art gallery and see a portrait of the Blessed Virgin and Baby Jesus labeled “Mother and Kid.” I kid you not.

**I could have chosen to write 'hate' instead of 'dislike' but hate is another word that is being debased by its ubiquitous usage. I try to be very selective when I use it.