I teach that the meal is the moment when fun can be had through social interaction. I entirely ban communication and entertainment device at the meal table. But then I'm French, so I don't know what the custom generally is in the USA - from my experience there I understand that the daily family meals are not considered such a sacred ritual but I only have anecdotal samples.

Thanks for the perspective; nicely put.

If you can't raise kids that can tolerate boredom, you're doing something wrong.