Stupidity: Lucas was standing between some SCABs and the girl bullying the boy, but was looking in another direction. The other SCABs obviously saw the bullying but didn't respond. Lucas turned his head and saw the bullying and immediately intervened. The other SCABs didn't move and continued to simply stand there and watch. (01:17:16)
Stupidity: The Good Boys were going to ride their bikes four miles to the mall but did not even think to bring bike locks with them. Also, even if there were no locks on the bikes when parked in front of the store, this does not necessarily mean that the bikes would not still be there later for the Good Boys to pick up. Thor just assumed that the bikes were lost/stolen forever because he said his family would not be able to have "Cycle Sundays."
Stupidity: When Claude was leaving with the doll, he called the Good Boys "fools" and said he would have paid $1,000. The Good Boys knew how to use the internet to find out the value of the Ascension card [Turzan of Uzkara] and the price for a new drone but didn't think of looking up the cost of a CPR doll before selling it to Claude.
Stupidity: Thor looked for (and found) "weapons" in the back of his parents' closet, but didn't think of getting knives from the kitchen. Also, when Claude was in the house, Thor put the paintball gun in Max's backpack in case someone messed with them when going for the drone but had not thought of using it before Claude arrived.
Stupidity: The Good Boys learned about consent in assembly and knew about making a citizen's arrest, using the internet to find where the drone is sold, how to treat a dislocated shoulder, etc. but did not know that they shouldn't give out their address on the internet and invite a stranger into the house?
Answer: Max's dad probably over-reacted out of anger/rage over the drone and destroyed room and might have made changes after he cooled off. Plus, it was meant to be humorous. A "month in the hole" was immediately imposed; no more birthdays, holidays, summer, etc. would refer to after the month in the hole. Max's dad did not say he couldn't attend school-related events, such as the "Rock of Ages" show. Parents are supposed to give their kids unconditional love. A father can continue to love his son while disliking his behavior. Max's dad may have been unduly harsh (again, out of anger), but he still loves Max - which shouldn't be depressing. I don't think Max's dad said he was grounded for life, just grounded. However, Lucas told his parents that Max was grounded for life - an exaggeration.
KeyZOid
So, even after being grounded for a month, he can't celebrate his birthday or summer vacation?
Not necessarily. Max's dad said those things in the heat of the moment. Although it is possible that Max's dad meant what he said (at least at the time), it isn't probable. The severity of the punishment given to Max was a reflection of how angry Mr. Newman was. A proud and loving father who tells his son "I will always love you..." is more likely to forgive Max so that they can return to their good father/son relationship.