Woops… I’m ranting again…
I want to start by saying I’m not a prude. I’m not the perfect parent either. I’m a pretty laid back Dad. Basically what I want to teach my kids is respect for others, and that they need to earn the things they get.
For the life of me I can’t figure out why kids NEED cellphones. Especially in Jr. High or Elementary school. I’ve always been boggled when I hear my 4th grader saying his friends have cellphones. Sure sure, parents will argue with me saying they need them for emergencies or yadda-yadda… but I just don’t see the point. For one, texting is the equivalent of passing notes and goofing off all day. It’s a BIG distraction. Kids shouldn’t have cellphones in school, period. I might allow an exception for high school students, sort of like “college prep” or getting them ready for the “real world”
When my 12 year old begged us for a cellphone last year, we said no. We were the “strict” parents. I made a deal with him saying if he got straight A’s I’d get him a phone. And by golly, the kid went and got straight A’s, and I couldn’t go back on my promise so I got him a trac-Phone. Mostly it was just girls and boys texting back and forth…
Now it’s FACEBOOK…. my friggin 4th grader is on the phone and his friends are asking him to join Facebook so he can play dumb farmville games or whatnot… No. Absolutely not. Parents… please wake up from your fog. Kids shouldn’t be allowed on Facebook. I was under the impression that there was an 18+ age limit on Facebook when I joined years ago. And there’s way too much adult content going on there for my 4th grader to stumble on.
Now I feel like the prude. Am I the old man curmudgeding about “in my day” topics? Or am I just using common sense here?
Then I hear parents or news talking heads talk about the corruption of our youth, kids growing up too fast, sexting, etc…. but in the same breath the parents let their own kids have cellphones and facebook accounts, and crazy video games.
Kids already grow up way too fast on their own. Parents… use some goddamn common sense! We don’t need them to grow up any faster.