I am a parent of teens who use myspace and facebook. I do have access to their accounts and I routinely snoop. My rule is if you'd be embarrassed for me or any other parent to see it, don't post it. It's just good manners. And any kid whose parent raised him/her well should be aware of that. That's not to say they don't do it when they think I am not looking because they think they are secure to talk freely in their world of blogs.
What concerns me more is the instant gratification mode we all live in and how fast trouble can brew and false rumors can fly because kids can respond quickly. There is no "cooling off" period or time to reflect before words become actions. Blogs, text, IM's cells allow kids to alert the masses faster than anyone can keep up or any parent can catch on. Instead of the day when you had to plan an underage beer party or ruin a girl's reputation by making phone call after phone call to reach friends on their family phone during appropriate hours (with a rotary dial and no private voicemail to expedite the process), today's kids have instant access at all times of the day and night. It's much sneakier and more sinister. There is not thought to the harm words can do. These kids are our future and they have not learned restraint. Add to that the stress of always being accessible ("I'm sleeping but text me anytime", "I'm at the 7:20 movie at Center St Cinemas with Tammy, Dave and Alisa, call me", "I'm in the shower getting ready for Janie's party but call me in 10 mins". Who really needs to know that I had spaghetti with clam sauce for dinner and that I'm soaking in a bathtub? Their lives have no mystery.
The problems kids face today are not any different than problems we faced as teens....it's just they are facing it earlier and it's uglier and more intense because they can hide behind a screen instead of face to face which make us think twice. Mean girls still exist, drugs and alcohol are there to tempt them. Sex is still something that preoccupies every young man's mind and something good girls and bad girls do (just the "good" girls deny doing it and "bad" girls flaunt about it on myspace while their male counterparts do as well). There is no innocence at 12 any more.
Slashdot Mirror
Paragraphs, a novel idea! FYI...I did use them and there was obviously a formatting issue on this site. But thanks for your intelligent rebuttal.
I am a parent of teens who use myspace and facebook. I do have access to their accounts and I routinely snoop. My rule is if you'd be embarrassed for me or any other parent to see it, don't post it. It's just good manners. And any kid whose parent raised him/her well should be aware of that. That's not to say they don't do it when they think I am not looking because they think they are secure to talk freely in their world of blogs. What concerns me more is the instant gratification mode we all live in and how fast trouble can brew and false rumors can fly because kids can respond quickly. There is no "cooling off" period or time to reflect before words become actions. Blogs, text, IM's cells allow kids to alert the masses faster than anyone can keep up or any parent can catch on. Instead of the day when you had to plan an underage beer party or ruin a girl's reputation by making phone call after phone call to reach friends on their family phone during appropriate hours (with a rotary dial and no private voicemail to expedite the process), today's kids have instant access at all times of the day and night. It's much sneakier and more sinister. There is not thought to the harm words can do. These kids are our future and they have not learned restraint. Add to that the stress of always being accessible ("I'm sleeping but text me anytime", "I'm at the 7:20 movie at Center St Cinemas with Tammy, Dave and Alisa, call me", "I'm in the shower getting ready for Janie's party but call me in 10 mins". Who really needs to know that I had spaghetti with clam sauce for dinner and that I'm soaking in a bathtub? Their lives have no mystery. The problems kids face today are not any different than problems we faced as teens....it's just they are facing it earlier and it's uglier and more intense because they can hide behind a screen instead of face to face which make us think twice. Mean girls still exist, drugs and alcohol are there to tempt them. Sex is still something that preoccupies every young man's mind and something good girls and bad girls do (just the "good" girls deny doing it and "bad" girls flaunt about it on myspace while their male counterparts do as well). There is no innocence at 12 any more.