Well,
That's ... suboptimal.
Rita and I have the best readers.
Charlie Johnston — an old and dear friend, as well as being a medical professional — read yesterday’s brain droppings and sent us a link to a disturbing study.
If you’ve been reading our blog — and now this Substack — for any length of time you’ve read one of my rants about social media, smartphones, and “24/7 Connectedness” — but that was all the gut feeling of a grumpy old Luddite.
This study (and I full well realize that “correlation is not causation”) is, quite frankly, terrifying; and should be read by any parents of sprogs.
As I told Charlie after I read that link: “Smartphones — and social media in general — have not, I fear, done us any great good as a species.”
Of late, society seems bound, bent, and determined to do the absolute worst to teacup humans. Between the quiet alarms being raised regarding the Government’s Overreaction to COVID to the growing concerns around social media on young minds — “Negative Mental Health Outcomes” is what we retired Law Enforcement types call “A Clue” — the 21st Century appears to be pretty vicious towards children in general right out of the starting blocks.
I’m not sure what the answer is, but I am sure that there needs to be an answer. Society can’t keep dinking around with children’s mental and emotional health like this — not if society wants to exist in a generation.
Ian
He sent me the same. I'm thinking guaranteed nothing but a dumb phone until 16 for mine, and it's no guarantee at that point.
As a teacher, my school went full no-phones last year, buying locking pouches for the students. While they came up with ways to circumvent them... Basically instantly, the teeth of "see a phone take a phone" did dramatically check phone use during the day. Honestly, it led to probably the best and most productive school year in my career. Students hated it of course, but it legitimately seemed to do them good.
I don't think a child should be given a phone. PERIOD. People who do give them one are idiots. Maybe at 16, give them a dumb phone. But until you're 18 and paid for it yourself? NO. The internet is NOT for children. Giving a child a phone is like throwing a sheep to a hungry pride of lions. It Will Not End Well.
Not Ever.
I used to tell people to NEVER allow their child on the internet unless they were standing right behind them. Even with all of the lots and protection programs. It's not healthy for children and there are a LOT of people (millions if no billions) out there preying on them.
And yes, there are people out there who are INTENTIONALLY trying to get kids to commit suicide.
INTENTIONALLY.
Look up the Blue Whale Game.
That got a LOT of children dead.