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I used to be a son out skateboarding with a parent subsidized cellphone that was, on many occations, not answered. I can now understand the worry I cause my par

I used to be a son out skateboarding with a parent subsidized cellphone that was, on many occations, not answered. I can now understand the worry I cause my parents 'you were gone for 12 hours skateboarding and didn't think to check yr phone once! You have a phone for one reason and that's so we can reach you.' Parents will worry when they don't know where their kids are - and it's normal to worry. Despite (inspite?) of our paranoid tendencies, IMO parents have a right to know where their kids are.

helicopterz 10y ago
And so, now, implicitly, Google will know all the same things. Because Google can be the helicopter that flies helicopter parents to their children.
- sangnoir 10y ago
  What makes you think Google did not already have access to this information? They don't even obfuscate the fact because for the last several years, you could see your location history[1] as reported by your device. 1. https://www.google.com/maps/timeline https://www.google.com/maps/timeline
  - helicopterz 10y ago
    Maybe you let YOUR device report back with location information. Maybe you never leave home without your phone. Maybe you attach an authentic identity to YOUR phone. Maybe some multinational corporation has insight into all of YOUR habits. With luck, I've substantially limited the attack surface of my information, not by trusting the oh-so-helpful, feel-good, animated, haptic touch-screen toggles sprinkled here and there, but rather by NOT implicitly trusting any of the devices released in the past ten years to do anything my way, ever. Even when rooted.
    - chetanahuja 10y ago
      Calm down dude. You're still not forced to use any such service.
erispoe 10y ago
It is normal to worry, and I've done this as a kid too. But I've learned a lot about responsibility and communication through this, more than if my parents just had a bug placed on me 24/7. I've learned that you earn trust, that it's a continuous work in progress.
riffraff 10y ago
> IMO parents have a right to know where their kids are don't kids have a right to not let their parents know? If I decide as a teenager to go and have sex with my boyfriend, shouldn't I be free to keep that from my parents? What if my parents disapprove of him, cause he's from a "bad part of town"? Parents worry, and that is normal, and they should teach kids how to make it manageable (i.e. ping via SMS, "call me when the show is over" or whatever), but 24/7 control is a different thing.
- CmdrSprinkles 10y ago
  > don't kids have a right to not let their parents know? Quite frankly: no. As a kid, you aren't mature enough or developed enough to be trusted to make reasonable decisions. That is why you have a guardian and that is why you get some leeway in court. It is also why you tend to not be allowed to consent to many things. You can keep your banging your boyfriend from your parents (but they probably know. Kids aren't that smart. ESPECIALLY when crotches are involved), but they should, if they wish, know where you are. Because they are responsible for you and are responsible for dealing with your screw-ups. If that means humping in a car or at a friend's place while their parents are out of town: Welcome to being a teenager. Being a kid is about screwing up. A LOT. Being a parent is about being the safety net for those screw-ups. And that involves being able to find your dumbass kid when they do what kids do. As for abuse: The parents who want to know where you are 24/7 already can. Just install an app to do it or use Find my iPhone/Android. If anything, this is less invasive as the child can decline to share location and just call to say "I'm alright".
  - riffraff 10y ago
    But isn't leeway necessary to mature? If kids don't screw up because they are under constant control, what would give you assurance they will not once that constant control gets turned off? Also I don't honestly understand: what threats are you actually protecting your kids from by having them under constant location surveillance? Do you guys fear your kids are at constant risk of being kidnapped every time they go out? I used to worry that my little brother would have some accident while driving drunk or stoned, I worry about friends and relatives being molested or physically assaulted, but knowing where they are would hardly give me any solace.

helicopterz 10y ago

And so, now, implicitly, Google will know all the same things. Because Google can be the helicopter that flies helicopter parents to their children.

sangnoir 10y ago
What makes you think Google did not already have access to this information? They don't even obfuscate the fact because for the last several years, you could see your location history[1] as reported by your device. 1. https://www.google.com/maps/timeline https://www.google.com/maps/timeline
- helicopterz 10y ago
  Maybe you let YOUR device report back with location information. Maybe you never leave home without your phone. Maybe you attach an authentic identity to YOUR phone. Maybe some multinational corporation has insight into all of YOUR habits. With luck, I've substantially limited the attack surface of my information, not by trusting the oh-so-helpful, feel-good, animated, haptic touch-screen toggles sprinkled here and there, but rather by NOT implicitly trusting any of the devices released in the past ten years to do anything my way, ever. Even when rooted.
  - chetanahuja 10y ago
    Calm down dude. You're still not forced to use any such service.

erispoe 10y ago

It is normal to worry, and I've done this as a kid too. But I've learned a lot about responsibility and communication through this, more than if my parents just had a bug placed on me 24/7. I've learned that you earn trust, that it's a continuous work in progress.

riffraff 10y ago

> IMO parents have a right to know where their kids are don't kids have a right to not let their parents know? If I decide as a teenager to go and have sex with my boyfriend, shouldn't I be free to keep that from my parents? What if my parents disapprove of him, cause he's from a "bad part of town"? Parents worry, and that is normal, and they should teach kids how to make it manageable (i.e. ping via SMS, "call me when the show is over" or whatever), but 24/7 control is a different thing.

CmdrSprinkles 10y ago
> don't kids have a right to not let their parents know? Quite frankly: no. As a kid, you aren't mature enough or developed enough to be trusted to make reasonable decisions. That is why you have a guardian and that is why you get some leeway in court. It is also why you tend to not be allowed to consent to many things. You can keep your banging your boyfriend from your parents (but they probably know. Kids aren't that smart. ESPECIALLY when crotches are involved), but they should, if they wish, know where you are. Because they are responsible for you and are responsible for dealing with your screw-ups. If that means humping in a car or at a friend's place while their parents are out of town: Welcome to being a teenager. Being a kid is about screwing up. A LOT. Being a parent is about being the safety net for those screw-ups. And that involves being able to find your dumbass kid when they do what kids do. As for abuse: The parents who want to know where you are 24/7 already can. Just install an app to do it or use Find my iPhone/Android. If anything, this is less invasive as the child can decline to share location and just call to say "I'm alright".
- riffraff 10y ago
  But isn't leeway necessary to mature? If kids don't screw up because they are under constant control, what would give you assurance they will not once that constant control gets turned off? Also I don't honestly understand: what threats are you actually protecting your kids from by having them under constant location surveillance? Do you guys fear your kids are at constant risk of being kidnapped every time they go out? I used to worry that my little brother would have some accident while driving drunk or stoned, I worry about friends and relatives being molested or physically assaulted, but knowing where they are would hardly give me any solace.