3 ms·

I recently told my five year old, that once he can pick up any of the books we have in his room, and read it, that I will buy him a game console. I was thinking

I recently told my five year old, that once he can pick up any of the books we have in his room, and read it, that I will buy him a game console. I was thinking I would get him an XBox, since MS Research has a program that let's kids build their own games, and without their knowing, learn to program. Maybe I should rethink this offer and hedge some.

jerf 16y ago
Well, just slip a copy of Ulysses into his room. That should buy you until he goes to college. Seriously, though, there's no way to avoid this battle. I haven't got any magic wisdom on how to win, but our culture is incredibly wealthy, the temptation to consume rather than learn is always going to be there and the temptations are only going to get worse, and the need to learn how to resist those temptations is only getting more acute. If it's not video games it will be TV or movies, if not that then books, if not that than online social media, if not that then something else. The only way to dodge the problem is to become a modern-day hermit.
- dugmartin 16y ago
  Maybe Gödel, Escher, Bach instead of Ulysses? We have a Wii hooked up but my 3 and 5 year old only use it to stream cartoons on Netflix.
- ryanwaggoner 16y ago
  If it's not video games it will be TV or movies, if not that then books, if not that than online social media, if not that then something else. I've argued the point before that video games, TV, movies, books, social media, etc. can all have equal value and merit, but I'm not sure I really believe it. It seems rational, but something about reading books or Hacker News just feels more valuable than anything I've seen on TV. Maybe I'm watching the wrong stuff.
  - jerf 16y ago
    I would argue they can have equal merit, and correspondingly, they can have equal worthlessness as well. It really isn't the medium, per se. For the record I'm a parent, but my kid is 2 and there's one in the oven, so like I said, no great font of wisdom, I've just been pondering the problem. But I do observe that one problem is that there is probably an unavoidable phase of consumption of "childish things". I played a lot of video games as a kid, but you know, I turned out alright, and looking back I can not honestly say that I would be in a very different place if I had instead been doing "worthwhile" things. In the excellent Hardy Boys story today on HN, adults go back and read their beloved books of their youth and discover they are tripe. Is there necessarily a way around that? I'd be surprised. You can't become a person of taste and discrimination without acquiring taste and discrimination and that necessarily entails a period during which you do not have taste and discrimination. Is there anybody who does not essentially "fritter away" their childhood? (Yes, but not very many, and even fewer of them do it by their own choice.) Do we not often feel sorry for those who have been forced to "not fritter" away their childhood, do we not often feel sorry for the 15 year old forced to play piano four hours a day, even if it produces spectacular results? Am I the only one who looks at the top-level gymnasts and feel a bit sorry for them? But that's just more questions, not answers. I'm not convinced anyone really has answers. Who can prove that playing a lot of video games is actually a bad thing? People mostly just assume it without proof.

jerf 16y ago

Well, just slip a copy of Ulysses into his room. That should buy you until he goes to college. Seriously, though, there's no way to avoid this battle. I haven't got any magic wisdom on how to win, but our culture is incredibly wealthy, the temptation to consume rather than learn is always going to be there and the temptations are only going to get worse, and the need to learn how to resist those temptations is only getting more acute. If it's not video games it will be TV or movies, if not that then books, if not that than online social media, if not that then something else. The only way to dodge the problem is to become a modern-day hermit.

dugmartin 16y ago
Maybe Gödel, Escher, Bach instead of Ulysses? We have a Wii hooked up but my 3 and 5 year old only use it to stream cartoons on Netflix.
ryanwaggoner 16y ago
If it's not video games it will be TV or movies, if not that then books, if not that than online social media, if not that then something else. I've argued the point before that video games, TV, movies, books, social media, etc. can all have equal value and merit, but I'm not sure I really believe it. It seems rational, but something about reading books or Hacker News just feels more valuable than anything I've seen on TV. Maybe I'm watching the wrong stuff.
- jerf 16y ago
  I would argue they can have equal merit, and correspondingly, they can have equal worthlessness as well. It really isn't the medium, per se. For the record I'm a parent, but my kid is 2 and there's one in the oven, so like I said, no great font of wisdom, I've just been pondering the problem. But I do observe that one problem is that there is probably an unavoidable phase of consumption of "childish things". I played a lot of video games as a kid, but you know, I turned out alright, and looking back I can not honestly say that I would be in a very different place if I had instead been doing "worthwhile" things. In the excellent Hardy Boys story today on HN, adults go back and read their beloved books of their youth and discover they are tripe. Is there necessarily a way around that? I'd be surprised. You can't become a person of taste and discrimination without acquiring taste and discrimination and that necessarily entails a period during which you do not have taste and discrimination. Is there anybody who does not essentially "fritter away" their childhood? (Yes, but not very many, and even fewer of them do it by their own choice.) Do we not often feel sorry for those who have been forced to "not fritter" away their childhood, do we not often feel sorry for the 15 year old forced to play piano four hours a day, even if it produces spectacular results? Am I the only one who looks at the top-level gymnasts and feel a bit sorry for them? But that's just more questions, not answers. I'm not convinced anyone really has answers. Who can prove that playing a lot of video games is actually a bad thing? People mostly just assume it without proof.