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I'm sorry, but I can't help but see this and think of all the kids around this age who are prevented from earning money by child labor laws, and the idea that t

I'm sorry, but I can't help but see this and think of all the kids around this age who are prevented from earning money by child labor laws, and the idea that this kid is a "Slave" because he's "too young to make decisions for himself. It may sound like this is a ridiculous thing to say, but just yesterday someone was making this claim in another forum. I was busy writing a game at that age with the intent to sell it. Unfortunately, at that time there were no good distribution methods for independant games. But I think the desire of some people who are well meaning but narrow in their worldview to "protect" children really prevents a lot of children from achieving as much as they would like, and are capable of. When I finally was allowed to work, I remember several years where I had to work part time, even during the summers, because of these laws. One of my first jobs was a programming job, and I learned a whole lot from a senior programmer. I was 14 or 15, he was mid 20s. I wonder how much more I would have learned if I hadn't been prevented from working as much as I wanted because of state mandated limits on the number of hours. I can recall many times when he was explaining something to me, and it was getting really good, but I had to leave.

tptacek 16y ago
Did I miss the part of the article where they took his $3,000 check away?
- WozRocks 16y ago
  No, but most people from both political parties support the laws that prevent people from hiring kids his age. I think he was only able to get the $3,000 because it was a bounty or a "Contest", and not a "job" or "employment". I think bug bounties shouldn't be the only way this kid is allowed to earn money. He's proven himself to have discipline and some responsibility. He should be allowed to go work for a startup, if he wants (at least during the summers when he's off from school, anyway.)
  - Hubbert 16y ago
    There's actually an upside, though: labor laws force kids to get creative and pursue activities which are at least entrepreneurial and generally more educational than the dead-end McJob that might first come to mind for them. But I do think that kids should be better educated about the limitations on what they really can and can't do rather than just suffer under a blanket misperception "you can't work until you're 16." I really think that experiences such as yours, where you were invited into a white-collar world, are the rare exception (heck, people with solid bachelors' degrees have trouble getting that sort of job now!).
- rewind 16y ago
  I'm pretty sure he's talking about the option of getting a job, punching a clock, and working with older, more experienced people.
- DavidSJ 16y ago
  Theft is covered by other laws. We don't need child labor laws for that.
sp4rki 16y ago
Child labor laws are made to avoid having 6 year olds asking for money on the streets and 10 year olds swinging crates at the dock when they should be in school. If a kid want's to work, social/child services approve the motion after interviewing the parents, and does well in school for a trial period, he should be let to do so. Hell kid actors do it all the time!
- cmelbye 16y ago
  Kid actors have specific exceptions to the laws in almost all cases.
  - sp4rki 16y ago
    That's exactly the point, if a kid actor can be excepted, why can't a kid programmer (or bug hunter) be allowed to do so? I placed some conditions on this because it really comes down to if the kid wants to work, if the kid's parents are encouraging and not forcing his behavior, and if it will not affect his studies and development.

tptacek 16y ago

Did I miss the part of the article where they took his $3,000 check away?

WozRocks 16y ago
No, but most people from both political parties support the laws that prevent people from hiring kids his age. I think he was only able to get the $3,000 because it was a bounty or a "Contest", and not a "job" or "employment". I think bug bounties shouldn't be the only way this kid is allowed to earn money. He's proven himself to have discipline and some responsibility. He should be allowed to go work for a startup, if he wants (at least during the summers when he's off from school, anyway.)
- Hubbert 16y ago
  There's actually an upside, though: labor laws force kids to get creative and pursue activities which are at least entrepreneurial and generally more educational than the dead-end McJob that might first come to mind for them. But I do think that kids should be better educated about the limitations on what they really can and can't do rather than just suffer under a blanket misperception "you can't work until you're 16." I really think that experiences such as yours, where you were invited into a white-collar world, are the rare exception (heck, people with solid bachelors' degrees have trouble getting that sort of job now!).
rewind 16y ago
I'm pretty sure he's talking about the option of getting a job, punching a clock, and working with older, more experienced people.
DavidSJ 16y ago
Theft is covered by other laws. We don't need child labor laws for that.

sp4rki 16y ago

Child labor laws are made to avoid having 6 year olds asking for money on the streets and 10 year olds swinging crates at the dock when they should be in school. If a kid want's to work, social/child services approve the motion after interviewing the parents, and does well in school for a trial period, he should be let to do so. Hell kid actors do it all the time!

cmelbye 16y ago
Kid actors have specific exceptions to the laws in almost all cases.
- sp4rki 16y ago
  That's exactly the point, if a kid actor can be excepted, why can't a kid programmer (or bug hunter) be allowed to do so? I placed some conditions on this because it really comes down to if the kid wants to work, if the kid's parents are encouraging and not forcing his behavior, and if it will not affect his studies and development.