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Why not allow unfettered access to Wikipedia? What are you afraid will happen? That your kids will grow up with a positive attitude about sex and some knowledge

Why not allow unfettered access to Wikipedia? What are you afraid will happen? That your kids will grow up with a positive attitude about sex and some knowledge about what it entails? Or are you worried that your kids will want to talk with you about a topic you find difficult or embarrassing to discuss? Or what? Kid's interests are normally age appropriate although they may mimic or mirror parental interests and behavior to gain your approval. Many kids are sexually active at a fairly early age. The average age of menarche in the US is 13.5 years; the average age of first intercourse is 15 years. Breast development, which usually indicates the beginning of puberty, starts in about 10% of US white females at age seven. Kids are beginning sexual development earlier and earlier. Seems to me that an informed sex positive kid is better equipped to deal with life than one who is kept in the dark.

shawndumas 16y ago
Even if I agreed it's still an issue of timing. Would you agree that somethings are age appropriate and other things are not?
- drallison 16y ago
  I think that kids should be allowed, even encouraged, to explore anything that captures their interest, particularly when the thing being explored exists in the world of ideas. It's really hard to break your arm or get a concussion from reading a book, stumbling on an idea, or surfing the web. I'd even go so far as to extend that permission to their parents (and other older people). In the more physical realm, I also think exploration should be encouraged, but there some adult supervision makes sense, but only to mitigate the possibility of significant injuries. You want to teach your kids how to explore the physical world safely and cautiously, and do it without restricting their imagination and actions. Most scientists and engineers will tell you about the many things they did as a kid that were dangerous and educational. We owe it to our kids to let them learn about things on their own. Kids interests change over time; "age appropriate" means, for me, that the materials are things which most kids of a particular age are known to be interested in and that the content is of such a level that the target audience can understand it. For example, it's age appropriate to talk about mathematical concepts such as counting, sequences, and sets to a preschool child, but it's probably not appropriate to do it with a formal set of axioms, theorems, and proofs. Kids are pretty good at self-selecting their own materials.
  - shawndumas 16y ago
    "I think that kids should be allowed, even encouraged, to explore anything that captures their interest..." anything?! Really? Ok, rhetorically speaking; What about race-hate propaganda? How about a book that praises the joys of religious intolerance? Might we want to see books on these topics held in reserve for an older more discerning audience? Now a real question: So fisting is ok at what age-range then? Don't miss the direct question. I am asking for an age-range so that you won't say something like, "well.. that er... depends on the child". Pick a range when fisting is, in your opinion, a healthy endeavor for male children.
    - drallison 16y ago
      Your "real question" is a change of topic. The age a particular sexual practice becomes a healthy endeavor depends upon many factors, including, for example, the attitude parents have about their own and their child's sexuality. But this thread is about knowledge and not about doing. We are talking about whether access to information about fisting on Wikipedia should be blocked or not. I argue that if the child is interested, male or female, they should be able to learn what the term means. I also think that kids should be able to see for themselves race-hate propaganda, religious intolerance, naked people, and pornography if they are interested. It's our responsibility, as parents, to help them to look critically at the information they find on the web, on TV, and elsewhere. And we need to be open and willing to answer their questions in a clear, non-judgmental fashion. It is also our responsibility to teach kids about their bodies and their sexuality and what kinds of endeavors are healthy and what are dangerous. I believe that an informed person, regardless of age, is better off than one who has no information or misinformation.
      - shawndumas 16y ago
        So you're not gonna answer my question?
        drallison 16y ago
        No. I am not going to answer the question and escalate a debate over whether certain information should be kept from children into a debate on what is an appropriate age for children (or adults) to engage in particular sexual practices.

shawndumas 16y ago

Even if I agreed it's still an issue of timing. Would you agree that somethings are age appropriate and other things are not?

drallison 16y ago
I think that kids should be allowed, even encouraged, to explore anything that captures their interest, particularly when the thing being explored exists in the world of ideas. It's really hard to break your arm or get a concussion from reading a book, stumbling on an idea, or surfing the web. I'd even go so far as to extend that permission to their parents (and other older people). In the more physical realm, I also think exploration should be encouraged, but there some adult supervision makes sense, but only to mitigate the possibility of significant injuries. You want to teach your kids how to explore the physical world safely and cautiously, and do it without restricting their imagination and actions. Most scientists and engineers will tell you about the many things they did as a kid that were dangerous and educational. We owe it to our kids to let them learn about things on their own. Kids interests change over time; "age appropriate" means, for me, that the materials are things which most kids of a particular age are known to be interested in and that the content is of such a level that the target audience can understand it. For example, it's age appropriate to talk about mathematical concepts such as counting, sequences, and sets to a preschool child, but it's probably not appropriate to do it with a formal set of axioms, theorems, and proofs. Kids are pretty good at self-selecting their own materials.
- shawndumas 16y ago
  "I think that kids should be allowed, even encouraged, to explore anything that captures their interest..." anything?! Really? Ok, rhetorically speaking; What about race-hate propaganda? How about a book that praises the joys of religious intolerance? Might we want to see books on these topics held in reserve for an older more discerning audience? Now a real question: So fisting is ok at what age-range then? Don't miss the direct question. I am asking for an age-range so that you won't say something like, "well.. that er... depends on the child". Pick a range when fisting is, in your opinion, a healthy endeavor for male children.
  - drallison 16y ago
    Your "real question" is a change of topic. The age a particular sexual practice becomes a healthy endeavor depends upon many factors, including, for example, the attitude parents have about their own and their child's sexuality. But this thread is about knowledge and not about doing. We are talking about whether access to information about fisting on Wikipedia should be blocked or not. I argue that if the child is interested, male or female, they should be able to learn what the term means. I also think that kids should be able to see for themselves race-hate propaganda, religious intolerance, naked people, and pornography if they are interested. It's our responsibility, as parents, to help them to look critically at the information they find on the web, on TV, and elsewhere. And we need to be open and willing to answer their questions in a clear, non-judgmental fashion. It is also our responsibility to teach kids about their bodies and their sexuality and what kinds of endeavors are healthy and what are dangerous. I believe that an informed person, regardless of age, is better off than one who has no information or misinformation.
    - shawndumas 16y ago
      So you're not gonna answer my question?
      - drallison 16y ago
        No. I am not going to answer the question and escalate a debate over whether certain information should be kept from children into a debate on what is an appropriate age for children (or adults) to engage in particular sexual practices.