4 ms·

Suburbs are way worse for children than cities are. As a teen/pre-teen in a city you have independence, you can go to places with your friends and hangout. Subu

by mruts 7y ago

Suburbs are way worse for children than cities are. As a teen/pre-teen in a city you have independence, you can go to places with your friends and hangout. Suburbs make your children dependent on you for rides and consequently stunts their emotional maturity.

fetus8 7y ago
I have no doubts that a city is better for teens/pre-teens, but I don't think growing up in a suburb stunts their emotional maturity. I grew up outside of DC in a decent suburb, and was able to get around via bike and meet my friends at the mall, the movie theater, etc. This was 2004-2007ish, not the 80's. I spent a lot of time exploring with my friends, and being independent. I think it would be hard to have this kind of experience in a rural town, but in a suburb, it seems pretty normal.
- closeparen 7y ago
  A typical suburban-sprawl house is in an exclusively residential pod, separated from the nearest commercial pod by several miles on a fast road with no bike lane. If a teenager on a bike can reach any kind of business without mortal peril, it’s a different kind of suburb from the ones people react so negatively to.
a_tractor 7y ago
>As a teen/pre-teen in a city you have independence In the suburbs kids can play in large grassy yards and run around the neighborhood with other kids. Its a relatively nerfed environment that allows exploration and is conducive to a variety of healthy activities. There are woods and creeks to explore... You can play baseball or soccer in your backyard... Odds are you are friends with someone in your neighborhood that has a pool... Trick or treating and huge piles of leaves in the fall... Snowmen, snowball fights, and hills for sledding in the winter... But you are right, kids being able to hang out together on some sidewalk or a 1/4 square of concrete they call "parks" is great for kids. Watching out for homeless people, broken glass, syringes... Neat. >Suburbs make your children dependent on you for rides and consequently stunts their emotional maturity. Until they get their drivers license and a fresh $1000 econobox on their 16th birthday, which many urban teenagers do not ever acquire, when their level of freedom and independence (and responsibility) goes through the roof. And I've seen the kind of "emotional maturity" acquired by many born-and-raised city people (nyc) and I can't say that what many of them were exposed to and able to access at extremely early ages benefited them in the slightest. >way worse Disagree, obv. YMMV.

by mruts 7y ago

fetus8 7y ago

I have no doubts that a city is better for teens/pre-teens, but I don't think growing up in a suburb stunts their emotional maturity. I grew up outside of DC in a decent suburb, and was able to get around via bike and meet my friends at the mall, the movie theater, etc. This was 2004-2007ish, not the 80's. I spent a lot of time exploring with my friends, and being independent. I think it would be hard to have this kind of experience in a rural town, but in a suburb, it seems pretty normal.

closeparen 7y ago
A typical suburban-sprawl house is in an exclusively residential pod, separated from the nearest commercial pod by several miles on a fast road with no bike lane. If a teenager on a bike can reach any kind of business without mortal peril, it’s a different kind of suburb from the ones people react so negatively to.

a_tractor 7y ago

>As a teen/pre-teen in a city you have independence In the suburbs kids can play in large grassy yards and run around the neighborhood with other kids. Its a relatively nerfed environment that allows exploration and is conducive to a variety of healthy activities. There are woods and creeks to explore... You can play baseball or soccer in your backyard... Odds are you are friends with someone in your neighborhood that has a pool... Trick or treating and huge piles of leaves in the fall... Snowmen, snowball fights, and hills for sledding in the winter... But you are right, kids being able to hang out together on some sidewalk or a 1/4 square of concrete they call "parks" is great for kids. Watching out for homeless people, broken glass, syringes... Neat. >Suburbs make your children dependent on you for rides and consequently stunts their emotional maturity. Until they get their drivers license and a fresh $1000 econobox on their 16th birthday, which many urban teenagers do not ever acquire, when their level of freedom and independence (and responsibility) goes through the roof. And I've seen the kind of "emotional maturity" acquired by many born-and-raised city people (nyc) and I can't say that what many of them were exposed to and able to access at extremely early ages benefited them in the slightest. >way worse Disagree, obv. YMMV.