4 ms·

“They said too many parents would be upset if they could not reach their children during the school day.” This just seems so foreign to me. I could probably co

“They said too many parents would be upset if they could not reach their children during the school day.” This just seems so foreign to me. I could probably count on one hand the number of times my parents needed to get ahold of me during the school day.

quartesixte 3y ago
This is the euphemistic way of saying “Parents need to be able to call their kids in the event of a school shooting”.
- Aeolun 3y ago
  There's much better ways to solve that problem than "being able to call your kids in the event of".
- the_third_wave 3y ago
  Given that I notice the same phenomenon in Sweden where school shootings are rarer than hen's teeth I do not think that this is true. Parents - or maybe I should say 'mothers' - want to be able to get hold of their offspring to tell them to come home in time/tell them to water the horses when they walk by the field/tell them they will collect them at the station/etc. The assumption that people are supposed to be reachable wherever they are really has permeated through society. I for one am glad that I was not assumed to be reachable when I cycled to and from school, paddled my inflatable boat over the river to the next village at 12yo, cycled through the Netherlands at 15yo and more. Not only did this add to the sense of freedom - being all by myself in that boat or cycling past places unknown to me without the risk of that stupid phone starting to blare at any moment - but it also helped in 'growing up' since I had to make decisions on my own without being able to call for help and advice at any moment. I was free, children nowadays are tethered - the opposite of what The Waterboys sing about in This is the Sea [1]: once you were tethered now you are free that was the river this is the sea This has turned into: now they are tethered, once they were free If you have children - I do - allow them the freedom you had yourself or the freedom you would have liked to have. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rx--j1F5Ppg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rx--j1F5Ppg
- balderdash 3y ago
  I actually don’t think it is, the school shooting thing is just a rationalization, cell phones are something that makes their lives easier that they don’t want to give up regardless of the harm it causes their child and children in aggregate. It’s like hearing a parent tell you that the reason they bought the luxury SUV de jour was because of safety.
indrora 3y ago
On the flipside, I had a cell phone in middle school. My parents paid a lot for it, but it became a powerful tool to handle the Ugly Shit that comes with being in middle school: bullies, struggling with classes, etc. There's a lot of things that phone saved me from. When I got sick and I couldn't get a teacher to trust me? Text message and a quick stop to the front office. Bullies? hushed call in the bathroom.
- prepend 3y ago
  This is a good point. I don’t think anyone is arguing that phones have zero benefit. Phones have benefits. The argument is that the harm outweighs the benefits. So it’s wonderful that your phone helped you. My experience is that bullies are using phones to bully and harass kids. For example, recording hushed calls in the bathroom.
  - hndamien 3y ago
    Watches that can make phone calls are a very good trade off.
satvikpendem 3y ago
They could just...call the school and ask to talk to their child. You know, like we did before phones.
- dusted 3y ago
  How did they call the school without phones ?
  - satvikpendem 3y ago
    The parents have phones. They call the front desk's phone, usually a landline. The person at the front desk relays any information to the required student through the intercom.
    - dusted 3y ago
      I'll just mention that I replied to a post stating "before phones", not "before cellphones".
      - satvikpendem 3y ago
        If you actually read the post and not just the title, you would see the author is specifically talking about cellphones, and in particular, smartphones. So, my usage of the word phone was in line with how the author used it, thus, the comment was understandable to everyone else who also actually read the article.
        dusted 3y ago
        The discussion here is in the public sphere, separate from the original article. In this broader context, precision in language is essential to ensure clear communication. Your use of 'phones' inaccurately describes a time period when no telephonic communication existed. While I understand you were using the term as shorthand to refer to 'cellphones' or 'smartphones' based on the article, it is crucial to remember not everyone may have read the same article or interpreted it in the same way. Hence, for the sake of clarity and to avoid misinterpretation, it is better to specify 'cellphones' when that's what you mean."

quartesixte 3y ago

This is the euphemistic way of saying “Parents need to be able to call their kids in the event of a school shooting”.

Aeolun 3y ago
There's much better ways to solve that problem than "being able to call your kids in the event of".
the_third_wave 3y ago
Given that I notice the same phenomenon in Sweden where school shootings are rarer than hen's teeth I do not think that this is true. Parents - or maybe I should say 'mothers' - want to be able to get hold of their offspring to tell them to come home in time/tell them to water the horses when they walk by the field/tell them they will collect them at the station/etc. The assumption that people are supposed to be reachable wherever they are really has permeated through society. I for one am glad that I was not assumed to be reachable when I cycled to and from school, paddled my inflatable boat over the river to the next village at 12yo, cycled through the Netherlands at 15yo and more. Not only did this add to the sense of freedom - being all by myself in that boat or cycling past places unknown to me without the risk of that stupid phone starting to blare at any moment - but it also helped in 'growing up' since I had to make decisions on my own without being able to call for help and advice at any moment. I was free, children nowadays are tethered - the opposite of what The Waterboys sing about in This is the Sea [1]: once you were tethered now you are free that was the river this is the sea This has turned into: now they are tethered, once they were free If you have children - I do - allow them the freedom you had yourself or the freedom you would have liked to have. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rx--j1F5Ppg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rx--j1F5Ppg
balderdash 3y ago
I actually don’t think it is, the school shooting thing is just a rationalization, cell phones are something that makes their lives easier that they don’t want to give up regardless of the harm it causes their child and children in aggregate. It’s like hearing a parent tell you that the reason they bought the luxury SUV de jour was because of safety.

indrora 3y ago

On the flipside, I had a cell phone in middle school. My parents paid a lot for it, but it became a powerful tool to handle the Ugly Shit that comes with being in middle school: bullies, struggling with classes, etc. There's a lot of things that phone saved me from. When I got sick and I couldn't get a teacher to trust me? Text message and a quick stop to the front office. Bullies? hushed call in the bathroom.

prepend 3y ago
This is a good point. I don’t think anyone is arguing that phones have zero benefit. Phones have benefits. The argument is that the harm outweighs the benefits. So it’s wonderful that your phone helped you. My experience is that bullies are using phones to bully and harass kids. For example, recording hushed calls in the bathroom.
- hndamien 3y ago
  Watches that can make phone calls are a very good trade off.

satvikpendem 3y ago

They could just...call the school and ask to talk to their child. You know, like we did before phones.

dusted 3y ago
How did they call the school without phones ?
- satvikpendem 3y ago
  The parents have phones. They call the front desk's phone, usually a landline. The person at the front desk relays any information to the required student through the intercom.
  - dusted 3y ago
    I'll just mention that I replied to a post stating "before phones", not "before cellphones".
    - satvikpendem 3y ago
      If you actually read the post and not just the title, you would see the author is specifically talking about cellphones, and in particular, smartphones. So, my usage of the word phone was in line with how the author used it, thus, the comment was understandable to everyone else who also actually read the article.
      - dusted 3y ago
        The discussion here is in the public sphere, separate from the original article. In this broader context, precision in language is essential to ensure clear communication. Your use of 'phones' inaccurately describes a time period when no telephonic communication existed. While I understand you were using the term as shorthand to refer to 'cellphones' or 'smartphones' based on the article, it is crucial to remember not everyone may have read the same article or interpreted it in the same way. Hence, for the sake of clarity and to avoid misinterpretation, it is better to specify 'cellphones' when that's what you mean."