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There's an easy solution to "protecting" children on the Internet. Let people and not companies decide what to view on a platform. Like Youtube can provide an o

by yedava 3y ago

There's an easy solution to "protecting" children on the Internet. Let people and not companies decide what to view on a platform. Like Youtube can provide an option to whitelist channels or let users programmatically define rules on what kind of content they want in their feed. The downstream effect of this is that if some parents want to control what their kids see, they can just setup an account with rules on what content is allowed. Google doesn't need to appoint itself as a nanny. But then, such super easy technological solutions come in the way of selling people to advertisers. So here we are.

extraduder_ire 3y ago
I'm sad there's no other sites I know of, certainly not mainstream ones, that do moderation like HN does. I'm glad to see the [dead] comments on here, so I know what's current in not allowed and spam content. I think Scott Alexander wrote up a blogpost about the difference he saw between moderation and censorship. It's similar to what you suggested.
93po 3y ago
I find it really sad that we no longer hold parents and communities responsible for just not. letting. their. kids. on. the. internet. Don't give your kid a smart phone. Don't let them use a computer unsupervised. Worried about them seeing shit from classmates? I think most schools these days don't allow phones during school hours, so just pick your kid up immediately as school ends and at worst they're gonna see 10 minutes of hardcore pornography per day but that's a pretty ridiculous assumption. Alternatively, instill good values and behaviors in your kid so that they will choose to avoid this.
- 2OEH8eoCRo0 3y ago
  When there was one PC and one TV in the house it was a lot harder to hide what you were doing and parenting was easier.
  - makeitdouble 3y ago
    The big part of it though: the PC was basically a novelty, at a lower importance than the TV. 3 or more people could just take turn using it, no big deal. That ship has sailed.
- javajosh 3y ago
  I find it really sad that we no longer hold parents and communities responsible for just not. letting. their. kids. smoke. cigarettes. Don't give your kid a pack of smokes. Don't let them buy things unsupervised. Worried about them seeing classmates smoke? I think most schools these days don't allow smoking during school hours, so just pick your kid up immediately as school ends and at worst they're gonna see 10 minutes of smoking per day but that's a pretty ridiculous assumption. Alternatively, instill good values and behaviors in your kid so that they will choose to avoid smoking.
- avery17 3y ago
  Just hide your kids in the basement.
  - Smoosh 3y ago
    I think the term is "home schooling".
- makeitdouble 3y ago
  > I find it really sad that we no longer hold parents and communities responsible for just not. letting. their. kids. on. the. internet. As a parent, I'm willing to take all the blame in the world for letting my kid on the internet if you're willing to live with no internet for 10 years. Should be simple enough, right ? Oh, I'll help you find what you need anytime, just tell me what to search for and I'll print and send you the results whenever I have some spare time. Kids are supposed to become adults, and for that they need to actually interact with the actual workd, do adulty things and process the reality. It's a delusion to think you can live in a school shaped faraday cage for 10+ years and just become a balanced and productive member of the society when the door unlocks at 18.
  - 93po 3y ago
    I did live with no internet for 10 years as a kid. I turned out perfectly fine and now have a successful career in software. If I had all my living expenses paid for, didn't have to work, and basically just got to learn all day, I'd love to leave the internet behind for a decade.
    - makeitdouble 3y ago
      > If I had all my living expenses paid for, didn't have to work, and basically just got to learn all day, I'd love to leave the internet behind for a decade. Of course not. You're still working, keep a computer at work with all the filtering and surveillance coming with it (just like kids have internet access at school), but no access outside that. You pay your bills at the counter, buy everything in brick and mortar, short of asking me to order them for you online. This is how it feels to have a 12yo kid needing a new backpack, or looking for a new game, but they can't just go to the store because brick and mortar stores just became ridiculously limited if they still even exist, and looking for it online means having your parents over your shoulders with very limited time and nowhere to ask online, because you're not the age that is allowed to talk to people yet. PS: it's a really good exercice to imagine leaving your teenage life now, with or without internet. The gap between what we remember being kids, and what it actually feels like right now is pretty eye opening. As adults we remodeled a lot of our life around the internet, but many still assume kids live in the 80's worlds.

by yedava 3y ago

extraduder_ire 3y ago

I'm sad there's no other sites I know of, certainly not mainstream ones, that do moderation like HN does. I'm glad to see the [dead] comments on here, so I know what's current in not allowed and spam content. I think Scott Alexander wrote up a blogpost about the difference he saw between moderation and censorship. It's similar to what you suggested.

93po 3y ago

I find it really sad that we no longer hold parents and communities responsible for just not. letting. their. kids. on. the. internet. Don't give your kid a smart phone. Don't let them use a computer unsupervised. Worried about them seeing shit from classmates? I think most schools these days don't allow phones during school hours, so just pick your kid up immediately as school ends and at worst they're gonna see 10 minutes of hardcore pornography per day but that's a pretty ridiculous assumption. Alternatively, instill good values and behaviors in your kid so that they will choose to avoid this.

2OEH8eoCRo0 3y ago
When there was one PC and one TV in the house it was a lot harder to hide what you were doing and parenting was easier.
- makeitdouble 3y ago
  The big part of it though: the PC was basically a novelty, at a lower importance than the TV. 3 or more people could just take turn using it, no big deal. That ship has sailed.
javajosh 3y ago
I find it really sad that we no longer hold parents and communities responsible for just not. letting. their. kids. smoke. cigarettes. Don't give your kid a pack of smokes. Don't let them buy things unsupervised. Worried about them seeing classmates smoke? I think most schools these days don't allow smoking during school hours, so just pick your kid up immediately as school ends and at worst they're gonna see 10 minutes of smoking per day but that's a pretty ridiculous assumption. Alternatively, instill good values and behaviors in your kid so that they will choose to avoid smoking.
avery17 3y ago
Just hide your kids in the basement.
- Smoosh 3y ago
  I think the term is "home schooling".
makeitdouble 3y ago
> I find it really sad that we no longer hold parents and communities responsible for just not. letting. their. kids. on. the. internet. As a parent, I'm willing to take all the blame in the world for letting my kid on the internet if you're willing to live with no internet for 10 years. Should be simple enough, right ? Oh, I'll help you find what you need anytime, just tell me what to search for and I'll print and send you the results whenever I have some spare time. Kids are supposed to become adults, and for that they need to actually interact with the actual workd, do adulty things and process the reality. It's a delusion to think you can live in a school shaped faraday cage for 10+ years and just become a balanced and productive member of the society when the door unlocks at 18.
- 93po 3y ago
  I did live with no internet for 10 years as a kid. I turned out perfectly fine and now have a successful career in software. If I had all my living expenses paid for, didn't have to work, and basically just got to learn all day, I'd love to leave the internet behind for a decade.
  - makeitdouble 3y ago
    > If I had all my living expenses paid for, didn't have to work, and basically just got to learn all day, I'd love to leave the internet behind for a decade. Of course not. You're still working, keep a computer at work with all the filtering and surveillance coming with it (just like kids have internet access at school), but no access outside that. You pay your bills at the counter, buy everything in brick and mortar, short of asking me to order them for you online. This is how it feels to have a 12yo kid needing a new backpack, or looking for a new game, but they can't just go to the store because brick and mortar stores just became ridiculously limited if they still even exist, and looking for it online means having your parents over your shoulders with very limited time and nowhere to ask online, because you're not the age that is allowed to talk to people yet. PS: it's a really good exercice to imagine leaving your teenage life now, with or without internet. The gap between what we remember being kids, and what it actually feels like right now is pretty eye opening. As adults we remodeled a lot of our life around the internet, but many still assume kids live in the 80's worlds.