4 ms·

That works during the easy years. Before long they start drawing comparisons between what they are allowed to do, or not, and what you yourself do. So then yo

That works during the easy years. Before long they start drawing comparisons between what they are allowed to do, or not, and what you yourself do. So then you are right back to "Because I said so." "Daddy why can't I watch youtube?" "Because it rots your brain." "But you watch youtube..." "Congratulations, now you understand that when you are an adult you will be responsible for the consequences and so you will be free to make the choice. But you are not an adult yet." aka "Because I said so."

ninth_ant 2y ago
If YouTube actually rots your brain then it would be stupid to watch it yourself. So the kid would be making a solid point. However the actual issue for me is that YouTube tries to keep you endlessly captivated with content regardless of quality or value. So it can ends up being a time sink, which at the end you feel like nothing of value was consumed. So I tell my kids that, not that it rots their brain. And when there’s content we can both enjoy, we can watch it together. Or if they want to watch something specific on YouTube, they can watch that thing and then be done.
- kortilla 2y ago
  >If YouTube actually rots your brain then it would be stupid to watch it yourself. So the kid would be making a solid point. Yet here in reality, people gamble, smoke, drink alcohol, smoke week, etc. There are many things adults do that are bad for them, but might either be fine in moderation or just be a willing choice the adult has made to take the risk. The problem with kids is that they cannot be left to choose to take that kind of long term risk because their brains aren’t developed enough to do so. It’s why they can’t consent to legal agreements, etc. So it ultimately comes down to a list of things that they can’t do because they have downsides they can’t consent to and you would be a bad parent for consenting on their behalf. A.k.a “because I said so”.

ninth_ant 2y ago

If YouTube actually rots your brain then it would be stupid to watch it yourself. So the kid would be making a solid point. However the actual issue for me is that YouTube tries to keep you endlessly captivated with content regardless of quality or value. So it can ends up being a time sink, which at the end you feel like nothing of value was consumed. So I tell my kids that, not that it rots their brain. And when there’s content we can both enjoy, we can watch it together. Or if they want to watch something specific on YouTube, they can watch that thing and then be done.

kortilla 2y ago
>If YouTube actually rots your brain then it would be stupid to watch it yourself. So the kid would be making a solid point. Yet here in reality, people gamble, smoke, drink alcohol, smoke week, etc. There are many things adults do that are bad for them, but might either be fine in moderation or just be a willing choice the adult has made to take the risk. The problem with kids is that they cannot be left to choose to take that kind of long term risk because their brains aren’t developed enough to do so. It’s why they can’t consent to legal agreements, etc. So it ultimately comes down to a list of things that they can’t do because they have downsides they can’t consent to and you would be a bad parent for consenting on their behalf. A.k.a “because I said so”.