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Children suffer enough "abuse" in our society, even without the bad effects of the Internet or technology in general. They don't choose their names. They don't

Children suffer enough "abuse" in our society, even without the bad effects of the Internet or technology in general. They don't choose their names. They don't choose their religion. They don't choose their political views. For fuck's sake at least let them grow up to the point that they can choose for themselves if they want to share content of themselves with the entire world.

blacksmith_tb 12y ago
While I agree with both the general premise and the specific plea, I am not aware of many societies where children choose their names, or their religions (though at least those, like their political views, don't figure prominently in most childhoods).
- jonahx 12y ago
  religion features prominently in many childhoods.
- rantanplan 12y ago
  I've only seen such societies in documentaries(e.g. some distant(to me) native tribe etc) And while we're at it, naming has a sound logic behind it. After all you have to refer to that person :) But even so, there are some (not so exceptional) cases where naming could become a form of borderline abuse. In greek, almost all names mean something. Either the names are words derrived from a specific notion, or they are combined to produce a new one. Imagine what fun this is, when the parents are derranged and the child is constantly bullied(for his name) from pre-school years through high-school and beyond. EDIT: syntax/typo
ableal 12y ago
> let them grow up to the point that they can choose for themselves Do you have any advice on what to do when eleven year olds want to get Instagram and Facebook accounts by themselves?
- lutusp 12y ago
  Not the OP, but my advice is never to reveal their ages when online.
- rantanplan 12y ago
  Yes. Worst case scenario let them upload pictures of their cats, hamsters, etc but forbid them from uploading pictures of themselves. If you're met with frustration and anger explain to them, with real world examples, the perils of sharing personal information with the rest of the world and why some things need to be private. If this fails, tell them, that when they reach the voting age, they can diregard everything you say, toss your rules down the bin and do as they please.
kareemm 12y ago
> I have always known, of course, that the mere act of uploading a video to any digital site means potentially losing control over that content. But now it had happened, and even though the shares appeared to be harmless — approving, even — it was still terrifying. What if someone decided to do something creepy with it? Blows my mind that it took a video being stolen to get the author thinking about someone doing something creepy with her publicly-available videos. Does the pursuit of Likes really destroy her ability to think a few steps down the road?

blacksmith_tb 12y ago

While I agree with both the general premise and the specific plea, I am not aware of many societies where children choose their names, or their religions (though at least those, like their political views, don't figure prominently in most childhoods).

jonahx 12y ago
religion features prominently in many childhoods.
rantanplan 12y ago
I've only seen such societies in documentaries(e.g. some distant(to me) native tribe etc) And while we're at it, naming has a sound logic behind it. After all you have to refer to that person :) But even so, there are some (not so exceptional) cases where naming could become a form of borderline abuse. In greek, almost all names mean something. Either the names are words derrived from a specific notion, or they are combined to produce a new one. Imagine what fun this is, when the parents are derranged and the child is constantly bullied(for his name) from pre-school years through high-school and beyond. EDIT: syntax/typo

ableal 12y ago

> let them grow up to the point that they can choose for themselves Do you have any advice on what to do when eleven year olds want to get Instagram and Facebook accounts by themselves?

lutusp 12y ago
Not the OP, but my advice is never to reveal their ages when online.
rantanplan 12y ago
Yes. Worst case scenario let them upload pictures of their cats, hamsters, etc but forbid them from uploading pictures of themselves. If you're met with frustration and anger explain to them, with real world examples, the perils of sharing personal information with the rest of the world and why some things need to be private. If this fails, tell them, that when they reach the voting age, they can diregard everything you say, toss your rules down the bin and do as they please.

kareemm 12y ago

> I have always known, of course, that the mere act of uploading a video to any digital site means potentially losing control over that content. But now it had happened, and even though the shares appeared to be harmless — approving, even — it was still terrifying. What if someone decided to do something creepy with it? Blows my mind that it took a video being stolen to get the author thinking about someone doing something creepy with her publicly-available videos. Does the pursuit of Likes really destroy her ability to think a few steps down the road?