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Comment by dgzl | Hacker News Reader

You think that is easy?

It is if you never start. Once your kids are hooked, forget it.

And what about exposure from outside your control?

Edit: and what about for parents who don't have the resources or ability to manage that kind of control? My point is that it's not easy, not even in the slightest.

I don’t understand why this has suddenly become so complex; you simply don’t give the kid a phone. That’s not a resource, that’s a lack of a resource.

If they’re super young, they’ll entertain without electronics. Give them a coloring book.

If they’re a little older, tell them to go use that Snap Circuits kit. Or here’s a ZX Spectrum and a manual on z80 asm. Or here’s a Nintendo DS and a Pokemon game.

The challenge is when all their friends have a phone, and they want one. Sure, if the culture at your kids school is no one has a phone, then no one cares. If not, it's a lot harder, and does have impacts on them socially.

And you tell them no and that's that.

Your kids being the only ones without an tablet/smartphone is social death. Great they are not stuck to a screen, instead they will be a miserable outcast. I agree with your initial post, but the implementation is far from easy and needs an collective approach if you dont want to just ruin your kids lives.

I don't agree that it's social death, because I've seen it managed fine. But I do think that rebellion is inspired from rules, especially over socially popular phenomenon.

It sucks how it is but I've seen plenty of people totally ostracized because they lack internet/social media. Nobody wants to communicate unless it's online.

I agree with not giving a young person a phone, but I don't consider it easy. This life has all but demanded the smart phone be an essential part of success. A well off (not necessarily financially well off, rather good parent status) parent might be able to keep this away from a child, but I don't think the same is for most parents in America.

The pressure kids get from their schools to be on iPads, Google classroom, a whole set of apps is unreal. The schools don’t even ask for permission before giving them all of these things.

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