As you well know the (social) media environment is optimized for conflict. A dated reference but it’s as if the SNL skit that parodied Point-Counterpoint has become the AP Style Guide. So naturally Slate calls this dad out; it generates more clicks.
Our kids, inspired by parents like Lenore, traveled to and from lots of places on their own starting in 6th grade. Without phones. They even got lost!
But scare-mongers sell banner ads. Sic semper tyranus.
The idea that 30 years ago it was safer than today has created a problem that the data shared above doesn’t capture: the expectation around parenting. You may feel comfortable letting your child ride their bike around the neighborhood for a couple of hours, but that doesn’t exempt you from another adult—with a lower risk tolerance—interrogating your child about why they’re alone (often provoking fear), or even calling the police because the child is “unattended.” In the latter case, you could end up dealing with the Department of Child Services.
I’m leaning toward the dad’s side on this, but I’ve had to deal with those “fearful” adults twice.
Right, that's why I think it's worth pushing back on things like this. We don't have to defer all our parenting decisions to our noisiest neighbors or to government agencies like CPS. I'm not active in the Let Children Grow movement, but my understanding is they're working to change policies as well.
I agree with what you say, but you fail to mention the main culprit causing the anxiety: automotive violence.
I don't know very much about residential roads in the United States, but I suspect that the increase in size of many vehicles has led to more danger to children riding their bicycles; helmets don't help when one is crushed by a SUV.
This was where my mind went as well. It's really hard to know what to think about this piece without knowing a lot more about where exactly this family lives and what the sidewalk and traffic conditions might be like. Aggressive driving in my neighborhood (two pedestrian fatalities in the past year) is my primary concern as I think about what I am and am not comfortable letting my son do as he gets older.
Setting boundaries and tracking through phones/watches is commonplace, I’m a senior and my son tracks me … we have the technology, why not use it?
As you well know the (social) media environment is optimized for conflict. A dated reference but it’s as if the SNL skit that parodied Point-Counterpoint has become the AP Style Guide. So naturally Slate calls this dad out; it generates more clicks.
Our kids, inspired by parents like Lenore, traveled to and from lots of places on their own starting in 6th grade. Without phones. They even got lost!
But scare-mongers sell banner ads. Sic semper tyranus.
The idea that 30 years ago it was safer than today has created a problem that the data shared above doesn’t capture: the expectation around parenting. You may feel comfortable letting your child ride their bike around the neighborhood for a couple of hours, but that doesn’t exempt you from another adult—with a lower risk tolerance—interrogating your child about why they’re alone (often provoking fear), or even calling the police because the child is “unattended.” In the latter case, you could end up dealing with the Department of Child Services.
I’m leaning toward the dad’s side on this, but I’ve had to deal with those “fearful” adults twice.
Right, that's why I think it's worth pushing back on things like this. We don't have to defer all our parenting decisions to our noisiest neighbors or to government agencies like CPS. I'm not active in the Let Children Grow movement, but my understanding is they're working to change policies as well.
I agree with what you say, but you fail to mention the main culprit causing the anxiety: automotive violence.
I don't know very much about residential roads in the United States, but I suspect that the increase in size of many vehicles has led to more danger to children riding their bicycles; helmets don't help when one is crushed by a SUV.
Neither the parent nor Slate mentioned this angle, but you're right that pedestrian and bicycle deaths are up: https://www.iihs.org/research-areas/fatality-statistics/detail/yearly-snapshot
This was where my mind went as well. It's really hard to know what to think about this piece without knowing a lot more about where exactly this family lives and what the sidewalk and traffic conditions might be like. Aggressive driving in my neighborhood (two pedestrian fatalities in the past year) is my primary concern as I think about what I am and am not comfortable letting my son do as he gets older.