I blame the parents

[Mups]

I have just read that the police in Knowsley,  were called  as a motorbiker was reported as
"riding erractically" along the road.

When the Cops pulled him over, they found him to be a 7 year-old boy!
The boy told them the machine was a Christmas present.
The bike was confiscated.
It appeared to be an £800 electric child's off-roader, capable of doing 30 mph.

The police said - "To let a child take to the roads presents a danger to their safety, and the safety of other road users."

Why would anybody buy a bike capable of doing 30 mph for a boy of 7??
I would be worried sick if a child of mine was using a push bike on the roads by himself,  let alone one of these machines.

*


January 03, 2025, 03:37:52 PM
And another thing parents are now supposed to be regretting is,  buying very young children mobile phones.

It seems we are facing a mental health crisis among teens that correlates directly to the age first started getting smartphones and using Social Media.
Small children are being exposed to the kind of content most adults wouldn't dream of showing them in real life. 
Sexual imagery, violence, and extreme viewpoints have become normal to these kids, and once seen,  they can't 'un-see'  it.  Many of these youngsters spend between 5 - 8 hours a day on their phones, instead of meeting friends, going out to play, or enjoying hobbies.


All this made me wonder -  if we had young children nowadays,  at what age do you think you would allow them to have a mobile phone?
Do your Grandchildren own one yet?

[Cassandra]

I'd like to be able to block every Smartphone in the world and then after removing the lithium and other parts of value have a huge bonfire with their dead carcasses.

[Scrumpy]

Mups.. Who knows what we would be like as parents of young children nowadays..!!!
The world is a fast moving place.. Technology gone potty..
We like to think that we would not allow this , that and the other.. But ....
My mum thought the world had gone mad when we went to concerts and hitch hiking was our form of travel..
She never understood what the Stones were singing about.. why the Beatles were so big.. and teenagers were screaming..

[JBR]

I'd like to be able to block every Smartphone in the world and then after removing the lithium and other parts of value have a huge bonfire with their dead carcasses.

I must beg to differ.
Marge and I each have a smartphone and, at the ages of 63 and 72 respectively I feel that we are capable of using them sensibly and constructively.  I certainly wouldn't want to burn ours.
And I'm afraid that we shall not be giving you any little bits of Lithium within them, on the grounds that they might not work without them.
😉

[Alex]

I'd be lost without my mobile phone and I never EVER thought I'd say that.

[klondike]

Me too. I use Waze on it as my satnav 

[Mups]

I'd be lost without my mobile phone and I never EVER thought I'd say that.

Yes, I would miss mine too, although I don't know how to do anything very clever with mine. 

But this was really about small children having them, and learning about inappropriate  things, and some even being 'groomed,'   or bullied.
I heard recently about even pre-school children having them.   I personally, think that is too young.


And what about the 7 yr old riding a 30 mph electric motorbike on the road all alone?   He could have been killed.

[Michael Rolls]

bought a mobile for our granddaughter when she was about 8 from memory - had an app on it that enabled her parents to track her wherever she went.

[Lion Queen]

I wish mobile phones had never been invented. The have turned people into phone zombies and I totally understand why there is a mental heath crisis especially amongst the young.

Some of the content I see disturbs me as an adult so I can see how a developing brain could be affected.

Social media is just so dangerous for the young with the grooming and radicalisation that can go on. 

I'm glad I don't have young children these days, so much to worry about and it's not easy to protect them. 

My own great niece at 13 was bullied on Snapchat and the police was involved. 

I remember going to a pub one time with my husband for a meal and there were two couples out together on a table across from us, every single one of them were glued to their own phones and none if them spoke to each other,  it was 😲 shocking. It killed the art of conversation for many.

As much as I'm addicted to my own phone I wish they had never evolved from the house phone or telephone box.  Technology isn't always a good thing especially for the very young.  Just my opinion . 

As for the kid with the bike, who in their right mind would put their own  7 Yr old in such danger, totally irresponsible parenting. 

[dextrous63]

Surely the fault is with the software/apps that's so readily available and seemingly unchecked for suitability, rather than the technology of mobile phones themselves?🤷🏻�♂️

[Scrumpy]

A child of 7 on the road riding a motorised bike..  !!
Had he been killed the parents would be  weeping and wailing ...
Flowers and teddies would be laid near the spot..
And the person who had knocked the child off his bike would be the villain..

800pounds for a Christmas present.. for a child of 7 is bloody ridiculous..

[dextrous63]

Plus they wouldn't be able to get a refund.

[Lion Queen]

Surely the fault is with the software/apps that's so readily available and seemingly unchecked for suitability, rather than the technology of mobile phones themselves?🤷🏻�♂️

Yeah, the apps should be regulated. Hopefully in time phones won't be so dangerous to young minds . I'm a believer they should be just for making phonecalls and texts for the very young. Bring back the blue Nokia,  I loved my Nokia lol 

[dextrous63]

Yeah, the apps should be regulated. Hopefully in time phones won't be so dangerous to young minds . I'm a believer they should be just for making phonecalls and texts for the very young. Bring back the blue Nokia,  I loved my Nokia lol

Most phones have facial ID to gain access, as indeed do many apps such as banking.  I see no reason why this tech can't be used to prevent youngsters from being able to sign up to or access inappropriate software/apps.

[Scrumpy]

Have you noticed that one sees very few men hovering near the magazines.. !!
Everything is available online.. Many adults are as bad as youngsters when it comes to mobile phones..