Consuming Kids - is it getting out of hand?

[alemaite]

I just saw this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPlTrgiE2sc) and being 22 I've watched my fair share of advertisment, even though I wasnt raised in the U.S I still remember going to Mc'Donald's and getting a Happy Meal because I wanted the toy for the movie. I also remember that I wanted it really bad but as soon as I got it I realized what a pice of j*nk the toy really was, most of the time not even doing anything that was shown on TV as an ad. This didn't stop me however from doing the same thing all over again the next time, being a kid I just didn't realize all toys were gonna be trash and it was just trying to get me to eat at Mc'Donald's.

However this has gone too far in my opinion, nowadays it's not just fast food but it's literally scamming children. Have you ever seen those ads on TV about cellphones and how you can get an ad to download music or whatever. Of course you end up agreeing to something like a 6 month subscribtion of 15 $ a month and the parents only realize this after the bill comes. Also some of the other stuff is just disturbing, I can't honestly say I have seen a child play with normal toys in a long time. It's either an iPhone or a PSP, I walk by huge fields of grass and see no children playing soccer on it (people don't play football here in Europe obviously), I remember even though I did have a Super Nintendo I would immediately turn it off when the bell rang and friends called me to go play some soccer. And when we did arrive at the soccer field we had to either play with the other kids or wait our turn.

Usually we'd end up making teams and making new friends. I knew EVERYONE in my neighborhood and everyone knew each other. I was never going anywhere alone, every single day after school I'd go out, even if I had nothing planned with friends, I knew there would be someone outside playing or doing something fun.

When have you last seen a group of kids playing? I see so many kids many times next to each other in the subway or bus just staring at a screen, sometimes they even go to the same school, sit next to each other on the bus after school and might even end up playing with each other without knowing it on their Xbox 360 online.

It makes me so sad to know that these children won't have the childhood I had, when I played Nintendo it was with like 4 guys in my room, trying to beat my score, afterwards we'd go out play soccer or grab a bite or just be kids. It was so much and brings a smile to my face every time I think about it. It was like the perfect balance, when it was raining or we were bored we always had the Nintendo but now it's like all there is. I log in to play some CoD and realize there is a 12 year old boy far better than me with something like 40 Kills / 5 Deaths calling everyone his bitch, but I hear no other voice, no one next to him cheering him on or waiting for him to finish up that round to go do something. When I log on he has already been on for hours and when I log off he will still be playing.

What do you guys think about it, is it just our generation thinking the younger generation is doomed just like the one before us thought we were doomed or are kids changing because there is just too much consuming going on and they're getting bombarded with advertisment and brainwashed?

[Blood Fox]

Ok first off your thread title.... no

I definatly had a similarish childhood, but every generation thinks theirs is the best and the nexts is the worst thing in the world.

Are kids all just confinded to their room playing videogames all day? No, but there is a growing small amount that do
I think kids are a lot worse off then we were but that's my opinion

Oh.. and todays games really arnt like our old mariokart where you tryed beating your frinds in the room.

[alemaite]

Ok first off your thread title.... no

I definatly had a similarish childhood, but every generation thinks theirs is the best and the nexts is the worst thing in the world.

Are kids all just confinded to their room playing videogames all day? No, but there is a growing small amount that do
I think kids are a lot worse off then we were but that's my opinion

Oh.. and todays games really arnt like our old mariokart where you tryed beating your frinds in the room.

What's wrong with my title lol, I just copied it off the documentary.

[Mondroc]

You might want to change the thread title to "Consumer Kids", I thought this thread was something entirely different.

On the topic, I think that from a neutral standpoint you're right, but in reality I think it comes down to the parents to try and teach their kids the benefits of socialising face to face and making "real" friends (Not that I'd consider my internet friends any more or less real friends) as cutting yourself off from contact in the sense of the way a small minority do is not healthy in the long run. I was never much of a socialiser when I was younger, in fact I would avoid most situations as much as humanly possible and if anything playing MMOs has alleviated that, because it's made me get used to the "social" part, which made the actual "oh my god they're standing in front of me panic panic panic" alot less daunting.

At the end of the day people are all different and some people just are not people people. The media likes to blame things. Even when I was young, there were games consoles and computers but they were not*mainstream. I knew many people who kept to themselves, they'd just read or draw or something so all you've really done is exchange one activity for another. I don't think people are changing that much other then evolution with the modern technology.

[Deleted]

I thought you were going to talk about how cannibals eating kids is getting out of hand..

[Twiddly]

I came in here expecting an article about cannibals eating kids. I was sorely dissapointed.

[Mondroc]

I thought you were going to talk about how cannibals eating kids is getting out of hand..

You are not the only one

[AdriWar]

Your title was very deceiving....lol I expected articles of people eating kids :P

[Chareoss]

My younger brother lays on his bed with his laptop on top of him (and this is a serious estimation) about 80% of his life discounting when he is either asleep or at school.

I can tell he is no where near as happy with life as I was at his age.. And I'd bet there are a bigger number of similar situations then most of us think..

My opinion on what makes people truly happy is physical interaction with people and actively having good personal relationships with friends/family. You just don't get the same level of it infront of a computer screen..

Life is about balance!

[Filtern]

Its out of hand, and World of Warcraft is the biggest one of them.

[Blood Fox]

What's wrong with my title lol, I just copied it off the documentary.

. By now you're seeing my point. I dunno if you're all that well versed in english but if you put an verb infront of a subject it infferes that the action is happning to the subject. Your title infferes somthing is eating kids.

Anyways there's always people whom rather stay to themselfs most of the time ( like myself), now you just see them with a diffrent more notaiceable hobby.

[Lysah]

I welcome the next generation of zombie technology junkies. Interestingly enough, they do seem to be very slightly more intelligent than the previous generation. Soccer doesn't teach you anything, after all, neither does having friends to play soccer with.

[Dargon]

Omanom nom nom. you'll never stop me from consuming kids

[Deleted]

Another dissapointed canibal enthousiast here...

[Primernova]

I have to agree OP, I just never see kids riding around on bikes, in groups, like I used to. This is not just due to a generational thing either. It's like all balance in society has completely disappeared, easiest path to anything is always taken and be damned what they miss out on.

I keep hoping an, "outdoor movement" will take place but it's not looking good. I was alot like you OP, I did have the sega/nintendo but we still went fishing, played several versions of basketball, built tree houses in the woods while we turned over boards looking for snakes to sell to the pet shops and yes, shoulder to shoulder PvP is and always will be, the only true version of PvP.

[jahasafrat]

Ah, sadness. I also was hoping to have an engaging discussion about eating children.

[Pull My Finger]

Omanom nom nom. you'll never stop me from consuming kids

Priceless ...

[Deleted]

love you titel!!


but i also think that this generation of kids can give us an new era of tech that will blow our minds

[alemaite]

Lol I honestly didn't think the title would be that misleading since it's the actual title of the documentary, as you can probably tell english is not my frist language which is why I just copied it. Als wth is wrong with u people wanting a thread about eating kids

[Elexo]

I'm all for kids staying indoors.

Where I live there are still a whole lot of children playing outside in both good and bad weather.
The noise they make though, dear lord, it makes me wish they were all techno zombies and stay indoors so I wouldn't have to close the windows and turn on loud music just to drown out their shouting, crying, singing and swearing.

Yes swearing, they swear like sailors, boys and girls alike.

So I'm not seeing a decrease in children playing outside, I am however seeing less teenagers outside... can't say I miss seeing those either.