I'MMA LET YOU FINISH
Best way I know to get teens to "forget" to take their cell phones with 'em.
Wonderful. Not only will they be out joyriding, but we'll be back to the "good ol' days," when they couldn't call home from the middle of where ever they got stuck.
No wonder this guy used to work for Bush....
Best way I know to get teens to "forget" to take their cell phones with 'em.
Wonderful. Not only will they be out joyriding, but we'll be back to the "good ol' days," when they couldn't call home from the middle of where ever they got stuck.
No wonder this guy used to work for Bush....
third?
third?
aww shoot
aww shoot
When I was eighteen, and we used to cruise around, all night, someone inevitably got their ass kicked before the night ended.
I guarantee if a pup Republican were seen out with a phone, that is also a tracker, his ass would be the one beat within inches of his life.
That's all it would take to be the talk of the High School gang area, and those phones would be few and far between, and sooooo very uncool
When I was eighteen, and we used to cruise around, all night, someone inevitably got their ass kicked before the night ended.
I guarantee if a pup Republican were seen out with a phone, that is also a tracker, his ass would be the one beat within inches of his life.
That's all it would take to be the talk of the High School gang area, and those phones would be few and far between, and sooooo very uncool
I bet Dubya, and his spawn, are thanking their lucky stars such technology didn't exist when they were teens...
I bet Dubya, and his spawn, are thanking their lucky stars such technology didn't exist when they were teens...
Of course, this will only be used on teenagers. And it really is only for their safety, and it has nothing at all to do with the War on Terror, and there are no plans for a draft.
Nothing to see here, etc.
Peace.
Of course, this will only be used on teenagers. And it really is only for their safety, and it has nothing at all to do with the War on Terror, and there are no plans for a draft.
Nothing to see here, etc.
Peace.
well, that seals it. i'm getting into the roadside cell phone safebox industry.
well, that seals it. i'm getting into the roadside cell phone safebox industry.
The first thing I'd do is duct tape that puppy to an Amtrak headin' out of town. But really, I was a model teenager.
The first thing I'd do is duct tape that puppy to an Amtrak headin' out of town. But really, I was a model teenager.
We always thought Tommy was a genius, and now we flat-out know it.
We always thought Tommy was a genius, and now we flat-out know it.
Anything that makes cellphones uncool is okay by me...
Anything that makes cellphones uncool is okay by me...
I'm getting into the detective business. Track all those cheating spouses.
I'm getting into the detective business. Track all those cheating spouses.
Or, parents could just wait a few years until we all get our chips inplanted.
Or, parents could just wait a few years until we all get our chips inplanted.
Retired Gen. Tommy Franks has signed on to be the spokesman for a company that uses global positioning system technology in teens' cell phones to let parents know how fast they're driving.
How . . . dignified. You'd think he'd have the decency to wait until the Iraq war is over and soldiers aren't getting blown to pieces before he starts cashing in on his stature.
On the other hand, maybe he figures he won't live that long.
Retired Gen. Tommy Franks has signed on to be the spokesman for a company that uses global positioning system technology in teens' cell phones to let parents know how fast they're driving.
How . . . dignified. You'd think he'd have the decency to wait until the Iraq war is over and soldiers aren't getting blown to pieces before he starts cashing in on his stature.
On the other hand, maybe he figures he won't live that long.
Better yet, I'd plant one in mom's/dad's car and compile a written record. I'm not saying that blackmail's a pretty thing but...
Better yet, I'd plant one in mom's/dad's car and compile a written record. I'm not saying that blackmail's a pretty thing but...
Course, if anyone could hack these to make them show a speed about thirty mph slower than actual speed, it would be a teenager.
Course, if anyone could hack these to make them show a speed about thirty mph slower than actual speed, it would be a teenager.
Find some way to get the cell on a plane going Europe.
Find some way to get the cell on a plane going Europe.
Just turn the phone off while driving.
How about a cell phone that tracks parents who do foolish things like talk on their cell phones while driving and exceed the speed limit, and automatically calls their kids to let them know Mom and Dad are breaking the law? w
The revolution begins at home, I always say. If parents want their kids to be safe, law-abiding drivers, they need to lead by example.
And think of how much safer the roads would be if all those kids' parents followed the laws.
Just turn the phone off while driving.
How about a cell phone that tracks parents who do foolish things like talk on their cell phones while driving and exceed the speed limit, and automatically calls their kids to let them know Mom and Dad are breaking the law? w
The revolution begins at home, I always say. If parents want their kids to be safe, law-abiding drivers, they need to lead by example.
And think of how much safer the roads would be if all those kids' parents followed the laws.
Maybe he will make enough to get an extreme makeover. Now he looks like a cross between Liddy Dole and Goofy. Even has the ears!
Maybe he will make enough to get an extreme makeover. Now he looks like a cross between Liddy Dole and Goofy. Even has the ears!
so just turn the phone off.
so just turn the phone off.
Why limit this to the teenagers' cell phones? You could have one in your little helpmate's phone, too, just to make sure that she's really going to church like she said.
Why limit this to the teenagers' cell phones? You could have one in your little helpmate's phone, too, just to make sure that she's really going to church like she said.
Does this mean Tommy Franks won't be the new Homeland Security nominee? 'Cause he got such a hot new career going for him?
Does this mean Tommy Franks won't be the new Homeland Security nominee? 'Cause he got such a hot new career going for him?
Great! Now we can track our teens while they enter such subversive places like libraries, alternative bookstores, coffee shops, and the Castro. And of course they'll sell it like those fear-pumping on-star commercials.
"Hello, Mrs Balderdash? We're tracking Jimmy doing 1 mile over on route 21 towards what is reputed 'gay' coffee shop." The Horrors!
Great! Now we can track our teens while they enter such subversive places like libraries, alternative bookstores, coffee shops, and the Castro. And of course they'll sell it like those fear-pumping on-star commercials.
"Hello, Mrs Balderdash? We're tracking Jimmy doing 1 mile over on route 21 towards what is reputed 'gay' coffee shop." The Horrors!
Tommy Franks looks like Mr. Ed.
Tommy Franks looks like Mr. Ed.
I bet Dubya, and his spawn, are thanking their lucky stars such technology didn't exist when they were teens...
NTodd
Given that no Bush has ever paid a price for their lawlessness - from Noelle forging prescriptions for narcotics, to George's DWI (and insider trading, and AWOL and "alleged" drug use, stealing an election), to Neil's little Silverado debacle, to Jenna and Barbara's penchant for underaged drinking and pot smoking, I don't think it would matter.
I bet Dubya, and his spawn, are thanking their lucky stars such technology didn't exist when they were teens...
NTodd
Given that no Bush has ever paid a price for their lawlessness - from Noelle forging prescriptions for narcotics, to George's DWI (and insider trading, and AWOL and "alleged" drug use, stealing an election), to Neil's little Silverado debacle, to Jenna and Barbara's penchant for underaged drinking and pot smoking, I don't think it would matter.
I agree that there's another agenda going on here. Get the public used to the "benefits" of tracking individuals with GPS. Watch how there will be more and more "benefits" to be found.
I agree that there's another agenda going on here. Get the public used to the "benefits" of tracking individuals with GPS. Watch how there will be more and more "benefits" to be found.
If they do put GPS trackers in cell phones, then I'm sure kids will regret them. But otherwise, my friends who have teenage daughters get called every 5 minutes when they are out with me doing something. It drives me fucking nuts. So apparently, some kids are calling their parents more than vice versa.
I don't get that - man, I wanted out myself. That isn't so much the case with some of my friends' kids. They won't leave.
If they do put GPS trackers in cell phones, then I'm sure kids will regret them. But otherwise, my friends who have teenage daughters get called every 5 minutes when they are out with me doing something. It drives me fucking nuts. So apparently, some kids are calling their parents more than vice versa.
I don't get that - man, I wanted out myself. That isn't so much the case with some of my friends' kids. They won't leave.
Get the public used to the "benefits" of tracking individuals with GPS. Watch how there will be more and more "benefits" to be found.
Big Brother: It's Not Just For Teenagers Anymore.
Get the public used to the "benefits" of tracking individuals with GPS. Watch how there will be more and more "benefits" to be found.
Big Brother: It's Not Just For Teenagers Anymore.
Tena,
Yeah, the "kids who don't want to leave the nest" syndrome appears to be on the rise. Not sure what to make of that.
Tena,
Yeah, the "kids who don't want to leave the nest" syndrome appears to be on the rise. Not sure what to make of that.
How about the phone recording when people don't use their turn signals. Especially in bad weather...
(sorry, just a peeve of mine)
How about the phone recording when people don't use their turn signals. Especially in bad weather...
(sorry, just a peeve of mine)
Yeah, the "kids who don't want to leave the nest" syndrome appears to be on the rise. Not sure what to make of that.
The most extreme example of this I know personally is a thirty-year old who refuses to leave and also refuses to get a job. She tells me that she can never get the standard of living and lifestyle she has right now...
Yeah, the "kids who don't want to leave the nest" syndrome appears to be on the rise. Not sure what to make of that.
The most extreme example of this I know personally is a thirty-year old who refuses to leave and also refuses to get a job. She tells me that she can never get the standard of living and lifestyle she has right now...
Actually, folks, there's been a misprint in the article. It should read:
BRADENTON - Retired Gen. Tommy Franks has signed on to be the spokesman for a company that uses global positioning system technology in soldiers' cell phones to let parents know how fast they're dying for their country.
Actually, folks, there's been a misprint in the article. It should read:
BRADENTON - Retired Gen. Tommy Franks has signed on to be the spokesman for a company that uses global positioning system technology in soldiers' cell phones to let parents know how fast they're dying for their country.
It's been a long time since I was a teenager, but I'm certain I possessed enough cunning to have figured out a way to trump a phone like that.
It's been a long time since I was a teenager, but I'm certain I possessed enough cunning to have figured out a way to trump a phone like that.
Atrios - I'm not either; I'm truly puzzled. I adored my parents, but I wanted out and got out. And I've got friends with kids in the twenties living at home and no foreseeable departure date.
Atrios - I'm not either; I'm truly puzzled. I adored my parents, but I wanted out and got out. And I've got friends with kids in the twenties living at home and no foreseeable departure date.
The first thing I'd do is duct tape that puppy to an Amtrak headin' out of town.
Ridin' on the City of New Orleans, ....
The first thing I'd do is duct tape that puppy to an Amtrak headin' out of town.
Ridin' on the City of New Orleans, ....
". . . the cell phone was found just 2 miles downstream from the wreck, wrapped in aluminum foil, apparently an in attempt to thwart attempts by the parents to track the teenager's location. . . "
". . . the cell phone was found just 2 miles downstream from the wreck, wrapped in aluminum foil, apparently an in attempt to thwart attempts by the parents to track the teenager's location. . . "
Tena,
Yeah, the "kids who don't want to leave the nest" syndrome appears to be on the rise. Not sure what to make of that.
Atrios
A co-worker of mine from Holland is just completely freaked out by how Americans raise their kids to be so dependent. She can't get over how people here chauffer their kids around from hell to breakfast, and how they go out of their way to arrange "play dates" and so forth.
In Holland, when you're about five, you learn to ride a bike. And then, you're off and on your own. The kids get themselves to school, they go to their soccer games and activities, and the parents let the kids go off and be kids - they aren't consumed by planning every aspect of their kids' lives.
I told her when I was a kid, it was "be home before dinner - and don't drink bleach". Our parents didn't obsess over us. We moved out at 18, went to college, starved, got shitty jobs and made our way in the world. We're all decent people.
Anyone living at home in their 20's would have been considered a weirdo.
Tena,
Yeah, the "kids who don't want to leave the nest" syndrome appears to be on the rise. Not sure what to make of that.
Atrios
A co-worker of mine from Holland is just completely freaked out by how Americans raise their kids to be so dependent. She can't get over how people here chauffer their kids around from hell to breakfast, and how they go out of their way to arrange "play dates" and so forth.
In Holland, when you're about five, you learn to ride a bike. And then, you're off and on your own. The kids get themselves to school, they go to their soccer games and activities, and the parents let the kids go off and be kids - they aren't consumed by planning every aspect of their kids' lives.
I told her when I was a kid, it was "be home before dinner - and don't drink bleach". Our parents didn't obsess over us. We moved out at 18, went to college, starved, got shitty jobs and made our way in the world. We're all decent people.
Anyone living at home in their 20's would have been considered a weirdo.
Man, let us all mourn privacy, that swiftly disappearing notion. And then let us all get really really pissed off that it is disappearing at such an alarming rate.
Man, let us all mourn privacy, that swiftly disappearing notion. And then let us all get really really pissed off that it is disappearing at such an alarming rate.
To you physicists, will it be effective to put your cell phone in a lead box or something?
To you physicists, will it be effective to put your cell phone in a lead box or something?
Stinky I agree with your Dutch friend. Some of the things I got up to as a child seem a little bit scary right now, but I turned out ok. In my current affluent area children are truly leashed to a parent all the time, and this goes on with children as old as sixteen or seventeen. One parent told me how worrisome it was that her child had to take a bus alone at noon in a safe suburban area. The child is sixteen years old.
I understand that there are dangers out there and that it's hard not to worry, but there are real dangers with bringing up children so that they won't grow up, too.
Stinky I agree with your Dutch friend. Some of the things I got up to as a child seem a little bit scary right now, but I turned out ok. In my current affluent area children are truly leashed to a parent all the time, and this goes on with children as old as sixteen or seventeen. One parent told me how worrisome it was that her child had to take a bus alone at noon in a safe suburban area. The child is sixteen years old.
I understand that there are dangers out there and that it's hard not to worry, but there are real dangers with bringing up children so that they won't grow up, too.
stinky - I do believe that is a factor in some of this. People account for every second of a kid's day now. I used to go out the front door and I didn't come back until evening. People don't let their kids do that so much anymore because they are afraid to.
stinky - I do believe that is a factor in some of this. People account for every second of a kid's day now. I used to go out the front door and I didn't come back until evening. People don't let their kids do that so much anymore because they are afraid to.
How long until they just implant these little devices in our cars and pipe the information straight to the police?
Fuck this big brother shit.
How long until they just implant these little devices in our cars and pipe the information straight to the police?
Fuck this big brother shit.
When these phones become capable of relaying signals of GPS points moving back and forth, say, roughly six inches apart, from the back seats of cars, teens will really be in trouble.
When these phones become capable of relaying signals of GPS points moving back and forth, say, roughly six inches apart, from the back seats of cars, teens will really be in trouble.
Yo bebe:
D'ya think Liddy has sufficient development of the labial muscles to suck a god damn golf ball through a garden hose?
Yo bebe:
D'ya think Liddy has sufficient development of the labial muscles to suck a god damn golf ball through a garden hose?
Echidne - I agree with you. And I don't know why the media has gotten hung up on stories about harm to children, but this has been going on now for almost 20 years and that really has factored into it. I am not really sure, though, what else may be underlying it.
Echidne - I agree with you. And I don't know why the media has gotten hung up on stories about harm to children, but this has been going on now for almost 20 years and that really has factored into it. I am not really sure, though, what else may be underlying it.
That's fine. I'm looking forward to the next craze:
Seeing how fast you can get your cell phone to go without damaging it. 100 mph? 150 mph?
Aren't there radio control jet airplanes that you can get? Kids could terroize their parents and learn about physics at the same time!!!
That's fine. I'm looking forward to the next craze:
Seeing how fast you can get your cell phone to go without damaging it. 100 mph? 150 mph?
Aren't there radio control jet airplanes that you can get? Kids could terroize their parents and learn about physics at the same time!!!
The whole "play date" thing seems to be a function of sterile, dysfunctional suburbs and exurbs where a wandering kid would find no life at all. All the people cocooned up in their duplexes, no children allowed to skateboard on the sidewalks or the streets of this safe, quiet community...
I hate that shit. My boss is about my age, and his kid just passed his first birthday. That's the environment the tyke is growing up in. His mom has to take him to "play dates," and she will for as long as they live in the neighborhood they're in right now, because the neighborhood is completely sterile and spookily empty. (Not really "empty" - everyone is inside playing with their X-Box or watching Monday night football or "Everybody Loves Raymond.")
America is really starting to suck. I'm glad I grew up in the late seventies / early eighties.
The whole "play date" thing seems to be a function of sterile, dysfunctional suburbs and exurbs where a wandering kid would find no life at all. All the people cocooned up in their duplexes, no children allowed to skateboard on the sidewalks or the streets of this safe, quiet community...
I hate that shit. My boss is about my age, and his kid just passed his first birthday. That's the environment the tyke is growing up in. His mom has to take him to "play dates," and she will for as long as they live in the neighborhood they're in right now, because the neighborhood is completely sterile and spookily empty. (Not really "empty" - everyone is inside playing with their X-Box or watching Monday night football or "Everybody Loves Raymond.")
America is really starting to suck. I'm glad I grew up in the late seventies / early eighties.
Isn't this technology, or something like it, already being put, not so overtly, into newer model cars? I think one of the benefits accrues to insurance companies in cases of accidents. They know the car's speed and direction at the instant of a crash, and can use it against the claimants.
Isn't this technology, or something like it, already being put, not so overtly, into newer model cars? I think one of the benefits accrues to insurance companies in cases of accidents. They know the car's speed and direction at the instant of a crash, and can use it against the claimants.
*cough cough cough trojan horse! cough cough*
*cough cough cough trojan horse! cough cough*
Please keep an eye out for my upcoming book - "1001 Fun Games With a GPS Tracking Cell Phone."
Sample Chapters
Chapter 1) Duct Taping your GPS Tracking Cell Phone to the Underside of a Real US Army General's Car.
Chapter 2) The Interstate Truck Stop, Duct Tape and your GPS Tracking Cell Phone; So Many Choices So Little Time.
Chapter 3) The Parked Police Car, Duct Tape and Your GPS Tracking Cell Phone.
Chapter 4) Fedex Air Overnight Delivery.
Chapter 5) Your mom's car, your dad's car, your GPS Tracking Cell Phone, emancipation and you.
Not yet available for delivery.
If you'd like to write a pre-review of this book....
Please keep an eye out for my upcoming book - "1001 Fun Games With a GPS Tracking Cell Phone."
Sample Chapters
Chapter 1) Duct Taping your GPS Tracking Cell Phone to the Underside of a Real US Army General's Car.
Chapter 2) The Interstate Truck Stop, Duct Tape and your GPS Tracking Cell Phone; So Many Choices So Little Time.
Chapter 3) The Parked Police Car, Duct Tape and Your GPS Tracking Cell Phone.
Chapter 4) Fedex Air Overnight Delivery.
Chapter 5) Your mom's car, your dad's car, your GPS Tracking Cell Phone, emancipation and you.
Not yet available for delivery.
If you'd like to write a pre-review of this book....
Yes, Tena, there are probably multiple reasons for all the scaring tactics about the dangers that children face. Some of it is just the sensationalism of the television in general: they always look for the most horrible stories and hardly ever mention how unlikely these events are to happen. Then we get those waves of angst about pedophiles and kidnappings and yet another suburb goes quiet in the daytime.
But I suspect some of it is also pushed by the folks who want to see women back in the kitchen; the idea being that unsupervised kids will get into trouble, and that trouble is lurking everywhere, even in childcare workers.
And then there's the whole large child-improvement industry which sells us the idea that children must be doing something organized all the time. Which means having to chauffeur them to events nonstop.
The negative effects of all this might include this 'dependency' syndrome and also the obesity of children. I also wonder what will be missing because children don't have those wonderful moments of adventure as much anymore. My best childhood memories are about stuff like climbing onto our roof from a second-floor window and jumping into the haypiles from the rafters of the barn; all things which would have given my parents a heart attack had they known, and all things that I was banned from doing...
Yes, Tena, there are probably multiple reasons for all the scaring tactics about the dangers that children face. Some of it is just the sensationalism of the television in general: they always look for the most horrible stories and hardly ever mention how unlikely these events are to happen. Then we get those waves of angst about pedophiles and kidnappings and yet another suburb goes quiet in the daytime.
But I suspect some of it is also pushed by the folks who want to see women back in the kitchen; the idea being that unsupervised kids will get into trouble, and that trouble is lurking everywhere, even in childcare workers.
And then there's the whole large child-improvement industry which sells us the idea that children must be doing something organized all the time. Which means having to chauffeur them to events nonstop.
The negative effects of all this might include this 'dependency' syndrome and also the obesity of children. I also wonder what will be missing because children don't have those wonderful moments of adventure as much anymore. My best childhood memories are about stuff like climbing onto our roof from a second-floor window and jumping into the haypiles from the rafters of the barn; all things which would have given my parents a heart attack had they known, and all things that I was banned from doing...
Franks is such a dumbass if he honestly thinks this will work? I will enjoy watching the whole thing crash and burn in bankruptcy court.
MYOB'
.
Franks is such a dumbass if he honestly thinks this will work? I will enjoy watching the whole thing crash and burn in bankruptcy court.
MYOB'
.
For GPS to work, the antenna has to clearly "see" 3 or more satellites. Glass and plastic don't block this, but any sort of metal will. I have a PDA with GPS and a good chunk of the roads in US on a card. Very convenient for directing you to any address you want. Tell it where you want to go and it will keep directing you to that location no matter where you drive. However, put it in the wrong place in a car and it is useless.
That said, I am afraid that we are on our way to a society in which we will all be tracked most of the time.
For GPS to work, the antenna has to clearly "see" 3 or more satellites. Glass and plastic don't block this, but any sort of metal will. I have a PDA with GPS and a good chunk of the roads in US on a card. Very convenient for directing you to any address you want. Tell it where you want to go and it will keep directing you to that location no matter where you drive. However, put it in the wrong place in a car and it is useless.
That said, I am afraid that we are on our way to a society in which we will all be tracked most of the time.
That said, I am afraid that we are on our way to a society in which we will all be tracked most of the time.
And I would have thought that that would take all the fun out of it when the Republicans start hunting us for sport, but then again, these are the same people who want to hunt dear with assault weapons, right?
That said, I am afraid that we are on our way to a society in which we will all be tracked most of the time.
And I would have thought that that would take all the fun out of it when the Republicans start hunting us for sport, but then again, these are the same people who want to hunt dear with assault weapons, right?
Deer.
Argh.
Deer.
Argh.
I don't get it. I don't have kids so I won't judge too much, but the cultural phenomenon puzzles me. People hole up in "safe" gated communities, and then their kids can't even go peddle around the neighborhood in their bikes unsupervised.
I don't think my parents were exactly permissive (feel free to chime in, mom) but I remember having a surprising degree of freedom to wander the neighborhood at a fairly young age.
I don't get it. I don't have kids so I won't judge too much, but the cultural phenomenon puzzles me. People hole up in "safe" gated communities, and then their kids can't even go peddle around the neighborhood in their bikes unsupervised.
I don't think my parents were exactly permissive (feel free to chime in, mom) but I remember having a surprising degree of freedom to wander the neighborhood at a fairly young age.
In response to the new and sick lifestyles mentioned above: Has anyone noticed that the suburban sprawl profiteers don't design sidewalks or even wide enough shoulders for walking? There are no green spaces, just postage stamp-size yards. You can't get anywhere on a bike or by foot safely--not to a grocery store, school, library, park, post office, nowhere. I too am glad that I didn't grow up that way. I was deluded enough to raise my son in one of those gawd forsaken places. Thankfully, when I drove him everywhere in his childhood, a lot of times it was to cool places in the city. It took, and now he lives in the city. I moved too, but unfortunately it was in with my parents to take care of them. They are both very sick (dad more than mom). Life's too short (or long if you live in one of those developments), so enjoy what you can, and don't put GPS in you kid's phone. Develop a relationship with him instead.
In response to the new and sick lifestyles mentioned above: Has anyone noticed that the suburban sprawl profiteers don't design sidewalks or even wide enough shoulders for walking? There are no green spaces, just postage stamp-size yards. You can't get anywhere on a bike or by foot safely--not to a grocery store, school, library, park, post office, nowhere. I too am glad that I didn't grow up that way. I was deluded enough to raise my son in one of those gawd forsaken places. Thankfully, when I drove him everywhere in his childhood, a lot of times it was to cool places in the city. It took, and now he lives in the city. I moved too, but unfortunately it was in with my parents to take care of them. They are both very sick (dad more than mom). Life's too short (or long if you live in one of those developments), so enjoy what you can, and don't put GPS in you kid's phone. Develop a relationship with him instead.
Note to self: invest in shield to jam GPS receiver without blocking cellphone calls.
What the fuck is Franks' angle on this? Tracking draft-age kids so they can alert the Feds if they're driving toward the Canadian border?
Note to self: invest in shield to jam GPS receiver without blocking cellphone calls.
What the fuck is Franks' angle on this? Tracking draft-age kids so they can alert the Feds if they're driving toward the Canadian border?
Okay, first, go read Betty Friedan's "The Feminine Mystique" and second Simone du Beauvoir's "The Second Sex"
Then you will clearly understand that that this is very much a part of the backlash against feminism that works by normalizing raising children to be wholly dependent on their parents (thus needing mommy to do everything for me). I had this bullshit pulled on me. Until I was 18 and forced the issue I didn't know how to do laundry, how to clean *anything*, how to fold laundry, how to cook in any capicity what-so-ever, how to manage my money, etc. etc.
If I had not taken it upon myself to force my parents (or others) to teach me all of these things, I wouldn't know any of them. How could I have moved out, not knowing how to take care of myself in the slightest? Hell, even at 14 it was a fight to be allowed to get a job and to get payed for it rather than being renumerated by getting money whenever I asked for it. I didn't have my own bank account until I was over 16.
Thank God I realized what the game was and fought like hell to escape it.
As for this tracking software, and structuring all of a childs time and supervising them constantly, well the why is simple:
It has two primary effects, 1) is to obliterate the childs agency and 2) is to create a panopticon for the child, the belief that they are *always* being watched meant to induce them to police themselves.
Okay, first, go read Betty Friedan's "The Feminine Mystique" and second Simone du Beauvoir's "The Second Sex"
Then you will clearly understand that that this is very much a part of the backlash against feminism that works by normalizing raising children to be wholly dependent on their parents (thus needing mommy to do everything for me). I had this bullshit pulled on me. Until I was 18 and forced the issue I didn't know how to do laundry, how to clean *anything*, how to fold laundry, how to cook in any capicity what-so-ever, how to manage my money, etc. etc.
If I had not taken it upon myself to force my parents (or others) to teach me all of these things, I wouldn't know any of them. How could I have moved out, not knowing how to take care of myself in the slightest? Hell, even at 14 it was a fight to be allowed to get a job and to get payed for it rather than being renumerated by getting money whenever I asked for it. I didn't have my own bank account until I was over 16.
Thank God I realized what the game was and fought like hell to escape it.
As for this tracking software, and structuring all of a childs time and supervising them constantly, well the why is simple:
It has two primary effects, 1) is to obliterate the childs agency and 2) is to create a panopticon for the child, the belief that they are *always* being watched meant to induce them to police themselves.
What's next?
Micro-chips in their neck.....like with dogs?
What is WITH these fucktards????
What's next?
Micro-chips in their neck.....like with dogs?
What is WITH these fucktards????
"Then you will clearly understand that that this is very much a part of the backlash against feminism that works by normalizing raising children to be wholly dependent on their parents (thus needing mommy to do everything for me)."
Oh, yeah - because as we all know, FEMINISM is responsible for all of the evil in this world....well, that and Bill Clinton.
They can "backlash" all they want, but no religious nut is going to relegate ME to any kitchen!
"Then you will clearly understand that that this is very much a part of the backlash against feminism that works by normalizing raising children to be wholly dependent on their parents (thus needing mommy to do everything for me)."
Oh, yeah - because as we all know, FEMINISM is responsible for all of the evil in this world....well, that and Bill Clinton.
They can "backlash" all they want, but no religious nut is going to relegate ME to any kitchen!
Please keep an eye out for my upcoming book - "1001 Fun Games With a GPS Tracking Cell Phone."
If you're under 21, leave the phone next to a local bar, the seedier the better (or if you have a fake ID, just go ahead and hang out at the bar). Three or four hours later, go pick it up, take it to the nearest bridge/cliff, and toss it on over.
Please keep an eye out for my upcoming book - "1001 Fun Games With a GPS Tracking Cell Phone."
If you're under 21, leave the phone next to a local bar, the seedier the better (or if you have a fake ID, just go ahead and hang out at the bar). Three or four hours later, go pick it up, take it to the nearest bridge/cliff, and toss it on over.
"My boss is about my age, and his kid just passed his first birthday. That's the environment the tyke is growing up in. His mom has to take him to "play dates," and she will for as long as they live in the neighborhood they're in right now,"
So Mom doesn't have a job.....or a life of her own?
"My boss is about my age, and his kid just passed his first birthday. That's the environment the tyke is growing up in. His mom has to take him to "play dates," and she will for as long as they live in the neighborhood they're in right now,"
So Mom doesn't have a job.....or a life of her own?
Yeah, the "kids who don't want to leave the nest" syndrome appears to be on the rise. Not sure what to make of that.
I have a 23 year old daughter and 20 year son. They both work and they don't give me any problems.
I am in NO hurry to kick them out of the nest.
Yeah, the "kids who don't want to leave the nest" syndrome appears to be on the rise. Not sure what to make of that.
I have a 23 year old daughter and 20 year son. They both work and they don't give me any problems.
I am in NO hurry to kick them out of the nest.
The organization aims to get teens to carry a cell phone containing a GPS chip that sends out regular signals letting parents know where they are and how fast they're going.
Pastor Earl here, and I think this sounds like a great idea!
The organization aims to get teens to carry a cell phone containing a GPS chip that sends out regular signals letting parents know where they are and how fast they're going.
Pastor Earl here, and I think this sounds like a great idea!
and when teens start 'losing' their phones, it will be made an offence to let a teenager drive without a cellphone. and soon after that it will be an offence to let anyone drive without a cell phone. etc.,etc. technology is about ten seconds away from making everyone's life pure hell.
and when teens start 'losing' their phones, it will be made an offence to let a teenager drive without a cellphone. and soon after that it will be an offence to let anyone drive without a cell phone. etc.,etc. technology is about ten seconds away from making everyone's life pure hell.
Maybe Franks could get together with Kerik and they could start the GPS-Cell-Phone-Stun-Gun Company. Think about it: you could actually shock and render unconscious your deviant teenage child if it drives too fast.
Millions, baby, millions.
Maybe Franks could get together with Kerik and they could start the GPS-Cell-Phone-Stun-Gun Company. Think about it: you could actually shock and render unconscious your deviant teenage child if it drives too fast.
Millions, baby, millions.
Ha! My mother didn't need no steenkin' phone to know when I was up to no good... 
Ha! My mother didn't need no steenkin' phone to know when I was up to no good...
Maybe I'm old, too, but my parents let me bike around by myself when I was in grade school, and during some of those years we were living in a place with both mobsters and armed insurgents. Our house came with a guard. As I recall, my parents' biggest worry was that we would eat bad street food.
Then again, maybe it isn't just a sign of the times-- my uncle lived with his mother until she went into a convalescent home, and Mr. Sisi's brother looks set to go the same way at 51. Oy.
Maybe I'm old, too, but my parents let me bike around by myself when I was in grade school, and during some of those years we were living in a place with both mobsters and armed insurgents. Our house came with a guard. As I recall, my parents' biggest worry was that we would eat bad street food.
Then again, maybe it isn't just a sign of the times-- my uncle lived with his mother until she went into a convalescent home, and Mr. Sisi's brother looks set to go the same way at 51. Oy.
I'm calling bullshit on the technology, but that make Franks the perfect spokesman given his history.
As '__league' pointed out, since GPS signals are being broadcast at some distance from the earth, it's pretty easy to block the phone from receiving GPS signals, we're talking nanowatts of power. Cellphone companies are under a federal law that requires them to be able to locate a stationary phone within 50 m these days, and there's no way on God's green earth that any one of them is close to doing that because of the unreliability of GPS signals (originally meant to be used under Gawd's clear blue skies by blue-eyed Murican warriors with antennas open to 120 degrees of sky), and the inherent wierdness of radio networks (rayleigh fading, multipath etc,) that technologies such as CDMA ride on top of.
Let's just say that if that car ain't sporting a small mushroom on the roof or trunk Teen Arrive Alive is dead, technologically speaking. Which just means that there will be a lot of neo-con "social security" accounts doubling down on the eventual IPO.
I'm calling bullshit on the technology, but that make Franks the perfect spokesman given his history.
As '__league' pointed out, since GPS signals are being broadcast at some distance from the earth, it's pretty easy to block the phone from receiving GPS signals, we're talking nanowatts of power. Cellphone companies are under a federal law that requires them to be able to locate a stationary phone within 50 m these days, and there's no way on God's green earth that any one of them is close to doing that because of the unreliability of GPS signals (originally meant to be used under Gawd's clear blue skies by blue-eyed Murican warriors with antennas open to 120 degrees of sky), and the inherent wierdness of radio networks (rayleigh fading, multipath etc,) that technologies such as CDMA ride on top of.
Let's just say that if that car ain't sporting a small mushroom on the roof or trunk Teen Arrive Alive is dead, technologically speaking. Which just means that there will be a lot of neo-con "social security" accounts doubling down on the eventual IPO.
Pretty soon, the Bushco will find someway to put one of those chips in each of us. They will begin with the bloggers. Oy!!!!!!! An alarm will go off the second one of us types words like crook, moron, criminal, ass hole, chimp etc.........
Pretty soon, the Bushco will find someway to put one of those chips in each of us. They will begin with the bloggers. Oy!!!!!!! An alarm will go off the second one of us types words like crook, moron, criminal, ass hole, chimp etc.........
Speaking of social security, when they finish decimating it, how will people steal our identities if we don't have SS numbers? I think we have to think of the childr er uh criminals. Or maybe they could all work for the government.
Speaking of social security, when they finish decimating it, how will people steal our identities if we don't have SS numbers? I think we have to think of the childr er uh criminals. Or maybe they could all work for the government.
Is it a good idea to trigger an alarm inside a speeding vehicle being driven by a teenager? Especially if they are talking on it at the time... I predict a lawsuit within the first year.
Is it a good idea to trigger an alarm inside a speeding vehicle being driven by a teenager? Especially if they are talking on it at the time... I predict a lawsuit within the first year.
Maybe Franks and that clump of grass we call president can find out where clintons budget surplus went.
Maybe Franks and that clump of grass we call president can find out where clintons budget surplus went.
I think the cellphone location is supposed to be done by using the signal from the phone as received by more than one cell phone tower. I don't think it involves GPS.
I think the cellphone location is supposed to be done by using the signal from the phone as received by more than one cell phone tower. I don't think it involves GPS.
My "kids" are now 33 and 39 years old. All of us seem to have survived their teens despite the scary stuff.
I just can't picture myself saying, "Wait a minute, Dear. Let Mom put this leash around your neck before you leave with your friends..."
What's the matter with parents who can't remember what it was like to be at that part of your life where you're supposed to be trying your wings without parental supervision? Sure, we screwed up sometimes, but more often than not we came through it just fine.
My "kids" are now 33 and 39 years old. All of us seem to have survived their teens despite the scary stuff.
I just can't picture myself saying, "Wait a minute, Dear. Let Mom put this leash around your neck before you leave with your friends..."
What's the matter with parents who can't remember what it was like to be at that part of your life where you're supposed to be trying your wings without parental supervision? Sure, we screwed up sometimes, but more often than not we came through it just fine.
Jeez, those control freaks are everywhere, aren't they? You know those military guys are big time control freaks so no surprise Franks would sign up to be a spokesman.
"Do you know where your teen is tonight? At the movies? Huh! That's what YOU think. What would you say if I told you that your teen has just taken a shitload of ecstasy and is part of a gang-fuck of a 14-year old teenybopper behind the convenience store?"
"Can't be your kid, you say? Well let's just see about that."
(Pulls cell phone from his pocket and punches in a number.)
(Picture comes on screen of a group of teen boys fucking a goat behind the Seven Eleven.)
"Okay, so we were wrong about the teen, but the location is dead right!"
Know where your teen is every minute with the new Eye-from-the-Sky program......
blah blah blah
Jeez, those control freaks are everywhere, aren't they? You know those military guys are big time control freaks so no surprise Franks would sign up to be a spokesman.
"Do you know where your teen is tonight? At the movies? Huh! That's what YOU think. What would you say if I told you that your teen has just taken a shitload of ecstasy and is part of a gang-fuck of a 14-year old teenybopper behind the convenience store?"
"Can't be your kid, you say? Well let's just see about that."
(Pulls cell phone from his pocket and punches in a number.)
(Picture comes on screen of a group of teen boys fucking a goat behind the Seven Eleven.)
"Okay, so we were wrong about the teen, but the location is dead right!"
Know where your teen is every minute with the new Eye-from-the-Sky program......
blah blah blah
Well considering that I tend to drive fast, I'm not really in a position to tell my boys (when they are of driving age) to not drive fast. That would sorta make me a hypocrite. (shrugs)
Well considering that I tend to drive fast, I'm not really in a position to tell my boys (when they are of driving age) to not drive fast. That would sorta make me a hypocrite. (shrugs)
There's a good article here and here about kids (and parents) hanging on too long.
I think we're in trouble...
There's a good article here and here about kids (and parents) hanging on too long.
I think we're in trouble...
"Hi, I'm General Tommy Franks. I lost track of Osama bin Laden. Don't let the same thing happen to your kids."
"Hi, I'm General Tommy Franks. I lost track of Osama bin Laden. Don't let the same thing happen to your kids."
As a parent who lives in a suburb, and knows and visits many other such people in other places, from Bethesda to San Jose, I call BS on many of the comments above.
There are idiots who freak out if their 13 year old is out of sight, but they are the exception. Most areas have lots of parks and playgrounds, and kids over about 8 run wild for the most part. The kids also have plenty of things to do - which is the driving force for getting their parents to take them places. It's typically not the parents pushing kids to do 4 different sports and music things; the kids want to be into all this stuff. Beats me why.
I find it alternately amusing and annoying how city people love to stereotype and put down the suburbs. A lot of you sound just like David Brooks. Think about that for a second.
Hey, I don't go around saying how dangerous and expensive it is to live in a city and how the schools suck, even though I can find examples of those things.
OTOH, adults cocooning with the pay-rents in their 20s-30s is a real trend, and seems to happen everywhere, not just the burbs.
As a parent who lives in a suburb, and knows and visits many other such people in other places, from Bethesda to San Jose, I call BS on many of the comments above.
There are idiots who freak out if their 13 year old is out of sight, but they are the exception. Most areas have lots of parks and playgrounds, and kids over about 8 run wild for the most part. The kids also have plenty of things to do - which is the driving force for getting their parents to take them places. It's typically not the parents pushing kids to do 4 different sports and music things; the kids want to be into all this stuff. Beats me why.
I find it alternately amusing and annoying how city people love to stereotype and put down the suburbs. A lot of you sound just like David Brooks. Think about that for a second.
Hey, I don't go around saying how dangerous and expensive it is to live in a city and how the schools suck, even though I can find examples of those things.
OTOH, adults cocooning with the pay-rents in their 20s-30s is a real trend, and seems to happen everywhere, not just the burbs.
Like teenagers have never heard of...batteries.
Like teenagers have never heard of...batteries.
And the nerdy AP kid who knows how to disable this device becomes everyone's best friend...
And the nerdy AP kid who knows how to disable this device becomes everyone's best friend...
loser,
you can call bs on my comments all you want - but I'm not "city folk" stereotyping some place I've never been. I live in Irvine, CA. That's also where my boss lives. I just happen to live in an enclave of this planned city that is not, um, as obviously planned as where my boss lives. There are playgrounds... but not within walking distance of his house. Mrs. boss has to drive the kid to the playground. Kids may run wild there, but I've never seen any of them running anywhere - because there's nowhere to run to.
I don't know, maybe I'm just selectively blind or something. Or maybe, just maybe, this particular neighborhood is exactly as I describe it - I should know, I'm in the best position to see. It's about 3/4 of a mile from where I'm typing right now. Maybe I'll hop in the car and go for a cruise to see if I remember it right.
loser,
you can call bs on my comments all you want - but I'm not "city folk" stereotyping some place I've never been. I live in Irvine, CA. That's also where my boss lives. I just happen to live in an enclave of this planned city that is not, um, as obviously planned as where my boss lives. There are playgrounds... but not within walking distance of his house. Mrs. boss has to drive the kid to the playground. Kids may run wild there, but I've never seen any of them running anywhere - because there's nowhere to run to.
I don't know, maybe I'm just selectively blind or something. Or maybe, just maybe, this particular neighborhood is exactly as I describe it - I should know, I'm in the best position to see. It's about 3/4 of a mile from where I'm typing right now. Maybe I'll hop in the car and go for a cruise to see if I remember it right.
I'm a 21 year old and my mother treats me like a 5 year old with a driver's license, basically. She's a hyper-protective superbitch.
I'm a 21 year old and my mother treats me like a 5 year old with a driver's license, basically. She's a hyper-protective superbitch.
I believe this has been avialable in Europe for close to a year now. (At least location tracking). Yeah, teens are bummed. Yes, spouses are using it to track each other too.
As a parent of 2 girls, I like the idea. I'm sorry! I remember all of the incredibly stupid things I've done. And I remember all of the lies I told about where I was, & what I was doing. Yeah, I grew up just fine, but I would be crushed if anything happened to our girls. Mom & I both see it as our responsibility to protect the kids the best we can.
Our oldest is 15. We've already had a drunk driving friend show up at our house. If the kid she's riding with is driving like a fool, I'd really like to know that.
I believe this has been avialable in Europe for close to a year now. (At least location tracking). Yeah, teens are bummed. Yes, spouses are using it to track each other too.
As a parent of 2 girls, I like the idea. I'm sorry! I remember all of the incredibly stupid things I've done. And I remember all of the lies I told about where I was, & what I was doing. Yeah, I grew up just fine, but I would be crushed if anything happened to our girls. Mom & I both see it as our responsibility to protect the kids the best we can.
Our oldest is 15. We've already had a drunk driving friend show up at our house. If the kid she's riding with is driving like a fool, I'd really like to know that.
Dick:
Yes but there are very good reasons that it is a bad idea as so well put here.
Dick:
Yes but there are very good reasons that it is a bad idea as so well put here.
Interesting that Franks connects with a company that's selling a junk product that is all too easily circumvented.
Then again, look who he worked for and campaigned with.
Interesting that Franks connects with a company that's selling a junk product that is all too easily circumvented.
Then again, look who he worked for and campaigned with.
Atrios:
The stay in the nest syndrome we're seeing today is simply because jobs that pay enough to support a young adult are hard to come by.
In my youth, good jobs were plentiful and even minimum wage, corrected for inflation, was much higher than it is today.
Atrios:
The stay in the nest syndrome we're seeing today is simply because jobs that pay enough to support a young adult are hard to come by.
In my youth, good jobs were plentiful and even minimum wage, corrected for inflation, was much higher than it is today.
As a parent of 2 girls, I like the idea. I'm sorry! I remember all of the incredibly stupid things I've done. And I remember all of the lies I told about where I was, & what I was doing. Yeah, I grew up just fine, but I would be crushed if anything happened to our girls.
You mean like what might happen to them on account of mom and dad being overbearing overprotective controlling psychotic jackfucks?
As a parent of 2 girls, I like the idea. I'm sorry! I remember all of the incredibly stupid things I've done. And I remember all of the lies I told about where I was, & what I was doing. Yeah, I grew up just fine, but I would be crushed if anything happened to our girls.
You mean like what might happen to them on account of mom and dad being overbearing overprotective controlling psychotic jackfucks?
Oh man I would have been SO busted if my parents had given me one of these. We used to take the old super charged '72 Dodge Dart and race on I10 right around West Covina as teens (flat straight). Thankfully we never hurt anyone else, but what a freaking rush.
My 15 year old hasn't even mentioned getting driver's license in a month. With the car I have now, she should be since it is faster than the Dart and way sexier (although my kid's dream car is the same one I drove as a kid...)
As for those phones, what is to stop the kid from going to a pal's house, leaving the phone, and then driving away. Also they could get a second non-GPS phone, have the call re-routed to the one with out the GPS, and still be 'in touch' with mum and dad.
As for sterile communities, even out here in the wild rural areas of Indiana (sarcasm), kids stay inside most of the time. I live on 22.6 acres with climbable trees, wadeable (sic) streams, lots of wildlife to look at, acres of grass and bushes to hide in and NONE of the kids around here play outside! They are all inside with their X boxes, Sponge Bob moives or on 'play dates' with their friends in sterile gyms set up for them by their over protective parents. I think my daughter is the only one who spent hours outside, mostly because I wasn't going to give up time and money taking her to some place else to play when she had the great outdoors as her personal play ground. Most of her friends don't know the difference between a salamadar and a toad.
As for the parental units, I am the only female in the 'hood who knows how to drive a tractor, ZTR mower, gas edger, chain saw, etc. All the other ones call their husband if a tree crashes across the driveway. I get the chainsaw out and move it myself.
On the other hand, they can all cook so I guess there is a trade off somewhere.
Oh man I would have been SO busted if my parents had given me one of these. We used to take the old super charged '72 Dodge Dart and race on I10 right around West Covina as teens (flat straight). Thankfully we never hurt anyone else, but what a freaking rush.
My 15 year old hasn't even mentioned getting driver's license in a month. With the car I have now, she should be since it is faster than the Dart and way sexier (although my kid's dream car is the same one I drove as a kid...)
As for those phones, what is to stop the kid from going to a pal's house, leaving the phone, and then driving away. Also they could get a second non-GPS phone, have the call re-routed to the one with out the GPS, and still be 'in touch' with mum and dad.
As for sterile communities, even out here in the wild rural areas of Indiana (sarcasm), kids stay inside most of the time. I live on 22.6 acres with climbable trees, wadeable (sic) streams, lots of wildlife to look at, acres of grass and bushes to hide in and NONE of the kids around here play outside! They are all inside with their X boxes, Sponge Bob moives or on 'play dates' with their friends in sterile gyms set up for them by their over protective parents. I think my daughter is the only one who spent hours outside, mostly because I wasn't going to give up time and money taking her to some place else to play when she had the great outdoors as her personal play ground. Most of her friends don't know the difference between a salamadar and a toad.
As for the parental units, I am the only female in the 'hood who knows how to drive a tractor, ZTR mower, gas edger, chain saw, etc. All the other ones call their husband if a tree crashes across the driveway. I get the chainsaw out and move it myself.
On the other hand, they can all cook so I guess there is a trade off somewhere.
Big Brother: It's Not Just For Teenagers Anymore.
That's what I thought. Do people believe that once the chips are in a phone they just go away when the person owning the phone turns 20? Or that the company who'll be routing this data for people (cause you know it's gotta route through somewhere) aren't going to let this information get out to the "right people" from time to time?
I guess we're just pining for the days when slaves had such a good relationship with their massas . . ..
Big Brother: It's Not Just For Teenagers Anymore.
That's what I thought. Do people believe that once the chips are in a phone they just go away when the person owning the phone turns 20? Or that the company who'll be routing this data for people (cause you know it's gotta route through somewhere) aren't going to let this information get out to the "right people" from time to time?
I guess we're just pining for the days when slaves had such a good relationship with their massas . . ..
"Even before these types of enhancements, I imagine that a lot of teenagers very quickly regretted their new cell phone."
not really, most teens let their parents know what they can do with constant intrusion. Teen years are a time of eliminating the old relationship between parent and child, but often only the teen knows it and has to educate the parent.
-
"Even before these types of enhancements, I imagine that a lot of teenagers very quickly regretted their new cell phone."
not really, most teens let their parents know what they can do with constant intrusion. Teen years are a time of eliminating the old relationship between parent and child, but often only the teen knows it and has to educate the parent.
-
if you haven't raised your chilren where as teens you can't trust them,
if you've not rasised them where they can protect themselves from danger and temptation,
if you have to watch over them like they're still unkowing 5 years olds,
then you've not done your job as parent.
-
if you haven't raised your chilren where as teens you can't trust them,
if you've not rasised them where they can protect themselves from danger and temptation,
if you have to watch over them like they're still unkowing 5 years olds,
then you've not done your job as parent.
-
haven't = have
rasised = raised
unkowing = unknowing
too early for this.
haven't = have
rasised = raised
unkowing = unknowing
too early for this.
Yasonyacky: So your boss' kids live 3/4 of a mile from you but they have no place to go? Are they allowed on bicycles? Does your neighborhood suck too? 3/4 of a mile is nothing.
I am not saying all the negativity comes from city peeps. I am saying stereotyping is useless. Maybe there are sterile subdivisions. That doesn't mean suburbia in general is torture for kids, any more than some dangerous city neighborhoods or crappy schools mean that cities are horrible places for raising kids.
Yasonyacky: So your boss' kids live 3/4 of a mile from you but they have no place to go? Are they allowed on bicycles? Does your neighborhood suck too? 3/4 of a mile is nothing.
I am not saying all the negativity comes from city peeps. I am saying stereotyping is useless. Maybe there are sterile subdivisions. That doesn't mean suburbia in general is torture for kids, any more than some dangerous city neighborhoods or crappy schools mean that cities are horrible places for raising kids.
It also doesn't mean that "America is starting to suck". It means that you are getting old and cranky.
It also doesn't mean that "America is starting to suck". It means that you are getting old and cranky.
Well, knowing all the dumb shit I did in a car when I was a teenager, something like this won't bother me too much when I become a parent. Sometimes I think it's a miracle that none of us died from stupidity when we were in high school.
And whatever; I grew up in suburbia with fairly controlling parents, who arranged "playdates" or whatever you want to call them. I didn't have a miserable unfulfilled childhood, and I think I turned out pretty well.
Well, knowing all the dumb shit I did in a car when I was a teenager, something like this won't bother me too much when I become a parent. Sometimes I think it's a miracle that none of us died from stupidity when we were in high school.
And whatever; I grew up in suburbia with fairly controlling parents, who arranged "playdates" or whatever you want to call them. I didn't have a miserable unfulfilled childhood, and I think I turned out pretty well.
I just read of another dumb idea: using RFID chips in bookbags and whatnot to track each kid as he/she enters or leaves the school building, as if kids won't find out pretty soon how to ditch whatever has a chip in it, and run free wherever they want.
Meanwhile, the old RFID chip just keeps signaling a false location for the kid. And school officials slumber away peacefully, cosy in the delusion that the have enhanced 'security' by spending millions on bullshit technology because they can't think.
And the some consultant paid to promote this stuff is writing op/eds for local newspapers as I write. What a scam. Only adults will fall for this nonsense.
Meanwhile, real intruders enter and leave high school campuses and buildings at will because they aren't wearing the embedded chip or carrying it around in their bookbags.
Am I missing something here? Or is this the most incredibly expensive scam yet in the annals of 'homeland security'?
I just read of another dumb idea: using RFID chips in bookbags and whatnot to track each kid as he/she enters or leaves the school building, as if kids won't find out pretty soon how to ditch whatever has a chip in it, and run free wherever they want.
Meanwhile, the old RFID chip just keeps signaling a false location for the kid. And school officials slumber away peacefully, cosy in the delusion that the have enhanced 'security' by spending millions on bullshit technology because they can't think.
And the some consultant paid to promote this stuff is writing op/eds for local newspapers as I write. What a scam. Only adults will fall for this nonsense.
Meanwhile, real intruders enter and leave high school campuses and buildings at will because they aren't wearing the embedded chip or carrying it around in their bookbags.
Am I missing something here? Or is this the most incredibly expensive scam yet in the annals of 'homeland security'?
loser:
Yes, my boss's neighborhood is about 3/4 of a mile from here. The roads in Irvine are loopy and windy, and the sidewalks end unexpectedly. In his neighborhood, to get to the playground (for example), the kid would have to walk on the street because the sidewalk ends well before the playground begins.
And yes, my neighborhood would suck for a kid too - luckily, as you so generously pointed out, I'm "old and cranky," and I don't have any kids, so they're not bored. But the difference is this - my boss lives in a neighborhood of identical duplexes - an endless sea, it seems - and I live in older, more idiosyncratic, housing. (That's because I live on the border of Irvine and Costa Mesa, and these housing units were built back in the late 70's as an expansion from the Costa Mesa/Huntington Beach metro area. My boss lives more toward the center of Irvine, where the housing was almost all developed in the last 15 years, and developed to a specific plan.) Derrida actually wrote a lot about Irvine and the nature of planned communities - it's well worth a read if you're interested in that sort of thing.
Of course, I haven't been to all the suburbs in the world. I have been to some that work, and that are active, happy places. I have been to many that do not work. I guess there's no point to argue about it; whether I'm just old and cranky, or America is really starting to suck, I'm glad my parents didn't have to drive me everywhere, and that they let me out of the house to figure things out for myself.
loser:
Yes, my boss's neighborhood is about 3/4 of a mile from here. The roads in Irvine are loopy and windy, and the sidewalks end unexpectedly. In his neighborhood, to get to the playground (for example), the kid would have to walk on the street because the sidewalk ends well before the playground begins.
And yes, my neighborhood would suck for a kid too - luckily, as you so generously pointed out, I'm "old and cranky," and I don't have any kids, so they're not bored. But the difference is this - my boss lives in a neighborhood of identical duplexes - an endless sea, it seems - and I live in older, more idiosyncratic, housing. (That's because I live on the border of Irvine and Costa Mesa, and these housing units were built back in the late 70's as an expansion from the Costa Mesa/Huntington Beach metro area. My boss lives more toward the center of Irvine, where the housing was almost all developed in the last 15 years, and developed to a specific plan.) Derrida actually wrote a lot about Irvine and the nature of planned communities - it's well worth a read if you're interested in that sort of thing.
Of course, I haven't been to all the suburbs in the world. I have been to some that work, and that are active, happy places. I have been to many that do not work. I guess there's no point to argue about it; whether I'm just old and cranky, or America is really starting to suck, I'm glad my parents didn't have to drive me everywhere, and that they let me out of the house to figure things out for myself.
Why do people always assume that the only possibilities are "city" or "suburbs"? This is a false dichotomy. There are thousands of small towns throughout the U.S. that do not fall under either of these rubrics - the town I grew up in was in southern Ohio, and could not by any stretch of the imagination be called a "city"; at the same time, it has existed since the early 1800's, and is definitely not a "suburb".
Why do people always assume that the only possibilities are "city" or "suburbs"? This is a false dichotomy. There are thousands of small towns throughout the U.S. that do not fall under either of these rubrics - the town I grew up in was in southern Ohio, and could not by any stretch of the imagination be called a "city"; at the same time, it has existed since the early 1800's, and is definitely not a "suburb".
Yasonyacky, don't you think that the variation in the local architecture is just about the *least* relevant thing to a child's happiness? You sound like you're upset about something that you find aesthetically unpleasing, and trying to turn that into a much larger argument about why America sucks.
Yasonyacky, don't you think that the variation in the local architecture is just about the *least* relevant thing to a child's happiness? You sound like you're upset about something that you find aesthetically unpleasing, and trying to turn that into a much larger argument about why America sucks.
Dave - no, that's not my argument. The variations in the local architecture are effects of a larger force, not the cause of the problem. The planned tracts on the Irvine side of the "tracks" (or Newport Bay, your call) may be aesthetically unpleasing, but that's not my problem with them. The problem I have with them (and that I would have had with them had I grown up there) is that there is nowhere to go (nearby), nothing to do (nearby), and tough luck if you're a kid who doesn't yet have a driver's license, because it's going to be difficult to get to anywhere at all. As I mentioned in an earlier post, even the "neighborhood playground" isn't really walkable.
Have you seen "Arrested Development"? Well, it's set in Orange County, and the model home where Michael lives is pretty much my boss's neighborhood if they built 200 more structures. Since my neighborhood developed somewhat more organically, there is variation in the immediate surroundings - restaurants, gas stations, auto shops, pizza joints, etc. Across Newport Harbor in the heart of Irvine, you find housing tracts detached from the rest of what would make a neighborhood. For anyone with an automobile, this isn't a problem - you jump in the car, drive 2 miles, and you can get to just about anything. But the 12-year olds and the 15-year olds are sort of stuck.
Dave - no, that's not my argument. The variations in the local architecture are effects of a larger force, not the cause of the problem. The planned tracts on the Irvine side of the "tracks" (or Newport Bay, your call) may be aesthetically unpleasing, but that's not my problem with them. The problem I have with them (and that I would have had with them had I grown up there) is that there is nowhere to go (nearby), nothing to do (nearby), and tough luck if you're a kid who doesn't yet have a driver's license, because it's going to be difficult to get to anywhere at all. As I mentioned in an earlier post, even the "neighborhood playground" isn't really walkable.
Have you seen "Arrested Development"? Well, it's set in Orange County, and the model home where Michael lives is pretty much my boss's neighborhood if they built 200 more structures. Since my neighborhood developed somewhat more organically, there is variation in the immediate surroundings - restaurants, gas stations, auto shops, pizza joints, etc. Across Newport Harbor in the heart of Irvine, you find housing tracts detached from the rest of what would make a neighborhood. For anyone with an automobile, this isn't a problem - you jump in the car, drive 2 miles, and you can get to just about anything. But the 12-year olds and the 15-year olds are sort of stuck.
I guess my larger point is that, living on the border of the largest, single-most "successful" planned community in the U.S. (Irvine), it is clear to me that the planning was for the adults - sometimes to the detriment of the kids.
I guess my larger point is that, living on the border of the largest, single-most "successful" planned community in the U.S. (Irvine), it is clear to me that the planning was for the adults - sometimes to the detriment of the kids.
I think upper middle class America has been experiencing a convergence between children and pets for years. Americans have been anthropomorphizing dogs forever and technological control over kids just reaches for the same point from another direction.
Let's face it, who in America really really needs kids anymore? The way an 18th century farmer needed kids to bring in his crops and feed him in old age. Having kids now is a choice, albeit one that people feel they must have, just the way they must have a house with four bedrooms and three car garages.
Once women started working, kids made even less economic sense because doing so actively impeded a household's economic wellbeing. So a pseudoeconomy grew up where kids had to earn their keep by making the parents feel better via feeling in control and being loved, just like a pet.
Okay, rant done.
I think upper middle class America has been experiencing a convergence between children and pets for years. Americans have been anthropomorphizing dogs forever and technological control over kids just reaches for the same point from another direction.
Let's face it, who in America really really needs kids anymore? The way an 18th century farmer needed kids to bring in his crops and feed him in old age. Having kids now is a choice, albeit one that people feel they must have, just the way they must have a house with four bedrooms and three car garages.
Once women started working, kids made even less economic sense because doing so actively impeded a household's economic wellbeing. So a pseudoeconomy grew up where kids had to earn their keep by making the parents feel better via feeling in control and being loved, just like a pet.
Okay, rant done.
They all have a GPS for 911 to work, though you can turn off the casual transponder on mine.
Heinlein had a kid leaving his cell phone in his suitcase in _Space Cadet_ so his mom couldn't call him. This was in the 1950's juveniles.
They all have a GPS for 911 to work, though you can turn off the casual transponder on mine.
Heinlein had a kid leaving his cell phone in his suitcase in _Space Cadet_ so his mom couldn't call him. This was in the 1950's juveniles.
We tested cheap solutions for blocking cell phone and RFID, and found that a metalized Fritos bag works fine. Blocked a call from my phone, blocked some sort of proximity badge from working a secured door.
We tested cheap solutions for blocking cell phone and RFID, and found that a metalized Fritos bag works fine. Blocked a call from my phone, blocked some sort of proximity badge from working a secured door.
Kids could terroize their parents and learn about physics at the same time!!!
Better yet:
Set the phone on a rocket that can achieve escape velocity(I know, details, details).
Set the call fowarding to the parents home or work number before sending it into the great beyond.
Launch the rocket.
18 seconds after that, call the phone. When Mom and/or dad answer, tell them that you're being abducted by aliens from Vega.
Its' also advisible not to do this around any facility that might have radar in operation, and night time would be the best time for the 'incident' to occure.
Kids could terroize their parents and learn about physics at the same time!!!
Better yet:
Set the phone on a rocket that can achieve escape velocity(I know, details, details).
Set the call fowarding to the parents home or work number before sending it into the great beyond.
Launch the rocket.
18 seconds after that, call the phone. When Mom and/or dad answer, tell them that you're being abducted by aliens from Vega.
Its' also advisible not to do this around any facility that might have radar in operation, and night time would be the best time for the 'incident' to occure.
"The way an 18th century farmer needed kids to bring in his crops and feed him in old age. Having kids now is a choice, albeit one that people feel they must have, just the way they must have a house with four bedrooms and three car garages."
Neither is the reason I had my two kids!
"The way an 18th century farmer needed kids to bring in his crops and feed him in old age. Having kids now is a choice, albeit one that people feel they must have, just the way they must have a house with four bedrooms and three car garages."
Neither is the reason I had my two kids!
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