Wednesday, November 03, 2004
This savage parade
As kids gain greater access to cell phones (they're almost obligatory) and credit cards, the potential for abuse grows alongside. In a highly disturbing article, "This savage parade: in a sane world, we wouldn't allow it", Richard Morrison looks at how young thugs are now using standover tactics to take over other kids phones and bank accounts. Two things stand out in the article: a) That some schools consider this behaviour so commonplace they no longer take any notice; b) that parents' rights to know what's happening to their children are being over-ridden by political correctness on the part of authorities. (And the kids are too intimidated to tell.) Parents are dumped with all the responsibility when things go wrong, but are rapidly losing their rights to the information they need to adequately look after their kids.
As kids gain greater access to cell phones (they're almost obligatory) and credit cards, the potential for abuse grows alongside. In a highly disturbing article, "This savage parade: in a sane world, we wouldn't allow it", Richard Morrison looks at how young thugs are now using standover tactics to take over other kids phones and bank accounts. Two things stand out in the article: a) That some schools consider this behaviour so commonplace they no longer take any notice; b) that parents' rights to know what's happening to their children are being over-ridden by political correctness on the part of authorities. (And the kids are too intimidated to tell.) Parents are dumped with all the responsibility when things go wrong, but are rapidly losing their rights to the information they need to adequately look after their kids.
