Do you figure that may be because there is more contact available between children and protectors BECAUSE OF CELL PHONES? 
Posted on 01/01/2007 1:45:53 PM PST by Coleus
Joe Skarimbas was just learning to read when he decided he was ready to join the digital age. "When he went to first grade he said, 'When am I going to get a cell phone?'" said Joe's mother, Tara Skarimbas.
The Leonia family decided to hold off on getting young Joe a phone until he turns 10 and starts walking home from school alone. But his mother understands the temptation to get her son, who turns 8 this month, a cell phone as soon as possible.
"Just for safety purposes," she said, glancing toward the new Disney Mobile kiosk during a shopping trip to the Paramus Park mall last week.
As the adult and teenage cell phone market becomes saturated, cell phone companies are targeting younger and younger users. This holiday season several companies -- including Disney, Verizon, TicTalk and Firefly -- are pushing brightly colored cell phones specially designed for children as young as kindergartners.
(Excerpt) Read more at nj.com ...
Basketball games away often dont get them back till later than that. Quit trying to catch me in one of my black outs....Ive found if I drink a little constantly things seems consistant.
If this is the last communication I have with my son I do not want to miss out on the ability to express my love and pray with him.
This is obviously a concept that is beyond your ability to comprehend.
I cannot think of a more inept and indecisive group of know nothings, the thought of having them "in charge" during a time of crisis is inconceivable.
The police are in charge once they are on site.
Do you figure that may be because there is more contact available between children and protectors BECAUSE OF CELL PHONES?
Id love to see actual crime statistics on youth abductions, rapes, and violent crime instead of just pullng some statemnt out of thier ass like "it was much worse then.."
Of course I see the difference. However there isn't a "meth twiker" around every bush and neither is there a child molestor behind every bush.
I'm not a parent,
I am a woman who has and continues to travel a great deal all over the state....often on back roads, often at night.
I have a cell phone, not to chat with buddies, but for safety first, and secondly, for convenience...more than once I've gotten calls while on the road that were necessary for me doing my job.
If I had a child, no matter how young, I would make sure they had one, even the pay as you go for emergency only kinds.
I can't fathom those who see it as a bad thing for children! It's insane!
I just don't think cell phones are that necessary - I think they are more of a control device for parents and really just make them feel better, rather than giving any true safety to the child. Just IMHO. To each his own.
I just think cellphones are a convenience and not really a safety issue, unless certain circumstances are there. Certainly not every child needs one.
There you are.
Oh come on, you really need to talk to them constantly just for a lockdown? My parents never felt that need and neither did I.
No, I don't, and neither would any thinking person.
My conditions were probably normal for a lot of kids. We didn't have cell phones, or cars, or lots of stuff when I went to high school. Our parents weren't RICH. We had to work! So what?
Nope, you are right. My kids don't need one most of the time, either, so they stay home to reduce the chance they are lsot or stolen, but they have them availaible when the curcumstances warrant.
That's only because you have an agenda...and are unwilling to concede that you are wrong.
As stated before it is not a matter of "need". It is a matter of wanting to know everything that was happening to my son.
If you don't care what is happening to your family during a crisis that is your problem, live with it.
I guess not. To be honest, I was surprised that night I was trying to find a payphone. The half-dozen places I went to that I *knew* had payphones (including a shopping center with at least a dozen businesses including a large grocery store) were all no-pay-phone zones, apparently. My older son says that there is a payphone at the HS but it didn't work when he was a freshman in 1999 and it still doesn't.
When my mother lamented the absence of payphones a year ago, I thought she was being difficult but she was right, at least around here. I am not at all pro 'cell phones for every kid' but we got my youngest (15) one for Christmas. It has been great because while I used to give him my phone to take when he went somewhere, it meant I was tied to the house the entire time. Now he can call me and say "Dave's dad is bringing me home from Baptist Youth Group, I don't need a ride" or "I missed the bus but I rode Tony's bus home and I'll walk home from his house" which has been really, really nice.
I guess his/her kids don't change their clothes every day???
Too many predators out there. Society is sick and you have to at least think about what safety options you wish to provide your kids.<<<<<<<
I know, and my 8 year old grandson has one. He is not allowed to have it until after school (his parents drive him to and from school, as he attends a religious school out of walking distance). He may have it with him when out playing, but still has the same rules as before, he cannot range away from the immediate area just because of the phone. He has followed the rules exactly so far, no problems, no unexpected bills. He can't answer the phone if the name of the caller doesn't show (parents have programmed in the family and others allowed to call). I guess for the moment it's working out well, he's acting responsibly, and everyone is comfortable with the easier communication if needed.
Answering machines is the way to go.
I'll be honest - I'm a big proponent of 'make 'em walk' in most cases. However, my sons would have to walk along a main road on which there are at *least* 2 major accidents a week, as well as 4 bikers (bicycle-bikers) that have been hit by cars, 2 during a 'bike tour' weekend. While I don't have a problem with my kids walking in some situations, I do have a problem with my sons walking 20 miles along that road.
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