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Comment by throw_lfnsooemd | Hacker News Reader

There is a big gap in outdoor activities for children between the ages of 12 and 18.

That's when kids start to do things without their parents, but don't have the means to engage in most activities. There are plenty of parks and public spaces in the UK, but there is only so much football one can do before getting bored. Most of them can't afford activities, and they are unable to partake in the British national sport (going to the pub). The only thing left is to roam around and be up to no good. In the end, staying indoors and exploring the digital world is the only way for them to experience the world on an equal footing.

It's a tough world for teens.

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I think we are romanticising what teens used to do (much more at least) to pass their boredom. Articles like this make it sound like pre smartphone everyone was doing endless sport, drama and other artistic and social endeavours. At least what I remember was a lot of underage drinking and antisocial behaviour.

I can remember in the early 2000s children being made out as feral animals roaming the streets in the UK. Now they're being demonized for scrolling their phones.

It's like the Simpsons episode from season 2 in which Marge crusades against violence in itchy and scratchy. And then, to Beethoven's ninth symphony, all the children start exploring nature and engaging in wholesome idyllic play.

> Articles like this make it sound like pre smartphone everyone was doing endless sport, drama and other artistic and social endeavours. At least what I remember was a lot of underage drinking and antisocial behaviour.

I would argue that that "antisocial behavior" is actually important for most people to be able to form and navigate authentic social relationships.

I don't think all the kids in my generation (X) were involved in tons of "sport, drama or other artistic or social endeavors", but at the very least they were "hanging out at the mall". Sure, some of that was getting into trouble, but I'm astounded by how much adolescence has changed since I was a kid. Like I see a lot of kids that very rarely "hang out", and I'd argue that social media/text communication is a very poor substitute for in-person hanging out.

There are plenty of things I did outside when growing up that kids could still do: invent sports (we had one involving a hockey net and a koosh ball), bike around the neighborhood, have a water fight, go to the pool, play capture the flag, ghost in the graveyard, jump on a trampoline, go to the ride scooters, play basketball, play with sidewalk chalk, etc

All of This! And shout outs to the Ghost in the Graveyard! We also had "Survival Masters." A whole neighborhood (or multiple adjacent, if you can organize that many youths) affair with everyone in two teams, a single safe area, but it is still, at its core, "Tag After Dark." Strats, tactics and patterns emerged, soft skills, team building, athleticism, they were all on show here. As was the neighbor 's tolerances for youth running through and hiding in their properties.

I remember hanging out and loitering in malls and food courts because none of us wanted to be at home and there weren't other free options. Back then we just shuffled off to another location, like nomads. I'm not surprises teens now just hang out online instead.

this is a cultural problem. in germany and austria we had/have lots of affordable extracurricular outdoor activities. scouting, sailing, soccer clubs. all just charging a nominal fee to participate. we were on welfare and we could still afford it. i don't know about other countries, but at least scouting is available and affordable in many places.

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