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Comment by biophysboy | Hacker News Reader

Its a tragedy of the commons situation. The benefits of being offline are dampened by the kid being out of the loop

This whole FOMO thing isn't as real, nor as detrimental, for kids as people try and paint it. That's not to say there's not an impact, but kids survive just fine - everyone misses out on this and that, even adults who opt out. Nobody ever keeps up or is involved with everything everyone's doing. Learning that that's okay, and how to handle that, at a younger age pays dividends as an adult.

Besides, there are many ways to still keep your kids connected to their friends without feeding the beast.

And I say this as a parent.

I agree with this (I want to be a parent very soon). I think I'm trying to articulate that while its possible to make a quiet place for your kid at home, they still live in a very internet-driven world.

I actually am curious about your experience on this. Basically, I'm worried that I'll try to make restrictions in the future, and it'll just be a war of attrition that I lose, since internet platforms touch so many parts of social life, especially for the young. Maybe things will be different in a decade.

What internet loop does a kid to be in before the age of 14?

In my opinion, none, but many parents disagree. Also, its more about the secondary effects, where all of their friends at school are talking about internet things they are unfamiliar with.

Where are these "many parents"? You're arguing something without any experience.

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