Comments on: Youth centers grapple with MySpace

special feature Community centers ban, unban MySpace as they try to keep a lid on cyber-bullying.

[stuff a dank 1]

How about NOT having a myspace?

Simply not having a myspace account might cut down on bullying?

its like kids dont know what to do without it. go outside!

[retiredgamer]

good idea!

Let's see if we can get them to copmpletely give up the phone too. I'm guessing our success rate would be about the same.

More seriously, I got bullied a lot in school. If you think going outside is going to limit bullying you're painfully mistaken. I'd rather deal with online insults then face-to-face insults that might include getting beat up too.

[jerrymerfeld]

No Myspace

MySpace has become nothing more than a place for people to create online profiles, make friends, and communicate via the internet. Making friends has become an important aspect of life and a valuable tool to being successful in the American lifestyle. Before MySpace, you had to go out to meet people... Face to Face. As people (primarily young teens) began downloading music, videos, and performing other daily tasks that required an internet connection, they needed a means to connect with other individuals in order to communicate seamlessly while performing these tasks. MySpace has indeed succeeded in providing the masses with an available means for this, but when is it enough?
I personally believe that resources such as this are creating a distraction for our youth. People check MySpaces more often than I have ever seen in my life. I have been involved in communication technologies since I can remember. I was one of the many who would save AOL cds, use my internet time sparingly, grab as many as I could from store displays and load up again until they added their ?pay by check? feature where you HAD to enter some kind of payment info in order to complete the registration process. Technologies grew because there was someone there to explore them. At one time, the internet was seen for what it was truly intended for, the greatest resource mankind has ever seen.
We need to educate these youth on the rich content that can be discovered, the tasks that can be performed, the technologies that lie beneath and how they can be utilized to their full extent driving innovation to further milestones. These kids are SMART, who?s going to guide them?

?that?s my rant.

[retiredgamer]

Finally some hope!

It sounds like people are finally starting to respond to social networking sites maturely and responsibly. Bravo to those who have already realized banning something that's so highly desired might not be the best solution to the problems.

[jerrymerfeld]

In reply to comment two

My point exactly. We are stripping life and consequence out of these people. Someone needs to address it. Social Networking is not in any way chatting via MySpace, Instant Messaging Services, or even IRC. Those are communication mediums, not Social Networking... how social is looking at the text of someone else. Social Networking needs to be re-defined in our society. Children and even adults purchase files to help them in their online adventures with these stupid video games, hundreds of hours are WASTED performing tasks such as these. I'm only 21 years old... it is SAD to see what this technology is doing to our personalities. There?s no excuse.

People need to not forget how to communicate in person. Kids are going to have troubles communicating in the real world. I would have to say that 99% of interviews in the American culture are primarily focused on personality tests. Why? Because people are extracting there personalities and posting them on MySpace, chatting them away... its becoming their PRIMARY source of contact "."

[LiciousLicious]

yeah bravo!!!

hell yes! don't let them take away myspace.

[marileev]

good for the comm centers

Activty and community centers are places parent trust their children to get development opportunities whether they be tutoring, dance lessons, basketball or theatre. They're not places where their kids should become online social butterflies http://www.iwantmyess.com/?p=64 to pitter their time away or be preyed upon by pedophiles

[lewissalem]

Good job!

..Reena Burton! Looks like they're actually quoting somebody with a tech background this time. Parents should start asking US what we think they should do instead of ignorant congressmen who doesn't have a grasp of the technology.

[mystereojones]

Just ban access to it

C'mon folks, try to use some common sense. If you have a problem, then do something to eliminate it. There are plenty of other productive things to do other than MySpace.
http://www.techknowcafe.com/content/view/544/42/

[hogiaus]

Futile Efforts

The more adults try to grapple with us kids freedom, the more we will circumvent it. We can use proxy servers, boot the computer up in safe mode and delete crucial parental control files, and many other hacks. The point is, if a kid thinks hes smart enough to be safe enough in the online world, let him. If he(or she) is safe, good for him. If not, thats his own fault. Its your job as a parent to teach him right from wrong, and you do that by talking to him, not letting a computer program be a parent. Kids are holding more and more spite against parents nowadays.
Hogiaus- age 14

[jimdickinson]

MySpace needs to apply content control!

I love the part about banning it, but then unbanning it because she thinks kids will just find other ways of getting on MySpace. I guess while she is at it, she should probably provide private rooms for the kids as well, lest they be forced to go somewhere else to have sex, and she can make sure they are provided with condoms and proper instruction to be sure they know how to do it safely. That is ridiculous!

MySpace needs to step up here. MySpace needs to apply parental and content controls.

Have you seen some of the trash on MySpace? If not, just poke around. You will find barely clothed, trampy, teens being as nasty and foul as they can, playing songs with extremely lude and vulgar lyrics, and more.

Ultimately, PARENTS need to be the controls here. Teens need to be taught that acting like this on the net is not just really poor taste, it's extremely poor judgement.

When was the last time you monitored your kids' activities on the net? Maybe it's time to start, before you find yourself regretting that you didn't teach your teen better, and saved them from their own stupidity.

I blogged more about this at http://www.projectnetsafe.com

-Jim

[akpangel]

HeLp

cAn SoMeOnE hElP mE wItH tHiS nEw MySpAcE!!!
PlEaSe!@!



ThAnK yOu,
ApK aNgEl!

[paragonmatrix]

myspace safety

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818.731.7106
[e-mail]
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