this post was submitted on 30 Apr 2025
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Privacy
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If we didn't have this, my kids would have a lot less freedom. Knowing where they are gives me much more peace of mind to let them roam further, and for longer than I would otherwise π€·ββοΈ
aaand next time they'll leave their cell phone home to not get tracked, so not only do you not get their location, they can't even call you in an emergency
good parenting, i guess
And then they'll be grounded π€·ββοΈ rules exist for a reason
I understand wanting to do this as a parent, but I'm so thankful I grew up without cell phones. I would never track a teenager. I feel like teenagers need space to assert their own autonomy and form an identity apart from their parents. When I think of the best moments I had with friends, it's almost always something that would have technically gone against my parents' knowledge and wishes, even though my parents were very good to me overall.
Who said anything about teenagers? Kids too young to be left without supervision can now learn independence. So kids can be more independent at younger age compared to "good old times"!
So geolocation would be supervision. Interesting.
I led with understanding, and I'm the one who mentioned teenagers in the comment I wrote with my own two hands
My kids don't even have phones, as they do not need them and they are unhealthy for the young brain's development.
I also don't use location services on my phones. Fuck all that tracking bullshit.
A cheap dumbphone could come in handy at almost any age* (calls, short SMS, especially in emergency situations). Though there is a possibility they wouldn't want to be seen with that. Kids will bully each other for whatever isn't a norm.
Anyway, preferably a simpler one. I used to spend hours each day on Java games. Really, the only thing that stopped me was headaches.
* Almost any - you don't want a 3 year old calling 911 for fun
I grew up in a time before cell phones, I had a lot more freedom than your kids will ever experience. Crime rates were much higher back then by the way. I still survived even though my parents rarely knew where I was between 4 and 6 pm, but I was always home in time for dinner.
Your experience isn't necessarily universal.
For my generation itβs close to universal
Several kids from my elementary school disappeared, never to be heard from again. This happened again in middle school, and twice in high school.
Just because you weren't paying attention back then or don't remember now doesn't mean it didn't happen. As you said, crime was worse then.
Basically any time someone says "This didn't happen back in my day!" the response can be "the dead ones can't talk about it."
When children are kidnapped, the kidnapper is most often a family member. It happened to a good friend of mine. I don't see what good cell phone location tracking really does against that, though. A kidnapper can simply take a child's phone away and toss it.
Several? How big was your elementary school?
Good ol rose colored glasses.
That's not how anecdotal evidence works. Just because you aren't aware of it being different for others doesn't mean it wasn't different for others.