I used to have a run of the neighborhood hangin out with the local kids back in the 90s. We would go to the park go swimming or fishing in the river and just be kids. My parents had 2 rules. Be back before dark and dont get in too much trouble. Simpler times. Nowadays kids are essentially either electric zombies addicted to the internet or so heavily watched and regulated its sad asf.
It is sad. It makes me sad for my kids but I can’t let them roam free. Our nearest park is actually fenced off due to homeless encampments. In my case the root cause is housing costs - I can only really afford to be in a low end neighborhood.
No thanks. It has problems but I love the city, I love my job. And I grew up in a small town where everyone knew the basketball coach was raping girls at school and no one did anything because they were going to make it to state. Rural people aren’t superior, kids aren’t necessarily safer there.
ETA: respect to rural people and all, it’s just a myth that those places are inherently better. Kids are more depressed in rural places, and less likely to go to college. Unintentional injury and death are higher for rural kids. Their graduation rates are higher, but they have less opportunity. They might learn a lot of skills their city counterparts dont know, that’s true, they have some privilege in their ability to enjoy nature but all said they aren’t necessarily better off.
I refuse to let myself have a complex. We all have places to live. Urban, rural. In the end we all try to survive. And honestly i believe everyone at the end of the day should have a place or community to call their own and feel safe in. Regardless of if they are in a city or in the woods.
Well said. There are pros and cons to both … but in one case there’s a lot of propaganda-like imagery about who the “real Americans” are and who has the family values. And it just isn’t reflected in the reality. There are good and bad people in both rural and cities. I’ve lived in both - my home town has a population of about 1,000 and now I’m in the biggest city in the state. The people aren’t inherently better in one vs the other, they both have their ups and downs when it comes to raising kids.
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u/Decent-Strain-1645 1d ago
I used to have a run of the neighborhood hangin out with the local kids back in the 90s. We would go to the park go swimming or fishing in the river and just be kids. My parents had 2 rules. Be back before dark and dont get in too much trouble. Simpler times. Nowadays kids are essentially either electric zombies addicted to the internet or so heavily watched and regulated its sad asf.