I thought I had an adventurous and occasionally risky childhood. But then I heard stories from my uncle and it doesn't even compare! They went freighthopping on trains, rode across state lines, and caught another train on the way back. I can't imagine my child doing anything close to that, I'd die from worry. And it is a shame. Is this a global phenomenon or just a Western one? I wonder if anything like this has happened in history--that would be an academic gold mine.
My theory is that injury is easier to quantify than "freedom" (or whatever we want to call it), so, as we always focus on the quantifiable thing, we naturally end up prioritizing safety.
I want to say this is bad, and it sort of is, but of course I don't want my children getting run over by trains or playing with guns or what have you, so hypocrite me.
I thought I had an adventurous and occasionally risky childhood. But then I heard stories from my uncle and it doesn't even compare! They went freighthopping on trains, rode across state lines, and caught another train on the way back. I can't imagine my child doing anything close to that, I'd die from worry. And it is a shame. Is this a global phenomenon or just a Western one? I wonder if anything like this has happened in history--that would be an academic gold mine.
My theory is that injury is easier to quantify than "freedom" (or whatever we want to call it), so, as we always focus on the quantifiable thing, we naturally end up prioritizing safety.
I want to say this is bad, and it sort of is, but of course I don't want my children getting run over by trains or playing with guns or what have you, so hypocrite me.