Technology shouldn't substitute parenting

So apparently a school in the UK is testing a new program that monitors students via a microchip.  The program is designed to keep track of where students are "for their safety."  I'm not sure how this makes them any safer, to be honest.  In fact, microchip tracking, cell phones, web-filtering software, and all of the other technology we design doesn't make kids any safer.  In fact, I would hazard a guess that it makes them less safe.

 Why?  because it allows adults to have a false sense of security, and thus shirk their own parenting duties. 

At the expense of sounding like my mother (who, by the way, is an exceptionally cool person), WHEN I WAS A KID we didn't have cell phones, pages, and all this stuff.  Amazingly, my parents always knew where I was.  Why?  Because mom or dad would either take me to whereever I was going, or stand on the front porch and watch me walk down the street to whereever I was going.  And when it was time to come home, I was either picked up by my parents, taken home by the responsible adult who was supervising me, or said adult stood on the porch and watched me walk home.  If they needed me, they had the phone number of where I was.  When they were at work, they made sure we were with responsible adults. 

 In short, the took responsibility for me.  Same thing at school.  During each class, they took attendence.  If you weren't in a class and you weren't home with an excused absence, mom or dad (or both) got a phone call asking where you were. 

YES, kids still skipped school.  YES, sometimes you figured out ways around the system.  But it worked.

This isn't just waxing nostalgic.  Statistically, kidnappings have been on the rise for the last decade.  Has the world suddenly got that much more dangerous?  Or are parents just too damn dependent on other people and technology to do their jobs for them?

Oh, yes, I know the laments.  "You don't have kids! You don't understand! You can't watch them every second!"  BS.  You know WHY I don't have kids?  Because I made a conscious decision not to.  I made a conscious decision not to have children, because I not willing to make the sacrifices in my personal life.  Nor am I willing to have children to appease my own "biological clock" and then expect others to do the work for me.  Maybe more adults should consider this.  It really isn't my problem if you have to work 60 hours to support your lifestyle because you decided to have children.  They ain't puppies, people.  You don't just put a roof over their heads, throw toys at them, and make sure there is food in the dish.  They take an enormous amount of time to raise properly. If you are not in the position to spend that time, DON'T HAVE THEM.  You do not have a biological right to have children and then expect everyone else to pick up the slack for you.

You want to protect your children?  Get rid of the cell phones and get to know the parents of their friends.  Get phone lists and addresses of their friend's homes.  Take the computer out of their bedroom and put it in a communal area.  Instead of letting your kids hang out at the mall, take them and their friends to a movie as a group and get to know these kids.

Because I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but "stranger danger" is the least of your worries.  A recent study points out that the stereotypical "stranger" abduction occurs just over 100 times a year.  Of the tens of thousands of children that go missing, the vast majority are abducted by PEOPLE THEY KNOW.  How much time are you spending getting to know the people in your child's life?  Or are you just sending them out the door with a cell phone and crossing your fingers?  How often do you physically check your teen's internet surfing habits, or did you just install some overpriced filter and hope for the best?  Do you even know if your kid has a blog?  A Myspace page?  Ever read the comments or check out the friends' lists?  In short, when was the last time you parented?

Technology will not save your children.  It is not a magic bullet.  If you want to keep your children safe, you must put in the time and effort and do it.  Excuses are for lazy people.  And if you are too lazy to make time for your kids, what kind of adults are you bringing into the world?