Youngsters on mylot?
By mummymo
@mummymo (23706)
June 18, 2007 8:32am CST
Ok this is a fantastic community and communities need to be made up of people of different opinions, cultures and age groups but it is a community that is set up for over 16's. I believe this is a good thing because although I have always been as open and honest as possible with my kids I think we all need a place where we can talk openly with other adults! I KNOW I have seen some people here who are as young as 13, this was openly stated on their profile and I am pretty sure that there are other users who may adjust their age so they can join! Do you think it is appropriate to have under 16's here on mylot? Do you know of other users who have been too young to be here and if so what would you do? I know there are teenage sites which are appropriate for this age - do you think a mylot junior community would be a good idea?
Please let me know your thoughts and opinions on this one. xxx
13 people like this
34 responses
@lordwarwizard (35747)
• Singapore
18 Jun 07
I think most discussions here are relatively clean. Should be fine for anyone to pop by. For those more "sensitive" discussions, I don't think those reading would understand anyway.
And if they try to understand, it means they really want to know. So even if they can't get the info at myLot, I am sure they will find it elsewhere.
5 people like this
@wolfie34 (26771)
• United Kingdom
18 Jun 07
To be honest so many youngsters of today prefer to hang out in street corners, terrorizing the community or causing a nuisance, drinking or playing on computer games all day, it would be a refreshing sight to see youngsters on Mylot, it improves their social skills, their vocab and if enough youngsters were encouraged to use Mylot then they could make friends. I think most of us do watch what we write because of the wide audience and not wanting to corrupt minors here, so I for one would welcome more youngsters.
3 people like this
@mummymo (23706)
•
18 Jun 07
You make some great points there Wolfie darling and whilst I agree with most of what you say I worry that people are pretending to be older than they are and also that they are breaking mylot rules by being here under 16! I think if the rules were changed so that it was legit for them to be here that would be different - and also if there were controls to keep them away from more 'mature' discussion! I do respect your opinion though - I have to , you are my favourite brother! lol Big Hugs xxxx
@mummymo (23706)
•
18 Jun 07
Kurokage how dare you come into a discussion and threaten another user here who has done no harm to you! No one listens to people who are abusive and I would ask you to think before you speak! I am making a copy of this response before mylot deletes it as inappropriate!
2 people like this
@wolfie34 (26771)
• United Kingdom
18 Jun 07
Tell that to the old people who are too frightened to go out at night when young kids are out causing nuisance and basically sticking their fingers up at the law because they can't be touched. I didn't say ALL youngsters. You've only got to read the papers or spend time in the towns late at night to see gangs of youths hanging around causing trouble and without ranting too much I rest my case on this one.
4 people like this
@mummymo (23706)
•
18 Jun 07
Hey Corezz i was not saying that 16's were youngsters but I was actually talking about those under 16 who are on the site! Do you think it is a good place for a 13 year old to be? Is there a way you think a 13 year old could use this forum! I am sure you are a very good mylotter and I am glad that you enjoy it, I think I have spoken with you before and I had no idea you were only 16! I look forward to hearing your views! xx
2 people like this
@mummymo (23706)
•
18 Jun 07
I thought I was alone in the Junior mylot bit! Maybe people could 'sign up' if they want to be in a mixed section too - but there are some areas that just aren't right for the younger kids! Having said that there are many good points raised by other responders! xx
2 people like this
@huggiebear22 (2007)
• Canada
18 Jun 07
Waht difference does it make we have soem very mature peopel who are under 16 and they carry on intelligent conversations and discussions while there is a group of people over 20 that acts liek 5 yr olds by reporting everything and anything the do nto like or that is said about them they know who they are just too scared to admitt it.
If a person has soemthing inteligent to add and does so i say who cares what age they are they are contributing an opinion that is a valuable as mine or anyones elses.
3 people like this
@huggiebear22 (2007)
• Canada
19 Jun 07
well there is no easy solution as they could could lie about there age or log in as some else and there is no real way to prevent it except trustin who ever is on the other end and we all know how safe the internet is
2 people like this
@mummymo (23706)
•
18 Jun 07
what if they were immature and 13 huggie? Not trying to be funny just a thought! When I first started this discussion I thought it was totally inappropriate but my opinion is evolving with every response! I know my 13 year old can hold an intelligent political conversation and has an excellent grasp of news events, politics and the world around him in general but I am not sure how he would react in a community where he may be criticised for voicing his opinion! xxx
3 people like this
@joyce959 (1559)
• Philippines
18 Jun 07
Well, as you said this is a community and a community is not only made up of adults but young people as well. I guess there's nothing wrong if young people participate in the discussions in this site. So far the discussions here are mostly clean except for some with mature content. But I guess this is one way of knowing their (young myLotters) sentiments, their ideas, opinion and way of thinking... perhaps help some parents here in dealing with their teen kids.
3 people like this
@weemam (13372)
•
18 Jun 07
I think an under 16 my lot would be a great idea . I myself don't read the adult content discussions but then thats my choice but as alfie and you both say Mo , if they are not supervised kids will go searching , My 13 year old granddaughter gets to use my PC but AOL has a parental guidance button , and I use it , xx
2 people like this
@KrazyKlingon (5005)
• United States
19 Jun 07
It is tough to say. Maybe a MyLot Junior might be a good idea in which the only adults involved MIGHT be parents &/or maybe carefully-chosen mylot admins & moderators keeping an eye on things.
Sometimes, with some of the things that goes on, it sure does feel like MyLot Junior.
The only drawback is that they cannot get paid until they are adults, but it'd probably be one heck of a lump sum of money when they are old enough to get a paypal account.
1 person likes this
@KrazyKlingon (5005)
• United States
19 Jun 07
For the children, definitely. For MyLot itself, I'm not sure. It can at times, be tough to manage one site like this. It would probably be tough to manage two of them.
Kids would also need to be treated differently in that if they broke a rule, whatever moderator / admin catches it would need to somehow, have them know that a rule was broken, why it's wrong to ignore a rule, & probably the harder part of not making him feel too bad & scaring him away from the place.
1 person likes this
@whiteheather39 (24403)
• United States
18 Jun 07
Yes I agree with you. I think there are probably many more of them who do not tell the truth when joining myLot.
2 people like this
@whiteheather39 (24403)
• United States
18 Jun 07
I think about all peodphiles they found out about on myspace. The same thing could happen on any forum and that includes myLot.
2 people like this
@LightninStrike (5915)
• Saint Vincent And The Grenadines
18 Jun 07
I agree with you mummy. It's good that some age limits are established, otherwise it would be very hard to discuss certain topics, and freedom is essential here in mylot. Another option would be that there were filters so that youngins didn't get certain contents.
2 people like this
@LightninStrike (5915)
• Saint Vincent And The Grenadines
19 Jun 07
anytime hon...and remember that i told you that i was looking forward to reply to a post of yours, so there we go!
1 person likes this
@KrazyKlingon (5005)
• United States
20 Jun 07
I volunteer mssnow to be one of the admins - not just a moderator - if they do actually implement this idea.
1 person likes this
@easy888 (10405)
• Australia
18 Jun 07
Hello,mummymo,I think mylot may be a good site for the youths,they can learn many things here from the discussions and be more well informed.
I have been talked with few teenages who are under 16 years old,they are not on my friend list but i do not feel there are any problems talking with them.
Even they are banned to join mylot,there will still be a lot of sites other mylot and the content may even be worse than mylot.
2 people like this
@mummymo (23706)
•
18 Jun 07
There are also a lot of safe sites easy my friend - or at least I know of one! I wonder if we could ask mylot to start a teen section - with built in controls so that they couldn't access certain topics? Or am I being overprotective of our youngsters?
Please know sweets I am not saying you are wrong I am just interested in your opinion! xxx
1 person likes this
@aureliaz (1177)
• Singapore
19 Jun 07
I was 16 when I joined this site..While I'm not saying that the under 16s and people my age are necessarily childish (inner maturity is hard to judge), it is true that we haven't been fully exposed to the adult world and coming from an age group that was the minority (as well as a South East Asian country), it was a thoroughly refreshing change to see how adults from all around the globe perceive things- the other side of the coin if you will.
So as long as the points made by the under 16s are valid (and vice versa), it's really a two-way learning and listening process between teens and adults.
I do think that a junior mylot is a good idea- for starters, exposing younger people to different cultures may very well destroy any cultural insensitivity they possess.
1 person likes this
@mummymo (23706)
•
19 Jun 07
aureliaz you are a shining example of why the younger members of mylot are so important! You have given a very mature and well thought out response and I appreciate your insight. I think you make a very good point about learning from different cultures and age groups and that this can help people gain cultural sensitivity and destroy any preconceptions someone may have held! If other youngster who come into this forum are half as mature and eloquent as yourself they definitely will show up many of the adults and improve the community no end! You deserve best response! xxxx
@Eskimo (2315)
•
12 Jul 07
I wouldn't have thought that many youngsters under 16 would have the time to bother with MyLot, with Myspace and other similar sites that they put their details on, actually having to take part in an intelligent discussion would probably be beyond many of them, although judging by some of the discussions, some members may be younger than 5 (only joking!!).
The content of some discussions aren't really for children, but this is a site that is really meant for adults, I usually try to avoid taking part in discussions with mature content.
1 person likes this
@mummymo (23706)
•
12 Jul 07
MMM I agree up to a point my friend but it may surprise you that many surly monpsyllabic teenagers can actually express not only intelligent and well thought opinions but can also do so very articulately! I do agree that some discussions may not be suitable but I bet that they have very similar discussions with their friends! I really do not know what I think on this subject any more - don't think I did when I started it - but it is very interesting to see so many and varied opinions! xxx
@recycledgoth (9894)
•
10 Jul 07
I must admit there are times on here when I feel that it is a little inappropriate to have the *youngsters* here. Not a general sweeping statement perhaps, but given the often adult and sensitive discussions they may not think before they speak
@someonesmom (5761)
• Canada
18 Jun 07
You've made some good points here, mummymo. I think under 16 is young to be on a site like this. I've asked my daughter (almost 16), if she'd like to join this summer, and she's said, she'll think about it, as she's very busy. She loves talking to people online, and is very articulate, mature, etc. Of course, I'm extremely biased (but it's true).:) I think she'd enjoy some of the younger people on here, and others as well.
1 person likes this
@someonesmom (5761)
• Canada
19 Jun 07
Thanks for your kind words, mummymo. I'm not sure if she'll sign up, as it depends on her schedule for the summer. She is interested in 'some' of what goes on here, though.xxx
1 person likes this
@stacyv81 (5903)
• United States
19 Jun 07
yes, they should either have a junior mylot or an adult mylot. I agree, because there are somethings we arent allowed to talk about as it must be suitable, pg-13...So, I think we should separate them a little, and give people that choice =)
1 person likes this
@mike2003 (287)
• Philippines
19 Jun 07
That's why I think we have the mature content section. Topics in this site are mostly educational and at the least entertaining. SO i think youngsters should be allowed. Many discussions around here benefits both ways and i have seen only a few which may be offensive to the young.
1 person likes this
