Offside Chat Archives (2014-2021)

Look, obviously most people spend their time online doing absolutely nothing useful, and honestly? I'm fine with that because life doesn't need to be some non-stop productivity grind all the time, though if you actually want to get stuff done, there’s an endless amount of incredible resources at your fingertips. But if you just let someone grow up being a complete moron because they never looked away from a screen, then yeah, they're basically useless. You just have to raise them balanced, like I said, without leaning too far into any one extreme.

I mean, sure, but the internet is pretty much baked into everyone's lives these days, even for people who were already adults before the nineties hit. You really need variety in life: dating, grabbing drinks, reading books, watching movies, learning new things, hanging out with friends, all that stuff.

Peter Thompson4 said:Look, obviously most people spend their time online doing absolutely nothing useful, and honestly? I'm fine with that because life doesn't need to be some non-stop productivity grind all the time, though if you actually want to get stuff done, there’s an endless amount of incredible resources at your fingertips. But if you just let someone grow up being a complete moron because they never looked away from a screen, then yeah, they're basically useless. You just have to raise them balanced, like I said, without leaning too far into any one extreme.

I mean, sure, but the internet is pretty much baked into everyone's lives these days, even for people who were already adults before the nineties hit. You really need variety in life: dating, grabbing drinks, reading books, watching movies, learning new things, hanging out with friends, all that stuff.

You can find all of that online in one place.

He knocked it out in under a minute. ☕

http://i100.independent.co.uk/articl...sy--xkkgkKWTkW

Jessica Gonzalez said:He knocked it out in under a minute. ☕

http://i100.independent.co.uk/articl...sy--xkkgkKWTkW

TL;DR

Besides just being a distraction, yeah. That’s why I keep saying the internet is such a double-edged sword; it’s great and all, but I really hope it doesn't end up killing off actual books and the cinema experience forever.

Peter Thompson4 said:Besides just being a distraction, yeah. That’s why I keep saying the internet is such a double-edged sword; it’s great and all, but I really hope it doesn't end up killing off actual books and the cinema experience forever.

What do you mean by "besides just being a distraction"?

Zachary Nguyen2 said:What do you mean by "besides just being a distraction"?

Look, you can find some girl online in two seconds flat—not that I’m really into that whole digital dating scene myself, but whatever—but if you actually want to build something real with a woman, you've gotta get out there and meet her face-to-face, plain and simple.

Peter Thompson4 said:I don't buy it; it’s all on the parents, plain and simple. It’s their job to actually raise their kids, but apparently, everyone thinks being a parent is just too hard because modern adults have lost their damn minds.
When I look at how many spoiled brats are running around these days, it honestly makes me want to scream, especially since they have zero clue they're basically sabotaging their own kid's future, but hey, not my circus, not my monkeys.
Then you've got the complete opposite crowd who won't give their kids a single thing, treating them like they don't even exist, and honestly, you just have to find some middle ground.

It’s the exact same bullshit with dogs, too—people treat them like tiny human babies or whatever the hell (for the record, I have a dog), and that’s why everything is so high-strung and aggressive lately, because people refuse to treat an animal like an actual animal.

Saying it's *only* the parents is a stretch. The system is broken. The standard of living is broken. With most families nowadays, both parents are out working. That cuts into the actual quality time they could be spending with their kids. On the flip side, I wouldn't ignore the trends either. Never. Even adults fall for marketing, let alone kids. Kids are basically the target demographic for every gadget and tech company out there. And that influence is everywhere. It’s hard to raise a kid away from all this digital garbage when you have to account for how society reacts to that upbringing. The social standing of a kid raised like that is... weird. Experimental, almost. To actually fix things, you'd need either a massive, sudden societal shift—maybe some kind of shock to the system—or a slow, gradual change. Which is more likely.

Robin Fox2, it's tough to say who had it harder. Physically speaking, previous generations definitely had it rougher—exponentially so compared to us. But every era has its own mess. Who's saying it's any easier growing up in a world that's becoming increasingly dehumanized by technology?

Look, I’ve got nothing against technology—honestly, I absolutely love it, think it's brilliant and totally necessary. But people shouldn't have to drop dead at work doing god-knows-what kind of grueling physical labor, or even soul-crushing mental grind like accounting. That's where I'm all for tech; isn't that exactly what it's for? To make our daily lives easier in every possible way.

But seeing families lately—which seems to be happening more and more—where everyone at a restaurant is just glued to their phone or tablet? That is pure stupidity and total parental neglect. It doesn't matter if it's just the kids scrolling away or the whole family including the grandparents; in my book, it’s the parents who are to blame.
Or take a group of friends going out today; you see them in person and they can't even hold a conversation because they're just sitting right next to each other tapping away at some third person on a screen. Their priorities are just completely messed up. And don't go thinking I'm only talking about kids, because basically everyone is doing this now, from little toddlers to full-grown adults.
I have zero problem with being reachable on your phone, but that should pretty much be reserved for "emergency" situations only. If you and I are hanging out and having a blast, don't pull out that damn phone.

Technology? Yes, please. Being a helpless idiot who can't function without it? Absolutely not!

brightpilot6 said:🤣

brightpilot6 said:I was out in Korea when my phone took an accidental plunge into the Mississippi River 🙂

Mississippi River ZZ, welcome back to the fold! 🎉
Man, we all really missed you.

Adam King6 said:Mississippi River ZZ, welcome back to the fold! 🎉
Man, we all really missed you.

And he even managed to squeeze through the back door of Reddit instead of heading straight to hell...🙂)

Time to warm up a bit, everything is good—welcome home... 👍

Walter Grant5 said:Saying it's *only* the parents is a stretch. The system is broken. The standard of living is broken. With most families nowadays, both parents are out working. That cuts into the actual quality time they could be spending with their kids. On the flip side, I wouldn't ignore the trends either. Never. Even adults fall for marketing, let alone kids. Kids are basically the target demographic for every gadget and tech company out there. And that influence is everywhere. It’s hard to raise a kid away from all this digital garbage when you have to account for how society reacts to that upbringing. The social standing of a kid raised like that is... weird. Experimental, almost. To actually fix things, you'd need either a massive, sudden societal shift—maybe some kind of shock to the system—or a slow, gradual change. Which is more likely.

Robin Fox2, it's tough to say who had it harder. Physically speaking, previous generations definitely had it rougher—exponentially so compared to us. But every era has its own mess. Who's saying it's any easier growing up in a world that's becoming increasingly dehumanized by technology?

But was it ever different? Both my parents worked, and I used to pick up my sister from daycare when I was starting elementary school. My brother was looked after by sitters our parents paid, or by my sister and me. My dad basically raised himself; he had to attend high school in a different city. Because of how he grew up, I didn't really feel like an adult until I was 23, even though I was 15 back then. And his father lived through both World Wars... so there's no "golden age" or perfect standard to point to. I think it's less about the quantity of time parents spend with kids, rather than just the quality. Kids don't necessarily need constant parental supervision; having time for themselves and their peers is important too. They need to figure out the world on their own sometimes, though parents should help broaden their horizons. For instance, my girlfriend's sister's husband bought their kid several phones and tablets. But what can you even say to them? If you try to give advice, they just get defensive, acting like because my girlfriend and I don't have kids, we don't know anything.

There is so much available today—you could dive into a million different hobbies or activities—yet most kids just spend all their time staring at screens. I guess it's just sad that a tiny virtual world is often more captivating to them than the massive, real world right in front of them.

It’s about quality, not quantity.

I was raised among wolves

He’s basically just an American Tarzan, man...

#NatureLover

brightpilot6 said:Is it "imao" or should I go with ''imao''? ☕

lmao ☕

#Thank God Baja #Samo went all natural

#whey

Jessica Gonzalez said:But was it ever different? Both my parents worked, and I used to pick up my sister from daycare when I was starting elementary school. My brother was looked after by sitters our parents paid, or by my sister and me. My dad basically raised himself; he had to attend high school in a different city. Because of how he grew up, I didn't really feel like an adult until I was 23, even though I was 15 back then. And his father lived through both World Wars... so there's no "golden age" or perfect standard to point to. I think it's less about the quantity of time parents spend with kids, rather than just the quality. Kids don't necessarily need constant parental supervision; having time for themselves and their peers is important too. They need to figure out the world on their own sometimes, though parents should help broaden their horizons. For instance, my girlfriend's sister's husband bought their kid several phones and tablets. But what can you even say to them? If you try to give advice, they just get defensive, acting like because my girlfriend and I don't have kids, we don't know anything.

There is so much available today—you could dive into a million different hobbies or activities—yet most kids just spend all their time staring at screens. I guess it's just sad that a tiny virtual world is often more captivating to them than the massive, real world right in front of them.

Man, Robin Fox2, it's always been this way. The difference is, when parents were gone back then, kids weren't facing this "virtual problem" we're talking about. It didn't exist, or at least not anywhere near the level it does now.