Would You Let Your 13 Yr Old Have A Facebook?

[Gloomy Mushroom]

I was watching a morning chat show the other morning (oh dear God I do watch them) and there was a mother complaining that her 13 yr old son had blocked her from his Facebook's friend's list and she demanded that all parents have access to their children's Facebooks.

Funny enough I was talking to another mother who is quite significantly older than me, and she has allowed her ten year old daughter to have a Facebook. She knows the password etc and is under constant monitoring when on Facebook. Now the question comes down to would you let your 13 yr old have a Facebook and do you think that Facebook should require parental access to kiddy accounts?

[travz21]

I'm fine with it. Let's get kids excited and exposed to technology at a younger age. When I was 13 I thought Myst was the best computer game ever. I don't even know how I would have handled internet and Facebook. Or porn. I wish I was born 10 years later so I could be experiencing all this now.

[iamsatan]

Yeah cause they're probably just make one anyway at their friend's house and hide it from you anyway. Gotta give kids space to grow and develop on their own as well. Just put the computer in a high traffic public area of your living space to somewhat control what the kids look up, at least when your home.

The internet is a crazy place, I remember when I was 12, AOL and 56K were hot shit. I thought the internet was the coolest fucking thing ever. I'd look up all kinds of shit and saw things I probably shouldn't have but whatever the internet and facebook are part of everyday life now.

My sister turns 13 next year, I'm 14 years older than her. I dread her getting a facebook because she's going to rape my wall and look at all my shit but whatever it's just the way it is.

[travz21]

Lol, I know what you mean. I have quite a few cousins that are 13-16 and I've been adding them on Facebook. I thought I shouldn't because of all the weird pictures of me they'd see or all the inappropriate statuses I have, but that's just how the real world is. No use in hiding things from them.

[Vriska]

13 is at the legal limit for doing stuff on the interwebs, and since that's an age that's almost in high school I don't see anything peculiar about it at all. 13 is the proper age for parents to talk to their kids about Internet safety. And in middle school (I was 11-12) the computer lab teacher taught us Internet safety too. Heck, I was 14 when I started on the LPUMB, but my parents already knew about telling me to lurk before posting (if only parents in general had a better idea of what nettiquite to explain). It all comes down to good parenting.

It's 5-7 year olds with cell phones and internet access I don't understand. They're not web-smart enough for the greater internet .stick to Neopets, plz.

[Agent O]

Just put the computer in a high traffic public area of your living space to somewhat control what the kids look up, at least when your home.

This.

And if you see them using Daily Babes, smack em and delete their account.

[MKH]

I honestly wouldn't. Too many dicks and bitches and skanks and rapists, and no matter how well-informed you may think your new teenager is, he/she is still open to make mistakes that both you and they will regret. This is why I like Twitter more, honestly - it's not a life online, it's just mindless chatter. I love mindless chatter limited to 140 characters.

[Super Sonic]

Im 14 and i dont have Facebook. I think its best to stay away for now.
The LPA is my internet life. :lol:

[BlackedOut]

Let them use Facebook, Just tell them about the consequences of doing dumb things on the internet.

[11:54]

No.

[Louis]

I'd let the kid have a Facebook but advise them to be careful with who they interact with, and let them know that anyone who they are friends with is someone they've actually met in real life and talk to regularly. I wouldn't creep on my child but I would at least find a way to make sure that they're safe. I feel as though if you tell your kid that they can have one, so long as they're careful, they'll at least keep it in mind.

[Vdalem]

They can have it only for playing games!

[DaMU]

If I had a thirteen-year-old son right now, my first thought would be, "Where'd you come from? Another dimension?" And if he started begging me for a Facebook, I'd remind him that he'd only been in existence for a few seconds, and the previous thirteen years of his supposed "life" were all a mirage, so it's not like he'd have many people to friend. After he'd finish crying and lamenting his bizarre newborn status, I'd distract him with my DVD box set of The Wire. While he'd watch, I'd go onto Facebook and discover that my son ALREADY HAS A PROFILE. You see, someone made a fake account with his name, and enough people friended the account that my son was willed into existence.

So to answer your question, no. Wait until they're 16.

[MKH]

If I had a thirteen-year-old son right now, my first thought would be, "Where'd you come from? Another dimension?" And if he started begging me for a Facebook, I'd remind him that he'd only been in existence for a few seconds, and the previous thirteen years of his supposed "life" were all a mirage, so it's not like he'd have many people to friend. After he'd finish crying and lamenting his bizarre newborn status, I'd distract him with my DVD box set of The Wire. While he'd watch, I'd go onto Facebook and discover that my son ALREADY HAS A PROFILE. You see, someone made a fake account with his name, and enough people friended the account that my son was willed into existence.

So to answer your question, no. Wait until they're 16.

WTF...:lol:

[Disturbedthoughts]

It really depends on the kid. Some are able to look and understand that there is danger out there and how to spot it. Others aren't. If you think they're capable of knowing the difference, I say go for it. If not, no.

[Snackman]

This is why I like Twitter more, honestly - it's not a life online, it's just mindless chatter. I love mindless chatter limited to 140 characters.

999999999999999999% agree.
Twitter beats the hell outta Facebook in my opinion.

[sotrix]

The fact that they're on the internet in the first place means they have access to the most dastardly stuff out there automatically.

Facebook is a very clean, structured website that is very simple for parents to monitor. I can see no reason for a thirteen year old to not have one.

Sometimes I censor myself on Facebook because of rather young people on my friends list but I actually think I'm better for it.

[F-ck Casey]

That little kid is stupid. If he/she was smart, they'd befriend their parents on Facebook, but hide certain elements of their page from them. That's what I do, since my family complains about my status updates all the time. Too much cursing, vulgar lyrics, etc. Fuck them. You don't have to read that shit. But, anyway.

[Rebecca Black]

I'm 15, and when I was 13, majority of the people I knew around my age had facebook. Would I let my child have facebook at the age of 13? I'd probably put internet curfew though (you know, disconnet the router after 11pm, etc).

Until a few months ago, I actually never added my family members on facebook. I didn't feel comfortable about it. My mom seemed to understand me, and after asking me to change a couple times, she stopped. I just changed eventually.

I think young teens should be allowed to have facebook, but with some kind of regulation. Don't let them go on after midnight (it's addicting LOL). But on the other hand, don't stalk their facebook. Teens need privacy too.

[Benjamin]

Using Facebook in a safe way is pretty damn easy... don't share your address, don't add people you don't know, and don't share/look at naked photos. It really isn't that challenging of a task. If a 13 year old can't handle that, they don't have a bright future anyways.

And Facebook rapes the fucking shit out of Twitter. :lol:

[minuteforce]

Just make sure they know the risks and let them have at it, I think.

But, yeah. Twitter wins.

[ThaHandyman]

Heck no.

[Jeff]

Twitter beats the hell outta Facebook in my opinion.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmK_LH_TryA

[travz21]

Twitter seems so lame compared to Facebook. The only cool thing is that you can see into the lives of the famous. Though I'm not sure why those stars can't just have a Facebook page and have status updates.

[Benjamin]

Twitter seems so lame compared to Facebook. The only cool thing is that you can see into the lives of the famous. Though I'm not sure why those stars can't just have a Facebook page and have status updates.

Exactly. Twitter is just Facebook except without the millions of additional features. Sure, FB could be more organized but once you get used to it it's easily better than Twitter.

[Gloomy Mushroom]

I prefer Twitter myself. If I need to tell people what's on my mind I limit myself to 140 characters.

[minuteforce]

Facebook's status updates are just being used like tweets. They weren't originally designed for that, they were meant to be more akin to MySpace's status updates (if any of you remember those) but the users have decided otherwise :) so the divide becomes a little smaller and everyone's all "OMFG, facebook and twitter are the sames!"

So, when you take that into account when wondering whether your hypothetical thirteen-year-old should use social networking sites, the difference is all in how they decide to use them rather than the inherent functionality of the sites. :)

[ThaHandyman]

Facebook was totally bulletins bro! and comments. At least when i was on.

[Benjamin]

Facebook was totally bulletins bro!

God, what are you saying?

[Jeff]

Facebook was totally bulletins bro! and comments. At least when i was on.


God, what are you saying?


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hn7B5FdwBK8&feature=youtube_gdata

[Benjamin]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hn7B5FdwBK8&feature=youtube_gdata

Thanks for that Jeff, LMAO. Win.

[Ryo Hazuki]

I think a more relevant question is would I let my Facebook have a 13 year old. And the answer is no. Also, I wouldn't have a 13 year old, once their that age you can't treat them like your worthless peasant and have them do your bidding for you and they become USELESS.

but on a more serious note.

I wouldn't have a kid, thus no Facebook.

[Timothy]

Wait, there are 13-years-olds on Facebook? :pedobear:

[Jeff]

Wait, there are 13-years-olds on Facebook? :pedobear:

Not young enough. :pedobear:

[Harlz]

Facebook is a whole fuckload cleaner and safer than the rest of the internet... So if you're letting them on the internet, yes, let them have facebook.

[ThaHandyman]

God, what are you saying?

Haven't you kids written a text message? Translation: Myspace made use of bulletins, as far as my experience went, whereas Facebook used comments and such.

[andrewmac1]

why not. He will learn the things of life easily. He will go advanced in his early stages of life.

[Ree]

I don’t see a problem with this. It totally depends on the child and his/her ability to understand how to stay safe online. My little brother has had Facebook since he was 10 years old, he’s a smart kid and knows not to add strangers and how to maintain privacy.


Just put the computer in a high traffic public area of your living space to somewhat control what the kids look up, at least when your home.

This is a good idea but kids have smart phones to access the internet these days too. :lol:

So yeah, I think a 13 year old is old enough to understand how to stay safe online. Privacy settings FTW.

[Bennoda Girl]

13? Oh c'mon.. that's nothing compared to 7 year old kids. Believe me, they all have Facebook, and their parents are fine with it. And they're all updating their statuses daily. Not to mention little girls that are still in primary school with half-naked pics. Not acceptable.

So, that's a *NO* to Facebook users under 15 yrs.

[+ / –]

Of course I'd let my 13 year old use Facebook. How else could he keep track of where your mother is and how much she owes him?

[Vriska]

I don’t see a problem with this. It totally depends on the child and his/her ability to understand how to stay safe online. My little brother has had Facebook since he was 10 years old, he’s a smart kid and knows not to add strangers and how to maintain privacy.



This is a good idea but kids have smart phones to access the internet these days too. :lol:

So yeah, I think a 13 year old is old enough to understand how to stay safe online. Privacy settings FTW.

This x1000. It all depends on how smart the kid is. My folks taught me well at 12 and I had no problems whatsoever.

[Jeff]

Facebook was totally bulletins bro! and comments. At least when i was on.


Haven't you kids written a text message? Translation: Myspace made use of bulletins, as far as my experience went, whereas Facebook used comments and such.

I would like to point out that nothing in the first quoted post says anything about MySpace, and wasn't even in text message form.

[Ryo Hazuki]

On a serious note. (What? taking Jesse seriously????? RIIGHT)

Yes. I would.

[+ / –]

Haven't you kids written a text message? Translation: Myspace made use of bulletins, as far as my experience went, whereas Facebook used comments and such.

Says the 19 year old.

[BlackedOut]

Some stupid kids get Facebook, let your kid be the smart one who gets it.

[Snackman]

I wouldn't let my 13 years old use Facebook, Google+ FTW!

[Ryo Hazuki]

I wouldn't let my 13 years old use Facebook, Google+ FTW!

Do you have a Google+ Account? Still in a closed Beta isn't it?

anyway... it seems interesting.

[ThaHandyman]

Says the 19 year old.

lolwut? creepin

[Duragon]

I don't mind 14 year olds using facebook. Of course, it's not that good of an idea.
But if facebook was, and i had internets when i was 14, i would probably get it after some time.
My parents recently got facebook, and my sister used it to play games.
She is 8 and my parents made her her own facebook acount, just to play games like farmville and so on.
I don't like it...

But if i had a cat. Hell, i'd give him a facebook.