The UK's new under-16 social media ban will cause more harm than it prevents

Post by guilhas » Sat, Jun 20, 2026, 6:39 PM UTC

inigyou wrote: post #109

guilhas wrote: post #100

A society whose individuals needs government laws to make good "choices" is probably doomed The only possible law is making bigco social media less addictive, and better controls for parents But maybe this is UK just exercising some soft power, since they have no tech to speak of

Then we've been doomed since we banned children from buying cigarettes, or even further back, since we banned children from having sex with adults. Do you really think banning those things made society worse?

Post by Planktonne » Sat, Jun 20, 2026, 7:01 PM UTC

duxup wrote: post #147

Planktonne wrote: post #97

All the pro-freedom arguments ring hollow and insincere to the wider world. From an outside perspective, the tech industry/community has repeatedly demonstrated that it's actually very pro-surveillance and child exploitation. From that same outside perspective, another argument of 'hey, we have to combat all attempts at protecting children to avoid surveillance' just sounds like self-serving lies. You can argue that…

I feel like if there's a bad actor... this kind of legislation just ignores it / the problem. Meanwhile kids will still find ways to do what they wish online and it will be hidden... adults exposed to these same bad actors.

Post by duxup » Sat, Jun 20, 2026, 7:16 PM UTC

manoDev wrote: post #152

Have you taken a look at kids nowadays? They look like fking zombies glued to their smartphones and wireless headphones. I go walk my dog, and not a single kid tries to play with it - only people of my age (40s) do. We’re raising a generation of completely emotionally detached robots. There’s something deeply wrong and unsettling, and it’s happening in plain daylight.

Post by nitwit005 » Sat, Jun 20, 2026, 7:40 PM UTC

Planktonne wrote: post #97

All the pro-freedom arguments ring hollow and insincere to the wider world. From an outside perspective, the tech industry/community has repeatedly demonstrated that it's actually very pro-surveillance and child exploitation. From that same outside perspective, another argument of 'hey, we have to combat all attempts at protecting children to avoid surveillance' just sounds like self-serving lies. You can argue that…

Post by Planktonne » Sat, Jun 20, 2026, 7:53 PM UTC

nitwit005 wrote: post #157

Planktonne wrote: post #97

All the pro-freedom arguments ring hollow and insincere to the wider world. From an outside perspective, the tech industry/community has repeatedly demonstrated that it's actually very pro-surveillance and child exploitation. From that same outside perspective, another argument of 'hey, we have to combat all attempts at protecting children to avoid surveillance' just sounds like self-serving lies. You can argue that…

> If you want to argue against this kind of legislation, you need to repair a lot of lost trust first. Not trusting tech companies, or companies in general, is simply the correct attitude, so that's not happening. I don't feel your typical person feels the tech industry is somehow "pro child exploitation" though. I'm not even sure how one could be in that camp, in practical terms.