Friday Comment : Youth, Social Media and Shock Value

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The Caribbean Is One Nation.

                                                                        
Submitted By the Mahogany Coconut Group
With some frequency, we are witnessing, pictures and videos of school children from a number of Caribbean countries, exposing acts of violence and sexual encounters on the internet. While some might describe these occurrences as the last days and the fulfillment of biblical prophecy, we venture to suggest that in many instances, these acts are done for their pure shock value. In other words, present day youth, use the internet as a powerful force in their rebellion against the norms of society.
Parading these episodes for millions to see obviously puts fear in the hearts of parents, who would be embarrassed if their children are in such a limelight. We all have to accept that such activities will continue because fads are hard to stop at these impressionable ages and the urge to outdo each other will certainly lead to more competition. In other words, they will try to show what can shock us the most.
Youth have always found a way to attract attention. Back in the 60’s many young people became attracted to cults and then we had the sub cultures such as hippies. It all comes down to going through a phase and the added ingredient of peer pressure should not be underestimated or overlooked.
We do not subscribe to the view that all those who are now engaged in such acts will become social deviants or non –productive citizens; many of them would probably look back at this time as nothing more than youthful adventurism.
However, we warn and remind those involved that they should not forget the dangers of casual sexual encounters and can only hope that they realize that safe sex is very important. As for those involved in violent activity, we urge them to respect the value of human life and to find other ways to resolve conflicts.

  In the mean time we hope they “grow out” of these stages very quickly. Sometimes that is all we can do!

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