Child Labor in undeveloped countries can be a good thing.

[Kyalesyin]

Alright I think you may have mixed up two things.


the point you are trying to get at is probably that western society takes far too much time for their youngsters to mature into what we consider to be adults and also when it comes to taking on roles of responsibility.

This I can agree with. The whole 'kids need to be kids' idea holds society back. While you use work, I use the slow progression of education and skills as an example. There is degree based information that could easily be taught to a 14/15 year old in my eyes but i feel the whole curriculum is purposely slack to allow for social interactions, yet at university, this level of work never affects one's ability to interact with others so it's really a double standard.


but unfortunately working full time at such a young age limits a child's ability to educate and better themselves and the short term gain of money and food on the table loses out to the long term gain of educating a large proportion of a generation that would enable them to better themselves and their societies in the long run and this i feel is somewhat wrong.

consider your very own scenario but instead, you didn't have the opportunity to go to school and thus wouldn't have the opportunity to voice the same opinion as you have now since you would be illiterate and unskilled.

that's the major difference man-thing. Your attempt to correlate your condition to those other children is off and has tainted your perceptions of the reality of what actually goes on.

Pretty much the point I was trying to make. Thankyou. I always seem to hash up the wording.

 

[November Rain]

the point was semi addressed in this thread earlier but it had more to do with education

http://www.superherohype.com/forums/showthread.php?t=165975

 

[jaguarr]

So, I grew up on a farm as well, Man-Thing. We had to work our butts off when we were kids. But that was because that was how our family operated at the time and everyone had a job to do in order to keep everything working well. I learned the value of being able to work hard at a very early age and I consider it a valuable lesson. But it wasn't for commercial gain and I wasn't being paid $2 a day along with hundreds of other kids by some rich fat cat who wanted to exploit cheap child labor.

Now tell your son to finish my new shoes ASAP!

jag

 

[Armand Z Trip]

The other day an old lady said to me, why can't things be like they were in the good old days? So I tore up her pension check and threw her grandson down a coal mine.

 

[rdh007]

When I was growing up living on a farm I had many "chores" that on average I estimate took an average of ten hours to complete daily. This along with school (of which I had perfect attendence 9 years out of 13). Modern victicrats would consider this WORK a violation in child labor laws. The work was hard, dangerous and I would be chastized if not completed on time or correctly by my Father (an example would be being knocked down for complaining). I had no choice but to do it, I couldn't quit and most of all I couldn't complain. There was no wage but the security of a roof, clothes and food.

Anyway through all of my expeirence through hard work growing up there remains now absolutley no bitterness on my part to my parents. Infact I think that is the way it should be- children should be taught early on that hard work is the acceptable good that all should acheive for. This is why I have a problem with child labor laws.

Out of greed disguised as compassion many in the Western World consider it a travesty if a young child has to do hard work. This is just silly, and it is infact greedy because through the influence of groups like labour unions, workers rights organizations and boycotting citizens, pressure is being placed upon third world countries to eliminate child labour. I understand the reasoning behind it as I was once in that mindset, but to deny a family who would otherwise be starving the essentials of food, everything including their education becomes a moot point.

I hope many people reconsider their views on child labour. Of course no one is for horrible acts like child prostitution, but to limit a family's income because it just makes you feel better is evil IMO.

Discuss...

Sounds like someone has some unresolved childhood issues.

Though I will say that I generally agree with kids (13, 14, 15) getting to work earlier and more often, I can't hold with this idea that child labor is somehow good.

 

[The Overlord]

Being oppressed is better than starvation to a child. If a child can eat, but still be abused however it is evil, it is so much better than starving to death.

It wouldn't be a either or stituation if these companies acted in moral manner and actually paid the adults in these countries a decent wage or demanded these dictatorships improve human records before doing business with these dictatorships. This evil exists because these dictatorships don't give a damn about their people and these companies care more about money than doing the right thing.

 

[Killgore]

You're against abortion, but for the exploitation of children in other countries and you think that the poor should just work harder if they don't like their situation? God damn you are deluded.

 

[Pythenis]

When I was growing up living on a farm I had many "chores" that on average I estimate took an average of ten hours to complete daily. This along with school (of which I had perfect attendence 9 years out of 13). Modern victicrats would consider this WORK a violation in child labor laws. The work was hard, dangerous and I would be chastized if not completed on time or correctly by my Father (an example would be being knocked down for complaining). I had no choice but to do it, I couldn't quit and most of all I couldn't complain. There was no wage but the security of a roof, clothes and food.

Anyway through all of my expeirence through hard work growing up there remains now absolutley no bitterness on my part to my parents. Infact I think that is the way it should be- children should be taught early on that hard work is the acceptable good that all should acheive for. This is why I have a problem with child labor laws.

Out of greed disguised as compassion many in the Western World consider it a travesty if a young child has to do hard work. This is just silly, and it is infact greedy because through the influence of groups like labour unions, workers rights organizations and boycotting citizens, pressure is being placed upon third world countries to eliminate child labour. I understand the reasoning behind it as I was once in that mindset, but to deny a family who would otherwise be starving the essentials of food, everything including their education becomes a moot point.

I hope many people reconsider their views on child labour. Of course no one is for horrible acts like child prostitution, but to limit a family's income because it just makes you feel better is evil IMO.

Discuss...

Here,here....ManThing ...!! and besides all that stuff third-world child labor is the only way I can afford my sweet Tiger Woods golf gear and my Lebron James shoes!! How does Nike afford to pay those guys to endorse there products? EASY! Third-world child sweat shops...and am I for one glad, the ladies love the LBJ shoes!!

Like you said, would you rather starve to death? or work in an opressed sweat shop?? Starving to death is overrated! Give me some opression 100% of the time!

I wish I could hire a few 7 year olds for .30 cents a day to fold my laundry,do mi dishes and cut my grass and stuff. (it would be so totally worth it) Plus I should probably get a tax write off for feeding needy kids!! What a humanitarian I would be!

Third-WOrld Child labor is cool, and anyone that speaks against it is jealous because they don't want me to bust out the TW logo hat!! You just wish you could have one!!!

 

[Killgore]

Here,her....ManThing ...!! and besides all that stuff third-world child labor is the only way I can afford my sweet Tiger Woods golf gear and my Lebron James shoes!! How does Nike afford to pay those guys to endorse there products? EASY! Third-world child sweat shops...and am I for one glad, the ladies love the LBJ shoes!!

Like you said, would you rather starve to death? or work in an opressed sweat shop?? Starving to death is overrated! Give me some opression 100% of the time!

I wish I could hire a few 7 year olds for .30 cents a day to fold my laundry,do mi dishes and cut my grass and stuff. (it would be so totally worth it) Plus I should probably get a tax write off for feeding needy kids!! What a humanitarian I would be!

Third-WOrld Child labor is cool, and anyone that speaks against it is jealous because they don't want me to bust out the TW logo hat!! You just wish you could have one!!!

You are my new favorite poster. Bet you like Colbert.

 

[Superman]

Oh come on. Look I'm as liberal as anyone here but Man-Thing doing a few chores is NOT child abuse, But Man-Thing you must also realize that there is a big difference between doing a few chores at home and then going to school and a kid working in a sweat shop for 15 hours and never seeing a school.

 

[Mr Sparkle]

yeah, I don't get it.
how could you compare helping your family with chores to helping some stranger exploit you? because obviously children couldn't get the same salary and would have to work less hours.
did anyone see Zoolander? remember the video with the kids from third world countries with signs that read "please let me work" looking all sad.


yeah, this isn't as funny.

 

[Matt]

I've spent the better part of 8 hours trying to think of a response to Man-Thing, and still all I've got is "Wow"

 

[Matt]

Oh come on. Look I'm as liberal as anyone here but Man-Thing doing a few chores is NOT child abuse, But Man-Thing you must also realize that there is a big difference between doing a few chores at home and then going to school and a kid working in a sweat shop for 15 hours and never seeing a school.

I think Spider-Bite wasn't actually saying Man-Thing was abused but simply pointing out how outrageous it is to compare working in a sweatshop to helping on a family farm and saying if Man-Thing is right and he actually was worked on a farm like a child in a sweat shop, then yeah, he was abused. I think Man-Thing may have been exaggerating a little about the "ten hours of hard labor and we got beat if we were stupid enough to complain" (which sure as hell sounds like abuse to me...but again, I think he was exaggerating).

 

[Addendum]

If a family is starving, give them a copy of Jonathan Swift's "Modest Proposal" t:

 

[War Lord]

they shouldn't be in a position in the first place where they need their children to do these things to survive. and it's quite possible that the abuse you suffered as a child will now lead you to do the same to your own children. It might even be the reason you vote republican.

10 hours a day? combined with 8 hours a day at school? So that leaves 6 hours a day for getting dressed eating, and trying to find time for social development?

I'm sorry man. You were abused. And i'm not trying to diss myself or everybody else who is here, but there is a reason we have post counts of thousands at message boards. You were abused physically and your need for free time with peers your age for social development was neglected, and it's effecting you to this day.

I know that probably sounds offensive, and I'm not doing it for the sake of being offensive, or intending to insult your parents, but you are a victim of child abuse.

That's a fairly typical farm life experience. Most of the kids I know who grew up on a farm had a similar schedule.

Sleep really isn't an option if you own a farm.

 

[Addendum]

Exactly. If your family lives on a farm, the kids helping out with the work is to be expected.

That's completely different from the working conditions in the Industrial Revolution which led to child labor laws

 

[War Lord]

However, child labour is a reality in third world countries and needs to be respected, because without that labour, many of those kids would simply starve.

There should be efforts to help those kids receive an education though.

 

[Addendum]

And the U.S. isn't a third-world country, so using child labor is rightly outlawed.

 

[War Lord]

And the U.S. isn't a third-world country, so using child labor is rightly outlawed.

But it's still done. Lots of kids have jobs these days.

 

[Addendum]

Yes. At 16.

 

[Mr Sparkle]

However, child labour is a reality in third world countries and needs to be respected, because without that labour, many of those kids would simply starve.

hate to break it to you, but those kids are invariably exploited, it's not like they get 401 k or something, or healthcare.
in other words, they are able to work, but their rights as workers are not respected.

 

[The Overlord]

However, child labour is a reality in third world countries and needs to be respected, because without that labour, many of those kids would simply starve.

There should be efforts to help those kids receive an education though.

Its only a "need" because the governments that control these countries don't give a damn about their people and treat them like slaves. Then these companies take advantage of that fact so they can get cheap labour, nevermind that their investiments support dictatorships that violate human rights. This wouldn't exist if someone in power had the moral courage to stand and oppose, but everyone is too greedy to do it.

You claim to believe in small government and morality, but here you support the exploitation of children and dictatorships. What kind of messed up moral code do have?

 

[War Lord]

Yes. At 16.

Not at all. Many kids who deliver newspapers or work in their parent's businesses are younger than that.

 

[War Lord]

Its only a "need" because the governments that control these countries don't give a damn about their people and treat them like slaves. Then these companies take advantage of that fact so they can get cheap labour, nevermind that their investiments support dictatorships that violate human rights. This wouldn't exist if someone in power had the moral courage to stand and oppose, but everyone is too greedy to do it.

You claim to believe in small government and morality, but here you support the exploitation of children and dictatorships. What kind of messed up moral code do have?

No. Most of those countries simply don't have the capital to adequately feed their people. The heads of those governments, though many of them are corrupt, could live on absolutely nothing and still not have enough to provide for their people adequately.

The fact that Western countries can provide for their people is a result of hundreds of years of action that built up a foundation to do so. A foundation that could be gone in a fortnight if we let it.

 

[Addendum]

A paper route is a common idea, since kids ride their bikes. A completely different thing than working in coal mines, a steel mill or textile plant