@steam posted:Some very good points were made about the changes society has had since York began. While I pointed out some things in favor of having it more on the weekend, us younger members should honor what the older members still enjoy too.
I think being involved with kids is a way to grow the hobby. Unfortunately a lot of parents don't do a whole lot with their kids. Heck, look around anywhere you go, phones are always a distraction. There just aren't that many Dad's looking to do something like go out and buy plywood and build something. I really wonder what will happen with the mental/cognitive affects on kids with so much screen time and phone use. Look at the reply above about a separate hobby club on Facebook. It's almost like Facebook is a separate world people live in.
Perhaps something the TCA could do is increase their online presence. If a lot of people spend their time online, perhaps offer more of a draw for things people could get at home online. I imagine that is what the folks realized at OGR a while back.
I agree about the screen time. I see it in my step children. It isn't just video games or video games you play on your phone. They watch (what I consider to be for the most part ridiculous) short videos on Youtube or TicToc. I don't have a problem with video games or the videos they watch although some are way to mature and inappropriate for their age. What bothers me is that they will stay on the screen or the video game console all day without stopping unless the parents (my wife and I) put a stop to it. If it were me I would want to do something else after a while but they almost never get to that idea. I think most parents try to limit the screen time (we do) but some don't and those kids spend WAY too much on their tables/phones/video game consoles. I think you're right. It doesn't have to be Facebook but whatever they are doing is like a separate world they live in. I really wish my step kids had an interest in trains or cars but they don't and while I don't have a layout I have taken them to various train shows, events and train rides. At least they will have those memories of trains even though the younger one says trains are boring. What gets them excited is when the next season of Fortnite is coming out.
Side story:There is a show called "A Thousand Ways to Die" and it is about the strange way some people die based on true stories. One story was a younger person (IIRC) who wanted to stay on video games for a long period of time I think it was for a couple of days. He ordered a pizza and ate some of it but couldn't get off the electronics to put it in the refrigerator. He left it on the floor instead. The next day he ate some more of it and he got food poisoning really bad and died from it. I sincerely hope we don't hear more of these stories in the future. I wonder if there will be clinics for people addicted to screens. I mean in today's world the screen (computer/phone/tablet) are in a way like food. Most people need at least a little bit of it to survive and accomplish things in life. It is hard to go completely off the grid. I have heard of a bootcamp for teenagers that doesn't allow screens and teaches them how to get along in life without them and how to interact with people without using a screen.
I apologize for getting sort of off topic. Back to the subject of York. I enjoyed every York I ever went to and I was supposed to go to April York but my job sent me to Oklahoma. I already have plans in the works to go to York next month. I am very much looking forward to it and I am happy to support the meet and the TCA.
