5 ms·

Old Enough: the Japanese TV show that abandons toddlers on public transport

27 points by hackernj 4y ago

nsonha 4y ago
What a click bait title, these are little kids not toddlers
- rasz 4y ago
  Old enough to marry in Tennessee soon.
- jdlshore 4y ago
  According to TFA, the kids range in age from 2-6 years old. Toddlers are 1-3 years old, so it seems accurate enough to me.
  - makeitdouble 4y ago
    TBF 2 years old are very rare on the show, and parents are strongly discouraged to put too small kids on the block (the discourse is show in-show to explain why they think their kid can do it)
    - nsonha 4y ago
      I highly doubt it's even possible for a kid that barely talks to be on the show. I have seen some episodes, in all of which they seem to be 4+.
- hackernj 4y ago
  “They’re all aged between two and six years old, and they’re almost always scared to death when they first set out.”
  - hilbert42 4y ago
    Decades ago when I was six I was going to and from school by myself, this was usually by bus but not always. By the age of 10 I was taking an intercity train about 70 miles to visit my grandmother by myself. A part of getting to my grandmother's place was to change trains for a local suburban one at an 8-platform interchange station and when I alighted from that suburban train I had to walk several miles to my grandmother's place, this meant crossing a main interstate highway. I think we grossly underestimat%e what kids can actually do. It horrifies me to see the way kids are overprotected these days - driven to and from school etc. Tragically, we've already bred and are still breeding generations of kids who are so timid that they're even frightened of their own shadows. BTW, I wasn't unique, it was the norm for most kids back then. Moreover, my mother was overprotective of us kids by the then standard of other mothers. This annoyed me when in primary school as I'd get teased about it by other kids.
    - nsonha 4y ago
      this has something to do with living in a suburb surrounded by highways. The only way to go anywhere and do anything is via a car, which kid can't drive.
      - hilbert42 4y ago
        Not where I live, there are walkways, sidewalks, cycleways and parks everywhere and the suburb is on a grid pattern so there are alternative routes to everywhere not to mention little traffic (no main highways). Nevertheless, the busiest time for traffic is school start and finish times when mothers clog the streets for many blocks around local schools. There's a school at the far end of my street and about a quarter hour before the end of the school day the street is blocked with cars. It's madness, I feel really sorry for those kids and I think myself very lucky for the freedom I had as a kid in that I could roam anywhere and do anything I wanted without helicopter parents hovering over me everywhere I went.
araneae 4y ago
The show is cute, but it's deeply depressing when a 2 year old is more emotionally mature than my 9 year old.
- op00to 4y ago
  Why? Even ignoring the artificial setup of the show, your child is living in a different environment with different challenges and risks. I’m sure your 9 year old could easily complete the same tasks.
makeitdouble 4y ago
Categorizing this as an "entertainment documentary" doesn't seem fit for a show that will completely stage a course, thoroughly discuss the errand content and timing with the parents and have a number of "strangers" cooperate. I'd personally put it straight into the "reality show" category. Otherwise, children independence is a real thing. They'll walk by themselves to school as soon as they become first graders, often assisted by the other kids following the same path. And the city itself will be part of the effort: paths to schools will be visibly marked as such, they'll be checked for safety, residents will watch for kids that seem lost or adult people that could potentially be dangerous, cops will bike these course more often etc. It's not all rosy, but it is one of the best sides of the community thinking in Japan IMO.
- quartesixte 4y ago
  The community overwatch is very real and very important to this whole process. The school teachers will do rotations on patrolling the walking paths. Moms volunteer at crosswalks. Local elderly conveniently do their morning gardening at this time. Older kids are expected to help the younger ones not get lost. A kid who habitually walks to school alone will be subjected to much concern by faculty. I have witnessed personally phone calls coming into the office from local retirees saying a certain kid went off the predefined walking path in the morning. Which set off a HUGE commotion. The result is that students as young as 6 walk to school on their own. It’s a masterclass in fostering independence and urban navigation—important traits for a nation that has some of the densest urban areas on the planet.
mise_en_place 4y ago
Collectivism is strange to me, in that an individual human is reduced to a hive mind automaton, like an ant. I wonder if the advent of certain technologies and religions enabled this type of thinking. It would have to be radical, to completely give up your instincts for self-preservation for the good of the group. I have read that in Japan specifically, this is due to natural disasters where the individual must follow the group without question, or the whole group will be in mortal danger.
- nsonha 4y ago
  what does this have anything to do with the topic?

27 points by hackernj 4y ago

nsonha 4y ago

What a click bait title, these are little kids not toddlers

rasz 4y ago
Old enough to marry in Tennessee soon.
jdlshore 4y ago
According to TFA, the kids range in age from 2-6 years old. Toddlers are 1-3 years old, so it seems accurate enough to me.
- makeitdouble 4y ago
  TBF 2 years old are very rare on the show, and parents are strongly discouraged to put too small kids on the block (the discourse is show in-show to explain why they think their kid can do it)
  - nsonha 4y ago
    I highly doubt it's even possible for a kid that barely talks to be on the show. I have seen some episodes, in all of which they seem to be 4+.
hackernj 4y ago
“They’re all aged between two and six years old, and they’re almost always scared to death when they first set out.”
- hilbert42 4y ago
  Decades ago when I was six I was going to and from school by myself, this was usually by bus but not always. By the age of 10 I was taking an intercity train about 70 miles to visit my grandmother by myself. A part of getting to my grandmother's place was to change trains for a local suburban one at an 8-platform interchange station and when I alighted from that suburban train I had to walk several miles to my grandmother's place, this meant crossing a main interstate highway. I think we grossly underestimat%e what kids can actually do. It horrifies me to see the way kids are overprotected these days - driven to and from school etc. Tragically, we've already bred and are still breeding generations of kids who are so timid that they're even frightened of their own shadows. BTW, I wasn't unique, it was the norm for most kids back then. Moreover, my mother was overprotective of us kids by the then standard of other mothers. This annoyed me when in primary school as I'd get teased about it by other kids.
  - nsonha 4y ago
    this has something to do with living in a suburb surrounded by highways. The only way to go anywhere and do anything is via a car, which kid can't drive.
    - hilbert42 4y ago
      Not where I live, there are walkways, sidewalks, cycleways and parks everywhere and the suburb is on a grid pattern so there are alternative routes to everywhere not to mention little traffic (no main highways). Nevertheless, the busiest time for traffic is school start and finish times when mothers clog the streets for many blocks around local schools. There's a school at the far end of my street and about a quarter hour before the end of the school day the street is blocked with cars. It's madness, I feel really sorry for those kids and I think myself very lucky for the freedom I had as a kid in that I could roam anywhere and do anything I wanted without helicopter parents hovering over me everywhere I went.

araneae 4y ago

The show is cute, but it's deeply depressing when a 2 year old is more emotionally mature than my 9 year old.

op00to 4y ago
Why? Even ignoring the artificial setup of the show, your child is living in a different environment with different challenges and risks. I’m sure your 9 year old could easily complete the same tasks.

makeitdouble 4y ago

Categorizing this as an "entertainment documentary" doesn't seem fit for a show that will completely stage a course, thoroughly discuss the errand content and timing with the parents and have a number of "strangers" cooperate. I'd personally put it straight into the "reality show" category. Otherwise, children independence is a real thing. They'll walk by themselves to school as soon as they become first graders, often assisted by the other kids following the same path. And the city itself will be part of the effort: paths to schools will be visibly marked as such, they'll be checked for safety, residents will watch for kids that seem lost or adult people that could potentially be dangerous, cops will bike these course more often etc. It's not all rosy, but it is one of the best sides of the community thinking in Japan IMO.

quartesixte 4y ago
The community overwatch is very real and very important to this whole process. The school teachers will do rotations on patrolling the walking paths. Moms volunteer at crosswalks. Local elderly conveniently do their morning gardening at this time. Older kids are expected to help the younger ones not get lost. A kid who habitually walks to school alone will be subjected to much concern by faculty. I have witnessed personally phone calls coming into the office from local retirees saying a certain kid went off the predefined walking path in the morning. Which set off a HUGE commotion. The result is that students as young as 6 walk to school on their own. It’s a masterclass in fostering independence and urban navigation—important traits for a nation that has some of the densest urban areas on the planet.

mise_en_place 4y ago

Collectivism is strange to me, in that an individual human is reduced to a hive mind automaton, like an ant. I wonder if the advent of certain technologies and religions enabled this type of thinking. It would have to be radical, to completely give up your instincts for self-preservation for the good of the group. I have read that in Japan specifically, this is due to natural disasters where the individual must follow the group without question, or the whole group will be in mortal danger.

nsonha 4y ago
what does this have anything to do with the topic?