The "Misinformation" Bill

is, rightly, not going ahead.

It would never have worked - unless the government could also control the internet and the news media. Yes, it was an attempt to censor information.

I could say the same thing about the proposed ban on social media for under sixteens. It won't work unless everyone has a digital ID. The government has actually admitted this. 

For all they are trying to suggest they are doing it in the best interests of children and young people the reality is that those supporting it also see it as a way of controlling what goes on. If everyone has a digital ID then we can be tracked even more than we are already tracked. I know this blog is "monitored". If I use certain words then it is quite possible someone, somewhere will read the post. I expect that. It is the way of the world now.

There seems to be a belief that bringing in the social media ban will somehow reduce the level of "bullying" that occurs, or is said to occur. If the media is reporting this correctly then bullying has become a major problem in schools...or has it?

Much has been made of the way social media is being used to bully and harass young people. Yes, it is a problem. It is certainly easier to bully at a distance than it is face-to-face and the death of even one child or young person as a result of such bullying is one death too much. At the same time is the situation really as it is portrayed in the media and, if so, why?

Is the widespread policy of "say you are sorry and make friends" really working? It starts down in the day care centres, the pre-school centres and the kindergartens. If it really worked then it would work there and the attitude would surely carry through to older children.

It does not work of course. Human beings are not like that. We vary too much for that. We all have different levels of tolerance. We have many and varied interests and likes and dislikes. Most people manage to mask their dislike or impatience or some other negative emotion without showing other people what they are thinking. It is a learned behaviour. We are, or should be, taught this. There are things you don't do in a civilised society.

It is not the whole answer to the problem of bullying but I suspect that the apparent increase in the bullying problem may also be related to the failure to discipline from earliest childhood. This is about more than "good manners". It is about how we behave at all times in the presence of others...and perhaps even in private.

Is it time to rethink how we teach children to live together rather than expect them to be "friends" with everyone? Do we need to teach tolerance of differences without expecting children to "like" others they would not tolerate as adults?

Children get thrown together in groups. Adults can pick and choose their friends much more readily than children can. We need to recognise that and understand not everyone wants to be "friends" with everyone else.