Tonight the voted topic for the Sunday evening bloggers chat on Twitter (#bbloggers) was

This topic mostly focused on the younger group of bloggers, not the older 40+s

Here’s my 2 cents to the topic..

I think everyone has a right to share opinions in which ever means they want to. If they like to tell their friends via text or facebook or whether they want to tell the world, it’s their opinion. And if they think there could be someone out there that shares the same opinion or is looking for an opinion, then why the hell not, right? If there’s something you find interesting or appealing or whatever, surely it’s a bit narrow-minded to just click away because of the author’s age?

Yes, there’s the argument of their internet safety. And that is a valid point. Teen bloggers might not be as apt to the internet and its risks as older bloggers, but there are a lot of older bloggers that have NO clue of the risks either. I think it’s all our responsibility to keep each other safe. May that be from a link that’s got a virus, or a twitter account that asks for email addresses or whatever. EVERYONE NEEDS TO BE SECURITY SAVVY.

I remember the days when I first got into makeup – I had just hit puberty and lived in a small town where there was no one to help me with my problems. And the internet just wasn’t as matured as it is now to find anyone out there who shared my interests, since I couldn’t find anyone in town who were into the same stuff as me. So my interest and passion subsided and I got interested in doing stupid stuff instead. BLOGGING IS A GOOD MEANS TO KEEP TEENAGERS FROM DOING OTHER, WORSE STUFF. It’s a good way to find a community that gives the teenager a sense of belonging and sharing. I actually found a community that I felt very close to that shared the same interests (American TV shows like Buffy, Dawson’s Creek, etc) when I was 14 and that helped me emotionally, helped me mature (because there was a wide range of ages) AND it kept me away from doing more stupid things. Yes, it’s not ideal to have a teenager to sit in front of the computer, but HEY, we do it too, don’t we? Who are we to judge or moan about teenagers making that exact same choice?

Then there was the argument about Youtubers and them being young. Hey, if they have the guts at the age of 15 to show your face and they think they got something to say, GO FOR IT. I wish I had had those guts. There’s lot of older people out there who don’t youtube for the exact same reason. Again, as long as they are safe (which I still say is our responsibility), do it!

Ok, but what about events? Some teenage bloggers complain that they are excluded. Well I think THAT is actually right. I can’t remember a single event that didn’t hand out alcohol and most events are on afternoons too. So if there was no age restriction, the teenagers could be lead to skip school and have access to alcohol (I cant remember an event where I was asked for my ID before I got alcohol). Yes it sucks that way, but PR companies are legally liable for handing out alcohol, so they are just covering their own butts, which is fair I think.

I personally think young (AND old bloggers) can learn from each other. Teenagers have a completely different view on the world of beauty and fashion and can mature within this community. I don’t think anyone should be rejected just because they are too young or too old. If they come to the community, they will have their reasons. It’s better to respect and understand those reasons and help them mature and learn than just right out rejecting them. And older bloggers are the future versions of us. They have the concerns we will have in a few years, so again, why their opinions might not be 100% relevant to us NOW, they will most likely be soon, so why reject it now when you can learn from the wise and prepare.

AND NO ONE LIKES TO BE REJECTED FROM ANYTHING BECAUSE OF THEIR AGE, RIGHT?

What do you think about my thoughts?

Much love,
Miss drifted Snow White