Texting Teens Gone Wild

Texting is the name of the game these days, but are our teens out of control? A texting competition held in New York has just crowned its third year texting champ. LG U.S. National Texting Championship sponsors the event. Teenagers all over the United States come together to participate in an obstacle course that requires above average texting skills. Kate Moore, a 15 year- old from Des Moines, IA, won $50,000 texting in this competition. Moore, normally texts at a speed of 14,000 texts per month and her skill put her head and shoulders above the rest; or should I say fingers and hands above the rest. Fifty thousand dollars is a lot of money, but is this what our next generation of leaders is all about? I find it quite disturbing that teens all over the U.S. bend over backwards to win texting competitions. I find it even more disturbing that LG created this competition and are sending the wrong message to our teens. Texting is all fine and dandy but this takes the cake and the money. What is to become of our next generation? Will our president in 2030 be texting his campaign message? Will our motivational speakers in 2025 be texting inspirational messages to their listeners? Will school include texting in its curriculum? Will sexting be the biggest and latest dating do? Things that make you go hmmm.

If our nation evolves into "Text America" then how long before doctors start prescribing a new drug for "texter’s finger syndrome"? Sure, teens say they have no problems with keeping up with their school work, and interacting with friends in person, but what about honesty and integrity? One teen stated a benefit of texting is “…if you don’t want to respond, you can always say, ‘Oh, I didn’t get our text.” How about, “I can’t text right now, or I’ll text you later?” instead of lying. Or better still, instead of giving $50,000 to teenagers for texting the fastest, how about a competition to see which group of teens can build the sturdiest house for a homeless person. How about $50,000 for the teen with the safest driving record, the teen who stays out of juvenile hall, the teen who has the willpower and discipline to say no to drugs and alcohol, the teen who sacrifices their summer to volunteer and help those less fortunate, the teen who builds their own business to help the environment, the teen who can speak intelligently without using profanity every 30 seconds, or the teen who rally's the most supporters to raise money to take mission trips around the world. Wake up America, text all you want but don't turn our teenagers into mindless tech freaks who forget they have a voice too. LG, pay some teens for using their voices to stand up for the good of mankind, not just the skill of their fingers.