OPINION: Ditch the rose-tinted glasses, support our young

HARDLY WIMPS: Today's children may "wrapped in cotton wool" when it comes to activities like tree climbing. But they still have plenty of issues of their own.

My latest pet hate -- nostalgia memes on Facebook.

The ones which implore the Facebook user to share if you were "one of those kids who played in the street, didn't wear a helmet, never went to Maccas, and respected your elders".

The implication being that kids today have iPads, eat crap, and are rude to their parents.

Mike Hosking posted a particularly obnoxious meme, with the tagline "How did we survive growing up?" Children were made of stern stuff in Mike's day -- trolleys didn't come with padded linings, there were no nets on trampolines, school excursions didn't require a risk assessment, and you got a talking to, not a cuddle, if you failed a test.

Life was tough -- but kids were tougher. They don't make 'em like that anymore.

This attitude has come to the fore in Wairarapa on account of Greytown School momentarily banning tree climbing following new health and safety legislation.

Apparently, our overly litigious and risk-averse society, which insists on padded posts on netball hoops, prevents kids from being kids and learning boundaries by way of a scraped knee. We are, says columnist Eva Bradley, "raising a nation of wimps".

Personally, I'm not sure we're doing the younger generation any favours by looking to the past with rose-tinted glasses.

With fewer opportunities to "make one's own fun" and with improved technology, we tend to believe young people "have it easy".

Technology, however, can be a curse. internet access means children are bombarded with information and exposed to adult ideas and media much earlier. Studies show the rise of photo-centric social media sites are contributing to girls' poor body image -- starting in primary school. Playground bullies can now torment their victims from behind the safety of an LED screen.

In today's fast-paced society, children are overscheduled, enrolled in a slew of activities (ballet, soccer, music, karate) and still expected to get good marks. The numbers of young Kiwis medicated for anxiety are at a record high, with clinicians blaming exhaustion and the pressure of academic and parental expectations.

Plus, let's not forget today's socio-political climate. Families with two working parents struggle to make ends meet. Youth employment opportunities are thin. Houses are priced out of reach. Wages are stagnating. Young people are saddled with student debt before their 21st birthday.

I know it's easy to idealise the past. Smartphones and Pumpkin Patch may baffle those who lived through war and the Depression. However, the youth of today still have plenty to contend with.

Kids may not be climbing as many trees, but one needs a fairly robust constitution to cope in today's world. Hardly a nation of wimps.

The days of monkey bars over concrete are over. It's time we stopped putting the boot into our young, and supported them as best we can -- in the here and now.