Is 13 years old too young to sail solo around the world ?

[Lamp]

BBC NEWS | World | Europe | Dutch sailor girl put under care

 

[leviathane]

how fcking stoopid can ppl be. i'm sorry but don't care how good a sailor she could be end of the day she's still a child and it's a ridiculous idea.

 

[Edmond]

I caught the back end of this story on the radio today, but didn't get the full info

I suppose you have to look at whether a child of that age can cope with mental and pyscological stress of being on her own for that amount of time, she is still just a child after all

 

[Lamp]

gotta ask Ed...what were you searching for to come across that zit squeezing vid ?!

 

[CorNokZ]

I dunno if it's just me or what, but aren't 13y olds ment to be going to school at that age?

 

[Ezteq]

lol so if a parent left a 13 yr old alone for , oh say a week, wouldn't they be done by social services?

i can see the arguement now "But its OK she was doing something productive!"; and wasn't there a kid who tried to do this but died in the attempt not long ago? I seem to recall the parents saying they (the dead kid) would have wanted it that way...I think not somehow.

 

[WiZe^]

Let her do it ffs

 

[tris-]

when i was 13 i was 13 so there

 

[Urgluf]

and obviously, no

 

[old.Tohtori]

Nanny world, olden days it would be fine, now it's "shocking".

Bullcrap.

IF she can sail, let her sail.

 

[Reno]

Nanny world, olden days it would be fine, now it's "shocking".

Plz show me a previous example of it being ok in the olden days.

 

[old.Tohtori]

Plz show me a previous example of it being ok in the olden days.

Mother left her home at 14 to go live in the capital by hitchhiking.

No problem.

These days the world is as overprotective as a secondary condom and as pointless in it.

 

[Lamp]

I would say 13 is too young to let a child go sailing solo round the world. Just because she can sail, doesn't make it right. We have a moral obligation to look after the safety of children. I doubt she lacks the physical or mental strength to do this. Accompanied by an experienced sailor, no problem, but solo, no way. There are plenty of 12 years olds who can drive cars but just because they can doesn't mean we let them. There are laws. There may not be age restricted laws on sailing but where there are no statutes, then we have a moral obligation to protect minors. Nanny state has nothing to do with it. There's nothing wrong with being over protective where children are concerned, and she is a child.

 

[Urgluf]

I would say 13 is too young to let a child go sailing solo round the world. Just because she can sail, doesn't make it right. We have a moral obligation to look after the safety of children. I doubt she lacks the physical or mental strength to do this. Accompanied by an experienced sailor, no problem, but solo, no way. There are plenty of 12 years olds who can drive cars but just because they can doesn't mean we let them. There are laws. There may not be age restricted laws on sailing but where there are no statutes, then we have a moral obligation to protect minors. Nanny state has nothing to do with it.

well put. completely agree

 

[old.Tohtori]

I would say 13 is too young to let a child go sailing solo round the world. Just because she can sail, doesn't make it right. We have a moral obligation to look after the safety of children. I doubt she lacks the physical or mental strength to do this. Accompanied by an experienced sailor, no problem, but solo, no way. There are plenty of 12 years olds who can drive cars but just because they can doesn't mean we let them. There are laws. There may not be age restricted laws on sailing but where there are no statutes, then we have a moral obligation to protect minors. Nanny state has nothing to do with it.

Yeah it does.

The world is filled with overprotecting these days (hell, no candy in pre-school etc?) and mental age is not the same as age.

We don't have a moral obligation to protect other peoples children. If they're not breaking the law, then more power to them.

 

[Lamp]

You yourself don't have an obligation to protect other people's children. Whether you personally decide to have any moral responsibility is entirely your call. Of course if you are a parent or in a position of responsibility towards children then you will have a legal duty of care towards them. But the State does have an obligation to protect children. Always. Why do you think there are Courts of Protection, Offices of Public Guardianship, Wards of Court, Social Services, Child Protection Agencies, and so on, and so on. The courts will go to any lengths to protect the interests of minors where they are at risk. You're entitled to your opinion of couse, but I totally disagree with you on this one.

 

[old.Tohtori]

You yourself don't have an obligation to protect other people's children. Whether you personally decide to have any moral responsibility is entirely your call. Of course if you are a parent or in a position of responsibility towards children then you will have a legal duty of care towards them. But the State does have an obligation to protect children. Always. Why do you think there are Courts of Protection, Offices of Public Guardianship, Wards of Court, Social Services, Child Protection Agencies, and so on, and so on. The courts will go to any lengths to protect the interests of minors where they are at risk. You're entitled to your opinion of couse, but I totally disagree with you on this one.

That's fair enough, we disagree.

The state does have a duty to protect children, but the people need to question their orders as they look at things through a paperworkstack.

This is a case where there is no immediate proof that the kid is in danger, they should check out her skills, mental abilities etc.

As it is now, they're just shocked 'cause she's 13 and turn a blind eye on everything else.

 

[Madmaxx]

I think 16 would be fine to do that kind of thing, but to do that when you've got school and the rest of your life to plan for seems a bit much.

 

[Reno]

Mother left her home at 14 to go live in the capital by hitchhiking.

Which has any bearing on a solo round the world sailing trip?
Do you face the same technical challenges? Is the weather as live and death?
Do you have to cope with living for days with 30 minutes catnaps as all the sleep you get, with a very real possibility of serious harm if you fail to wake up to check the weather/traffic/heading? Any pirate threat to deal with in the city?

I know you like to be contrary and such, but plz don't reply with your usual ill informed/thought out drivel.

Danita

 

[Shagrat]

theres a bloody big difference between denying your children the choice to eat candy and denying them the choice to sail solo around the world.
as far as im aware, its difficult to capsize and drown in a big of M&M's

And as others have already mentioned, regardless of how mature she is, how good a sailor etc, at 13 she should be at school, still learning and still maturing.

Completely agree with Lamp on this one, its nothing to do with nanny state, its about protecting our children until they are at an age when they can make decisions like this themselves, and at 13 she is not at that age.

 

[old.Tohtori]

I know you like to be contrary and such, but plz don't reply with your usual ill informed/thought out drivel.

And with that, i don't even ackowledge your arguments.

There's nothing ill informed, it's my opinion.

These days my mother wouldn't be able to do what she did, aka, nanny world.

Oh and, i'm not the only one being "contrary", look at ze poll.

 

[Garaen]

There's no way a 13 year old child should be able to undertake a journey like this. It's almost child abuse in my opinion putting your child in such a life threatening situation. I would guess that the parents have projected their passion of sailing onto their child and are exerting a form of pressure to make her do this, how many 13 year olds would want to do something like this, to purposefully isolate themselves in a life threatening situation for over a year?

 

[Urgluf]

And with that, i don't even ackowledge your arguments.

There's nothing ill informed, it's my opinion.

These days my mother wouldn't be able to do what she did, aka, nanny world.

Oh and, i'm not the only one being "contrary", look at ze poll.

thats because some of them want to see her fail:
A) by quiting after a week because she's missing mommy
B) By drowning
C) getting eaten by dolphins
D) Starvation

 

[megadave]

Surely she's doing it to try and break the world record? Therefore she needs to be of a certain age or it's pointless. I thought the last kid was 15?

 

[Cadelin]

Surely she's doing it to try and break the world record? Therefore she needs to be of a certain age or it's pointless. I thought the last kid was 15?

The youngest person to sail around the world is Mike Perham at 17 years old. He had sailed across the Atlantic solo when he was 15.

The youngest woman seems to be Dame Ellen MacArthur at 28 years old.

As technology improves the age with which people can do these things will drop. In 20 years from now a 6 year old might be able to safely sit in a boat while a computer steers it around the world safely. That still doesn't mean it would be right to do it.

 

[megadave]

Probably is too young, seems unnecessary also. However some children are remarkably mature for their age.

 

[Urgluf]

Probably is too young, seems unnecessary also. However some children are remarkably mature for their age.

Yeah exactly, when I was in france I met this girl at the swimming pool. She was interesting, funny and cute and since I speak french as well we got along fine. Well one thing let from another... Let's just say, I'm not welcome in france any more!

 

[Urgluf]

oh and czech republic. and hungary

 

[Garaen]

Anyone who has said no let her do it is either still a child themselves or if not, should never have their own children.

 

[Ezteq]

I work with 13 yr olds in a book group (or did anyway...*cry* before I got redeployed) and I can honeslty say that while they are bright, funny, sometimes so annoying I want to dissolve them in acid...nm anyway my point is that they are still children, they may look quite grown up now and have iphones and stuff but they really are very naieve and vulnerable.