Social media platforms should require users to be at least 16 years old. While these platforms offer some benefits, the risks to younger teenagers' mental health outweigh any advantages.
Research from the American Psychological Association shows that adolescents who spend more than three hours daily on social media double their risk of experiencing anxiety and depression symptoms. A 2023 study published in JAMA Pediatrics found that middle school students who use social media frequently show changes in brain regions associated with emotional sensitivity.
Social media companies design their platforms to be addictive. Former Facebook executive Sean Parker admitted that the platform was designed to exploit "a vulnerability in human psychology." Features like infinite scroll, notifications, and likes trigger dopamine responses that make it difficult for developing teenage brains to regulate usage.
Some argue that social media helps teens stay connected, especially during events like the pandemic. However, studies suggest these connections often lack the depth of in-person friendships and can actually increase feelings of isolation when teens compare their lives to the curated images they see online.
Until platforms take meaningful steps to protect young users, age restrictions offer the most practical protection for vulnerable adolescents.
Zoos should be abolished. These institutions imprison innocent animals for human entertainment, causing tremendous suffering that no educational benefit can justify.
Think about it: would you want to spend your entire life in a cage? Of course not! Animals feel the same way. Just last month, I visited a local zoo and saw an elephant pacing back and forth - a clear sign of psychological distress. If one elephant is suffering, surely all zoo animals must be miserable.
Zoo supporters claim these facilities help conservation, but this is just propaganda. Zoos make millions of dollars from admission fees, gift shops, and food sales. They care about profit, not animals. Anyone who supports zoos is supporting animal cruelty.
The only ethical choice is to close all zoos immediately and release the animals. Either we care about animal welfare or we don't. There is no middle ground.