Brandon's+Opinion+Writing

**__Are television and video games bad for you? toc__**
The man-made device given the name of the television or otherwise known as a TV was created in 1928 by John Logie Baird and was used for watching programs. When the television was invented it was not as awesome as the new 60 inch plasma TV we have now days but a small black and white not so clear television. Many kids now days would hate to have one of these TVs but back then kids our age would love to have one of these televisions because back then in 1928 this was the latest electrical device out. An accessory to the television was the Atari game console which of course was very popular in 1977 because of course this was the latest thing out. Both the TV and the Atari game console have evolved over the years to a colour but still not so clear TV and the Sega console and of course for our day and age the colour 60 inch plasma TV and many different consoles like a PS3 (play station 3) or one of the latest X-BOX or Nintendo Wii consoles. Many kids around the world would now have one of these devices but is it a bad thing. There are a lot of people in the world who think that these devices are really bad for you and they think that they are a waste of money and time so they do not buy them. I personally think that these devices are good. Here are some reasons why.

Firstly a television and play station console is a good sense of entertainment a  nd some games and TV programs are used as a way to relax. I think that this is a really good thing because it can keep people of any age entertained and happy for a good couple of hours and also if kids have their own televisions and game consoles they can play with these devices in their room and the parents can have time to themselves to relax and talk without being constantly disturbed by their children.

Also televisions and play station consoles are good for your hand eye coordination such as games like Midnight Club on the PS3 or Wii sports on the Wii console. There are also some new games that test your knowledge like Brain Train on the Nintendo DS and Buzz Trivia on one of the play station consoles that you can also play together with your friends and test each other to see who’s the smartest.

On the other hand some kids can watch a little too much television and then become what is called a couch potato. These children will soon became fat and addicted to their television because they will not be getting much exercise. This may then result to kids losing their self confidence when others bully them and they realise they cannot run and play as much sports as the other children can because they are big and unfit.

Also watching to much television can destroy your social skills and while you are watching and playing with your entertainment set you are unable to socialise with others making it hard to make new friends and meet new people. This may result to these children and adults finding it hard to get a job and to join the rest of the world in its way of life.

In conclusion I think that televisions and game consoles are a good thing if you can limit your time watching and playing with these devices and still have the time to interact with others, therefore being able to have fun and relax. Also if you can do the things above successfully you will be enabled to join the rest of the world in its way of life.

**//__ Smacking law __//**
“Should a smack as part of good parental correction be a criminal offence in New Zealand” I don’t think it should. Smacking is a way of discipline for children. Parents think that by smacking their child they will learn a lesson and hopefully they will not do it again. Rather than another law the anti-smacking law was actually a cancellation of section 59 of the crime act, which allowed parents to use reasonable force when disciplining children. It was passed in June 2007 by Sue Bradford’s child discipline law and ever since people have been arguing whether New Zealand should keep the law or not. I disagree with this law it is wrong. Here are some reasons why.

According to One News, Three quarters of New Zealand want the law to be officially enforced. 20% want the law not to be let out and 5% aren’t affected by this law and don’t care. I personally am part of the 20% that don’t want the law to be enforced because of all the reasons listed below and simply because the new law will bring us nothing but hatred and being emotionally scared for life when you are accused of child abuse like this. According to Harriet Jones-Fenleigh from the United Kingdom In 2003 84% of the 170,000 child abuse reports were wrong. There was nothing wrong with the family, relatives or the children themselves there had just been false accusations. Consequently 150,000 children and their families had to endure invasions by investigators, resulting in serious and long-term harm to their emotional and social well-being.

Parents should have the right to smack their children because other parents might not think in times where they want peace or are angry at their child and simply result to this. “We can’t smack our children so we’ll abuse them!” This action would then result to more deaths and brain damage. Also given the fact that the only people ever prosecuted for assault to children aren’t for a light smack on the bottom but for physically abusing their child to the max. I find this result of beating a child appalling and unnecessary.

Also smacking is also a good thing because if it’s not hard it just tells them not to do it again but abusing your child makes them feel not wanted and takes away their confidence and makes them feel bad about themselves. Therefore making feel bad and that leads to some children wanting to run away. I think that children should feel safe and want to be with their family.

In conclusion I don’t think that the new smacking law should be enforced and let out into New Zealand. Our land is fine the way it is. The new anti-smacking law would just make New Zealand worse !



**__Are school uniforms a good idea? __**
School uniforms are a symbol of your school that represents the school you attend in many ways. It helps others in your community recognise where you’re from and of course which school you attend. It can also show what sort of education you have in a way like if the school you attend has a good reputation then you must have a good education but if your school isn’t a very good one you can’t really get the spectacular education you deserve therefore I think school uniforms are a good idea. I enjoy wearing a school uniform because if we didn’t then some members of school may think it is cool to wear intimidating gang colours and could frighten some members of school and make them not come to school and the world would be less successful. I also think that by having a school uniform you can recognise the other students that attend your school and if they are behaving bad outside school they can contact your school and the students parents can be contacted and have there son/daughter punished. I also think that school uniforms are a good idea because they save the hassle of having to watch your awesome clothes 24/7 so that somebody doesn’t steal them and school uniforms are also good money wise. Even though it costs around $250.00 for a school uniform it lasts all year and for some people even longer therefore saves parents the huge effort to buy lots of cool expensive clothes just to keep their children happy. Some other reasons why a school uniform is good are because the community can see all the children as a whole and nobody can be left out because of what they look like because if we are all wearing the same thing we are all seen as equals. In conclusion I think that school uniforms are a good idea and should stay that way. I believe that if all school took away their uniforms many bad things would happen and kids would be frightened to go to school and the world wouldn’t be the way it is now.