Wednesday wonderings - should we microchip our children?

Posted by Rosie

Image from the BBC

I saw a link recently on Twitter that led to a BBC 5 link relating to some-one who has developed a chip that could be implanted under the skin enabling the wearer to be tracked.  The wearer in this case is children.  The blurb with the clip said that the developer acknowledged that :

"an implant would be “invasive,” (but) Stephen said “over 95%” of people on social media had responded positively to the idea." 

That puts me very much in the minority then.

So I did a bit more digging and I came up with this discussion site where 57% agreed it would be a good idea.  Seems like I am still in the minority then as I absolutely and totally disagree with the whole idea.  To illustrate my point I have taken some of the "Agree" points and explained why I disagree them.

"There are too many filthy child predators - I believe micro chipping your child would be an excellent idea as when and if god forbid, a child goes missing it would be easy to locate them. There are no guarantees of course, but have a gps tracker inserted into children would mean that parents have have a better chance of getting their child back, and children might not be raped and tortured by these sick monsters."

So ALL children have to be chipped just in case they get kidnapped. I don't know figures on kidnapping but I suspect it is a very low percentage of the whole yet all children would have to have this implant - just in case.  Many sex offenders and kidnappers are known tot he child (close friend or family memeber) and a chip would not protect them in these cases.  I am also quite sure that it would not take long for the worst predators and organised gangs who do traffic children to work out how to either deactivate or at worse remove the chip.  The possible gains from this sort of procedure are, in reality, minuscule.  

"Do you value your pet and your vehicle more than your own child?"

I value my children above all else and that is exactly why I would not invade their human rights to have them chipped.  The chip that my dogs have is not traceable, it is simply there to identify a lost pet who cannot say who their owner is. A child over a certain age can talk and even before then there is DNA should that be needed.  My car does not have a tracker but if it did it would not be invading it's human rights. End of.

"The option should be available - So long as you think parents should be able to have infants ears pierced or genitals cut then I really don't see how this is any worse."

Well actually I am not too happy with ear piecing of young children and as for genital cutting I believe this too should be outlawed other than for medical reasons... as should inserting a microchip.  Would you be happy if I was to chip you and be able to track your each and every movement?

"A parent's choice, in case they go missing - There are many children that disappear, never to be found again, and no way to track them. Dental records and DNA are used to identify the dead. Parents should have the option, in case their child disappears."

It's true, a certain number of children do disappear but I believe that if the perpetrators knew they would chipped they would simply act quicker and be more likely to kill a child than hold them prisoner. A dead child cannot identify their kidnapper.

"Children are the legal and moral responsibly of parents until, at minimum, they are legal adults. It is time that we take responsibly for our children and help monitor for their safety."

And who would  be monitoring our children's movement?  Do you trust a large corporation to be watching each and every move your child makes because that means they are watching you too? Who would retain this information and could you be sure it would not fall into the hands of the wrong people?  Maybe you would have a phone app for just you to track them ... until your phone gets stolen of course ...

"Kids are quick - As a mother of a child with Autism, I am constantly on edge worrying if my child is safe. He has escaped twice, once under my watch (I took my eyes off him for a second and he jumped the fence and got hit my a car) This would give me peace of mind knowing if he ever escaped again, I could find him quickly and hopefully safely."

I understand that there are some children with special needs where being able to track them could  be an advantage.  So give them a bracelet.  Even then it would not have stopped this child being hit by the car.

"When they turned 18, they would be able to remove the chip if they desire."

So an invasive medical procedure that has done nothing to make vast majority of the children who have the implant any safer will need ANOTHER medical intervention to have the chip removed.  2 medical procedures by the age of 18 for absolutely no gain.  And what about those children who run away ... how many of those will try and remove the chip themselves?

Maybe I have judged the popular mood completely wrong.  Maybe I am completely out of touch with the modern world.  I would be very interested to know your opinions on this.  I shall not jump down your throat if would use such an implant as I also believe that everyone is entitled to their own opinion.  Do 95% or even 57% of you think micro-chipping children is a good idea?  What would be your reasons for chipping your child?