hurting to death or bored to death.
Some kids in small towns and rural places are victims of both. How to solve it?
I don't know how to help with the hurting. But on the boredom, I think society can work on making activities and social events more available and more affordable so that even kids from poor families can attend. I find the South Americans are better at this than North Americans.
When I lived in South America, even though I was in a mining camp in the middle of the Atacama desert of Chile cut off from anywhere else in the world except by telegraph, yet there was a lot of social activity. Foremost there was the ritual of tea every afternoon that came from English immigrants. Tea was a big social event in the day. You went to someone's house or they came to your house, or you could go to a tea house and meet friends there. You always met someone even if you were alone, much like a Parisian cafe.
Then there was the paseo on Sunday. After church on Sunday most of the population would show up in their Sunday best at the main plaza. There usually was some kind of band playing music there and people walked around talking to friends and making new friends. Children played and lovers courted. There were fiestas. Everyone was included and you could dance in the streets if you wanted. There were sports, like bowling leagues, soccer etc.. I was never into sports so I only went as a spectator. But there were also the dances. Again everyone was included. Of course there were many private parties in homes and those were a little more exclusive, by invitation, but if you didn't get invited to some, you did get invited to enough.
In other words, South Americans have figured out how not to be lonely. So even though there was drinking going on and today probably some weed and other recreational drugs involved, people knew when to stop so you didn't get all the crazy that you get from excessive drinking and drug use. There were a few but it was so rare that it really stood out.
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