John Stossel penned an op-ed on FoxNews.com today railing against “crotchety old geezers” like Bill O’Reilly who keep complaining about drugs, the internet, and their effects on “kids today.” He argues that older people (a demographic he cops to being part of) are so “frightened” by what kids are doing these days, they remain “oblivious to the benefits.”

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For example, Stossel argued, it’s ridiculous to say kids “can’t communicate” in an era with Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Tumblr, Pinterest, and all the rest of it. Stossel pointed out that back in the 50s, the era O’Reilly hails as a better time for kids, parents were freaking out about comic books, and Congress even held hearings on Superman.

In fact, Stossel said, every single argument made by O’Reilly et al. these days is analogous to arguments made by old people decades ago, including the bemoaning of a more sexualized society. And on top of that, the “good old days” really weren’

t that good to begin with, because bigotry was rampant and before the internet people had a more limited knowledge of the world around them.

Stossel was on O’Reilly’s show last night debating the very topic, arguing that kids are far better off today than they were decades ago, in spite of O’Reilly’s whinging about the internet, texting, sex, and marijuana. You can watch the video below, via Fox News:

[photo via screengrab]

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Follow Josh Feldman on Twitter: @feldmaniac

Tags: Bill O'Reilly, Internet, John Stossel, Marijuana