You bring up a good point. Some people would argue that we've extended our childhood too much. At other places around the world and history, the lack of adulthood responsibilities and behavior (ie working everyday, thinking about building a family, taxes) that many people have in the western world up until at least their mid-twenties might disgust them. The increasing numbers of college bound adults and the college culture of free-wheeling experimental youth seems to have extended our childhoods in a number of ways.

Furthermore...yes childhood is idealized. Kids are nasty little brats sometimes, just like people. And when you were a kid you had depressions, anger, and more worries than just tree climbing or glitter. Someone once told me that we only get nostalgia when we forget what something was really like. I partially agree.

Furthermore, if you still want to color, or climb trees or play with legos or go on a swing, what is stopping you? You can do that now, as an adult. Interest in sex or any other adult thing doesn't mean you have to stop being interested in things like that.

From working with children, there are of course some kids that are way too sex obsessed. But there are some adults like that too. I also work with plenty of kids who never care about talking about sex at all.

I remember back when I was in 3rd grade, I had a best friend and he used to come over every single Friday and we had HBO so we watched porn. It did change our views on a lot stuff as kids, and you're right we didn't even hit puberty yet but still thought about doing that with the girls in the class we liked. We really didn't act any different though, we still watched cartoons and played outside and with action figures and all that, but it did make us look at girls differently. Now a days though, it does seem like the kids don't do much of that, they all think they have to be some kind of thug or something now and it's really disturbing driving past elementary schools and seeing little kids smoking cigerettes acting like they are some kind of thugs.

Hmm, I can see what you mean with that. As for kids turning into thugs, yes. I'm afraid many kids nowadays try to imitate, and aspire to become like idiots such as Wayne Rooney and 50 Cent. Worse than before, I think. Children don't often look up to, or have very positive role models.

I think kids are still being stereotyped. The young kids that I know aren't obsessed with sex or the like. They're just immature and they do think they're cool if they curse and talk crap. Kids grow up, there isn't really too fast or too slow. Just different. Yes, there are mature and immature, but its the same with adults. None of it really matters so long as they develop into contributing citizens. Positive contributing citizens.