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Disposable Toys, Disposable Values

In the world of children’s toys, “the traditional has been overtaken by the trendy, the quality toy has been cast aside for the junk toy,” says London’s Daily Mail. A child psychiatrist, Dr. Kieran Walshe-Brennan, feels it says something about “the stability and morality of the young generation.” In the past, he says, toys were well made, and children were taught to value them and look after them. The “enduring quality” of such toys “reflected a far more stable and moral attitude in the people,” says the doctor. In contrast, “the disposable toys of today, with their built-in obsolescence, are like many young people’s attitude to marriage​—good as long as it lasts, then it can just be chucked away. It underlines the insecurity of many young people.”