Kids and Smartphones? When is to young?

Recently there have been several articles published on kids and cell phones, Iphones, and Smartphones. When is the best time to let kids start to play with and use these devices. The article that you can read by clicking the title of this article is a link to an example of what is being said and some thoughts that parents need to consider. Its not an Internet safety message but one about parenting. We need to look at what we put in out kids hands. How many text messages are your kids sending a month? Most parents don't have a clue, much less about what they are actually talking about. Past generations of kids couldn't be pulled from in front of the TV set as their parents used TV as a pacifier of sorts while they tended to other business. Video games, VHS tapes, DVD's have all been used to keep kids busy at times. Now the technology has improved and we can hand the kid the cell phone and Iphones to play with while driving or whenever we feel the need to distract them. We really need to be the parent, and find ways to occupy our kids in ways that help them become better teens and adults. Don't get me wrong, they need to have technology in their lives but they need to live in a way that they use technology when needed to be more productive or trying to learn something rather than the technology occupying their lives to the point where if the battery is dead they have no idea of what else they could be doing. Be the parent, teach your children, nurture them, grow with them and enjoy them while they are young. They will be off to college before you know it.