Technology and Electronics at Summer Camp: Will Policy Change?

School is back in session in many parts of the country and that means the summer camp season has come to a close. With each passing summer, I try to evaluate the role that technology plays at sleep-away camp. It seems that each year more summer camps institute "screen free policies" concerning the use of technology and electronics at camp, but other camps are gradually relaxing their policies (e.g., letting staff keep a cellphone in their pockets during the day, not checking for campers' Wi-Fi-enabled devices on trips out of camp, etc.). Last week I published the following piece on The Huffington Post's website about technology and summer camp. It has already generated a lot of discussion about appropriate use of technology at summer camp and what the future might look like.

Sitting with my wife by the lake in Northern Michigan at the beginning of the summer I listened as the director of our family camp, Camp Michigania, recited the rules for the week. "One final thing we ask everyone to abide by," he said to the assembled adults, "please keep your children from using any technology this week and try not to use your own cellphones and computers in public." I noted the irony that he had just read his annual list of policies and procedures from his iPhone.

Is it hypocrisy when a camp director asks campers to unplug while being tethered to his own smartphone? I contemplated this from my spot on the beach watching my kids kayak and paddleboard as I tapped away at my notebook computer, enjoying the gorgeous surroundings as I put the finishing touches on a blog entry.

I am a techie, but I am also an advocate for summer camp. I respect those who believe that our kids should leave anything that requires a rechargeable battery at home before getting on the bus to sleep away camp -- hard as that may be. But I also wonder if we're setting ourselves up for failure. Just how far into the future will we be able to continue banning communication devices from these children of the digital age?

The argument against allowing these young campers to import their technology to camp is that they need a chance to unplug and to be fully present without any influences from the outside world. But those influences inevitably sneak into summer camps each year. Overnight camp counselors use the Internet after hours and on days off and then keep the campers abreast of what's happening in the world. Communiques in the form of one-way email messages, faxes and even hand-written letters from family members alert them to the goings on back home. Summer camp for our children is akin to a vacation for us, but aren't we all guilty of sneaking a peek at our email while on vacation? Is the expectation that our kids shouldn't have that ability a double standard?

The Double Tragedy of Lone Soldier David Menachem Gordon

Yesterday, I kept checking Google for any news about the missing lone soldier in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). A "lone soldier" (or Hayal Bodad in Hebrew) is a serviceman or servicewoman serving in the IDF without parents in Israel. David Menachem Gordon had been reported missing since Sunday, and like everyone else I presumed he had been kidnapped by terrorists. In fact, most news agencies were already counting him among the few lone soldiers who have been killed thus far in Israel's on-again-off-again war with Hamas in Gaza.

A statement from the IDF, however, read that the 21-year-old Givati Brigade soldier was found dead in central Israel with his rifle by his side. It now appears that Gordon allegedly committed suicide. Magen, a child protection agency based in Beit Shemesh, Israel, has publicly stated that Gordon was a survivor of sexual abuse as a child in the Orthodox Jewish community of Detroit, Michigan. After making aliyah to Israel, Gordon contacted the organization, which said that he was determined to use his experience to help others.

IDF Lone Soldier David Menachem Gordon, who grew up in Metro Detroit

Last June, under the name David M. Gordon, he wrote a Huffington Post piece about the childhood abuse he endured in Metro Detroit. The post, titled "Secrets Don't Get Better With Age: Why I'm Choosing Leadership over Privacy,” was a detailed account of Gordon's experience without mentioning the names of those who violated him.

Robin Williams, Jacob in the Torah and Depression

I’ve never cried when a celebrity suddenly dies. It has always seemed like something that just happens. Certainly, it’s a sad day when an actor or musician, athlete or politician has “cashed in their chips” early. I mean don’t get me wrong, I’ve been shocked and saddened when I’ve learned of the lethal overdose of a promising young athlete or when the news breaks that a famous actor has lost his battle with cancer. But Robin Williams wasn’t just any comedian. He wasn’t your typical actor or entertainer. Robin Williams was the textbook definition of “comedic genius.”

Robin Williams grew up in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan only a few miles from my childhood home and, while not Jewish by birth, he was widely known as an honorary Jew – both for his brand of humor (always peppered with a Yiddish expression and Jewish inflection) and for his unwavering commitment to Jewish causes. I’ve cried several times in the past couple of days since hearing of his untimely death. He was a brilliant at entertaining us.

Like most of my generation, I was first introduced to the silliness of Robin Williams as a young child tuning in to every episode of “Mork and Mindy.” It was my mimicking of Robin’s goofy antics in kindergarten that led the teacher to tell my parents I was a “class clown.” And then I found my father’s audio cassettes of his standup routines, “Robin Williams: A Night at the Met” and “Reality… What a Concept.” I listened to those tapes dozens of times and brought them with me to summer camp to entertain my friends. The counselors told my parents I should be a standup comedian. Not long after that my dad took me to see “Good Morning Vietnam” in the theater and then I bought the video tape as soon as it came out, memorizing long segments of the movie and then performing them in front of my class at my Jewish day school. The teacher told my parents that I should tone down my R-rated humor.

The Kidnapping of Hadar Goldin

As Israel's war with Gaza continues, peace-loving people around the world become more agitated that a peaceful conclusion seems so far away, if attainable at all. Operation Protective Edge turned into a ground war over a week ago and that has meant more deaths on both sides. It is now the 25th day of the conflict and the death toll in the Israeli military has reached 56 with an additional three civilians.

The most disturbing news out of Gaza is that an Israeli soldier, Hadar Goldin, has been kidnapped. Goldin is a member of the Givati Brigade. The Times of Israel reported earlier today that "The father of captured soldier 2nd-Lt. Hadar Goldin, Simha Goldin, says he's 'sure the army will not let up for a moment and will turn over every stone in Gaza to bring back Hadar safe and sound.'"

At a press conference earlier today President Obama condemned the kidnapping of IDF soldier Hadar Goldin, saying, "We have unequivocally condemned Hamas and the Palestinian factions that were responsible for killing two soldiers, and abducting a third, almost minutes after a ceasefire was announced.  That soldier needs to be unconditionally released, as soon as possible."

As Shabbat approaches here in the United States, I've written the following prayer for these difficult times in which a young man who was protecting the Jewish homeland is now missing:

"May the Lord our God protect captured Israeli soldier 2nd Lt. Hadar Goldin (Hadar ben Chedva Leah) and safeguard him from all harm. May God's canopy of peace spread out among all of God's children to bring an end to this conflict. May we soon see peace in the land and security throughout the region."

Shabbat Shalom!

UPDATE: The IDF confirmed that Hadar Goldin was killed by Hamas on Saturday night Israel time.