[garbanz0]

When I see this I worry that he's become codependent or "parentified" by his grandmother and is becoming the kind of man who would have been her father or her peer when she was younger. Not sure we should be celebrating this when it's impacting his ability to function in modern society. It's probably not a coincidence that the boy "beyond obsessed" with the 40s has been raised solely by his grandmother.

[kypro]

Ohh common... This is completely unnecessary speculation. People are quirky in all kinds of ways for all kinds of reasons. Me and my girlfriend brought a century home, but neither of us were raised by grandparents, we both just like history and feel happy when there's history around us... Lots of people are unique interests they pursue as adults.

From watching the video it sounded like this guy was simply interested in cars as a child and took a fancy to older cars.. It's quite understandable that he then decided to fulfil his childhood dream of owning one when he reached adulthood. I know guys who were obsessed with guitars as kids then when they got their first job brought all the guitars they dreamt of. I know did same thing with computers and computer bits when I got my first job. I even know a guy who liked steam trains as a child so after he left college decided since he's always liked trains he'd work on them.

I guess what I'm saying is that this is far more likely to be a kid who grew up simply liking cars so brought a car that he liked as a kid when he got a bit of money as an adult. I suppose it's possible there was something emotionally harmful about how he was raised which caused him to like different things from other kids, but it certainly wasn't obvious from the video... It seemed like he was a loved child and understood he had unique interests. Plus, he seemed happy and socially well adjusted, so good for him.

[garbanz0]

It seems obvious to me when he outright mentions loving his great-grandfather's diaries and that the obsession didn't start until he moved in with his grandmother. But yes, it's speculation. I would rather ask a lot of questions before showering a kid with positive attention for something that might have been an adaptation to an unhealthy relationship.

[epolanski]

Isn't his grandma from the 60s though?

I agree by the way if that was the case, even though you have cases like Beckham, Beckham's father was obsessed by football and Manchester United and so became his son, but you could see David loved football with all of his heart (and excelled at it).

[satori99]

When I see this I think a clever kid and his grandma have fooled a BBC reporter.

[doctor_radium]

Not sure I'd go that far but do wish the story had a few more details. Did the reporter talk to his friend/girlfriend, or to any of his peers? Lots of people own vintage cars. Lots of people collect something. Some people own vintage clothes. Even if he intersects the three, that doesn't mean he's a complete Luddite.

> We always watch old films together, he's in love with Ginger Rogers," Anne says.

Maybe I'm being pedantic, but UK TV licenses didn't exceed a million until the early 1950's [1], so he's cheating at least a little.

> "I was forced to have a laptop for college, and I hated it."

Past tense. What is/was his major?

On some level I find this positively charming. If I had a time machine, I'd visit the 1940's, too. But I likely wouldn't stay for more than a few weeks at a time. Even Gary Sparrow eventually found it boring. [2]. Hmm, I wonder if he's ever seen "Goodnight Sweetheart"?

> Callum has lived at his gran's house since he was 12, after his grandad, John, suddenly passed away. He's kept her company ever since.

That's also the same year he bought the hat. So this would appear to be a reaction to his grandad's passing? It's not necessarily the reporter's job to play psychoanalyst, but I would have liked more details.

From what I can tell, Kirkcaldy isn't exactly rural, but if his ambition is to run the local animal shelter or local museum, I think he'll do fine. He's just 19 and has plenty of time to decide his life's direction. And should I ever visit Fife and encounter him, I'd be happy to stop for a game of checkers, darts, etc. I was a little kid in the 1970's, before home computers, the internet, ATM's, and cable TV, and could go back and do it again. Tech isn't everything. As I think some have remarked, it may just give him a clearer head.

[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_licensing_in_the_...

[2] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goodnight_Sweetheart_(TV_ser...

[gizajob]

Yeah I thought that. When I first saw it I thought "weird, silly kid" and then when I learned he lived with his grandmother I got the ick and realised there was a much deeper problem.

[solarmist]

As someone that was parentified by my father. Yeah, I can totally see that.

[csdvrx]

What does "parentifying" means?

[Erratic6576]

Parentification or parent–child role reversal is the process of role reversal whereby a child or adolescent is obliged to act as a parent to their own parent or sibling.

Two distinct types of parentification have been identified technically: instrumental parentification and emotional parentification. For instance, instrumental parentification involves the child completing physical tasks for the family, such as looking after a sick relative, paying bills, or providing assistance to younger siblings that would normally be provided by a parent. On the other hand, emotional parentification occurs when a child or adolescent must take on the role of a confidante or mediator for (or between) parents or family members.

[Merad]

Doesn't seem like grandma is a luddite, TFA says she has a cell phone while he refuses. I just wonder what kind of job he's going to have? These days even guys in the trades are usually carrying a cell and a tablet and using them pretty regularly throughout the day.

[garbanz0]

The 40s style probably reminds her of her father. Kids are smart and can pick up on that even if they don't fully understand what's going on.

[6510]

https://www.subgenius.com/bigfist/answers/rants/X0001_ACT_NO...

[garbanz0]

I've had similar feelings as that essay. If you ask me, it doesn't have anything to do with my point. Also, it's good to make sure kids who exhibit strange behavior are not adapting and contorting themselves to fit unhealthy relationships. There are plenty of perfectly healthy ways to be weird or abnormal. Being too defensive about that is a great way to be neglectful.

[shipscode]

Is this like a current year concern inspired by some netflix show I don't watch?

[asylteltine]

Seems to be an unpopular opinion to see this as child abuse and brainwashing. Sad. He’s going to have quite a rough life as he grows older.

[ska]

Pretty big jump to make from the article. There have always been people around who embrace anachronism, and teens who find unusual ways to differentiate themselves.

I'm not saying you are necessarily wrong, but we have nowhere near enough information to make such a judgment.

[jaredhallen]

Also, both could be true. It doesn't have to be this binary situation where he either was or wasn't "parentified." Isn't everyone a product of their experiences? Seems another reasonable is that of course he was influenced by his upbringing. AND he had fpund something with which he identifies and takes joy. May it cause him grief over time? Maybe, bit the same thing could be said for lots of things adolescents do.

[csdvrx]

> There have always been people around who embrace anachronism,

TBH I love tech from the 1990s and before: CGI, terminals, sixels etc and I refuse to carry a cellphone (though it's ok to have one at home, plugged 24/7)

I didn't realize it before, but I now I can see how I embrace being anachronistic :)

[bee_rider]

That’s just good taste, technology peaked in the 90’s, before dark patterns infected everything. The 40’s were a while ago.

[zozbot234]

https://gwern.net/improvement has a good counter to that particular argument.

[csdvrx]

I posted it on https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38689459#38689872 along with a summary of this discussion to provide context

[csdvrx]

I'm not fully retro (I use Wayland for hyprland) but I'm sure there must have been some great stuff in the 1940s.

It's just that I don't know it. Maybe if I did, I would love it like he does?

[solarmist]

I took it as a speculation, if that comment is true, then ...

[ska]

> I took it as a speculation,

Ok but it's pretty groundless speculation then.

[jiminymcmoogley]

It gets worse, it seems even his great grandfather was participating in the abuse from beyond the grave. From the article: "When I was younger, I looked at my great grandad's prisoner-of-war diaries and I just love everything about the period."

Even his teachers were getting in on the sickening brainwashing operation: ""Callum went away on a school trip when he was about 12 and came back with an old-fashioned hat on," she says. "I thought it was funny, and I just asked him, 'Where did you find this?'. "He said 'that's the way I want to dress, that's going to be me'. "Ever since then, that's just been Callum," his mum says."

[garbanz0]

Minimizing it like this is a great way to neglect kids.

[jiminymcmoogley]

I don't think it is, but you havent really given me anything to present a counter argument against... i just dont think there is any abuse for me to minimize, if it wasnt clear from the sarcasm oozing off my previous comment

[solarmist]

Well, I went through this and didn't even see it as abuse/neglect until I was 35 and trying to figure out why I couldn't form relationships with others.

[prmoustache]

I wasn't raised by my grand parents, only visited them 5 to 6 weekend a year, but I was fascinated by their art deco furniture, bakelite door knobs, their old fridge from the mid 1940's and the old faucets in the bathroom and I loved seeing pics of their outfits back in the days.

I also contemplated the idea to buy an old car of the era. My grandfather's old cars would have been out of reach of my pocket[1] so I can relate.

I would have however totally incorporated tech into old design, making old radios work with my flac collection and connectable with bluetooth for example, or converting an old peugeot 402 to EV.

Our societies have progressed a lot in a century in many ways. However as far as design and elegance goes, I think even the richest person of the planet tend to look like crap nowadays with the modern outfits.

[1] some selling for literally millions of dollars nowadays at auctions.

[znpy]

Ironically, he’s going to grow in the new 40ies

[korse]

I think the real unpopular opinion here is that our current brand of technological progress may be a net negative to society.

Humans, without substantial biological modification, do not seem ready for a technology driven quasi-utopia. Keep the biotechnology and pharmacology, keep the industrial robots and keep the private space programs but remove the inexpensive personal computation, omnipresent high-bitrate packet radio networks and with them all of the anti-societal behavior they support.

TL;DR This kid is closer to hyper-sane than brainwashed.

[hermitcrab]

He seems happy and doesn't appear to be hurting anyone else. I'm not sure he needs strangers psychoanalyzing him.

[cogman10]

He could also just be on the autism spectrum? Or maybe he just likes old things?

There's plenty of people that get obsessed over uncommon things that I'm not sure I'd jump to the "parentified" conclusion.