In praise of Pokemon Go

A shocking report from BBC News:

A group of teenage boys who entered an underground cave network to search for Pokemon got stuck 100ft below ground. 

The "glum and embarrassed" foursome had to be rescued after entering the complex, known as the Box mines, in Hawthorn, Wiltshire. 

They had entered while playing smash hit smartphone game Pokemon Go, where users search real-life locations for digital creatures.

Except, isn't that what we rather want teenagers to be like? Getting out of doors and exploring their surroundings?

I'm sure Baden-Powell would approve and I suspect Malcolm Saville would too.

The NSPCC certainly does not approve. The Independent reports its views:

Because the app encourages people to explore the world, by allowing them to find new Pokemon by heading to different places, the app could be exploited by criminals, the NSPCC said. 

The same geolocation feature that is central to the app could be used by offenders to find children, the charity warned.

If you are minded to find children, I suspect there are easier ways of doing so.

It is good to see children out on a summer evening exploring the streets and seeing things the adults around them cannot.

It is not so different to what I do on Saturdays armed with my camera and a few scraps of local history.