I mean, even in the chat some people get all real-lifey.[snapback]7343[/snapback]
That wasn't the deal at all. I am pro dealing with IRL issues. But the things we bring up in our chatroom are always genuine real-life problems that are difficult to deal with. Their forum is mostly composed of "hey I like this girl how do I get her to talk to me" topics, and people responding with advice along the lines of "well you could try to get into her class next semester and then surreptitiously ask her about a math problem and maybe she'll notice you exist." That, and depressed pre/teenagers complaining about how terrible their life is because some girl wouldn't go on a date with them.
edit: Also am I the only one who neither dated nor wanted to date when I was 10-11ish? I mean seriously.
Also I was not meaning to say that depression itself is not a reasonable topic, because it is. However, going into a forum and venting about random silliness and then saying you're going to kill yourself is not the way to do it, and the venting topics are almost always totally unrelated and silly.
Bottom line is, people with problems do need help with them - but half of their "problems" were really just silliness, and a few were actual problems (ie depression) but talking about it in a forum setting is the epitome of futile.
In conclusion, reasonably old/mature people can benefit from each others' experience on the Internet. What ten-year-olds really need is
parents.