Last month, high school junior Sofia Rubenstein of Washington D.C. used 6,807 text messages, which, at a rate of 15 cents apiece for most of them, pushed her family’s Verizon Wireless bill over $1,100. Apparently, this is an epidemic. Many teens are finding themselves in hot water after their parents get blindsided with huge phone bills thanks to text messaging charges.

This brings up a few points.

1. Parents, when you buy a phone for your kids, learn what you are doing. Assume that they are going to send hundreds of text messages and find out what that means for your bill. The prize for being stupid is losing money. Congratulations.

2. Phone companies still need to provide quick warning when bills are obviously going to surprise a customer. Simple online bill access is not enough for busy people or those who don’t consider the Internet an extra appendage like some of us. Either do it voluntarily or wait for Congress to make you do it.

3. Phone companies, it costs you less to send a text message than to connect a voice call for a few seconds. Get over yourselves and price accordingly.

4. Kids, you know what you are doing. Knock it off. The more money your parents waste on your phone bill, the less likely you are to get that sweet Xbox Elite. Math is teh suX0r.

Yeah, prepaid phones would work, too.