Stop using your children to hide your prudery
I'm bored talking about myself, and I'm even more bored with listening or reading my sulking. And I've certainly had enough of the "get a real job" shit.
So in my usual way, I'm going to quickly change the subject and discuss something else.
I've recently found myself sickened by the machinations of psueudo Judeo-Christian organizations forcing their righteous, indignant little fingers into the the media. Television, Film, art, books... They seem intent on trampling down people's rights to freedom and freedom of expression -- all in the name of "morals" and "family values."
Our fabulous conservative government has slid in a new bill (C-10, I believe it's called) that allows the government to assess its funding of Canadian film according to decency standards. Too much nudity? Funding pulled.
At the same time, there are smarmy little groups in the US bitching and moaning about the suggestion of nudity on television -- such as a nude photoshoot for America's Next Top Model, where all naughty bits were hidden by blankets and blurring. It's horrifying enough that these uptight religious groups have turned most films on non-cable networks into farcical works by eliminating "contentious content" and unacceptable language... or worse still, by dubbing "Family friendly" words over the actors' mouths, but when we continue to berate television studios for even suggesting nudity, I think we've taken our prudery a little too far.
Firstly, stop using "the children" as pawns -- as adults and parents, it is YOUR responsibility to monitor and control the things your children are exposed to on film and television. Do not censor my art, film and television merely because you are too lazy to do anything other than dump your child in front of the TV, remote in hand.
With a few strange exceptions, my parents didn't believe in shielding me from anything that didn't cause us nightmares. I think my mom tried to keep anything too porny off the TV, but nudity and sex certainly weren't restricted from our television screens.
In fact, the only thing I really remember my mother banning from my TV watching was G.I. Joe -- something about promoting Americanism. Why my mother felt a 10-year-old little girl would understand the complexities of manifest destiny, pro-military action rah-rah-ness is beyond me.
And something strange happened to me from my TV watching... I developed the ability to think critically about television. To watch the fluff and commercial filler on the boob tube and assess its suitability, its messages and its subversive suggestions. And even better -- I don't watch a lot of it. I love movies, and I have one or two shows I enjoy, but I'd still rather curl up with a book.
So it angers me to see religious groups running around and screaming about the so-called indecency of TV.
The truth is, you're prudes. You can't deal with anything that makes you question your religion, your body, or your fascist conservative ideologies.
And I've never met a pious nut who wasn't a complete hypocrite -- I've yet to meet a bible-thumper who was consistent in their religious beliefs. From what I can tell, most of them use their bible to reinforce their narrow-mindedness and bigotry... while conveniently ignoring any passages that might apply to them.
So keep your bible and your religion. Enjoy them, practice them and use them in good health. But keep it out of my life unless I request otherwise.
And quit hiding behind your children.
The truth is, they probably think you're a fecking idiot, too.
posted by /hg | 12:30 p.m.
9 Comments:
Maybe you should write opinion pieces for newspapers. This is great.
It would be particularly well suited to Irish publications, with it's use of the popular Irish vernacular "fecking".
*blinks*
...get a real job SHIT?????
Tsk, tsk. Such language. Though speaking as one who has never had a 9 to 5 job, I concur.
Go for the Starbucks 1 pm to 9 pm shift!
personally, i love religion and the religious. so i think you're wrong. i think a moral crusade is just what we need. censoring hippy artists and debauched net-pornographers is A Good Thing.
you think i'm joking? ok, i am about the religion bit, but i think shit / violence / sex on our screens DOES affect the young. and i seriously doubt you can trust the current airhead-free-thinker-breeding generation (i.e, YOU) to hit the off switch and save their kids some pain. so, yeah, censor it.
i have a friend in an isp in the uk. he tells me that 65%+ of the TIME people spend on the 'net is spent on sex/porn sites. hell, i like sex as much as the next person but i don't want to watch people doing it, i want to be doing it myself. and i want to stop those sad buggers wanking themselves to death and get them learning stuff on wiki instead.
so censor EVERYTHING, under any pretext you can think of. religion and kids will do just fine.
marty, you are an asshole. true.
Do you really think that sex and violence on the TV is anything compared to what is going on in school and on the streets?
In large urban centres -- especially in North America -- it's virtually impossible to keep children innocent unless you keep them locked up at home. These kids are painfully acquainted with it long before we adults have even considered it a factor in their lives. Better to to see it on TV and talk to them about it rather than have them educated in the schoolyards.
And don't throw in the porn stats from the Net -- that's an entirely different matter. What I'm talking about is censorship of art and film... or the fact that ultra-conservative groups are trying to maintain their idea of "decency" and simply using the children as a veil for their prudery. They aren't complaining about violence, they're complaining about sex and nudity.
There are a lot of ugly truths about the rampant jingoism and censorship in both the US and Canada which we choke down on a regular basis. It's a grossly two-faced society that slowly revokes individual freedoms while waving their constitutional and human rights flags.
You can berate the airheaded free-thinkers all you like... but maybe you should spend some time in the fundamentalist American south before you condemn the hippie approach, hmmm?
You didn't ask which I PREFERRED; fundamentalist or free-thinking Yankees, 'cos of course I'd go for the latter. However, that isn't to suggest that the fundamentalists can't - on some issues - be talking complete sense.
Yes, I DO believe that violence in the everyday media - books, magazines, computer games, tv, and film - has changed the way children (and by implication, adults) view violence, and YES, I believe we're all suffering as a result.
How can ANY rational person not reach the same conclusion? What else could have influenced the shift towards the acceptance of casual violence we see in the average child? Children cannot rationalize - that why they're kids. They can't place things in perspective. Present them with acts of violence or sexuality in their everyday recreational lives as you'll create adults with a propensity for casual act of violence and an unusual attitude towards sexuality.
Again I ask, why do you find this so difficult to accept? Does it interfere with your cherished concepts of 'freedom'. Freedom to fuck with the heads of kids? I think not.
Keep you freedoms for the adult world and create one of nurturing and safety for the young. Then, when they mature, introduce life's little realities. But keep the sight of blood-splattered zombies and hot babes out of their lives until they've both the desire and the perspective to handle these things.
You are an idiot to suggest otherwise under ANY guise, even that of 'individual artistic freedom'. Saying, in effect, that 'it's already out there' is no defense. It wasn't out there years ago and we can go back to that ethos and era quite easily. Though in so doing it may life life harder for some writers, program-makers and computer games designers.
I can already hear the screams, "...but it's my ARTISTIC RIGHT to show sex and violence... it's ESSENTIAL to the story..." Fuckwits.
One day, people like you will realize that responsibility walks hand-in-glove with freedom. If you can't exercise the former you CERTAINLY don't deserve the latter.
You're still not getting the point -- I'm not saying children shouldn't be protected from these things. I'm saying that censorship should be in the hands of the parents... not in the hands of governmental bodies.
If you're not capable of creating a disciplined environment where you control most of what your children see, then perhaps you're better off not procreating. THAT'S taking responsibility.
People have the right to choose for themselves -- or their children. What gives you the right to dictate what another individual can and can't have access to? Because you're smarter? More educated? Because you have a more privileged lifestyle than most?
And what's to stop you there?
"One day, people like you will realize that responsibility walks hand-in-glove with freedom." This is the sort of horrifying rationale that governments spew in order to justify taking away people's rights to a fair trial in the name of national security.
For the record, I was permitted to watch what I liked. I was playing "adult" video games at a young age, watching restricted movies, etc etc. And I've grown into a normal adult with a healthy respect for other people's lives. I make a concerted effort to be peaceful, even to the point of apologizing to the spiders I've killed in my apartment.
I don't think the problem is rested solely on books, TV, film, and video games -- I think there are other, far more worrying factors at play. Such as the fact that human beings are -- at their core -- destructive, violent creatures.
My own personal theory is that while this can be partly contributed to the mess of violence everywhere (I'm not saying I approve of it, or that I think it's great -- I'm merely defending its right to exist), perhaps it has something to do with the fact that previous generations have usually had a major war -- Vietnam, WWi&II -- to deal with. Ever notice how a generation becomes less enamoured with violence when they're busy worrying about friends and family being blown up or shot?
Here in North America, we live a fairly safe existence -- so what do we do? We do our best to try and kill each other. Why? Because it's in our nature.
Your obsession with violence in the media is merely a symptom of a larger problem. People -- at their basic core -- are violent assholes, and they're likely to find an outlet for it some way or another.
Funnily enough, some experts have suggested that the major income gaps produce unhappy people and create frustration with children who are constantly reminded of what they don't have... who then respond with violence.
And despite what they find in the media -- adults will fuck with children's heads anyway. Mostly because 93% of adults are too stupid to be actively responsible, educating and loving towards their children without seriously damaging them in some grotesque way.
So you can sit and scream about "irresponsible" twits like me... or maybe, instead of railing on some silly blog that no one reads, you can actually try to contribute or create something that's good and give those kids an alternative.
I wrote you a lengthy and beautifully structured reply. Even *I* was impressed by my logic. But, on reflection, it's more fun annoying you about Starbucks.
May we return to that subject, please?
Yes.
They're having a job fair on Tuesday and asked me to stop by (even despite my appalling bluntness on my application -- "Why did you leave former job?" "They were stealing my soul?"
Think I might qualify for shift supervisor?
I'm not sure the idea of employing someone with a soul capable of being stolen will appear to many potential employers.
Perhaps you should simply say, 'I enjoy interacting with people and I like to accept responsibility for others?' (though only say the latter if you'd actually LIKE to be a shift supervisor).
Other pointers? Clothes are good, especially if they're clean and neatly pressed. Shiny shoes look nice too. Speaking in complete sentences never fails to impress, as does a cursory knowledge of the potential employers business or product. Other than that, it's in the lap of the gods.
Good luck! And don't forget to blog the daily minutia of 'My life as a Starbucks girl'. It may make more sense than your rant about censorship and, for sure, it'll be a damn sight more entertaining :-)
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