Wednesday, February 23, 2011

There comes a time...

In every parent's life when you have to put your foot down.

I might as well never take them off the floor, I have so many strong opinons on so many things--it's hard to get all my baggage up in the morning.

But this post is about TELEVISON (If TV is your best friend & you can't imagine life without it, turn away now) and the crazy crap it brings into our homes.
Serial killers? on at least 4 different channels. More if you have cable.
Mysogynistic music videos? Plenty of those.
General cruelties that only humans can inflict upon each other because animals aren't that imaginative? In SPADES.

So I have limited the "appropriate" TV channels to 2. PBS and Disney.
And do you know what I have learned?
I don't like Disney.

I liked the movies growing up, but viewed from this angle they seem to have some pretty heavy ideas regarding gender roles and occupations.
I don't know about you, but last time I scoured the want ads nobody was looking to hire a "Princess". (Actual EMPLOYMENT, not partners in kinky sex escapades)

From watching the line up of Disney shows, it is clear that the scripts aren't written by people with impressionable children in their homes. Many of the plotlines involve hiding things from Mom and Dad. Awesome. Let's implant THAT idea into the heads of America's youth. How about we focus on the virtues of resourcefulness & honesty & creativity?

Maybe this is why my parents house only had 1 TV and no cable.

Well done, Mom & Dad.

We have blocked a number of "kid" channels, and have set timers on how long the TV can be on. I know it's winter & it's cold outside, but eeesh. Adrian asks for new toys all the time & I am not inclined to get him any if he's not going to use the ones he's got. We have art supplies, a dress-up bin to kill for, toys, and books. He has more than enough to keep him occupied.

Spring Break is the last week of March. And it's going to be very nearly TV free.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well said! Also the Disney channel reinforces the horrendous notion that people aren't valuable unless they paired with a partner, which to me seems like one of the most devastatingly destructive ideas to the concepts of self-respect and self-confidence, which are the cornerstones of happiness!

-Jono

Amber Pixie Shehan said...

I haven't watched TV in so long, that I'm horrified whenever I do!

I hate Ice Age, I hate Disney, I hate a lot of modern media. The blatant advertisements and the reinforcement of outdated cultural stereotypes makes me grind my teeth.

I would much rather listen to an audiobook while crafting, or talk, or read, or even play video games rather than idly sit and stare at a screen. That's why I like computers, there's at least some sort of interaction with people.

Eric grew up without a TV, and I think he is smarter for it.

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Connie said...

Our kids grew up w/out TV and it didn't hurt them at all. Imagination has a great chance of survival when it's given opportunity to thrive. Kudos to you for caring about your kids enough!!

Vicky said...

i remember a lot of afternoons when i was little, lying on my stomach on the floor of my room, listening to audio tapes and drawing. tv makes us lazy. there's so much else to do. playing board games together is often seen as cheesy but so much fun when you get down to it. Twister also brilliant. roasting marshmallows in the fireplace. - i like the idea of dressup. and how much more fun is it to spend time with your kids than staring at the tv screen. i loved movies when i was little and still do, but there is a limit to everything.