| Author | Topic | | AnonJr
Absent-minded Webmaster
USA
621 Posts |  Posted - 10 Feb 2007 : 22:08:47 
| I was talking to mom today, trying to be the "good son" and spend some time, and she'd told me about a phone call she had received. It appears that a lady was cold-calling and trying to drum up some support for this petition or something.
She started off by telling mom about how sad it was that the criteria for a movie rating had slipped, and how there were all these PG-type movies that really didn't deserve the rating, and would my mother like to help support and do something about that.
Mom mentioned the fact that you didn't have to buy them, which really didn't please the lady... and this lady kept going on and on. Mom added that if you keep your kids busy enough in sports or whatever other activity suites them they'll be to busy/tired to see movies they ought not to see, and besides she (my mother) checked all the movies beforehand to make sure they were appropriate for my sister.
At this point the lady kinda went 'Oh, I see. O.k. Good bye.'
(I should probably mention that I think I got the order of the conversation a little out of order, but I think you get the idea)
What I find interesting is that this lady who called my mother seemed to think that it was other people's responsibility to make sure the movies were appropriate. Now please don't misunderstand - this is NOT a rant against rating systems, movie or otherwise. I think they are useful to a point. If I see that a movie is rated "R" its a safe bet it isn't appropriate for a child. The catch is that a rating system doesn't completely substitute active parenting.
I should probably add that some will consider me to be unable to comment on something like this because I am young and I am not a parent. I think that's a bit of a non-sequitur, but that may just be me. I may also be biased in support of my mother - I mean, she is my mother after all. 
Anyway, before I ramble on much further about this, what are your thoughts? |
There's no trick to being a humorist when you have the whole government working for you.
- Will Rogers |
| Shredhead
Junior Member
Australia
322 Posts | Posted - 11 Feb 2007 : 05:05:17
| Although I don't know you Anon , I'd say you have a least one chracteristic of a good/Godly parent .
As a parent of two , I agree with your mum { yes that's a 'u' not an 'o' lol } & yourself . Why would we as Christians want some wordly rating system deciding what's appropriate for our children . Disney has even put out movies I won't let my children watch , simply because of their humanistic ideologies .
The Bible also tells us to train up our children in the ways ofthe Lord , it doesn't say get someone else to do it .You only have to watch Queen Oprah doing a bootcamp show , to see what happens when parents neglect their responsibility ..... & whether or not they want to accept that responsibility , doesn't change the fact that they're accountable for it .
Hopefully , the work you do when they're young will set them on the right path . A wise man once told me , " you don't wait until a tree is 12 yrs old before you prune it . You do a little, often ,from the moment you put it in the ground . " |
but some of you need to be awakened and slapped silly - William D Rauser |  |
| AXEMAN2415
Guitar Weenie
USA
740 Posts | Posted - 11 Feb 2007 : 10:19:52
| On the whole, I agree with the premise, that way too many parents want to outsource their parental decisions and responsibilities to someone else. That is why Hillary Clinton and other liberal thinkers belive in the "it takes a village to raise a child." (In Clinton's world, she will be the head of the village, but that is a whole different thread, meant for another website..)
At any rate, as a father of two myself, I believe in proactive parenting, i.e., I believe in anticipatiing those things that will come at my children, and putting a stop to them at the roots, not at the leaves. Sometimes I have to say "no" to something, that on the surface, appears relatively harmless, but has the potential for great future damage. Guess what? It isn't always pleasant to say no to your children, but it sets a standard and a precedent for their future behaviors.
As for the movie rating issue above, while I do not personally consider it a worldly rating system, as Shred put it, the rating system is not a panacea, nor is it meant to be. It is meant to help people judge the appropriateness of a film for certain audiences, and that means children, as well. But, it is not meant to replace parental judgement and authority. I agree with Shred, sometimes I will not allow my children to view certain kinds of PG rated films, precisely because the PG standards are being grossly twisted to inappropriate levels.
In the case of Anon's mom, and the phone call, I think that this person calling his mom was simply couching her sense of superiority and zeal in emotion, not facts. I would have said the exact same thing. were I in mom's case. If I am doing what I am supposed to do as a parent, then many of these things will never invade my home. Actually, that is an oversimplification. It is not that these things invade our homes, so much as we invite them in. |
"C'mon Dave, Gimme a break!" | |
| AnonJr
Absent-minded Webmaster
USA
621 Posts | Posted - 11 Feb 2007 : 14:08:50
| quote:
Originally posted by Shredhead
Although I don't know you Anon , I'd say you have a least one chracteristic of a good/Godly parent.
If I'm ever in that position, I hope you're right...  .. I know I'll try.
quote:
Originally posted by AXEMAN2415
Actually, that is an oversimplification. It is not that these things invade our homes, so much as we invite them in.
And therein lies the crux of the matter. We have a choice - just because they filmed it doesn't mean we have to watch it. Same goes for the whole video game thing (Which Clinton is heading up as well, go figure). It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that a game titled "Grand Theft Auto" may not be appropriate for your 12 year old child. And it doesn't take a brain surgeon to figure out that the "R" and the "May not be suitable for all audiences" on the back of the box means that said game may not be the best idea for a young mind... but I digress.
This goes back to something at the heart of a lot of the issues we see - people abdicating their personal responsibility. It seems that in this day and age its everyone else's fault for just about everything - Computer World Article on potential iPod ban , TechDirt article on same (comments on that site get a little rough...), and so on. Its evident in a lot of areas and I'm either seeing more of it or I'm just more aware of it. |
There's no trick to being a humorist when you have the whole government working for you.
- Will Rogers | |
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Media
