By Donna Wasson
It takes quite a lot to shock me these days. It really does, but I was floored this afternoon, by a show I saw on TV. My son was upstairs studying for final exams, and left the TV on in the room he normally hangs out in. We don’t allow him to have a TV or computer in his room, nor is he allowed to have a Facebook or Twitter account. I’ve yet to see any redeeming quality to any so- called social media, especially when it comes to teenagers, so we simply don’t engage in those things.
So, he watches TV and plays video games in what most would term the sitting room of our house. It’s an open room, and his Dad and I will sometimes join him in there to watch a hockey game or rerun of some show we all like. He’s been coached as to what kind of shows I feel are appropriate to watch as Christians, and all video games have to be approved by me as well.
Anyway, the TV was on and I walked in the room to shut it off since he wasn’t watching it. I was frozen in place by what was on—a series created for MTV and aimed at teens called ‘Awkward.’ I wasn’t familiar with this show, so I paused to watch for a minute.
The series revolves around a high school girl, her classmates, and their relationship struggles, along with their home lives and parents. Within the first 30 seconds of viewing, I witnessed one female character ask another, “Hey, you ARE going to bring booze to the party tonight, aren’t you?” The reply was, “Yeah. I wouldn’t miss a good booze schmooze for anything!”
Surely, I thought, that was an anomaly on the show, so I continued to watch. The scene changed to a boy reading an essay he wrote about the acid trip he had experienced the previous summer. The teacher asked the lead female character what she thought about the piece, but she had fallen asleep in class. The reason?
Her boyfriend was staying in her home for a week, and she was exhausted because he wanted sex every night, leaving her with inadequate sleep. Seriously! I continued to watch as she complained to her friends about this and listened to their suggestions. As they talked, the boyfriend walked up to her between classes and told her, “Don’t forget to take your pill.”
The students looked at him, and he said “Her Mom told me to remind her!” What the…? Finally, after school the lead female and her boyfriend made it home from the school day. He looked at her suggestively and asked, “What do you want to do?” She said, “Something we’ve never done before…” This wasn’t two bored, long married people looking to spice up their romance. These were children!
Next scene, they were sitting on the couch, flipping TV channels, looking for a porn movie to watch together that both could agree on. She wanted something with a story line, and he made a very rude comment about how the story line didn’t matter, as the outcome was always the same. These kids are portrayed as being in HIGH SCHOOL!! I observed all this happen within watching less than 10 minutes of this garbage!
I found myself standing there, flipper in hand, with my mouth hanging open in outraged disgust! I’m no prude by any stretch of the imagination but, SERIOUSLY? These high schoolers were portrayed living the lives of your average, single, unsaved, hedonistic 35 year old! The show is written FOR a teenage audience and the lifestyles of the characters are normalized, with no thought for morality or the possible consequences of their actions.
When I called my son downstairs, he had no idea what show it was; he’d never seen it before and I believed him, because I routinely check in behind him. Like President Reagan always said about the Soviets, “Trust but verify.” Anyway, after watching with me for a minute, even HE, at 14, was appalled!
Parents, do you keep tabs on what your kids are watching and listening to? Are you really checking up to ensure they aren’t sneaking around, partaking in shows or music that the Lord would find objectionable? I knew society in general was on a greased, downhill slide, but I had NO idea the filth that our teens are subjected to on TV!
continue at Rapture Ready:
Charles C. W. Cooke / National Review
To avoid getting bogged down in the witless minutiae of those who will studiously miss the point, let me get the boring stuff out of the way at the outset: Having nothing to do with the government, A&E’ssuspension of duck-dynast Phil Robertson is not a First Amendment issue, and his freedom of speech has not been violated. By the same token, A&E, being a private company, can more or less do what it wants. Absent a hidden contractual provision or a subtle violation of employment law, the network was within its rights to suspend their star for what he said. That’s how liberty works.
That notwithstanding, the decision is a terrible one, and it speaks poorly of the culture that more people aren’t up in arms. American liberty relies upon an awful lot more than just a legal framework. If it is to flourish, it requires its beneficiaries to possess a set of cultural habits that persist independently of their preferences. The kneejerk instinct to silence anybody who steps out of line — which we have seen recently on both sides of the political aisle — is deeply injurious to our folkways, and it should be condemned. Shame on you, A&E. Shame on you, GLAAD. Shame on you if you applauded the move.
continue article at National Review:
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/366783/aes-problem-and-ours-charles-c-w-cooke
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