tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13469906.post2687566863797652344..comments2023-05-11T07:47:47.079-04:00Comments on Barb the Evil Genius: Pondering the Idiot BoxBarb the Evil Geniushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04635449477605703171noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13469906.post-38393021825029459002007-08-10T15:10:00.000-04:002007-08-10T15:10:00.000-04:00that 2nd paragraph should read "there are times th...that 2nd paragraph should read "there are times that I miss that time in our lives"<BR/><BR/>(blush)RPWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16686240798146992394noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13469906.post-32876107537430247142007-08-10T15:09:00.000-04:002007-08-10T15:09:00.000-04:00We gave up t.v. for three years (but obviously not...We gave up t.v. for three years (but obviously not the computer), and it worked really well for us. The rest of the world thought we must be pietistic, judgemental freaks, but we only did it because we wanted to, and besides, we couldn't get local channels in anyway.<BR/><BR/>I know it helped Chris's attention span, and there are times that time in our lives. We got Direct TV when we moved here so that we could watch Dodger games (and we would strategically plan our social life (visiting inlaws) so that we could see Dodger games)but along with that, comes the other channels.<BR/><BR/>My kids don't really care for the kids channels. They like Mythbusters and the Food Network. What I found when we were not exposed to television was it wasn't the shows we watched, it was the commercials that really torqued me. On baseball games, Fox would run previews for their latest show with college students ripping each other's clothes off, and without t.v., kids don't really miss what cheap, trashy toys they are missing out on. I really think my kids make better choices regarding toys because they are not told how much fun playing with "Bratz" are. My kids spot junk easily.<BR/><BR/>My parents let me watch just about anything (though they won't admit to that). '70's and '80's cop shows, Dallas and Falcon Crest, and anything else that they wanted to watch. By contrast, I love shows like Law and Order and 24 , but missed four years of them because it was inappropriate for the kids. Now that we are better at bedtimes and they have other interests besides being by my side all the time, I occasionally get one in and find that I was okay missing it.<BR/><BR/>When we did bring t.v. back in our lives, I was amazed at how sensitive I was to the violence, the immorality, and the commercialism again. Avoiding those hadn't been the goal a all, but it was amazing how those shocked us again. They don't shock us as much anymore, and sometimes I think that might be sad.<BR/><BR/>I think that it is one of those things that Christians can decide for themselves, but it also is one of those things where exposure to sin and how t.v. revolves around it and makes it seem normal may not be as good for Christians as we tend to rationalize that it doesn't matter.RPWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16686240798146992394noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13469906.post-39602512503587344982007-08-10T12:49:00.000-04:002007-08-10T12:49:00.000-04:00Hey Barb! Faith from Loopers here! I just turned 3...Hey Barb! Faith from Loopers here! I just turned 35, so the Laugh In conversation was over my head - and it drove me nuts! That said, I was raised with lots of idiot box. I'm hoping to detox the kids a bit once "school" starts in the next couple of weeks. It's becoming too hard to keep up with what our oldest (9) is watching... especially when ABC Family's newest show is about a frat and all the trappings (drinking, drugs, sex, and none of it portrayed in a "learn to make correct choices" type of format), and kids even curse lightly on Disney. <BR/><BR/>That said... <BR/><BR/>A dear friend of mine was raised in "The No-Name Church", and with them, tv is forbidden. I feel sorry for her in a ton of ways. She also learned early on to laugh at the appropriate places during pop culture conversations when she was young to cover up her ignorance... and she still does it. When the conversations move to television or music or anything from before 1993 (when she started college), she's completely clueless. Slang terms that have become part of the vernacular are indecipherable, or worse, invisible, to her. What makes that harder is that she works in the media, and she doesn't see it, but a lot of the rest of us (and I'm sure her coworkers and boss) definitely see it as a negative. <BR/><BR/>It's really a difficult line to walk. I have no desire to cut ourselves off from the whole of pop culture. But I also have a desire to protect my children. Hopefully I can juggle it all to raise balanced children.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13469906.post-90068080241040406922007-08-10T10:59:00.000-04:002007-08-10T10:59:00.000-04:00Hi Barb,I think TV is fine in moderation. I pretty...Hi Barb,<BR/><BR/>I think TV is fine in moderation. I pretty much keep my TV tuned to TV Land all the time. It's mostly on as background noise. Sometimes I will watch an old movie on TCM or watch the soaps when I'm home sick. (I know, bad habit...they kind of suck you in, though.)<BR/><BR/>My parents weren't real strict when it came to TV when I was a kid. When we had cable, I wasn't allowed to watch R-rated movies, and I had to turn the TV off and go to bed at 9:00 on school nights.<BR/><BR/>Usually, the fanatically "no TV at all" types come off as being really self-righteous...or at least they do to me. But I also hate the idea of parents who let their kids watch anything and use the TV as a babysitter. Like I said, all things in moderation. ;-)Susan B.https://www.blogger.com/profile/14075079470118678320noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13469906.post-32446452874681837292007-08-10T07:39:00.000-04:002007-08-10T07:39:00.000-04:00and this is a special book...ikwym, and i just tho...<I>and this is a special book...</I><BR/><BR/>ikwym, and i just thought this morning when M5's first question was, " mum, can we please turn on morning telly?" which is boy-speak for, "i'm still half asleep and i wanna do something which completely switches my brain off.." or something loosely translated as that:<BR/>and i said NO.<BR/>wow, yes i did... and i thought, "i wonder if we could just DETOX and have a whole month off telly? and only watch movies on fridays or something..?"<BR/><BR/>i'm still thinking about that.skatey katiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05586048408864521948noreply@blogger.com