While I think it's a bit far fetched to say that not watching the ads is stealing, at least as far as network television goes, the ads are there for a reason. Because we get it for free. And as far as cable/satellite goes, you're paying for the service, not for the programming. The programming still needs to be paid for by ads. And while the quantity of advertising has gotten ridiculous, even abusive on some stations, there is definite pressure for more ads. The push for hdtv alone (something most stations can't really afford) will mean more ads if we actually want to see it as a reality. I personally don't care about hdtv, and I'm fine if people want to use pvrs, though I don't see the need for them, myself. If so much tv programming is crap, and it is, why bother spending money on something like that? Ads themselves are not inherently bad, but the increase in them I think is just a biproduct of other evils in the media.
heh. Reckless liberals. Maybe you should look at the personal history of George W. Bush. I love how conservatives can't help opening their mouths to bash liberals as being some depraved lot, when they're no better. It's a shame that the media and liberals let them get away w/ it.
I don't think this is quite the same sort of harm as if public water systems suddenly decided to start putting arsenic in the drinking water. This harm (if it exists), is caused by children being RAISED on the media and nothing else. Entertainment is not a valid form of education. Someone who does not get social education is going to be socially dumb.
Do you think that's normal? I mean, do you think that the average teenager is participating in "group sex parties". If you do, I think you ARE being an alarmist. Yes, more kids are becoming sexually active younger than they used to, and that's why everyone needs to be educated on the risks involved, and why safe sex and abstinence should be promoted. I'd rather my kid was having safe sex w/ someone they were comfortable w/ and committed to than going around fucking like a rabbit because our society was too uptight to face the facts.
But this is just the kind of story that is something being blown way out of proportion. This was a fairly affluent town where the parents were too busy to raise their children so their children had no guidance and also nothing to do, no outlet for their emotions, and obviously no education on the dangers of the sort of behaviour they took part in. This is a rather extreme case of what can happen in that situation, but it is pretty obvious to me that that could have been easily prevented w/o government intervention. Unless by government intervention you mean government funding for after school programs, sex ed, and distribution of condoms.
We see these horrible things happen, and we ask why. And I think too many people are too afraid to really look, and think that the government impossing harsh penalties on teens behaviour and censoring the media and the like will somehow fix things. But, if anything, I think that will make kids more rebellious and cause more problems. That is the way to breed ignorance. I don't think there IS a quick fix for any of the major problems in our society, and I don't think there is any one solution. But just because it's difficult, doesn't mean we can't overcome it.
Too often, I think older people look at current society and think because it's different it must be bad. It's happening now, it happened in the 60s. There are always going to be unsavory aspects of society, but more often than not I think it is better to try to adapt to changing conditions and channel societal concious in a positive direction than to pretend we can push back the clock.
Censorship is not what is needed. Regulation is an easy way out that a lot of people think they see. But whether it be ratings or outright censorship, it is not going to be very effective. While censorship might be effective in controlling what the media is producing, it has its own negative effect on society.
And besides, if you're to believe this article, it's the medium itself that's damaging, not the content thereof. What this society needs is for people to take more responsibility for their own actions. People think they can get away w/ most anything, including having a child and then failing to take care of it properly. Parents need to be made aware of childrearing techniques that have proven effective. They need to spend time w/ their children, whether it be reading to them or taking them out somewhere. But this is not to say that kids shouldn't be able to play games. But it is up to PARENTS to regulate what games their children play and for how long each day. The media does send horrible messages to kids, but if a parent is doing their job, their influence should be a lot stronger than anything the media throws at us.
Of course, there are always exceptions. Some kids are raised well and turn out "badly", and others aren't raised well and turn out to be great people.
I don't think we need regulation at the government level, but w/ the ever increasing pace and the every man for himself attitude of our society, we really need to think about how this is shaping our world and the development of our children, and whether or not we are going in a healthy direction. Though I certainly don't see a slide into "violence and depravity" around the corner.
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While I think it's a bit far fetched to say that not watching the ads is stealing, at least as far as network television goes, the ads are there for a reason. Because we get it for free. And as far as cable/satellite goes, you're paying for the service, not for the programming. The programming still needs to be paid for by ads. And while the quantity of advertising has gotten ridiculous, even abusive on some stations, there is definite pressure for more ads. The push for hdtv alone (something most stations can't really afford) will mean more ads if we actually want to see it as a reality. I personally don't care about hdtv, and I'm fine if people want to use pvrs, though I don't see the need for them, myself. If so much tv programming is crap, and it is, why bother spending money on something like that? Ads themselves are not inherently bad, but the increase in them I think is just a biproduct of other evils in the media.
heh. Reckless liberals. Maybe you should look at the personal history of George W. Bush. I love how conservatives can't help opening their mouths to bash liberals as being some depraved lot, when they're no better. It's a shame that the media and liberals let them get away w/ it.
I don't think this is quite the same sort of harm as if public water systems suddenly decided to start putting arsenic in the drinking water. This harm (if it exists), is caused by children being RAISED on the media and nothing else. Entertainment is not a valid form of education. Someone who does not get social education is going to be socially dumb.
Do you think that's normal? I mean, do you think that the average teenager is participating in "group sex parties". If you do, I think you ARE being an alarmist. Yes, more kids are becoming sexually active younger than they used to, and that's why everyone needs to be educated on the risks involved, and why safe sex and abstinence should be promoted. I'd rather my kid was having safe sex w/ someone they were comfortable w/ and committed to than going around fucking like a rabbit because our society was too uptight to face the facts.
But this is just the kind of story that is something being blown way out of proportion. This was a fairly affluent town where the parents were too busy to raise their children so their children had no guidance and also nothing to do, no outlet for their emotions, and obviously no education on the dangers of the sort of behaviour they took part in. This is a rather extreme case of what can happen in that situation, but it is pretty obvious to me that that could have been easily prevented w/o government intervention. Unless by government intervention you mean government funding for after school programs, sex ed, and distribution of condoms.
We see these horrible things happen, and we ask why. And I think too many people are too afraid to really look, and think that the government impossing harsh penalties on teens behaviour and censoring the media and the like will somehow fix things. But, if anything, I think that will make kids more rebellious and cause more problems. That is the way to breed ignorance. I don't think there IS a quick fix for any of the major problems in our society, and I don't think there is any one solution. But just because it's difficult, doesn't mean we can't overcome it.
Too often, I think older people look at current society and think because it's different it must be bad. It's happening now, it happened in the 60s. There are always going to be unsavory aspects of society, but more often than not I think it is better to try to adapt to changing conditions and channel societal concious in a positive direction than to pretend we can push back the clock.
Censorship is not what is needed. Regulation is an easy way out that a lot of people think they see. But whether it be ratings or outright censorship, it is not going to be very effective. While censorship might be effective in controlling what the media is producing, it has its own negative effect on society.
And besides, if you're to believe this article, it's the medium itself that's damaging, not the content thereof. What this society needs is for people to take more responsibility for their own actions. People think they can get away w/ most anything, including having a child and then failing to take care of it properly. Parents need to be made aware of childrearing techniques that have proven effective. They need to spend time w/ their children, whether it be reading to them or taking them out somewhere. But this is not to say that kids shouldn't be able to play games. But it is up to PARENTS to regulate what games their children play and for how long each day. The media does send horrible messages to kids, but if a parent is doing their job, their influence should be a lot stronger than anything the media throws at us.
Of course, there are always exceptions. Some kids are raised well and turn out "badly", and others aren't raised well and turn out to be great people.
I don't think we need regulation at the government level, but w/ the ever increasing pace and the every man for himself attitude of our society, we really need to think about how this is shaping our world and the development of our children, and whether or not we are going in a healthy direction. Though I certainly don't see a slide into "violence and depravity" around the corner.