Commercials

I want to talk a little this morning about commercials.

Yes. We have TV in the house. 2 huge flat screen TV gods in our house. We don't watch them much. I pre-record some of my favorite shows, which include cooking with Giada and for my girly side..."What Not to Wear," which is, for the most part, family friendly. I have a few other shows I like that I pre-record so the girls can sit down and watch with me, "The Dog Whisperer" is another favorite in the house. But the problem is, even if the show is okay for the kids to watch, the commercials, no matter WHAT time of day...are HORRENDOUS! Seriously!! They are awful! I feel like I am being assaulted in my own home.

Here is the trick...you have to have another show that you can bounce back and forth between and you mute the commercials to make sure they're little ears can't hear anything. But, if the show that you are bouncing back and forth between happens to go on commercial break at the same time, then it is mass scrambling to make sure the kids don't see anything inappropriate. Which, most of it is...especially in the evenings, but really no matter what time of day. So, it just is not worth it. If it's not pre-recorded, we don't watch.

If we watch a movie, the kids are not allowed to watch the previews, because...once again---inappropriate!
Even if it's "G" rated...does it mean that it's safe for your kids? You can't count on Hollywood or any other money-making film people to decide that for you. We must take responsibility for our own children and do the parenting ourselves. We don't need our kids having their innocence robbed from them by the TV because we are too lazy to parent.

I don't think that all of TV is bad. A lot of it can be good. I just pre-recorded a show about cameramen who film some incredible stuff, like the inside of a beehive and learning about all the bees and everything that goes on in there! How cool is that??? I love to sit and watch stuff like that with the kids. I'm just saying...that we have to be HYPER VIGILANT and extra sensitive to what our kids are watching, what WE AS PARENTS are allowing to go into their heads! One hour of bad information or filth can do some serious damage, or shall I say...one minute of a commercial that is for a movie (coming out this month in a theater near you!) that is filled with sex and violence can do some harm--and it's only a minute long!!! I just hate those commercials. HATE THEM!

But lets talk about something else that irritates me. If they aren't commercials for movies or TV shows that mostly have to do with sex, half naked women, or a lot of blood and horror...then they are commercials that mostly depict a man as being a mass idiot. It's like every commercial that has to do with any product placement in the home, whether it be from socks, to scent sprays to make your home smell better, they have to belittle the man. You NEVER see the woman belittled in any way. Just the man. I hate that. I don't want my daughters growing up thinking men are idiots! Yet every commercial's message is mostly about that! I want them to think of their father as dependable, smart, loyal, educated, capable and so much more. My husband is wonderful! He gets up really early to go to work, just to provide for this family. He went and got a degree that would help him out in the job market, just to provide for us, and he does it with a happy heart, and he comes home with a smile on his face, like he doesn't mind providing for us, putting a roof over our heads and food on the table. Isn't that heroic? Why would I want anyone else telling my little girls that men are idiots? Of course, there is a lack of responsibility amongst a lot of men today, but shouldn't we hold them to a higher standard and perhaps depict men as heroes? Maybe then they'd at least try to live up to those standards. Just sayin'....

And that, is my rant for today....