Yet another topic making it's way around the blog-o-sphere:
TV: yes? no? what? when? how much?
Here's my take on it:
Everything in moderation.I think a great
saint and doctor of the church is known for this stance.
Temperance being the virtue which aids and governs all the other virtues, it is of utmost necessity that we cultivate this virtue in ourselves and our children... in all things, even(and especially) in television watching.
I have said before that forbidden fruit is sweeter for being so, and therefore I will probably never take away the tv altogether. I will monitor it fiercely, and put my foot down firmly when selecting programs for the kids to watch. But I will also allow them to choose... to an extent.
Even some programs billed as "educational" can be harmful for kids, so I can't even say across the board that that is what we watch. I'll never forget the time we rented an "eyewitness" video from the library about frogs and toads, and they had a segment on witches using frogs in their stews... and then showed a clip from an old horror film of a vampire sucking blood from an unsuspecting woman! Whaaa????? I marched the video right back into the library and informed the librarian of the content and said in no uncertain terms that this was
not a kids' video. Luckily, they agreed.
So, you need to be careful, and watchful... literally.
And the result, so far, is that I have
ruined my children. They are very sensitive about what they see, and so we have been unsuccessful in getting them to watch
The Incredibles, for instance, although have managed to force
Curious George and
Cars down their eye-sockets. (and they love both of them) They also love all the old Superfriends and Looney Tunes, and of course, both
Toy Story's along with the inane Noggin shows... but
Finding Nemo was a disaster, as was
Jonah, but we own that one now.
And, "real life" movies... as in, the characters are not cartoons, but real people? Uh, no. No way. We may be getting there soon. Action Man watched a bit of
Sound of Music with DH and I the other night, and really enjoyed it. Once that door opens, it will be much more fun to have family movie nights, as so many of you can already enjoy.
Sports are where it's at right now, for family tube watching. Good wholesome family bonding... as long as you mute (and sometimes turn off completely) those commercials!
:)
Thoughts, things I missed, different perspectives?
