PARENTING!
There's no denying that kids these days are getting introduced to things at a much earlier age, at a greater quantity, and that are generally more "accepted" by society these days then the previous generations.
I mean, I remember being a kid and if you happened to find a Playboy [*gasp*] in the woods somewhere or behind a convenience store - oooooo man - you had entertainment for months!!
And as far as violence - I grew up w/ the cartoons that were actually fun to watch (the Bugs & Daffy days) and Elmer and Wile E were the violent ones.
Definitely all the stuff you see as a kid is influential - and the more you see of it, the more desensitized you are to it. And possibly the more apt you are to try something you've seen. (Am I the only one that tried jumping off the roof of the house w/ an umbrella for a parachute - ala cartoon style??)
So it really comes down to the PARENTS! Parents talking with their kids, educating their kids, DISCIPLINING their kids. It's a tough job - I would think tougher these days than it's ever been in the past because of all the things kids are exposed to these days. Unfortunately, not many are up to the task.
I remember 15 - 20 years ago, when all of this (I don't know what you call it) but like new age parenting came about... Ya know - when it became 'criminal' to smack your kid on the butt when they got outta line - or wash their mouth out when they started swearing at you. When everyone switched to "time-outs" as a form of discipline (ugh - sorry - I still have to laugh at that). The whole idea of "I treat Preston as if he were an adult - I like to enable him to make his own decisions - he can decide if he would like to watch this R rated move or not.." blah blah blah - your KID is freaking 8 years old!!!!!! He's not an "adult" - he's a "kid". Ugh!
I dunno - when all this started happening it just made me cringe, cuz you could almost see this coming - the days when kids felt there was no real consequences to their actions.
I mean, how else do you explain 6 & 8 year olds RAPING other kids... all of the school shootings... that fact that the biggest joke is to viciously "punk" some old person or something... 13 - 15 yr old kids posting half naked on their myspace pages!?!?
It really is kinda sad.
But I don't blame the video games, the media, the mtv's etc... Yes - they suck for marketing the crap towards kids - BUT - it's the parents' job to step in and set the rules and limits - and find the right ways to relate to their kids and let them know what is and isn't allowed and then stick to it.
I'm extremely pissed right now at one of my best friends because I gave her a heads-up about GTA4 coming out - and how I didn't want her to get it for her son (my "nephew"). I also stressed just how much worse it was from previous versions and that she really needed to impress upon him that he wasn't supposed to play and be around it at his friend's house.
Her response "how am I supposed to stop him from going over to so and so's and playing it if all of the other kids are over there playing it??" WTH?!?!
btw - he's 11 yrs old!!
I don't know what kind of magic pixie dust my mom used when *I* was a kid - but I knew there was stuff that I just had to walk away from as a kid. I'm not saying I was squeeky clean - and I certainly got into more than enough stuff as a kid - but man... raping?? shooting?? beatings?? hardcore porn?? drugs?? Hellllz no - it's like you KNEW better - and besides that - just the fact that if somehow mom ever DID find out - forget it man, you were dead!!
Annnnnnnnyway - sorry - long rant. I just get so frustrated when the media goes on blaming games etc and lets the parents off the hook. And then they're also the first ones that will jump all over a parent for actually disciplining their kids.
Frustrating times - my heart goes out to the parents these days that actually are trying!
