• the217
• Life
• Save our children

Some people seem to worry quite a lot about our children. I hate to quote a Who song, but “the kids are alright,” whether we all think so or not. We should make sure they’re physically all right and that they have chances and choices, chances to learn and the choice to become the kind of person they should become. The easiest way to do this is to make them as smart as you can, give them all the information and let them decide for themselves. I’m not talking about big things, like if they decide they’re ready to drive at the age of seven, but you know, things that are within reason. Children probably don’t need to be protected as much as we think they do.

The biggest threats, according to some, are all the terrible immoral things they’re exposed to. Music, video games, television and books are hitting children from all sides and they need a watchdog to make sure they’re taken care of ... or sheltered, depending on how you look at it.

I gotta tell you, I listened to a ton of freaky music and I’ve never wanted to kill myself. I’ve shot millions of two-dimensional figures and never went on a shooting spree. I’ve watched television like it was important and never believed any of it, though I probably enjoyed it more than I would have liked. It’s bullshit when we blame those things for the problems of our children. Still, I can sort of understand how an idiot would think they need to be controlled in some way. The book thing, however, still doesn’t make a lick of sense to me.

I bring this up because the American Library Association recently released their list of the most “challenged” books in public schools and libraries. It’s sort of beyond ridiculous. The most challenged book again this year was “And Tango Makes Three.” It’s about a family of penguins with two fathers. I’ve seen “March of the Penguins” and I’ll be honest, I really couldn’t tell the gay ones form the straight ones, so I have to assume people are complaining about this book not because of fictional gay penguins, but because they fear real life gay folks.

Some people just won’t stand for such a thing. I would like to point out to all the sane people that when a child reads a book about gay penguins, they don’t suddenly become gay themselves. It’s also important to remember that, contrary to popular belief, gay people aren’t on a crusade to make everyone else gay. They’d simply like you to respect their lifestyle. Whether its people or penguins, I would think it’s best if a child can read and learn about such things. God forbid they become better people somewhere down the road.

The rest of the top ten is equally stupid. Maya Angelou’s “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” was on the list again. Sure it’s well written and touching and inspiring, but it’s also apparently a little too “rapey” for a few people out there. Once again, for the sane folks, it’s merely telling a story about rape, not encouraging it. Trust me, it’s really going to help a lot more than it’s ever going to hurt.

“The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain is also on the list just about every year because of alleged racism. See though, back when Twain wrote it, it wasn’t really considered racist, so much as just the way people talked. I would think our children are alert enough to put a book like this in some sort of historical context. Actually, it’s probably good they don’t read about such things. Afterall, racism is something that doesn’t even exist in the enlightened times we live in now. Oh wait, that’s not true at all, so maybe learning something about it is sort of a smart idea.

Of course, “The Golden Compass” is on the list, as well, because it bad mouths religion. I’ve never read it all the way through, but there’s a line that says “The Christian religion is a very powerful and convincing mistake.” Geez Louise, can we not even discuss ideas that are different from what some people believe to be true. For people who are so convinced they are chosen and right in their beliefs, they sure spend a shitload of time trying to make sure other viewpoints are never heard. It’s like what that one guy wrote about protesting too much.

Like I said in the beginning, it’s about teaching your kids to be smart and make good decisions. A huge part of making good decisions is having all the information available. Also, the thing that really defines a decision is that there are at least two different choices. If children only hear one side, they really have no room to grow. I just assumed that was a bad thing.

It’s absolutely strange how some people don’t want children to read some things. I’m not sure if it’s to protect them or shelter them, but I’m betting it’s more to control them than anything else. When you read, you learn, and I just have a hard time ever seeing that as a bad thing. Let the kids read what they would like and then read it yourself and actually talk about it with them. In the long run, the children will be smarter and better for the experience. The same will probably be true for the adults.