On Quake, Marilyn Manson, Doom, The Matrix, And How They Corrupt America’s Youth Essay, Research Paper
Disclaimer: I do not promote youth violence, but even if I did, it?s the parent?s job to make sure my opinion doesn?t affect their children.
Do I really have to say anything else? The disclaimer say enough, but to drive my point across, I?ll repeat it in several different ways in the next few paragraphs.
First of all, I want to say that I am 100% against censorship. It totally goes against a little law called THE 1ST AMENDMENT!
And as for pressuring the movie, music, television and video game industries into producing cleaner content goes, we do need some of that. But I must say, ratings aren?t there because companies put them there for fun. For each of the above mentioned, there are rating and parental advisory systems. If you need a little refreshment on what they are, write me and I?ll send you a copy of them. But that really isn?t necessary considering that: every single movie you?ve ever seen has its rating on the box, on the posters, on the ticket, next to it in your TV guide, and sometimes shows it nice and big right before the movie; every single CD or cassette you have bought in the last few years, if it contained what was deemed inappropriate material for people under 18, had a warning label on the packaging; all TV shows now show a rating at the top of your screen at the beginning of the program and after commercials, and ratings are also listed with the title in TV listings; every video game you?ve bought since the second phase of Super Nintendo games has a rating on the packaging and on the game itself. So booya if you say there?s no way of knowing if the material is inappropriate for your kid or not! Wise up and pay attention!
I know what you?re saying, ?The ratings are there, but who is deciding these ratings and what sort of standards are they using?? The people who decide this stuff aren?t idiots. They judge the content of every line in the film, making note of every curse word, sexual reference, and violent suggestion. Sometimes they screw up and leave out a little detail, or don?t recognize the offensive reference because of the way a line is used or the modern language used. Some examples:
? On Nickelodeon, there was a character on ?All That? who sat in a bathtub with a rubber duck and wore a yellow rain hat. He would say things like ? Do you want to squeeze my ducky? and make references to monkeys a lot. I couldn?t believe this was even on Nickelodeon, much less rated TV Y.
? The review panel may not recognize ?roll up a fatty? or another modern term as a drug reference.
? Mufasa?s death in ?The Lion King? did not cause the movie to receive a PG rating because the battle scene towards the end of the movie (in which another character dies) was deemed suitable, and so therefore Mufasa?s death was also suitable.
Those are only specifics, but I have seen a few cartoons I didn?t think were for the younger crowd because of the violence or situations the characters were faced with. So here?s the solution to safe-guarding your kids if you think ratings don?t help enough: watch the show or movie with them, listen to the music before you give it to them, and find out what a game is about before you buy it.
Lastly, PAY MORE ATTENTION TO YOUR KIDS!!! Just because we are teenagers and you think we are pretty grown up doesn?t mean we won?t be affected by the stuff we are exposed to. It also doesn?t mean that we always make the best decisions concerning what we watch, listen to, or play. Lastly, if you don?t notice that your child is building bombs in your basement, he should blow YOU up. At least then the problem will be half solved.
-All above is from my6 own experiences