I went 9 years without a television. It wasn't until we had kids that I decided we'd get a television and strictly monitor programming. To this day, I can't get into regular television or cable television. I lose interest and eventually find myself picking up a book or getting on my cell phone. I've explained that I mean no disrespect, I'm just not that into television. I can't tell you how many movies Christina has put on in the evening and I end up falling asleep or finding something else to do. I don't think I've finished a movie in months. lol
What we use is Amazon Fire Stick. With this we can stream almost anything. We've streamed Mork & Mindy, Full House, Little House On the Prairie, The Waltons, and a number of cartoons we grew up with. I think I don't mind the kids watching these things because I know the content. The newer stuff is just mindless. I've told Christina that I feel like my IQ dropped as a result of watching some of the newer stuff. But over all, television programming is pretty locked down in our home.
My battle right now, is YouTube and video games.
First, I don't like it when my kids watch YouTube. We've monitored content, and it's rather harmless. They watch a lot of DYIs, practical jokes, Parkour, outrageous facts kind of stuff, etc. The strangest thing they watch to me is... YouTube videos of other kids playing video games! I mean, are kids so lazy that they'd rather watch someone else play a video game instead of play it themselves??? My son argues that it is instructional. But it just bothers me. And the other thing that bothers me is that if unsupervised, they will watch these things non-stop all day like mindless drones. Mostly, this happens at grandma's house. But on the weekends, if we don't monitor them, they over do it.
My son likes video games. But he's all into the shoot'em up games. He also
had this game called, Grand Theft Auto (I think it was "5"). His biological mother often buys these for him and he brings them over during my visitation week. When I went through his games I had to take out four or five that I thought were inappropriate. I don't think I've ever seen him so upset. LOL But, I told him that these games were not appropriate and that in my home, and that this is just the way it is.
My daughter isn't into violence. She's into DYI's, artsy stuff, and fashion stuff. Honestly, so far, she's no worry in this category.
I thank God that they are still in the phase wherein they think "sexy stuff" is gross. I know that will change. But we've already had some pretty long and detailed talks about our expectations in that area.
Almost everything is saturated with violence.
I feel like what could be said of Noah's generation is true of our own:
Genesis 6:5
5 And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
I honestly feel like America is going to face God's judgment. I'm convinced that we're already seeing corrective judgment. But I don't think our nation is heeding it. I've considered moving to Canada (friends and family there), but things are just as bad, if not worse on the entertainment front. There truly is nowhere to escape to unless one wants to move to some third world country.
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