It makes me terribly sad that the average Joe off the street can decide what my kids are "subjected" to. This guy lives in my town, but his kids are home schooled. So why in the hell does he care what MY kids are reading? What makes him an expert on what MY kids can "handle"? My kids listen to music (my teenager's choices will make your ears bleed, I swear), watch television and movies (there are some pretty disturbing shows on the Disney Channel, in case you haven't noticed) and play video games (war games with blood and cursing). Some people would argue that all of those things are "bad influences on young minds". Uh huh. Do you ever leave your house? Do you realize that actual live, in-the-flesh PEOPLE have just as much impact on kids as the media? Do you seriously think that the "bad words" that come out of kids' mouths are learned from books?? No, they're learned from mom, dad and every other adult they come in contact with, thank you very much.
I like books. Scratch that: I LOVE books. I spent most of my childhood curled up in a chair, in or under a tree or on my bed reading. I read plenty of "inappropriate" stuff (Danielle Steele was just dirty!). Whatever. I turned out just fine. No, really. I did. Without those books, I would have been miserable. Yes, I'm sure of that. Books made my brain work; made the wheels turn and made me think about things outside of myself. And as a kid, if I saw a "bad word", it was just another word. It had a different impact when I was reading than when I heard it out loud. It was just a word.
I don't know where I'm going with this. I just think this guy needs to be quiet. Worry about his own children. They aren't in the school system, so what the hell are he so bent about? That guy is a "professor of management" at Missouri State. I guess he thinks he needs to manage everyone else's lives.
