Fox News reports on another threat to our nation's children, according to a study. The latest menace comes in the form of an undersea peril named SpongeBob SquarePants, a cartoon curiosity whose fast-paced episodes are said to affect 4-year-olds' attention spans and learning after as little as 9 minutes of viewing. I do not doubt those conclusions, but the passive entertainment of TV adversely affects a lot more people than just 4-year-olds. It is no doubt not a coincidence that the animated invertebrate inhabits another network, Nickelodian.For its part, Nick issued a response worthy of a, um, 6-to-10 year old, saying that it disputes the study, and says, well anyway "SpongeBob" is aimed at 6-to-10-year-olds. Well, all right! No doubt the 4-yo's dutifully troop out of the room when he floats into the picture.
http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/09/12/watching-spongebob-can-lead-to-learning-problems/?test=latestnews
SpongeBob controversy entered my life some years back, when I maintained a brief and casual association with a divorced mom of an elementary school age child. She called me and reported that she was ailing, and asked if I would pick her daughter up from school. I did, took her home. I told my friend I would prepare supper for them and then leave. The youngster settled in front of the TV to watch SB and his crustacean friends.
Presently, the mom called to me and asked what her daughter was doing?
She's watching "SpongeBob SquarePants," I reported.
"You're letting her watch that?!" she exclaimed.
"Yeah, it's a cartoon show. What's wrong with that?" I replied, puzzled.
"HE'S GAY!"
"HUH?! How in hell can a cartoon character be gay?"
"He runs around with that starfish who is just wearing underpants!"
My goodness, a gay sponge and starfish. Bucky, there are yet new vistas for you. She took my laughter will ill grace, and less grace when I expressed indifference re sexual orientation. My noting that SpongeBob was a poor role model in other respects, since he is lazy, dishonest, and sometimes malicious, didn't help either. Not long after that, we discontinued our relationship, and I met Mrs. Stab, who without comment let Miss Stepstab watch SpongeBob.
Moving on
I will be changing employment in early October, leaving my somewhat freestyle work environment for a more structured one, in which my posting will be less frequent (my posting here would be less frequent if biz were better). This should not affect my posting the LTE's for daily comment. Yes, I am pleased re the change, but the employment at the moment is temporary with possibility of converting to permanent.
Shoot and scoot
Compliments to Mr. Delmar Polite, of Thornaby Drive in southeastern WS, who found himself confronting rude visitors at 2:30AM. The intruders had kicked his door in, and set about to steal electronics. Affronted by their antisocial behavior, Mr. Polite produced a firearm and fired two rounds into the floor. The robbers departed sans their would-be swag.
Mr. Polite notified the police, who used search dogs to track the human garbage, and arrested an unspecified number of them.
Polite was both humane and wise in not aiming at the intruders. He would have been well within his rights to shoot any and all, but the consequences can be quite protracted and expensive before those rights are affirmed by the law. There is also another consideration: people and houses frequently do not stop bullets, merely delaying them slightly, as they enter and exit. Shooting at an intruder carries the risk of the overpenetrating or wide-of-the-mark bullet leaving the premises, endangering life and property elsewhere. It ain't like in the movies.
http://www2.journalnow.com/news/2011/sep/12/shots-fired-homeowner-during-home-invasion-ar-1382313/
Word watch
Formidable: again, with the radio reporter accenting the second syllable instead of the first.
Boots on the ground: Fox News, in reporting that 4 U.S. soldiers are in Tripoli. This cutesy phrase needs to be left in military parlance.
Cruising
Last night, OT mentioned mayhem on the high seas, referring to brawls among drunken young adults on cruise ships. He commented that vacationing with 3000 Americans was not his cuppa. I agree. And cruising appears to me to like trying to merge the beach, Las Vegas, and the Houston Galleria under one overhead (nautical term for "roof"). But, never say never. Perhaps there is a geezer cruise, where the passengers are more sedate and the conspicuous consumption more muted.
Sponge Bob and sidekick were a menace to the Angelfish. They were always afraid Sponge Bob etal would sneak into the Angelfish condo and redecorate it.
ReplyDeleteMr Polite was very wise. The paperwork for shooting someone properly is lengthy. Improperly is worse. But in the end, better to be judged by 12 than carried by 6.
ReplyDeleteBoots on the ground. If they are accompanied by matching pants and shirts, anything can happen.
ReplyDeleteStab, I hear that the geezer cruises can get pretty rowdy, too. There was a punch-up a couple of years ago somewhere in the Caribbean between some seniors and the local cops over a cab bill.
ReplyDeleteAnd if a brawl breaks out on the shuffleboard court, those long things that they use to push the disks could turn into deadly weapons.
Of course, as true SpongeBob aficianados know, there is a SpongeBob episode featuring shuffleboard, which you can watch here:
http://www.nick.com/videos/clip/dell_spongebob_phase_3_copy.html
I make no guarantees that there is actually shuffleboard involved, because now that I know that SpongeBob is gay, I couldn't BARE to watch.
I think I'll stick to one-on-one touring where you get to actually meet and have a drink with the locals and find out what's on their minds.
One-on-one touring suits me. I enjoyed sitting in English pubs at night and chatting with the locals, who would gravitate to me as soon as they heard my southern accent. One barfly in York took an interest in aligning me with local customs, bluntly reporting, "You Yanks tip too much." I'm not sure the serving wench agreed, but when in York . . .
ReplyDeleteI guess I'll forgo cruising, since geezers also brawl. Mrs. Stab is prone to motion sickness, anyway.
Ah, yes, the old southern accent thing. Works all over, even in Texas.
ReplyDeleteI was at a conference in Houston, having a discussion with colleagues in a bar. As the group broke up, a woman came over to the table and said "I hope you won't think I'm being rude, but where are you from?" "Not at all," I said. "North Carolina." "Strange," she said. "I was getting southern Piedmont, even NC, but something else as well..." "Well, my daddy was from Atlanta," I said. "That's it," she said. "Blend of Georgia and North Carolina."
Turns out she is a linguist from Minnesota specializing in southern dialects, and like me, an eavesdropper, confused by my hybrid accent.
We have become fast friends. I introduced her to Dick Creed's column in the Journal, now carried in the weekly Clemmons Courier. Last year Creed got onto "buddy row", and opined that it was always used in a threatening manner. I wrote back, pointing out that my experience as a child was just the opposite.
I just sent my Minnesota friend another example of that term from a book that I just finished, "Masters of Atlantis" by Charles Portis, in which one character constantly uses the term "budro" in an affectionate manner. We will discuss this and send it on to Creed.
All of this from my pitiful southern accent.
Charles Portis, BTW, is the author of the novel "True Grit". He received rave reviews when the book was published, but the John Wayne movie of the same name, which produced Wayne's only best actor Oscar, pretty much killed Portis's literary career.
The book is an American classic. Mattie Ross, the 14 year old heroine, speaks with a voice as pure and clear as Huckleberry Finn's. Unfortunately, that voice was quashed in the movie by Wayne's bluster. Ah, well.
OT, I was at a HS graduation party in West Hollywood, sitting amidst the various California accent, when I heard a familiar drawl. I looked over my shoulder, saw a genial looking fellow with a mane of white hair. I said, "Where east of Raleigh are you from?" He replied he was from Roanoke Rapids, and opined that I was from NC west of Raleigh, as I am.
ReplyDeleteMy accent, which is not that thick, drew attention in my trips to Pittsburgh, including strong interest once from a strawberry blonde in a strapless dress at Houlihan's in Station Square. (sigh) I was married at the time, so we went our separate ways at closing time. "Of all the words uttered by mortal men, none are sadder than might have been." :D
You got that right. The girl I met in San Diego still haunts me. I never had more pure fun with anyone, but I had already committed to marry someone else.
ReplyDeleteNot complaining about her, she was, and is still, wonderful, but I think that I missed out on my soul mate. Still and all, not really fair to complain when you consider how miserable so many have been and still are.
Stab...I know how you like to give me little jabs on my position on gay marriage. But I'm hardly alone. With the passage of the N.C. Constitutional Amendment proposal in the house yesterday, we are just one step closer to finding out just how many people in N.C. feel like I do.
ReplyDelete