OK... we have gone too far!
I know this is sorta old news, but I just found this out - the Cookie Monster is now health conscious! How in the hell did this happen? You cannot blame bad eating habits and obesity on him, I don't care what you say.
I swear! According to child care professionals, our parents raised us (my generation and prior) with a risk factor the equivalent of jumping off a roof without a parachute, juggling knives and swallowing fire on the way down. You would think we are lucky to be alive, what with the not wearing helmets and apparent incessant diet of cookies. Oh, and we were lucky to have survived in spite of all the bad influences and habits we picked up from tv shows and movies like "The Dukes of Hazzard" (jumping that creek with my Datsun B210 was very tempting), "Bosom Buddies" (I almost became a cross dresser just so I could get close a Donna Dixon), and "Smokey and the Bandit" (I was offered good money to make a 21 hour beer run, but fortunately I didn't have gas money).
I know we have a responsibility to look after the next generation, and I believe the parents need to be completely involved in their kids' lives. However, I think we need to remember there is a line of common sense we need to observe, and that ultimately a kid needs to be able to be a kid!
posted by Roger C. @ 3/13/2007 10:42:00 AM
2 Comments:
From Jedesign -
I will have to agree with you on this one...to a point.
First, I will say that Sesame Street remains one of the most respected and well-executed programs for young children. It has a legacy that has spanned nearly 40 years and the quality of its programming has never wavered. Millions of children worldwide tune in and are influenced by its subject matter.
That said, it does bear some responsibility for what it chooses to portray on its show and in its characters.
Unfortunately these days, it is more common for the television to not only play the role of babaysitter, but also that of teacher, parent and role model.
Parents are much less involved in the raising of their children that in our generation. This leaves "educational gaps" that are filled with the nearest available source: friends, peers, and very often, television.
But making the character of Cookie Monster health-conscious is absolutely ridiculous! You might as well just eliminate the character altogether.
While they're at it, why don't they give Oscar the grouch regular showers and send him to anger management classes? Or how about Bert lightening up and being less anal-retentive? And would someone please give Snufflupagus some Prozac?
A better solution would be to let Cookie Monster be the glutton that he always has been, but allow other characters to advise him of the health risks of poor eating habits. CM can be defiant, but the message is still delivered to the show's audience.
All this talk of cookies is making me hungry! Anyone care to share a Snickers bar?
The nutrition nazis get way too much attention. Now they're telling us what's "healthy" and "unhealthy" for a BLUE MONSTER to eat? All he eats are cookies. All he's ever eaten are cookies. Did it occur to the n.n.'s that he might be designed to eat only cookies? They might as well tell polar bears to have a salad once in awhile. Or question whether sharks are getting their daily grains and fruits.
Cookie Monster is a MUPPET, for heaven's sake.
If he ate only cookies, chips, ice cream, candy and Happy Meals, THEN we might see kids be influenced by his eating habits. But no child ever has access to enough cookies to actually live on them. (Oh, we could dream...)
Many kids are picky eaters, but the ones I've encountered only want hot dogs or mac & cheese for lunch and dinner. I've never met a child who demands only cookies.
Sesame Street is a treasure. It's one of the best Best Things a kid can spend time watching. If someone has such a skewed worldview that the dietary habits of fuzzy blue puppets with googly eyes is worth going to battle over...then that person is a nut and needs to be thoroughly ignored.
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