Nickelodeon to air program on same sex parenting despite massive protests
 

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20020618/ap_wo_en_po/us_tv_gay_par ents_2

[This message has been edited by ****** (edited 06-18-2002).]

why wouldn't you agree wtih it? All it does is get the message out that there exists families different from a daddy and a mommy so hopefully it won't seem unusual to a child when he encounters it in school. Maybe they'll be less likely to tease if they learn about it at a young age. it's not explicit - it's just laying out facts.

ahhh changed your mind already, eh?

My good buddy Jerry Falwell was on Wolf Blitzer's show a minute ago talking about it and doing his best to not seem like the fucking bigot he is.

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My anti-drug is non-consensual sex with minors.
AIM: Mista Saki

Yeah, I just looked at it and thought 'Wow, that looks stupid. I'm not stupid.' So I deleted it.

Here's a snippet from another article I read:

This will probably shoot steam out of my ears. Words cannot describe how much I hate this man. Billy Graham, too.

Good for Nickelodeon. Seriously.

yes. Linda Ellerbee is hosting the special and she's gay, no?

that really makes my skin crawl. im all for same sex parenting, but i dont like the idea of a children's tv network trying to dumb down the issues to try to promote forced tolerance. the idea of a children's network trying to promote *any* side of any charged debate like this just seems wrong

Forced tolerance? Explain how it's forceful.

Well, you do have a point, and Falwell did also make one that the pro-homosexuals would benefit more from the discussion than his group would, despite how fair the network tried to make it.

I suppose the point behind the thing is to try to instill some open-minded views in the kids before they grow up with a dislike for people different than themselves. Not every kid has the opportunity to grow up in a diverse environment, and the television may be the only exposure they have to people of different races, beliefs, and sexual orientations.

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My anti-drug is non-consensual sex with minors.
AIM: Mista Saki

If the program benefits pro-homosexuals despite how fair the network tried to make it, shouldn't that tell you a bit about the opinion that anti-homosexuals hold?

Just a thought.

At the same time, that's a far cry from the "Hey, kids, go grope someone of the same gender" message that the opponents seem to claim it is.

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http://www.toolcity.net/~burt/images/pimp3a.jpg
My anti-drug is non-consensual sex with minors.
AIM: Mista Saki

Heh. I guess it's the same with everything. If there's a pretty objective segment about marijuana on the news, there are probably a hell of a lot more kids thinking that looks like fun than there are thinking they should stop smoking it.

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http://www.toolcity.net/~burt/images/pimp3a.jpg
My anti-drug is non-consensual sex with minors.
AIM: Mista Saki

"Pro-homosexual" and "anti-homosexual" look silly.

Eleven-year olds quoting biblical passages...now this sounds interesting to me.

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http://www.toolcity.net/~burt/images/pimp3a.jpg
My anti-drug is non-consensual sex with minors.
AIM: Mista Saki

Yeah, 'cause you know... being tolerant is like, bad 'n stuff.

maybe forced is a bad word. i dunno, induced tolerance maybe?

all i mean is that the program will obviously have a pro-homosexual bias, and that if the show does in fact have an impact on the impressionable young viewers it will likely induce them to be more tolerant towards homosexuals. and while i do completely think it would be a very cool thing if everyone were more tolerant, i really disagree with the method. it sets a precedent that im not comfortable with. sure, this time the network is advocating the position i agree with, but what happens next time, or the time after?

i dunno, i agree with the ends, but not the means.

i know, but "pro-gay rights" or "pro-gay equality" is less readable

I totally understand what you're saying, but what is the alternative? Not discussing it at all?

Indifference is probably as detrimental to the pro-gay cause as outright gay-bashing.

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http://www.toolcity.net/~burt/images/pimp3a.jpg
My anti-drug is non-consensual sex with minors.
AIM: Mista Saki

Well, it's a pretty bold move on the part of Nickelodeon. They will probably lose a lot of viewers because of this special. I know a lot of families who would do that. While it may not be ethically right for children's network to air this special, I like the fact that they're making the decision to try and influence the next generation to be just a little more tolerant.

Exactly.

"Well, what they do behind closed doors is their business... I just don't want to see it happen in front of me"

Exactly. If you can provide a better alternative for it, I'd like to hear it.

but tv precludes discussion. and besides, these are kids we're talking about, they arent capable of this sort of discussion. and what's nickolodeon's target age group? 6-12? theres no way a 12-year old can critically think about this sort of topic. and thats my fear, that the kids wont be thinking about it, that they're just going to absorb whatever they're shown, without being able to realize they're being handed a skewed perspective

It's not going to be a skewed perspective, though. It's about tolerance and how one shouldn't hate. It's not about why being gay is right or wrong, it's about how much being the target of hate really sucks.

an alternative? let the kids be, and work on the thinking, reasoning adult population instead. let abc do a 20/20 special on gay parenting, give publicity to the sociological studies showing that being raised by two men or two women doesnt cause emotional damage, sign the petitions to ease restrictions on gay parenting, but dont indoctrinate children with your viewpoint

I assume the kids in attendance are to make sure that the discussion doesn't morph into a high-level debate on ethics and morality, with specific references to the bible. Still, while young children won't understand everything, they'll at least recognize that rather uncommon types of families do exist, hence the title "My Family is Different." Also, it might help those who are being raised by two parents of the same gender feel like they aren't alone just because nobody in their school is in the same position.

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http://www.toolcity.net/~burt/images/pimp3a.jpg
My anti-drug is non-consensual sex with minors.
AIM: Mista Saki

I think it's a well known fact that kids at younger ages are much more highly impressionable than kids who are older. If Nickelodeon exposes a nation of kids to another perspective, it will help, I am sure of it.

The children now will be the adults of tomorrow. It's much easier to plant a concept in the head of a child than it is to totally reverse any opinions a 45-year old adult may have held during the half century of his/her life.

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My anti-drug is non-consensual sex with minors.
AIM: Mista Saki

i know they're more impressionable, and thats my issue. im worried about this not because i dont want kids to be tolerant, im worried because of what will happen if they decide to do a half hour special on why we need to nuke iraq, or why martial law is a good thing, or why (insert anything im opposed to) is neccessary

like i said, i agree with the ends, not the means. i think trying to intentionally plant ideas in a kids head is far more morally wrong than intolerance

Have you seen EWTN lately? Like the Angel Force isn't trying to influence kids into catholicism..

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http://www.toolcity.net/~burt/images/pimp3a.jpg
My anti-drug is non-consensual sex with minors.
AIM: Mista Saki

"not ethically right?" I think that talking to kids about something this serious has been long overdue. What's not right is teaching kids that non-Christians are going to burn in "hell" and that guns are cool. The values of the people that are opposed to this show are what's scary to me.

B.T.W.: Jerry Falwell is an ignorant,bigoted bastard.


I'm so tired of the Christian religion in general.

dont know what EWTN is, never heard of Angel Force, but just because they do it doesnt make it right for nickolodeon to do it

underestimating the intelligence of children is pretty low, even for you.

I understnd that you're trying to be fair about it, but it's a special on tolerance where same sex parenting is the example. It's anti-hate. Not progay.

Yup. 12-14 is when children tend to start questioning fundamentals like religion. Information is the best thing they can have.

even for me? dunno what else ive done that was low, but, um, thanks

and 12 year olds (or at least the standard, non-prodigy variety of 12-year olds) dont have the mental machinery required to handle a discussion like that. and even if they did have the aptitude they still lack the actual ability to handle it, since they wont have the vocabulary, experience, or conceptual framework yet. this would be why 12 year olds dont vote

I'm just saying that loads of kids' TV shows have some kind of message behind them. At least in this one they aren't even trying to be subtle.

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http://www.toolcity.net/~burt/images/pimp3a.jpg
My anti-drug is non-consensual sex with minors.
AIM: Mista Saki

Right, right. I mean, Nickelodeon is trying to address the issue as responsibly as possible.

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My anti-drug is non-consensual sex with minors.
AIM: Mista Saki

but it will be pro-gay, because if there was even a possibility that it was anti-gay every left-wing group and half this board would be going nuts. i dunno, maybe it will be somewhat balanced, we wont know til they air it. if it does turn out to be balanced then ill take back everything ive posted in this thread and admit that i was wrong, but until then im going to remain somewhat leery of the idea