The View-Point

"Children Will Listen..."

""Get Rich or Die Tryin'" isn't the most violent movie ever made. Nor is it the most graphic in terms of nudity and gore.... The story is an old one, and it's filled with violence, nudity and foul language. The characters drop f-bombs and n-bombs throughout.... [John] Kirkwood, who went to the show with friend Stacy Law, also of Beaver Falls, and his son, John, 3, said the movie portrayed that positives can happen for people who learn from their mistakes.... As for young John Kirkland, his father said he was more interested in the popcorn and didn't know what was going on in the movie." (from "Movie incite violence?" by Bob Bauder, Beaver County Times 11.12.2005)
Dear Editor,

The article "Could his movie provoke murder?" leaves some questions unanswered:

Question 1: Why would a man take his 3-year old son to a movie filled with violence, nudity and foul language?

Question 2: Why would movie theater employees allow a man to take his son to see a movie filled with violence, nudity and foul language?

The fact that these two events did occur can mean only two things:

1) Basic common sense and parenting skills are somewhat scarce (at least among people interested in seeing such movies as "Get Rich or Die Tryin'") -- Ever hear of a babysitter? Can't find one? Too bad; don't go!

2) The movie theater involved is more interested in profit (and clinging on to an every shrinking pie of revenue from ticket sales) than "Do[ing] the Right Thing" (to borrow from the title of another movie in the line of "Get Rich or Die Tryin'") and exhibiting common sense in not letting a 3-year old into a movie theater where he will be exposed to gratuitous nudity, violence and the ever constant dropping of "f-bombs and n-bombs".

Here is one potential common sense response to this situation:
1) Arrest the parent(s) who took the child to see the movie and charge him/them with child abuse and/or endangerment
2) Levy a hefty fine on the movie theater for contributing to the child abuse and/or endangerment

Please, lets all wake up and show more concern for the future generations.


[Published as "Letter to the Editor - Was anybody thinking?" (Beaver County Times 11.18.2005)]

Labels: commentary