How the cartoons our kids watch have changed since the 80's - A warning for parents raising boys.
It's really hard to be a father in America these days for a lot of reasons, some problems are as old as time but some are very new.
I'm sure most of you have heard the term "toxic masculinity", if you haven't I would sum up its meaning by saying it's an ideology built on sexism towards males and a fundamental need to blame others for the problems in one's life.
Before anyone gets angry because they think that I'm picking on Feminists let me be clear, this article is how weak MEN are attacking our children at the earliest ages possible. I would like you to compare the image above of the promotion art being used for the remake of Thunder Cats to the image below that was used to promote the original show I watched in the 80's.
The difference is striking wouldn't you say? Now I do not claim to hold any particular love or nostalgia for the Thunder Cats in particular, I watched them on Saturday mornings when they aired as much as any other cartoon that was on then. I could let it go as a one off and bond with my kids watching a similar show on the weekends but this seems to have happened across the board to all the things I remember liking when I was a kid.
Why not just watch the new kids shows that are coming you may ask? Well, take a look at the images below of the average cartoon promos aimed at finding an audience with fathers and their sons.
Now honestly, what is a guy like me supposed to do with that? These shows are not even made by the same people or companies, it just looks like all the same low effort junk to me whether it's WB or CN making them. I've tried to be a good sport and give these shows a chance but I spend more time talking over the cartoon trying to explain to them how wrong the world view presented is. I really do not care how anyone wants to live and the producers of this stuff can certainly express themselves but I want the same respect for myself and my views in return. I really don't want to endure social justice messages or left wing guilt trips while I'm trying to have fun with my young kids, it's not entertainment but more like re-education camp.
When every father in these shows is a complete idiot, bungling do nothing loser, fat and stupid pig I get offended. Take a look for yourself at the creators of this remake and ask yourself if these so called grown men are not trying, as hard as they can, to hurt guys like me. Maybe they are still fighting with their own fathers or maybe there is some one who pushed them too hard to fit the traditional masculine identity that broke them? I can't say but there are probably lots of reasons to have anger at a group that one can't measure up to but to dedicate a life to hate and ire seems like a waste. This video gives you a good look at what kids in 2018 are watching when left alone with their devices as well.
Despite the creators of the new Thunder Cats giving lip service to the old show it is clear that their goal was to completely flip it upside down and mock it as unflatteringly as much as possible. The jokes are jabs at manly men of the past and the only depictions of machismo just so happen to be by the antagonists so the sissies to get the better of them because of it.
It's not just kids shows that are teaching us to reject tradition, check out this commercial that airs no matter what alternative media I try and pick for us.
Great right? I'll go let my wife know I've decided not be tough and protective for the family anymore so I can be more fluffy too. Right now the only fluffy thing about me is my beard after a summer T-storm...…… Could make for a tough transition.
It's rough when your kids are being taught to be outright disrespectful and dismissive of their fathers. We all want our children to be like us if we are strong, successful, confident people so having these influences feels like an unneeded burden to carry on the path to that goal.
What's left for us to do then? We are homeschooling so my kids have lots of free time and less interaction with the culture as is. The ones that can read more than anyone I know, (me included nowadays unfortunately) already and some are too young for that route anyhow. Watching any TV exposes them to the ads which are finely tuned to get their attention and appeal to them at the same time so I can't pretend these shows do not exist. They are on to me that it isn't 1987 so we can't just watch old shows (they aren't that great either by the way) that these new ones are ripping off. As I said before sitting down and explaining the thing to kid line by line ruins the fun for everyone involved believe it or not.
That doesn't leave me with many solutions but I do not want to leave those who have read this far without hope, I have some ideas that seem to help.
First and foremost I do my best to lead by example so the boys can see what a real man is and what we do so when they put down childish things like cartoons they can get things done. Most importantly on that note, my daughter can not think that way of me. If she were to settle down with some slob, an incapable boob as the TV depicts us, it would break my heart. I'm more scared for the little girls who will accept this tragic idea of what a husband and father is supposed to be than the boys who will coast through life with these low expectations. If you have heard this before, please allow the reiteration to cement in how important this advice really is and why it gets the front spot of the line on every fatherhood list.
Second, let the kids watch it a little bit in small doses. I still always sit down with them and check out each show they are into but I do let them explore the world on their own for a few hours a day. When we watch together I try to go with the fun of the themes while correcting the misinformation and bad ideology presented, but then I let them make their own minds up. The more a guy like me, their authority figure, tightens his grip on what they are allowed to think, the more my kids seem to rebel so I don't want to be making a martyr out of LionO or He-Man of all things and be stuck with them saying a space cat is now part of their identity. I say my peace and let them know "cool guys like me aren't into that kind of entertainment". That seems to help them put down bad influences faster and by their own accord instead of feeling forced, big parts of growing up in my opinion.
Lastly I will just say that giving them better interests than this junk food entertainment can be the biggest difference for when you want immediate changes in the family dynamic. Filling up a kids free time can be exhausting but we only get a few years to mold what they are going to do for fun during the rest of their lives. A Yo-Yo, a ball, a frisbee disc or a jump-rope can keep a little one busy for an hour or so, get all of it for them and make a rule about not allowing electricity use when the sun is up. Your kids will start telling you about the games they made up together, rather than the weird stuff they see on the internet, within a week or so's time. The more you like them, the more they will like you and want to be like you, so make sure they're interesting people with hobbies and skills as soon as possible.
Have a great day guys, Thanks for reading!
Images and videos courtesy of BING and YouTube
other sources for info
http://www.comingsoon.net/tv/trailers/946985-thundercats-roar-series-coming-from-wb-animation
I think it is feminism that is to blame. Or maybe men..who accepted that feminists started going full retard.
Feminism (third wave) had nothing to fight for, so they came up with insane things like "toxic masculinity" and then did their best to demasculinize men, by even implementing propaganda in schools and television.
Now, young soy boys grow up with very low testosterone levels. I live not far away from a high school, and it's really hard to spot the guys. The girls are often quite big - as in fit and strong. Something must have happened genetically, because girls in our school when I was 18 did not look like amazones. The guys wear skinny jeans and look very feminine. I rarely see couples. If I do, I see the girls with immigrant guys or some alpha guy in general.
I agree, feminism may just be the root of the ideology that is taking control of the type of men in the video I posted for sure. The variables that lead to a guy accepting a low-T lifestyle number in the dozens I'm sure.
That being said, a life of being raised by a feminist single mom who sends you a school full of feminist teachers is a terrible place to start for a boy these days.
I can almost understand the boys your talking about, taking efforts to look demure and feminine just to avoid being a target of the these authority figures' ire. Having men trashed in front of a boy without a dad to show him the truth of things so to speak, has to be awful to endure and what young man wants to be a villain in their mothers eyes?
These boys are trapped and need help, there are natural ways to get their testosterone up but they have to get the TV off and get camping or hunting, their groups and activities shape them in many ways.
Indeed. Although camping or hunting are good things, they are more like ad-ons IMO. If you take these soy boys out camping they will just don't like it much and go back to their room and watch junk on youtube and continue being brainwashed.
I can only imagine how deep the brainwashing and propaganda has gone with kids today. Myself I was brainwashed until I was 30. And realizing certain truths about life and society was really a hard blow. To understand how you have had chronic anxiety and depression and basically been wasting your youth and 20s on bullshit trying to fit it, not having any direction in life, no values. It's hard to accept. For me personally it triggered anxiety attacks. I made it out of it quite well, but still a struggle.
And with many things like anxiety and depression, the clue is to get out of it before it becomes chronical. The longer you stay there the worse. So the longer these kids go around as soy boys with horrible values, wrong information, wrong moral, wrong work ethics, wrong understanding of human nature etc..the harder their lives will be.
What they need is mentorship and knowledge. And thats why its so important that us older guys are teaching them. Thats also why decentralized social media is so important. Why crypto is so important. The information will stay on blockchain and cant be censored. And the virus is spreading. The information is leaking out there.
Even Pewdiepie is redpilling young guys now. It is magnificent to watch, and it really gives me hope for the young generation. Once we get rid of the baby boomers and the fiat system...
It sounds like we have a very similar story, hope is absolutely the best defense against the soul crushing ideologies that have the power right now. It will change, time is on our side.
I think the outdoors and sports route is the best medicine for the youth but you're right, forcing soy boys to chop wood would likely backfire. There has to be some thing competitive out there beyond computer games and cards for these lost boys.
Frisbee, rocketry, go carts, chemistry experiments, really anything that gets them out side building/repairing things with their hands.
Building a tree fort with a group of kids their age can do wonders to increase testosterone. I live in a densely populated city and we can make the time to get out into the fresh air. More than anything I'd say time on our part as adults can help them drop the controllers and pick up a hammer.
Ahh found this too late to upvote, but love the post! Things are getting crazier and crazier as time goes by...
Great post!
thank you I plan on keeping up with the subject as by next week
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I'm with you about how cartoons, and TV in general has changed...as someone who hasn't watched TV in years when someone trys talking to me about the current hit show or whatever I have no clue what they're talking about...kind of alienating...I think small doses is the right idea.
It's shocking when you only check into pop culture from time to time right? I suppose there's the slow boil effect for those who are immersed in it every day for years but that's not me for sure.
That's what I'm getting at with the title I think, I wish I was warned so the shock of seeing what they are doing with my childhood nostalgia came in easier and more gently.
The media is just pushing out different forms of ideas. Painting men as weakling, It's a shame. Cartoon are worse now, no morals being thought, it's not even funny anymore. Low content, cheap markets.
It does seem like they are trying a lot harder to push a message or an agenda than putting effort into entertaining people.
The adult version of this propaganda is late night "comedy" shows like Kimmel and Colbert. I tuned out and found actual fun things to watch elsewhere instead.
That's good... The impact is less for adults, but it's the young boys that really needs to be screened from all the propaganda
I think this is all about tactics, they are getting around our screens by using nostalgia. I can't tell you how many times I heard them say they were watching Voltron or something similar from my childhood just to learn it's a reboot with an odd spin and progressive message. Staying vigilant is the key for sure
These kinds of problems are not accidents at all. These kinds of problems is why I think we need to take over education in a big way. We can do it here on steemit.
Sure wish I had the SP to start doing so right now. As it is I am writing about these problems from a law perspective. Your contribution is awesome and to tell you the truth the way you are going after the problem is great to. I think you may have found your golden subject to write about here.
Nice post bro. Yeah a very nice post.
Thanks friend, the encouragement means a lot. I certainly have more to say on this subject from this perspective and will do my best to keep things looking clean and on topic.
Curated for #informationwar (by @wakeupnd)
Relevance: Countering the MSM and entertainment industry.
I would suggest refraining from interrupting their television time. I'd be annoyed if people kept yammering how marvel movies are unrealistic or something. :c)
Instead, try and leave such until the end of the cartoon. Ask them what they thought of that - what they did or didn't like. Anything that struck them. That is true freedom of thought in action. :c)
Otherwise they might be inclined to hide their true opinions from you.
However I do feel that you are right. the production-friendly animation/ storytelling methods of today aren't totally a step forwards from the style of a couple decades ago - and some would argue that its quite the contrary.
That's a good suggestion but I will say it's harder than it sounds. Watching some of these shows and staying quiet can be torture when they have such a bent world view. It's very true that a suspension of disbelief is needed to enjoy these things though, finding that balance is the goal I'd say.
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I abandoned TV completely. This caused my sons to become readers, and there is an awesome selection of excellent literature. If you can't come up with a good reading list from your own memories, that may be part of your problem. My youngest son loved the Redwall series, and I think it was a pretty good foundation.
Speaking of foundation, I dove into scifi as a kid, and Asimov's Foundation series was well remembered. Keith Laumer's Retief books were hilarious, and I read them aloud to my kids, to gales of laughter.
I do not recommend you allow drivel to be rammed into the brains of your impressionable kids. Just read to them, or take them to the library and let them read. It's awesome that you're homeschooling, as those cartoons aren't a tenth as bad as what kids are being indoctrinated with in the low intensity prisons that are passed off as schools of late.
When I was very young, my favorite toys were spent ammo, sand, and sticks. I don't think my intellect was stunted by having to invent my own games and toys. My youngest's favorite toy was an old 1/4" drill (broken) that he disassembled and reassembled into various configurations. Lashed to a stick the motor could make it a rocket, or the handle could make it a gun.
Stimulating their imagination and feeding their curiosity while providing a strong and gentle example of what men should be is all you really need to do, and letting the bizarro crew of the new Thundercats at their brains is inadvisable IMHO.
Best of luck, and better skill. You clearly intend to be a good dad, and that's more important than almost anything else.
I agree that reading is the most important way for kids to be entertained very much, the only thing is my oldest kid is only 9 years old and my youngest is 1. I'm working on teaching them all but in the meantime it's more than a little tempting to put the youngers ones in front of the boob tube while I have the older ones doing lessons. The noise and distraction level really does go down but at the sacrifice of my 3 yo and baby boy being exposed to the flashing lights and all that instead of playing and running around.They can be like a pack of puppies gnawing on the furniture sometimes ;) I suppose I should said that in the article, I could/should have had an entire paragraph on how young of kids the man'bun crowd is after.
You're right though, talking the easy way out isn't the answer and now that summer is here these kids are outside in the sandbox together until the next school year starts, no excuses.
I wish I could give them a drill and let them play with spent ammo but it's too dangerous around here but maybe not why you think. My next article on the subject will be about how the "busy body" types ruin the lives of boys in the city If I let them play with a tool made to look like a gun a neighbor would more than likely call a S.W.A.T. team down on them and who knows what would happen to us then.
I'm not just complaining about these issues, I promise my good man. I'm doing a show later today about what I am currently doing to move us out of this city and to a place where we can be and live a normal existance away from the folk who can't help but bother every neighbor, (at least that's my goal) and call the state when they see something they don't like. I'll probably go a little into why I let them get even a little of this mind poison too, being homeschooled in a cold climate, but that's a longer story and not as good of one.
It's going out over a few mediums, Discord is the main one I recommend but I can link you to the promo post so if you're interested.
We can definitely use a strong voice and people with experience to participate and have fun with us.
Are you already over there on PAL, its probably where we met isn't it?
I think we're in a couple discord channels. Moving out of the city is what I did, as well.