I did a radical thing...

A week ago, I made a drastic change in my home.
I noticed far too much that my bookshelf was getting dusty, yet the various movies and video games were constantly strewn about the living room.
I noticed my 5 year old daughter would get up in the morning and immediately put on a movie...and the same before she went to bed.
I noticed my kids playing outside and talking with their friends and a lot of the conversations revolved around the movies they watched or video games they played.
I SAID ENOUGH.
I gave it all away.
The TV, the VCR/DVD, the movies..and the video games. ALL OF IT.
I expected mutiny on the bounty.
What I got, was my daughter getting up every morning and reading a book, and the same before bed.
Instead of playing video games, my sons have taken more of an interest in nature, and drawing what they see. My other daughter has taken to writing poetry.
You never really stop and think how much time in your life is taken away by what is deemed "Entertainment".
My kids were turning into zombies...and I couldn't let that happen.
Call me whatever you like, as I'm sure a few will see this as mean parenting..but I prefer the days before "Entertainment" when kids had an imagination when they played, and a generation that was brought up with good family values and a strong work ethic.
Funny, how just over a year ago I met someone who didn't own a TV..and for the life of me I couldn't fathom why. Now, I get it. I really do. You can't live life when you are being distracted away from it.

You probably did the best thing for your kids what a parent can do. You gave them a life beyond all these distractions that have a huge influence on young children and shape them to a certain degree.
I admire you for what you did. Too bad that not more parents are the way you are with their offspring.




[edit on 12-6-2009 by thegreatobserver]

Good Job.

I was amazed that when my daughter was 13 she told me that she reads a lot of books. She'll be 17 soon and still enjoys reading.

I'm buying her several for her birthday.

reply to post by AccessDenied


You deserve the mom of the year award,as far as I'm concerned. Children NEED to learn how to entertain themselves.Use imagination,read, draw,think of different possibilities.

Commendable indeed.
I have pretty much, stopped watching TV.
While I do enjoy a good movie now and again, and maybe 2 TV shows, I really have called it quits.

Congratulations on your newly rediscovered, lives.

I see what you did as a good but hard choice.

I also am surprised that you weren't effectively "keel-hauled" by other family members as technology addiction is rampant in our society and kids would rather cut of their right arm then lose their tv's, dvd's, xboxes, mobile phones, etc, etc

Well getting them away from Television and Video Games will give them more time to develop other habits that can actually help them later in life. Just remember the internet is arguably worse than either of them.

reply to post by AccessDenied


I almost don't believe you.

She got up and read a book.

God this should go down in a psychology journal somewhere!

That's astounding.

Also congrats on taking care of your children, and not letting Disney, and Xbox be their mother father. Like so many parents I know do constantly..

Kudos. (I'm actually shocked!)

Cheers to you! It's great living free of the box, and after awhile if you find yourself exposed to TV at a friend or relatives house, you might find that it makes you uncomfortable to be around it...maybe even a little sick...

I get left out of a lot of conversations because people do talk about the "programming" all the time, but who cares?

One down, 299,000,000 to go

reply to post by AccessDenied


Now they just have to take your computer for you to do the same!!! LOL!

Joking!

Nice goin AD. Are you going to take away the computer too?

It has been my experience that the www. is much more seductive and addictive than TV could ever be. I haven't watched TV in over 4 years.

[edit on 12-6-2009 by whaaa]

so, it wont matter, internet is here to stay ... if they dont see it at home, they will see it outside ...

I really dont have anything more to say

The internet is certainly addictive - I spend too much time on whacked out conspiracy forums .. ooops.

As long as you use it to keep informed, it is by far the best source of information anywhere. It requires thinking and judgment to determine whats what on the net.

Congrats on giving your kids a chance.

So now when you see your children hanging out with their friends and the group of friends get around to talking about the latest episode of "Heroes" your kid can look like a weirdo outcast Amish family who do not own a T.V. Way to go Mom! Applause!

Come on Mom! Do not tell me you have no concept of the word "Clique"?

Social hierarchy is not something that kids mimic it is something they invent. Fitting in is so VERY important to children.

Clothing indicates your social status or your wealth status in the hierarchy.

Popularity is also VERY important to children. NO kids wants to be the smelly kid or the kid who does not fit in.

Do you really think there is a "Cut off from modern means of entertainment" lunch table your children will be sitting at? All you are going to do is contribute in your child being picked last for kickball and getting a crappy horrible nickname.

Give back the T.V. and PlayStation. Put LIMITS on it.

Do your Job as a parent.

reply to post by AccessDenied


Good for you!!! Kids today have too many 'electronic babysitters'! When I was a kid in the 70's, we had one TV in the house, and the only games were board games. We played outside, and actually socialized with other humans! Today, we all hide behind our technology. I work in a restaurant, and you would be amazed how many guests spend their entire visit on their cell phones instead of talking with their dining companions.

"Electronic Babysitters" are only babysitters if they are allowed to be.

While I agree about the destructive and addictive nature of the programmed distractions of TPTB, the only star in this thread goes to TurkeyBurgers, and I struggled to give 'em that after all the clique talk.

Do your Job as a parent.

[edit on 6/13/2009 by eNumbra]

When I was 11 years old, my mum decided to cut off our cable. I remember that right at the beginning of it, I was upset that I wouldn't be able to watch Pokemon when I got home from school.
That passed quickly.

Then books invaded my world. If I was not outside, running around with friends, I was reading. Some days (which grew into weeks) I would get up, grab the book laying on my bed next to my pillow and read non stop till I slept.

And, it's kind of a sad indicator that people are amazed by my love and voracious hunger for books and knowledge. For example, when doing a novel study on the book "The Chrysalids" By John Wyndham, I took the 200 page novel home on the first day and read it in one sitting, about one hour of reading. The next day, my class was astounded by the fact that I went home and read the book so easily.
As though reading a short novel was a difficult, laborous task.
But these same kids were remarkably adept at recalling the nuances of their favorite television shows.
So, put simply, I love literature and have become fairly skilled with the English language as a result of my mother's decision.

However, I must note that while I still devote a large amount of time to reading, I have also devoured series of television on DVD at a kind of scary rate. The same goes for video games, and I learned just as much as I did from books as from these sources. I don't think this is a bad thing. I spent my early teenage years reading and playing the occasional old video game for fun. Now, I know what I like and why I like it.

I guess this may have gotten a little long-winded and off-topic. I think what you've done is a good idea, but don't deprive your kids of those things entirely. A little bit of these things aren't harmful. It would probably be beneficial still if you let your kids watch a certain number of hours of TV a week. TV and games teach important cultural lessons to children, like what slang words mean, or how they are expected to act in some situations (though admittedly, games most of the time do not apply to life). I faced a few vaguely embarassing scenarios because I didn't understand the colloquialisms my friends used.

In general, you have a good idea, and it's easy to see where you're coming from, but try to remember the purpose things like television served in the first place:
A way to communicate and share our human experiences, whatever type of experience they may be.

reply to post by AccessDenied


AD, first and foremost, I'm very proud of you.

AD, second and not in the least, it's about time more people turned off and tuned into how life should be.

Check out the last post I made today, on the thread below.

I'm dedicating it just to you, for your accomplishment of radical change.

~Hugz you tight~

Stop The Stalkers

Read about my fight against stalkers here, since I was six years old.

Left-Wing, Right-Wing, This Turkey, Knows How To Soar Like An Eagle

Become a member of the Bully Pulpit, so you can debate me politically, if you do not choose membership in the Bully Pulpit, you can only read, and not post replies.

[edit on 13-6-2009 by SpartanKingLeonidas]

Originally posted by TurkeyBurgers
So now when you see your children hanging out with their friends and the group of friends get around to talking about the latest episode of "Heroes" your kid can look like a weirdo outcast Amish family who do not own a T.V. Way to go Mom! Applause!

Come on Mom! Do not tell me you have no concept of the word "Clique"?

Social hierarchy is not something that kids mimic it is something they invent. Fitting in is so VERY important to children.

Clothing indicates your social status or your wealth status in the hierarchy.

Popularity is also VERY important to children. NO kids wants to be the smelly kid or the kid who does not fit in.

Do you really think there is a "Cut off from modern means of entertainment" lunch table your children will be sitting at? All you are going to do is contribute in your child being picked last for kickball and getting a crappy horrible nickname.

Give back the T.V. and PlayStation. Put LIMITS on it.

Do your Job as a parent.

Someone give this man an award.