Tag Archives: Violence

That until…

December 18, 2009 – 10:30 am

“That until the philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned: That until there are no longer first-class and second-class citizens of any nation; That until the color of a man’s skin is of no more significance than the color of his eyes; That until the basic human rights are equally guaranteed to all without regard to race; That until that day, the dream of lasting peace and world citizenship and the rule of international morality will remain but a fleeting illusion, to be pursued but never attained…” – Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia, English translation of 1963 Speech delivered to the United Nations and popularized in a song called War by Bob Marley

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French Fries and Gunfire

December 17, 2009 – 6:05 pm

According to the Nielson A2/M2(tm): 3 Screen report, Vol. 6 3rd qtr 2009, the average American now watches 31 hours of television per week. That’s about 4 1/2 hours per day of content composed primarily of violence, tragedies, soft-porn, fast-food ads and general dis-information.

*31 hours per week = over 67 days (24-hours non-stop no-sleep) per year.

When my wife were expecting our first child, we visited some friends and noticed how their TV had taken the place of genuine parent-child interaction. There we were, grown adults discussing the weighty responsibilities of child-rearing while their young, already overweight daughter was being inundated with images of french fries and gunfire. Afterward, we decided to try going TV-less. We sold our TV and for the next two weeks when I got home from work I would reach for the non-existent remote. I felt like an amputee trying to scratch an itchy limb that wasn’t there. Since then, more than once visitors have stopped by and with quizzical expressions they would look around for some missing ingredient and wonder why’s it so quiet.

We’ve gone 12+ years without TV. We see it sometimes at restaurants and at the homes of relatives during the holidays. We’ve found that we have become re-sensitized to violence, real and unreal. The content now seems more inappropriate for children than it did in 1998. But during those times, we watch with a morbid fascination and when we leave we reflect with amazement and pity on the fact that the vast majority of Americans spend over 25% of their waking lives glued to that toxic crap.

*67 days/year over 80 years = 14.7 non-stop no-sleep years of your life for which you receive no benefit or compensation.

When friends ask what I’m up to and I tell them about my day job writing software, and about teaching and practicing yoga, meditating, parenting, reading, playing guitar and working on the house they ask me where I find the time. It’s true that I’m always busy, but my days are 4 1/2 hours longer than their days. When I ask them if they’re exercising, they ask “who has the time?”.

Free Your Mind, Regain Your Life – Kill Your Television

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