One Can Only Hype
Wednesday, October 24, 2007 at 12:49AM If you live long enough and pay attention, it is my belief that you have a good chance of seeing just about everything. Or at least, just about every sort of thing. You'll eventually stop using expressions like "Now I've seen it all" because you'll know it's beyond redundant to keep on making that same inane verbal observation. But that may not keep you from thinking to yourself, from time to time, "I cannot believe what I am seeing (or hearing, or reading)." This still happens to me occasionally and I feel like talking about it.
All over the news this week was the story of King Middle School in Portland, Maine, whose extinguished board voted to allow the school nurse to dispense oral contraceptives to girls as young as eleven without the knowledge or consent of the child's parents. Needless to say, there has been a bit of controversy over the issue. My hero in the whole thing is Benjamin Meiklejohn, one of the two (of nine) board members who voted against the ridiculous plan. Rather than giving up once the votes were counted and his side lost, Mr. Meiklejohn has continued to fight. He has now submitted a counter-proposal that will give parents (slightly) more control over the drugs shoved down the throats of their young daughters. I hope his proposal is adopted, although it would still allow the school to provide oral contraceptives to 14-year-old girls. God help us.
An online forum where the issue was being hotly debated yielded this brilliant comment: "Just a glance at the national sex offender registry, and you will see there are commuties teaming with predators." Uhm ... I guess I can be gracious enough to chalk "commuties" up to tired fingers or a tired brain or both, but "teaming" with predators? Sure hope the writer meant "teeming" but honestly, if schools are giving contraceptives to 11-year-olds, the communities may very well may be teaming (as in, teaming up) with predators. In fact they may be the predators. Just a side thought.
It occurs to me that in our rush to be politically correct and so very tolerant of every kind of nonsense imaginable, in addition to the last shreds of innocence, we have said goodbye forever to the elusive but fascinating concept of mystique. Everything is out in the open now -- no matter how personal or how private -- and it's "okay" to talk about it and even crow about it, with no sense of reticence. And reticence, according to Miss Dove of the wonderful old movie starring Jennifer Jones in the titular role, is "the sine qua non of gentility." Who cares about gentility anymore; right? We're too concerned with sexuality -- not its sacred mysteries, but rather how common we can make it.
I still remember when mail-order companies who peddled merchandise of a personal nature offered to send purchases to the consumer in a "brown paper wrapper." This was ostensibly so that the mailman who delivered the package would be unable to draw any conclusions about you from what you received in the mail. Now, although we may order our "health aids" from a secure site online and may still receive them in a brown paper wrapper, we practically shout from the rooftops about whatever happens to be ailing us. It doesn't seem to matter how far the itemization of those ailments fits squarely into the category of "overshare." Make that "nauseating overshare."
Nowhere is this trend toward crassness more rampant than in prime-time TV ads. To cite just one example, I have been more than appalled in recent days by the ad that depicts several men jamming in what appears to be a dusty old barn. There's a keyboardist, a lead singer, a guitarist, and I don't know what all else. What I do know is, they're all grinning like hyenas and singing at the top of their lungs: "Viva Viagra." It's really hard (sorry) to make out the actual lyric, but maybe that's because of the morbid fascination that results from seeing a group of relatively young men sitting around singing about ... what they are singing about. When their song is done they all head outside, do a bunch of high-fives, and peel out in macho-looking pickups and cycles ... presumably heading home to their lucky women.
Oh please! Please tell me this is not really happening! If I could cringe any more when this ad comes on, I would. I can't get to the remote fast enough to change the channel. It makes me feel icky. First of all, I can't believe the ad is even on TV. Why are we subjected to this? I am aware that Pfizer Pharmaceuticals has a product to sell, but surely -- surely if a man needs this sort of medicine, he will ask his doctor for it without having to be prompted by this asinine commercial? Let's be realistic. The Cialis ad, which shows two people (thankfully, one of each gender) occupying identical-twin claw-foot tubs, apparently sitting at the edge of the ocean, is bad enough. But now a jam session with six men singing Viva Viagra? Forgive me if I close my eyes and pretend it's all a bad dream.
Lest you think I am a heartless woman, allow me to clarify. If a man is married to a woman and he needs this type of medicine, I hope he will go to the doctor without delay and get some. Although it is difficult for me to believe that men as young as 40, as depicted in the Viagra ad, actually require this medication, I am no doctor and won't quarrel with anyone about that. I have been married for over 28 years to a man who would be a perfect husband if he would just put the toilet seat down. That's all I would change about him! Honestly! He will be 56 in January and when that Viagra ad comes on TV he still looks puzzled. Good for him. Good for us. We are very happy, very normal, and very fortunate. If all of that should change tomorrow, and there were a medicine that would help, I would send my man straight to the doctor to get his prescription. But no matter what he brought home from the pharmacy, I would draw the line at anyone in this house singing a jingle about it.
And in a world where at least some feel comfortable with the tasteless public hyping of what should be kept private -- as in hawking Viagra on television to the tune of an Elvis song -- is it any wonder we think nothing of dosing 11-year-olds with oral contraceptives? I for one see a sad connection.
Reader Comments (5)
You'll be delighted to know there are no similar ads on British TV, Jen! I remember the furore that occurred a few years ago when 'feminine hygiene products' were first advertised - the establishment still bristle whenever one of those appears on the screen!
As to the other item - I am a great advocate of ignoring political correctness. I would be the parent who removed my child from the school in protest at such an invasion of childhood. If it meant teaching her at home then so be it. I'm not even sure why it should be necessary for a child as young as eleven to need such a drug - perhaps the school should use their resources to teach morality and love instead of encouraging wantoness and sex.
Aren't you glad that ours are grown - but what a worry for the next generation.
It is so sad what the children in our country are exposed to; but everything comes down to the home. Unfortunately, there are plenty of parents out there who would applaud their young girls having contraception. Hard to believe. It's a pretty ugly world some live in. It use to be pretty common that the loss of innocence occurred in the later teen years but the loss of innocence today commonly occurs before the age of 10 so that their understanding of love and the expression of love is so misunderstood. I think we would all be wise to chunk our TVs out the window--and think about how much money we'd save.
Yes ... it is tragic ... and with the end of TV would come the saving of not only money, but perhaps a few young, precious lives. Parents had better wake up.
Depps, I salute the Brits for having more restraint than we have! But then, any restraint at all would be more than we have. And I don't care for being politically correct either. But I do cringe for what my grandchildren will face. It won't be pretty.
I stopped by like I said I would. I love it Yea for you! I subscribed and added you to my favorites.
Lori
Thanks doll! It is much appreciated.