Friday, Aug 29, 2008
The WB's Big Daddy condescension
BY CHARLES TAYLOR
(05/27/99)
What is so tragic about the WB's decision to now pretend that it has the best interests of its teenage viewers in mind is that it has shown so little interest in doing so before.
They worry about high school shootings and teenage violence, but not teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases? Buffy and her cohorts have all lost their virginity, to each other, on the show. They are in high school. Granted, it happens every day, but so do abortions due to sexual irresponsibility and immaturity.
What about the relationship between the Cordelia character and the 30-something "watcher" on the show? Isn't that also inappropriate and more likely to influence a young person's behavior than scenes of good-vs.-evil warfare? Why would they be concerned that cheerleaders fighting it out with unbelievable ghoulies would have a stronger impact on high schoolers than vamped up teen sexuality and false maturity?
-- Allison Lowe
Dallas
The Web's new tribal warfare
BY ANDREW LEONARD
(05/26/99)
I read your report of the attack on VegSource with disappointment, but not surprise. I too have been involved in online debates regarding gun control, and the vehemence on both sides quickly escalates into something absolutely incredible. If you happen to favor gun control you can expect insults, abuse, threats and an overwhelming flame from gun owners. While a very small minority seems to be able to discuss the subject without rancor, most pro-gun posters exhibit the arrogant paranoia that makes gun control advocates nervous. It's hard to carry on a debate when there's a tiny voice in the back of your head reminding you that your opponent is armed, obviously doesn't like you and could find your address with little difficulty.
While I'm all for freedom of speech, I'll willingly give up that right when faced with someone who seems perfectly willing (and able) to kill me. So now I steer clear of gun-related debates -- I've got a feeling they're hazardous to my health. That's a pity, because many gun advocates are intelligent, reasonable, sane human beings. But the next time I get a chance to vote on gun legislation I bet I'll remember all the gun-toting psychos who howled for my blood when I disagreed with them.
-- Mark T.
My main question is, Why weren't the files backed up? Everyone who does any kind of Web authoring (or any data processing) knows that accidents can happen to data and that a backup is always in order. We have all had it happen -- sometimes by our own stupidity, or by a computer glitch or hardware failure. What were these guys thinking? What was the foul-up on the ISP's end? In the digital world, only the sloppy allow their entire body of work to be destroyed. The Net is an ugly place, but just like the author of a book who has no copy of his or her manuscript, they have no one else to blame but themselves.
-- Lou Berkman
Crime school
BY FIONA MORGAN
(05/26/99)
There is a very simple, no-cost solution to the problem of kids being unsupervised in the afternoons that no one seems to talk about. Why not start school later for middle and high school students, so that they are not dismissed until 4 or 5 o'clock? After-school activities could be shifted to before school. Those kids who don't participate would not be likely to go out and get into trouble at 7 a.m.
-- Dora O'Shaughnessy
Charlotte, N.C.
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