Getting a Little Behind Again
I find it ironic that a major network airs cartoons such as “Frosty the Snowman” during prime time. I don’t mean to knock the cartoon, or its presentation, but young children usually comprise the viewing audience for such fare. So where do I see the irony?
Well, boys and girls, in this time spot I usually see shows that can’t seem to figure out how to say behind, derriere, backside, rear, or even the less euphemistic, butt, without starting off with the letter “A”. The writers and the networks for years have believed that it’s about time the viewing audience “grows up.” By this, they mean becoming savvy enough to understand sophomoric and puerile humor, the type once relegated to schoolyards, bars, and graffiti in public restrooms.
Once upon a time in America, comedy writers found humor in many things other than sex, without overtaxing their brains. Yes, even back in the fifties, adults, upon seeing certain stand-up comedians on TV, commented, “You should see his live show. It’s rather risque! Maybe so, but at least they performed in venues restricted to children, but not restricted to older people with the minds of children.
Present day sitcoms rarely fail to mention humping, or banging, and continually interlace the word freaking in conversations. The not-so-subtle terms for both forms of body waste appear at times, usually to emphasize anger. That donkey word for the behind makes frequent appearances, probably more than any other. We’re supposed to laugh, but some of us simply shake our heads.
For some reason, a number of shows consider homosexuality a humorous personality trait. Some drama shows make it part of some of the plots, but their small minds never figure out how to fit it into the story line without actually depicting same-sex characters kissing each other.
Before our society attained its present “enlightened” status, screenwriters, producers, and authors figured out ways to effectively work certain actions and words into their products using clever and powerful inferences and suggestions. Nothing was lost on the mature viewer or reader, but much usually slipped by the minds of the younger generation.
But times change, and, with enough constant exposure, we go through the looking glass, where everything seems opposite. Sophomoric humor becomes sophisticated, wink, wink. Four-letter words break their bonds and entrench themselves in what we once considered “decent society.” They abound in books, movies, the next table at fine restaurants, in conversations outside convenience stores, and among shoppers at the local mall. They assault the ears of men, women, and children, but no one seems offended anymore.
Yes, once upon a time in America, we had something that Aretha Franklin once sang about, respect. We respected authority, we respected others, we respected our country and its flag, and most of all, we respected ourselves. It seems that we’ve mostly lost it.
“I’m not concerned with your liking or disliking me… All I ask is that you respect me as a human being.” - Jackie Robinson