Comments on: TV and McDonalds Is Good For You Too

By: wingnut

wingnut — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

I have to agree with you on everything except trivial pusuit. I can kick your butt. That\’s why my wife calls me the vat of useless knowledge.
:grin

By: noodad

noodad — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

That\’s one. Ok. Who else is with me?

By: harry

harry — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

I think the key to such a discussion is to determine how we want/need to define \”moderation\” in tv watching. To some people a kid watching an hour of tv each day is entirely too much, to others it\’s barely anything. Is it excessive to let them watch 2 hours a day? Is it cruel to ONLY let them watch an hour? There are extremes to this discussion, but it can be a fine line between them.

By: dadagain

dadagain — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

Balance is key here. Too much of anything is a bad thing. I think sensorship (parental) is important on the TV front. There are some great shows for kids to learn but also a lot of crap…and unfortunately the crapola outweights the non crap.

on the McDonalds topic…all I know is I am having a serious Big Mac craving as I type…

By: wahoodad

wahoodad — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

I agree with not making these things taboo. I\’m sure the experts would say that I let my kid watch too much television, and there are probably too many Happy Meal toys in our toy bins. I\’m happy to report, however, that my older son will often walk away from the television to draw, squeeze some Play Doh, or ask to go outside to the sandbox or swing set. He\’ll also ask for carrots, raisins, or an apple for a snack. He\’s not a junkie for the idiot box or the Golden Arches, so I guess I don\’t see it as a problem.

I also send him to an early reader enrichment program where he goes for two hours two days a week to expressly work on developing his reading skills–and he loves it. He\’s heading to full-time Kindergarten in the fall, and he\’ll be armed with both pop culture AND book smarts equal to (or greater than) his peers.

I agree with the others that it is all about balance, and only you can figure out what\’s best for your kids.

By: redhawk

redhawk — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

I group people who say TV is bad with people who say the Internet is bad. There is good TV and bad TV. Most can be considered bad, but there are certainly shows worth watching. That said, we don\’t plan to do any TV for our kid before age 2, but will practice moderation after that for the reasons you mentioned.

Same deal with McDonald\’s – certainly don\’t want to make it out to be more than it is.

Remember, though, to keep your kids off the computer and game console until 2nd grade. [Reference to an old discussion.]

By: qsmama

qsmama — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

I agree completely! Fast food is everywhere now. Chuck E Cheese \”sponsors\” Sesame Street on our local PBS station.

No matter what you think of TV and fast food, they\’re here to stay. That\’s why we need to raise our kids to make good decisions as consumers.

I just started a web site on exactly this topic–well, the fast food part, not the TV part.

http://www.quickservekids.com

I was the founding editor of a magazine for fast-food industry executives. I know more about fast food than I EVER wanted to. Far more. But now I just consider that strange body of knowledge a tool I have in raising my daughter as a smart consumer–of fast food, tv commercials, everything she and her generation will have to deal with every day.

My two cents…as a mom. Love that dad are talking about this, too!

- L

By: onechicmama

onechicmama — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

Thanks for reminding us that moderation and balance are important in raising our kids. I sometimes get too caught up in what\’s good for my daughter and forget that a McDonald\’s happy meal every once in a while is not going to make her obese, or create a lifelong problem.

onechicmama
http://www.onechicmama.com