A Culture Committee' Do we really need this'

We have covered this debate for a while now. Sometimes it is given form within the MPAA... Sometimes upon news shows like 60 MINUTES.... and today it is in the United States Senate. This time the fearless fighter for innocence and goodness is one Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kansas).

The Committee, a Special Committee On American Culture, would be created for the express purpose of examining the impact of pop culture by exploring the alleged links between violent entertainment and crime as well as studying the issues of family and investigating possible connections between explicit sexual material and teenage sexual activity.

Folks, when FIGHT CLUB comes out, expect this issue to explode. There will be politicians crying for Fox's blood on that film. They will be completely unattentive to what is actually going on in the film, but that won't stop them from doing their best imitation of Joseph McCarthy. It's an easy target.

What interests me is the claim that the 'Committee' would study the current state of the American Family. But do you really think that they are going to come out of the study, recommending that two parent working family is a major problem. That one parent should be an at-home parent. That the economy would need a major shift in terms of medical, real estate, renting rates and every financial reason why both parents need to work thus keeping them from being there for their children...

I mean... Really, that's a huge part of the issue. It's tough. It's a big balls issue. It's a problem that needs to be addressed, but fingerpointing at Hollywood and saying that they are killing our children is the most knee-jerk reactionary concept around town. What about the millions of kids that see all this 'violence and sex' and grow up to be perfectly normal.

It seems that from time to time, from generation to generation, we have to watch the U.S. Government attempting to rack up points against Hollywood, the comic's industry, paperback dimestore mysteries, MAD MAGAZINE, Playboy, etc... They point and they scream. And still it is always about avoiding the problem that simply... the cost of living has risen to the point that both parents have to work. As a result a child begins to feel a bit distanced from his/her parents. The parents are too tired from working to spend the real necessary amount of time with the kid.

I saw it happened here at my home when I became too busy to listen to my own sister's problems in High School. I got caught up in building something that I loved and could possibly take care of my needs... but it was selfish. And after my sister went down a pretty serious path, I had to make the time to get her back where she needed to be.

The same can be said with all of her friends. They were good kids, left to their own devices... not by evil bad parents... but by parents that simply worked too hard.

This is... at it's root a financial and social issue that is based on the parents not being able to be there for their children due to financial and career needs.

Senseless Violence is a problem today. The apartment complex that used to reside across the street from my house was burnt to the ground killing a baby and it's mother and severly burning the father, by a Crack head who felt someone in the complex owed him $8 dollars (which had been paid him) so he surrounded the place in kerosene and fired a flare gun into it.

Right now, Hollywood is looking at the issues. Go this weekend and take a look at AMERICAN BEAUTY. Tell me that you can't begin to see the problem clearer. Here in Texas we had a gang of pep squad girls pulling gas station robberies armed. Concurrent to the crimes, and unknown to Hollywood, there was a film being shot called SUGAR AND SPICE that has some startling similarities. But these girls didn't copy the movie... and the film didn't even copy the girls. I wear a black leather overcoat. Have for the last 3 years. It's not for any other reason than I think it looks cool... even on a guy my size.

When I bought the coat, MATRIX wasn't even a script yet. But overcoats and violence go back a ways. In the Old West Jesse James and his gang wore big ol Dusters. They didn't see that in a movie. Ultimately these violent youths are a product of feeling alone and unrecognized. Nothing they do gets the attention of their parents. The become disenfranchised. They try to create their own unique vision of a style in school. Other kids picked on them brutally. It happens. Always has. The Popular kids make fun of the less popular kids.

My advice? Don't begin tearing down artist's rights. Instead beginning in Elementary begin teaching Media classes. Classes that's sole purpose is to teach children to interpret what they are watching. To understand stories and films and the news. Don't hide it from them. Teach them what it means. Teach them how to make films, how they are made. Video Production classes. Focus the interests... which will always be there... into learning how to deal with it. In addition to ENGLISH classes which focus on the literary. Have media classes beginning as early as 2nd Grade. Teaching the history of film, entertainment, television, programs and news... Teach them about these things, don't lock them in the closet. Don't bury them in the back yard. Curiousity killed the cat.... Not knowledge.

Of course... that's just my take on the matter.