Update Oct. 25, 2015 Hard to believe I wrote this 8 years ago trying to give "parenting tips to combat the sexualization cues to kids in our culture"' considering society has now dialed down the demographic of sexualization from middleschoolers to wee ones in K-5, in spite of fresh studies on the damage of internalized sexualization and public health harm. Sheesh. The good … [Read more...]
Packaging Boyhood: Corporate Pirates Raid Boys’ Souls
Evidently "snips and snails and puppy dog tails" are out...Tween preening is in...And pirates are looking for gold... Disney’s September debut of kiddie cologne for boys aged 4-11 in fragrances like Pirates of the Caribbean and Buzz Lightyear is a case in point...The time is ripe to research how Packaging Boyhood is impacting children’s behavioral … [Read more...]
411 on 9-11: What Do You Say to Children About Headline News?
Update: Sept. 11, 2014 Reading CNN's "Post 9/11: Far-Reaching New World of Terror Threats and Salon's piece on 'homegrown extremists' that looks like a bad Onion satire of The Expendables movie, this solemn day of remembrance goes beyond 'troubling' knowing full well our blue marble of a world is like playing pinata with a hornet's nest.As I try to update links and … [Read more...]
Hey Kids, Your “Energy Drinks” Now Come With Alcohol
We all pick our battles. To me, this is one of them. Rather than dwell on Mojito-flavored chewing gum, or Bacardi Mojito banners and Coors fly-by billboards bombarding our peace at Zuma beach last weekend, or even the absurdity of alcohol glamorama targeting teens with "Cosmopolitan Berry and Margarita Lime Epil-Stop hair remover" in Teen Vogue's back to school issue this … [Read more...]