Sandra Dodd

This came by e-mail from someone in my home town, someone younger
than 50, and one interesting thing is that she's sitting at the
computer cutting and pasting things she didn't even write and sending
them out to her whole address book.

How is that better than watching TV!?
But anyway, this is the propaganda of the day:


=================================


The Stranger


A few years after I was born, my Dad met a stranger who was new to
our small town. From the beginning, Dad was fascinated with this
enchanting newcomer and soon invited him to live with our family. The
stranger was quickly accepted and was around from then on. As I grew
up, I never questioned his place in my family. In my young mind, he
had a special niche. My parents were complementary instructors: Mom
taught us good from evil, and Dad taught us to obey. But the
stranger...he was our storyteller. He would keep us spellbound for
hours on end with adventures, mysteries and comedies. If I wanted to
know anything about politics, history or science, he always knew the
answers about the past, understood the present and even seemed able
to predict the future! He took my family to the first major league
ball game. He made us laugh, and he made us cry. The stranger never
stopped talking, but Dad didn't seem to mind. Sometimes, Mom would
get up quietly while the rest of us were shushing each other to
listen to what he had to say,and she would go to the kitchen for
peace and quiet. I wonder now if she ever prayed for the stranger to
leave. Dad ruled our household with certain moral convictions, but
the stranger never felt obligated to honor them. Profanity, for
example, was not allowed in our home... Not from us, our friends or
any visitors. Our longtime visitor, however, got away with four-
letter words that burned my ears and made my dad squirm and my mother
blush. My Dad did permit the liberal use of alcohol. The stranger
encouraged us to try it on a regular basis. He made cigarettes look
cool,cigars manly and pipes distinguished. He talked freely (much
too freely!)about sex. His comments were sometimes blatant,
sometimes suggestive, and generally embarrassing. I now know that my
early concepts about relationships were influenced strongly by the
stranger. Time after time, he opposed the values of my parents, yet
he was seldom rebuked... And NEVER asked to leave!! More than fifty
years have passed since the stranger moved in with our family. He
has blended right in and is not nearly as fascinating as he was at
first. Still, if you could walk into my parents' house today, you
would still find him sitting over in his corner, waiting for someone
to listen to him talk and watch him draw his pictures. His
name?..............


We just call him, "TV."



Note: This should be required reading for every household in America!

=====================================================================

Perhaps "requirements" of any sort are what makes TV so appealing.
Again, none of my children is watching TV. I'm working through a DVD
on my computer, but haven't had it on for two days.



The people who make the anti-TV sites think WAY more about TV than
most people I know.

I used to have a book (gave it to a DJ friend) detailing
offensive/"satanic" lyrics in rock and roll songs. Someone had spent
hundreds of hours listening, transcribing, commenting, reviling...
He could have just turned off the music!

Sandra

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Amy

Well, there's hope for her. This could have been me six or so months
ago, although I would've only emailed it to people who agreed with me -
not because I'm afraid to speak my mind, but I did realize it was a
personal choice. I will admit though, I did think I was being a better
parent. Now, I have to stop and laugh at myself for awhile...Okay,
done laughing.

I have learned so much! Thank you to everyone here.

~amy