Articles, Movies

There is Media, then there is Reality – Abortion

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On one side, we see life through the lens of media. We see love stories, we see excitement, we see happy endings. Then there is reality where there are life scarring break ups, daily boredom that drives you mad, and people who are not very happy with where there life is going. We watch, see what we want, expect our lives to be pan out in a similar way and when it doesn’t.. we can easily become discontent with what we have now. Why don’t I have this? Why don’t I live like that?

Last week I wrote a blog post on media’s affect on sexual freedom and how media glorifies the promiscuous, carefree lifestyle and how it has impacted our views on the merits of abstinence. Well on the other side of this lifestyle is the dark realities that go often unspoken. Scarred hearts, ruined lives, loss of trust in people after being hurt, and the big ones such as STDS and Abortion. The real life consequences that for some reason TV shows don’t like to highlight and if it does, the problem somehow wraps up in 30 minutes or an hour and all is good at the end.

There is a site called “abortionchangesyou.com” that has stories of real people and their real experience dealing with the emotional consequences of abortion. Some speak for themselves, others for a loved one. Either way its a stark reality check that life isn’t as simple as the fictional stories we see on our tv screens or movie theaters. It also gives a moment of pause for those battling between pro choice and pro life that amidst all the fighting and arguing, there are real people out there that we should be sensitive to especially as it has become such a prominent political issue.

Think: At current abortion rates, 1 in 3 women in the US will have an abortion by age 45.

My Child would have been 22 this year
As a teenager, I assumed legalized abortion was necessary for women to attain their educational and career goals. So it’s not surprising that when I became pregnant at 18, I had an abortion. 

I was completely unprepared for the emotional fallout after the abortion.

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Articles, Movies

Reacting to Religion Based Movies

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No one would argue that movies and TV shows have tremendous impact on our culture and our worldview. Where do you get your concept of courage? How about what an ideal friendship should be like? An ideal spouse? What is acceptable when it comes to violence or any moral decisions? What is culturally normal and not normal when it comes to how we treat different circumstances, especially circumstances we’ve never experienced but may experience in the future? Would you know how guns work, or how two lovers engage in love? Where did you (or your parents who told you) get the idea of “if you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything”? (Which I would argue goes against the grain of reality, though really nice to cling onto).

It has always been interesting to see how nonchalant viewers are to all the culture defining messages found in film. Either they don’t see it, or they don’t care. However when it comes to a faith themed movie, there seem to always be strong reaction. It is treated differently. Below are some excerpt from Breakpoint which describes this situation. Though the article itself is directed more towards Christian I found it to be an interesting read. 

When the Christian film Facing the Giants came out in 2006, far more interesting than the movie itself were the reactions to it. Mainstream critics were almost universally dismissive—it “feels like an overly earnest church sketch of the type many evangelical congregations use as a teaching tool on Sunday between the worship music and pastor’s message,”

And yet some enthusiastic viewers unwittingly gave the impression that they had enjoyed the film because it was their duty to do so. That impression was perhaps best summed up by Ted Slater of Boundless, who wrote, “Let’s not knock a movie that encourages faith in God.”

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Media’s Impact on Sexual Freedom

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Has anyone noticed that all media articles regarding teen sex, condoms and abstinence always emphasize and focus on the spread of STDs and nothing else? Editorials and commentaries used to make the case of abstinence as a moral stance or a wholesome alternative to the sexually active world we live in. It also focused on the emotional risk involved with premarital sex. Now our culture has bent so far into the realm of sexual promiscuity that the only way people could even suggest abstinence is by fear of STDs. If you are going to raise the sexual freedom flag, why is abstinence ridiculed while ones who “score” or get “laid” considered cool or great?

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Articles, Internet, News

Quick Hits – Media Impact on Children

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Does Media have an impact on our children? This question is no longer a question but something validated through numerous studies over time. Yet why is it that most families continue to allow our children and teens to sit hours on end in front of a TV screen or bother to read up on or screen movies before allowing them to watch? Is it because of the convenience of using the TV as the ultimate babysitter? Is it because we don’t bother to really think about it and assume it our children and teens would know the difference of what is right and wrong? Is it because we have gotten used to the violence and sexual imagery used in almost every single TV show and Movie? Every single one of these points are probably true. We all know how much media affects us, how much more for the internet generation where every piece of media is only a click away?

I had such a fellow in my kindergarten who was very sensitive to television watching. In his play he always identified enemies, be they sharks, monsters or other children, and fortified himself and attacked them. Gradually, as TV was minimized in his life, (unfortunately it was never eliminated), his play became more social and less aggressive. However, several times during the year he visited his grandparents for a week at a time, where the TV was on most of the time. He came back in full attack mode. At such times he would push children down on the playground, and he would say to me, “They were going to hurt me,”

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