These are my random musings. Hopefully they will be witty, insightful, and frequently updated.
Trying to keep profane music from my kids' ears
Published on August 20, 2007 By singrdave In Parenting
I am the parent of four kids: ages 11, 9, 6, and 2. They are learning and trying to make their way in the world. It's my wife and my job to raise them in a way that makes them the best possible people.

We do not live in a bad neighborhood. In fact, we live in a pretty darn good area. There appears to be no gang activity, no drugs, and it's relatively graffiti-free. So why is it that whenever I take my kids to the store there is inevitably some idiot thumpin' his gangsta rap all up and down the mall parking lot?

I was taking my kids to the grocery store and Dollar Tree and we were crossing the main road that runs out front of the mall. Some guy in a lowered, pimped out white Camry -- windows down, no less -- listening to "F**kin s**t mother f**ker keep your mother f**kin s**t in your mother f**kin b**ch...". You get the idea.

People who are so insensitive to other people's sensitivities drive me crazy. if he wants to listen to that crap that's fine... but why does he have to share it with my small children? The collateral damage that is done by his unthinking attitude is really frustrating. I try so hard to keep my kids swear-word free -- not because I'm sheltering them but because they're too young to start bustin' out the bad words and attitudes. There are incredibly bad words, ideas, and attitudes in this music. Stuff I don't want my kids to know about.

I know it's an unattainable goal but can't people just turn that s**t down?

Comments (Page 1)
2 Pages1 2 
on Aug 20, 2007
Re-reading this article and realizing that I am getting old.

"You darn kids, turn that rap music down!"
on Aug 20, 2007
No, young people are getting sick and tired of that too.
on Aug 20, 2007
The whole world's getting darker. Have you noticed, for instance, how much darker and negative the movie remakes are than the originals?

on Aug 20, 2007
It's impossible to shelter them from exposure to it so it's even more important to teach them to make good judgments about it.

Personally I wish they would just allow the cops to impound any car pounding out that much noise regardless of the actual 'music' being played. Shooting the driver would be ok with me too.

I remember when I was a teen down here in FL, the cops would actually have a sound meter in their car and pull over anyone who's car was emitting noise over the legal limit regardless of whether it came from a stereo or the exhaust system.
on Aug 20, 2007
In more ways than one.


Little-Whip: 2. Nash: 0.

on Aug 20, 2007
"Have you noticed, for instance, how much darker and negative the movie remakes are than the originals?"

No, us young'uns don't even realize they're remakes. It's new to us, and we're not going to waste our time watching those sound-free 'moving pictures' without color.
on Aug 20, 2007
Mason:
It's impossible to shelter them from exposure to it so it's even more important to teach them to make good judgments about it.

Absolutely agreed. We have explained to our kids that there are words that other people use that we don't. And they understand. But I try to keep my kids' ears all virginal. That's my job.
on Aug 20, 2007
That's my job.


You've set yourself to an impossible task.
on Aug 20, 2007
This is just one of many reasons I moved to a gated community, all the rules can be a huge pain in the ass, but for sure, no one plays that kind of crap at 110 decibels ever, no one plays anything at 110 decibels ever, matter of fact 98% of the time you can hear a mouse piss on cotton at 100 yards after 5 pm. In the day time the only loud stuff we hear is the working of lawn mowers.

But it's true the amount of exposure to our children form these heathens is just deplorable. Mother f... this, kill that, murder this, bang bang that, ho over here bitches over there, wwhat kind of music is this?
on Aug 20, 2007
For more information, check out "I Your Pimp, You My Bitch" and Other Great American Love Songs now on sale at your local book and music store.
on Aug 20, 2007
I'm crazy. I will ask people to turn things down. I have yet to have anyone do anything besides apologize and turn it down.

Of course I've never lived in a dangerous place.
on Aug 21, 2007
For more information, check out "I Your Pimp, You My Bitch" and Other Great American Love Songs now on sale at your local book and music store.

That sounds way above my kids' reading ability. I'll wait for the board book and pop-up book versions, thanks.
on Aug 21, 2007
I can see a pop-up purple cadillac...
on Aug 23, 2007
Shooting the driver would be ok with me too


ROFL! It's open season time!LOL!


I understand your feelings on this Dave. The same thing happened to me when I was with my two younger ones, 5 and 12 years and it's really not nice cause you don't know whether to cuss or just ignore and most times for the sake of sanity I just ignore and advise my kids to do the same. It's not the fact that it's the rap music, it's the worst type of rap music with the cussing and swearning nasty lyrics!
on Aug 23, 2007
There are no bad words, just bad music.
2 Pages1 2