Reminder

So, I am sure all of you have watched all 40 minutes of this discussion from 28 years ago...smiley of some sort.

My question to those here that grew up in the 80's with the PMRC and the Conn-Bluehairs: Are you now a decent parent? Did you become a deviant? What do you think about the music that your kids grew up listening to? Are THEY deviants or are showing deviant behavior?

I understand that unless you are Uncle Saxon - by which I mean, grew up amongst the supposed beginnings of "porn-rock/dirty lyrics/sex=love-love=sex" agenda of the babyboomer sledgehammer geneneration - and still raised a child from 1988 whom is still attempting to fulfill the American Dream - you may not get the real point of my question.

The real point of my question is: If you raised a Gen-X/Gen-Y offspring, are they affected even a little negatively by the music that YOU were raised on and impacted the parent that you became? Or was the music that we were raised on a door opening upon even worse shit that they had to absorb?

I gave my offspring examples of good and bad behavior and the consequences thereof. Pushing the emphasis that bad behavior is still just that, regardless if you get caught or not and also pounded home the philosophy that they are accountable for their own actions, thus taking responsiblity for it.

Some parents think it's difficult too control everything your kids are exposed to via, music, television, and social interaction/acticvities, but actually it is not. If you set up guidlines, rules, and check up on where or what they're up to. It shows that you not only care, but lets them "wonder" if this is gonna be the time you don't do it or the time that you are. I have see too many kids who were too sheltered just "pop" like a cork once they reached adulthood.

There was ALWAYS praise/worship music kicking off at the homestead while the kids were growing up and they were also exposed to whatever daddy and his friends were jammiin on with their instruments out in the shop. One thing I did (when they were older) was to pull out certain albums and play them for them. Let them read the liner notes, the lyrics (if available) and then ask questions about whatever came to mind. It was a really good to tool for explaining the life choices that we are faced with as a teen and/or young adult. I shared my experiences (if similar) and pretty much gave both sides of the coin as to what coud happen with the choices that are made. If I didn't experience it on a personal level, someone I know did and then shared that with them. Both good and bad choices. I am also of the "belief" that it is sometimes nesesary for you to allow your children to make bad choices so they see firsthand what it's like. In most cases it is a valuable teaching/learning tool.

Ahhh, Tipper and company... memories, memories.

Thankfully my parents trusted my brother and I enough to make intelligent decisions and to stay out of trouble. They also didn't buy into the whole "music can cause deviant behavior" PMRC party line. I guess cuz they were fans of Elvis and the Beatles, two acts that had their own experiences with the "this is the music of Satan" mindset in their heydays.

I can still remember seeing one of the PMRC's press conferences on TV and they were holding up giant blow-ups of album covers by Venom, Def Leppard, W.A.S.P., etc. and my brother and I were goin' "I have that one! I have that one! I got that one!" ... all my Dad said was "Is that what you spend your money on? Jeeezus Christ."

As for me... my kids (ages 10 and almost-6) are just starting to become interested in music. They each got an MP3 player for Xmas and my wife and I let them cherry-pick thru our CDs for tunes to load on them. My boys were already familiar with stuff like the Ramones and KISS just from hearing them when they're driving in my truck with me, but they also asked for some of Mom's country music, classic rock and golden oldies. Time will tell where their musical tastes go from here, I like to think we've given them each a nice "starter kit" representing different genres.

Obviously I was not going to let them sample stuff like GWAR, the Mentors, etc. -- I'll let them discover that on their own when they're teenagers, just like their old man did.