When I talked on children’s literature recently, I argued that reading with your child on your lap is altogether different from watching a DVD with a child on your lap.  My primary argument was the power, the beauty, and the glory of words, and the joy of experiencing them with a child.

If we used the analogy of food, what would consuming weeks of day-in/day-out television be?

I’d say boxed cereal or K-rations. Albert Marrin writes, “One never felt full after a K-ration meal.  Soldier food was dull and tasteless.”  When did you feel full after watching a show?  Often there is no response at all; the show just covered a void.  Sometimes you feel slimed.  The most recent episode of The Bachelor drew a lot of irritated comments from bloggers.  Why would anyone watch it in the first place?  Do we really want to “nourish” our soul and spirit with that essence of tubercular spittle?

See, I knew it. 
I knew I would get the “screamin’ meemies.” 
My kids know this voice. 
[deep, cleansing breaths]

It is too easy for me to crusade about television because that is the medium “under control” at my house.  I’m very interested in how this translates to the internet (a medium I cannot say is completely under control).  They can both be addictive, time-consuming and there are issues with each medium regardless of content. 

I would love to see a second edition of this book after twenty years.  How do we move from thoughtless consumption of contemporary culture to thoughtful engagement in the age of TIVO, wifi and text messaging? 

I’m flirting with the idea of subscribing to Mars Hill Audio (see link above) to get more thought-provoking commentary.  From their website:

A gulp of All God’s Children and Blue Suede Shoes on Google Reader.