The challenge of finding toys that aren’t R-rated

The Virginian Pilot ^ | 12/4/05 | Diana Zuckerman

[moog]

Increasingly, video games are becoming an entertainment media for adults, not children.

"great" example we're setting.

[moog]

"I don't know who they would be appropriate for. "

WHO do you think???

[MineralMan]

"I agree that it's tough to find clothes for girls that are decent, modest, and reasonably priced."

---

It certainly can be. A search for "modest clothing" on any search engine, though, will bring up a bunch of resources. Some are more extreme in their modesty than others, but there's a lot out there.

Sometimes, places like Eddie Bauer are a good source...at least for some things. J.C. Penny still stocks a lot of modest apparel for children, as well.

Another place to look, depending on where you live, are stores like Fleet Farm, Farm and Fleet...that sort of place. I buy all my jeans at Mills Fleet Farm in Minnesota, along with lots of other clothing. They have an extensive kids section, and there's not a belly-button showing outfit in the store.

I suppose teenagers wouldn't like it, but parents sure do.

It takes a little extra effort, but...

I've always thought girls, from little girls to adults, look cute in old-fashioned farmer overalls, frankly. I see kids in them all the time. Now...there's modesty for ya! [grin]

[moog]

If you are a parent and you are so stupid as buy "Rated Mature" stuff for little Johnny whether it is games, music, books or movies, then these items are the least of little Johnny's problems.

Can't say I disagree. Whatever happened to footballs and bikes?

[moog]

"What on earth is a "family shopping mall"?"

A sleazy adoption agency.

[moog]

Marketting to children as if they were short adults is offensive to me....and so I monitor what she watches and plays and reads........It is not society's resonsibility to do that - it is mine as a parent. That's why you are a good parent and why there should be more like you.

[illinoissmith]

Ditto. Wandered into a Toys R Us a few weeks ago, and past the piles and piles of Bratz merchandise (etc.) you had classic board games, Lego, stuffed animals, plastic dinosaurs and sharks, various new sorts of building kits (one with magnets if I remember correctly, that I would have loved), etc.

Same for video games. If a parent is buying a kid GTA instead of, say, Animal Crossing and Paper Mario and Katamari Damacy (well... OK, I can't decide if KD is violent... the people don't seem to like being rolled up into stars; they keep wiggling) and whatever else out there is suitable for kids, that's the parent's fault.


I'm currently rereading _Pride and Prejudice_ . Mrs. Bennets and their Lydias have existed for a good long while.

I read _Farmer Boy_ years ago; violent boys have, similarly, existed for a good long while.

Yes, both are bad, but blaming merchants for a preexisting condition is backwards. They're hawking this stuff disproportionally because the parents most careless with their money are also the ones most careless with their children's minds... and possibly also because this sort of parent is becoming more common. (I say thank the school system which raised the parents for that, but that's me.)

[Tax-chick]

It's the cost, more than the selection. Between outgrowing things and wearing them out, my girls go through LOTS of clothes! With unlimited money to spend, there's no problem.

As it is, we go to Wal-mart and get ordinary pants - takes some doing - and t-shirts. Everyone looks kind of Grunge, but at least they're covered!

[moog]

Toughskin brand blue jeans available in the boys' department of Sears?

My 5 brothers and I wore toughskins all the way through elementary school.

[durasell]

NOTE TO PARENTS: Look at the ratings of the video games before you buy them. Grand Theft Auto is rated M (for Mature) which means no kids. And don't count on the local video store to check the ratings of video games as they do with movies.

[Termite_Commander]

Zoo Tycoon is for the PC, Neopets is found at Neopets.com (I used to play it, actually. =P) and Animal Crossing is for the Nintendo Gamecube, although I think they may be coming out with a sequel for the Nintendo DS.

[Westlander]

What's up with the boy holding his Schwanz. Seems like their are waiting reciptitents.

[livius]

Good article! I have a horse that I stable at a barn where they give lessons to kids. The owner/teacher is a Christian and is my friend. One day I walked in to take my horse out and there was a little girl, about 8, waiting for her lesson and wearing a spaghetti-strap tank that had the word "Slut" written across it in glitter. My friend gave her a shirt to throw on over it, but was careful not to embarrass the little girl.

The parents were furious that their 8 yr old girl could not wear the "Slut" t-shirt.

I think we have a problem here, and it isn't with the children.

[MineralMan]

"Everyone looks kind of Grunge, but at least they're covered!"

Maybe they'll start a fad. Who knows.

[illinoissmith]

"This Bratz series of dolls seems pretty popular this year."

Last year, they outsold Barbie.

Supposedly the first time that has happened in decades.

[MineralMan]

Whatever happened to the Cabbage Patch Kids? I suppose Barbie, in the 60's, when she first appeared, was a bit of a stretch for those times, too.

I dunno. I don't see the Bratz dolls as a really big deal, myself. Others apparently do. They pretty much reflect the culture of teens these days, so they're naturally popular with younger girls, just like Barbie was.

It isn't teenagers who play with fashion dolls. It's the 10-12 set, and they're going with what they see out there.

I disagree strongly with those who would put an outright ban on these dolls. That's wrong. Parents are, apparently, deciding to buy these things for their daughters, and in large number. I'd guess that lots of those parents also take their daughters to Sunday School and church, too.

Gloom and doom does not seem to be an appropriate response to children's toys.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

Not to mention erector sets and chemistry sets.

They have so many neat science and craft things for kids these days

[wagglebee]

The clothing and toy manufacturers have been progressively "pushing the envelope" for decades. They push a little and see how the parents react, and depending on the reaction they either pull back or push further. Boys are bombarded with the idea that misogyny and violence are admirable, and girls are taught that sex is a to be flaunted rather than saved for marriage.

While all of this is going on, parents have abandoned all pretense of trying to instill morality in their children. They view "safe sex" as a good alternative to abstinence and view other behaviors as a form of "childhood rebellion," hoping the kids will "grow out of it" (but from what I've seen, children are getting worse the older they get).

[moog]

They have so many neat science and craft things for kids these days

I agree. We have too much of the "get the kids whatever they want" syndrome today. We were always excited regardless of the things we got because we were taught to be thankful for what we have.

[moog]

children are getting worse the older they get).

A lot of us adults act too much like "children" too.