Cagliostro wrote: Then again, I was pretty good at self-censoring. I was easily scared, so if I had the balls to watch a scary movie, then I was allowed.
I think this is an excellent point. I let my kids watch pretty much whatever they want. My teen can look up porn on his computer (as long as it's legal) [Edit: granted, he is 18 himself now, so technically not a kid anymore.] My 10-yr-old can watch R-rated movies. And they are great at self-censoring. I've checked up on the teen's computer, and can't find much evidence of any porn viewing at all. You'd think with that kind of freedom, he'd have a real addiction at this point. But his history is all Facebook and shopping for clothes online. My 10-yr-old, on the other hand, will actually leave the room if tits pop up in a movie. We've tried to tell him that breasts are natural and there's nothing wrong with them, but he still feels like he shouldn't see it, so he leaves. The same thing happens when a movie is too violent for him. He will walk out of the room.
I think we should trust kids more and not baby them. Sheltering doesn't protect them, it only softens them and leaves them unprepared for the inevitable confrontation with this stuff when they are not under your supervision. They'll go crazy at the first opportunity, because everything has been made into the "forbidden fruit" and they've got 18 years of repressed curiousity to unleash upon the world.
Now as for censoring comedy ... I don't get that one at all. If someone thinks that laughter is in any way dangerous, I'd like that one explained to me. Yes, I know the language and subject matter can get raunchy. But if a child can find humor in it, then they're probably ready to hear it. After all, there is nothing funnier to a kid than bodily functions. We all start out on poop and fart jokes.
