Blog - Joyful Curmudgeon - Blog
A Mary T. Hoffman Commentary from All-Creatures.org

 

"Joyful Curmudgeon" An oxymoron?
No! I see all the beauty of God's creation and I'm joyful.  At the same time, I see all the suffering and corruption going on in the world, and feel called to help expose and end it so that we may have true peace and compassion.

 

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Consequences of Denial – 30 July 2006
By Mary T. Hoffman

Living in denial is a problem in society. (Frank says that “denial” is not a river in Egypt!J) Since the truth seldom wins popularity contests, or sells products or ideas, denial will continue to flourish.

In a recent Wal-Mart circular featuring school clothes, a girl and a boy pictured on the cover are wearing camouflage pants while standing in front of a classroom chalkboard. Inside, there are T-shirts displaying graphics: a skull atop two crossed swords, a skeleton playing drums; and messages: “Welcome to the Gun Show” (with a graphic of a character flexing huge arm muscles), “Annoying the World One Person at a Time” “Scientific Theory Proven! The universe does revolve around me!” “Stop Looking at My Shirt.” All this from a store that considers itself family-oriented!

Aren’t parents in denial of the truth if they think that these clothes are just innocent fun? The not-so-subtle message here is that it is desirable to be tough, macho, self-centered, and just plain cruel! In many cases, bringing up children to be kind and considerate is difficult enough, without encouraging anti-social behavior. The old “boys will be boys” denial is wearing thin, and now it’s also “girls will be girls,” as females increasingly participate in sadistic crimes.

And what about those children who become the victims of these “products of denial”? It is obvious that the parents or guardians of bullies are mostly to blame. As long as their kids aren’t at the receiving end of abuse at the hands of bullies, they just look the other way or join in the scapegoating.  

Go on to: Consequences of Denial, Part II – 31 July 2006
Return to: Goldfinch and Chickadee – 29 July 2006
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