Knocked Up

The following views and opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not represent those of any video store or any other entity.

KNOCKED UP

            This is a window poster that went up last week at video stores advertising an upcoming movie called “Knocked Up”:

            The next day a store in California received an anonymous letter stating that it was offensive and should be removed immediately.  The day after the letter, an older woman in her 60’s ran up to the store and removed the portion containing the “what if this guy got you pregnant” statement, ran back to her car, and fled the scene.

            Some people are pushed to do strange things when they are offended.  It can also be said that art and entertainment sometimes pushes people beyond their comfort zone.  While some are fine with things happening around them that they do not agree with, others believe certain images and messages created for advertisement and entertainment are demoralizing society and geared toward offending them personally.

            I can completely understand being offended, even taking the time to communicate to someone responsible for the offense in a civil manner – but I do not understand why someone takes matters into their own hands to remove a possibly offensive ad.  Who are they saving?  Who are they helping?  Does it make any difference to anyone but themselves?
            Since the woman obviously wants to remain anonymous, it is difficult to truly understand where she is coming from, but I will try.  I believe she is upset with the apparent demoralization of our society and blames entertainment for society’s problems.  It is obvious that not too long ago, openly talking about un-wed pregnancy was forbidden, and the advertisement of such a taboo subject was too much for this woman to handle.

            This is nothing new, however.  Entertainment has always pushed the boundaries.  They have needed to – that’s what society has demanded.  Who wants to see the same story lines from Leave it to Beaver and the Brady Bunch re-hashed for a new generation?  Those lessons don’t really make any sense anymore.  Back then there was a definite disconnect between visual entertainment and what was and could happen in our real lives.

            The disconnect is gone.  TV now talks like we talk and faces issues which are not easily solved in an hour.  Abortion, pedophilia, un-wed pregnancies, violent crime, drugs, and gay relationships – are just a few of the issues which we have or will have to deal with in our lifetime.  Are these new issues?  Is it TV and movies that created the perceived escalation in our society of these issues, or is our society caught in a negative evolution, where all these things we spell the downfall of our society.

            I think the last statement is a bit too harsh.  As stated before, these issues have been around even longer than TV and movies, so it didn’t create it – but maybe, in a small way, entertainment tried to help us deal with these issues which none of us, thanks to old-style TV and movies, were aware of unless it was happening to us.

            So to the woman who felt she was making a difference to society by ripping down one of the 5000+ posters that she found offensive, I have to say this:  If you are really determined to fix what you perceive is wrong, understand that it may not be entertainment that creates these issues, but society itself.

-written by Brad 2o2p