by Angie Nelson

Created on: April 17, 2009   Last Updated: April 19, 2009

I believe the children are our future. Whitney Houston sang that when I was growing up. I loved that song, "The Greatest Love of All," and now look at Whitney; in recent years she has been all over the news with allegations of drug abuse and even entered drug rehabilitation. If I was still the Whitney fan I was at age 7, I would be sorely disappointed. I am no longer a fan of her music, but I am older and realize that people have drug problems. If they seek treatment and are successful, they deserve a second chance. Children don't need to know that. Children should believe that using drugs would ruin their lives, put them in jail, hurt their families, etc. The Whitney scenario is all too common amongst those people in the limelight. Americans are obsessed with celebrities, especially ones who are getting themselves into trouble. Newspapers, magazines, the Internet, and television are making a spectacle of these people's lives. While it may be good to know if your child's favorite athlete is being convicted of a serious criminal offense, is it really good for the child to know?

I must admit, I do not have children. Sadly, due to a chronic disease, I cannot have children. I do have fifteen nieces and nephews ranging in age from 4 to 26, and if they all one thing in common, it is that they watch television. I shudder to think of some of the things the younger ones have seen on tv. For example, the other day a friend and I had the television on while we were planning her grandfather's birthday party. Suddenly a commercial came on and she exclaimed, "There it is, have you seen it?" Wondering what she was going on about, and not having been paying much attention to the television, I turned to see several women dancing in tight clothes to "The King" (of BK fame) singing about an affinity for square backsides. All the while, Sir Mix-A-Lot is singing "Baby Got Back" and Spongebob is on in the background. It is an advertisement for the new 99 cent kid's meal. If you ask me, it is totally inappropriate for the age range of Spongebob viewers, and what's worse is the creators would have had to authorize the whole thing with Burger King.

Speaking of fast food, do you know how many children are obese in this country today? 32%, according to Wikipedia, which also states that 75% of students in grades 7 through 12 eat fast food at least once a week. Imagine if all those kids didn't grow up like I did. Both of my parents worked when I was younger, and after my sister moved out

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