TQ Presents... @AsVinnyCsIt!

I generally try to put out three blog posts per week, but from time-to-time, I get caught up with other things: The Mrs., work, football, etc. This time, I'm nursing The Mrs. back from an illness. So, I figured, why not solicit some of my favorite bloggers to take up the slack for me. Yeah, that's right, I can facilitate my blogging duties to others! How lazy wonderful is that?

I've asked a buddy of mine, Vinny C, to liven up my blog a bit with some toons! Well, I'm going to let him do his thing. After you read this and enjoy his work, then cruise on over to "As Vinny C's It" and subscribe to the blog. It's good stuff. It wouldn't be on my page if it weren't. Take it away, VC!

"Hero?  ME!?!"

Like most, I often find myself pondering some of life’s bigger questions. Things like: when will we stop hearing rumors and gossip and finally see Firefly put back on the air or if the authorities are doing anything to stop the worldwide shortage of bacon. Things like those. What I’ve been thinking about a lot though is how I would deal with something really bad happening.

I’m not talking stubbing your toe, or locking yourself out of the house kind of bad. Those suck, but I was thinking more along the lines of extreme situations, like natural disaster or the society crumbling due to some sort of post nuclear-apocalyptic event.

Or because of that bacon shortage...

We all want to think we could rise to the occasion and take charge. But do we know for sure how we’d react if the shit were to really hit the fan, as they say? I’ll admit right now, I’m not what you’d call an “alpha” male personality. In fact, if there’s something that comes after “beta” male, that’s probably me.

But what if that was only because the right situation didn’t present itself? Sure, I’m non-confrontational and socially inept but maybe that’s only because I don’t see current situations warranting me being more aggressive. Maybe there’s another side to me altogether... deep deeeeep down inside. A hero!

For the record, I own neither as sword nor a machine gun. I just assume that if a zombie apocalypse does happen they’d be a lot of random weapons lying around. Maybe I played too many video games as a child. 

Anyway, I’m sure we all think we can be the hero if given the chance. Who wants to be the whiny victim who has to be rescued and is too scared to be of any use? Worse yet, imagine ending up with the role of nameless victim# 4. No one wants to aspire to that. But with my luck... Nah! I’m the hero. I know it!

AsVinnyCsIt
SprocketInk

Cage Fighting In; Boxing Out

Cage fighting simply represents our current culture: fast action. Boxing, once dubbed as the sweet science, is all about strategy. There's a patience involved in the sport of boxing as you study, approach and then slowly pick apart your opponent. Cage fighting has a bit of strategy involved, but the action is more fast-paced and a majority of the fights end in someone being knocked out or tapping out. It's a microwave version of boxing. You don't have to wait on two guys dancing around waiting on an open shot, now you just have two guys throwing punches until one of them connects. The result: cage fighting in; boxing out.

Before I get too far into this, let me state that I do enjoy cage fighting. Boxing will always be my first love (although it will die with my generation), but cage fighting is much more accessible and it is entertaining.

The point I'm trying to make is how society dictates our entertainment. Cage fighting has been around for decades, but now has a following that surpasses boxing because of a young generation of fans who crave action. Since we're on the subject of sports, let's discuss how the scoring has gone up in the NFL and MLB. Why? Because rule changes were made within the last decade and a half to allow for more scoring. Scoring gets the attention of our attention-deficit society.

Movies have more fight scenes and explosions than ever now. Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol ran commercials 20 times a day. I've seen so many commercials for M:I that I feel as if I've seen the movie already. In these commercials, they were showing basically every explosion and fight scene in the movie. Explosion and fight scenes gets the attention of our attention-deficit society.

I even had a recent discussion with someone about today's cartoons. There is no more classical music playing in the background and non-speaking roles a la "Tom & Jerry" or "Pink Panther." Today, every cartoon features noisy characters and bright colors. Have you watched SpongeBob? Every character yells and the colors on the show could probably trigger a seizure. Noisy characters and bright colors gets the attention of our attention-deficit kids.

So, the sports, movie and cartoon world is just a microcosm of our society. We want constant stimulation to keep our attention. That's why we can't walk any where without ear buds in our ears and why we keep our faces buried in our smart phones.

Patience? What's that? Why should I wait to be entertained? I want it now.





Thoughts and prayers go out to all teachers who try daily to figure out how to keep the attention of today's children. You have a thankless job and you are severely underpaid.



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Scooby Doo Arrested for Assaulting Ghost

What is the deal with cartoons these days? What happened to cartoons being cheesy, mindless, comedic shows for kids? My favorite cartoon as a child was "Tom and Jerry." Critics said the show was too violent and have since edited tons of what I consider "cartoon violence."



Well, cartoons have taken a whole new meaning in the 21st Century. Let's see today's version of "cartoon violence" with this Stewie and Brian clip from "Family Guy:"

All of a sudden, T&J doesn't look so bad, does it? In a span of a couple of decades, cartoons have gone from clip #1 to clip #2. Not all cartoons are kid-friendly these days.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that this just started in our lifetime. Way back in the day, they had what were considered at the time as "adult cartoons."

"Betty Boop" hit the scene during the Depression Era of the 30's as animation's first sex symbol.  

"Fritz the Cat" came along in 1972 and became the first U.S. cartoon to get an "X rating."

1981 spawned "Heavy Metal." This was the first adult cartoon that I remember seeing (8 years later as a college freshman).

1989 started TV's era of adult cartoons. Enter "The Simpsons." If you were at least 13 years old in 1989, then you should remember the controversy surrounding this show. FOX was already pushing the envelope with the likes of "Married with Children," and protesters were up in arms over this unruly, spike-haired boy by the name of "Bart." Little did any of us know that it would be considered tame by today's standards.

After "The Simpsons" came "Ren & Stimpy" which led to "Beavis & Butthead" which led to "South Park" and so on and so on...

So, what's next? Will we see some modern day Scooby Doo arrested for assaulting a ghost? Does animation's favorite crime-fighting dog turn into a "Matrix" meets "The Transporter" type of action show where ghosts are assassinated?

That remains to be seen.

Mess with this pooch or his crew and get "Scooby Smacked!"

The purpose for this post is this: the world constantly evolves and it's not always for the better. It's imperative that parents recognize how the world has changed and find a way to change with it. You can no longer rely on TV to babysit your child while you get chores done or try to take a quick nap. You may think you're turning on a harmless cartoon and the next thing you know, your child is dropping the n-word on people because he / she was watching "The Boondocks."

Take the time to not only screen what your child watches, but watch it with them. That way if anything mature is shown, you're there to put things in perspective or to offer an explanation. Make sure he / she is watching "Dora the Explorer" and not "Dora Gets Explored." You're laughing, but don't think it can't happen some day. Maybe 20 years from now, but it could. (Okay, I made that one up, but you get my point. You know, I wouldn't doubt if that was some actual porn title. If not, I'm suing the first person to use it.)

So, despite seeing cartoonish figures and maybe even famous faces, don't assume that a show is good for your six year old. Give it a test run yourself before allowing others to see it. Know what's on TV at all times so your kid won't grow up to be the Einstein from "Robot Chicken" instead of the Einstein from the history books.

(Warning: Language may be inappropriate for the sensitive)