But first, some background: After an incident almost a month ago
where I cursed at my younger sister, whose writing is also published on this
blog--ad bots, take note--my mother decided my punishment would be, of all
things, no longer being allowed to read the magazine The New Yorker.
To be clear, I’m not arguing about my innocence, which is
especially pointless considering that the only active audience for this post
will be my already fully convinced parents. I just want to read the magazines
that have are at the time of this writing being hidden in the weird cabinet in
the dining room or in the coat room or something.
- Cursing, or any
other learned behavior, doesn’t stem from a specific source.
- Where
do children learn gender roles?
- Is
it My Little Pony? Sesame Street?
- Quick,
choose one so we can ban it.
- Preventing me
from reading a publication with curse words won’t stop a child from
cursing. Because children don’t learn curse words from a magazine
publication.
- They
learn it from their parents.
- Or
their friends.
- Or--maybe
even-- The YouTube videos that another blogger on this site soaks up like
an urban millennial does Lifewtr.
- And
they learn curse words much before they’re old enough to read magazines
with “New York” in their name.
- The benefits of
reading works at an adult level far outweigh the negatives.
- They
introduce you to new philosophy and politics, books and music, food and
culture. And, after a certain point, children’s and YA publications tend
to be insultingly easy to read.
- Well-rounded
teens are needed. The National Center for Education Statistics found that
current-day 12th graders are reading at a lower level than their 1990s
counterparts.
- Ask
any adult and they’ll say that kids are getting more and more
tech-dependent. Magazine or newspaper reading would be a god-send for
most parents of teens.
- The New Yorker doesn’t
even curse that much.