Not Seen and Not Heard

I was taught by my dad to stand for principles that I believe in.
Yet if I followed his teachings I would be arguing with telemarketers on the phone, but I digress.

My father taught me to be anti-censorship. Why should the government tell me what I can and can't see and hear?
But as I've grown, I've realized that sometimes, things need to be censored for certain people.

When I was 7, I caught an episode of Law and Order dealing with rape that was quite graphic and I couldn't sleep that night.
At 20 years old, I censored MYSELF and refused to watch the video of the American soldier being beheaded by terrorists, knowing that perhaps, I wouldn't catch an z's again.

So perhaps it's for the best that we aren't allowed to see "R" rated movies when we are still watching saturday morning cartoons.
Perhaps it's a good thing that 8 years olds can't buy Penthouse magazine.



But I still don't agree that the government should be the one to do this.
I have a mother and father, I don't need a "big brother" as the case may be (I like being the oldest, thank you.)

The reason I didn't see R rated movies as a kid was because I wasn't allowed to. My parents wouldn't let me go out late with friends past curfew. They had supreme control over the remote and we never had HBO.

This is why I'm afraid to have kids. Once you have them, your life doesn't matter. All your time and all of your efforts are now for this being you created.
You want to go to the bar and get wasted? Sorry, junior needs his diaper changed at 1am.

Which is why I don't understand most parents. They think their child is like a dog. You can just drag them around, throw them a treat every so often, and they will still wag their tail, smiling and drooling.
KIDS ARE NOT PETS!
Take care of them, protect them.

Recently, the boy and I were at a local bar/grill that is known for it's LOUD metal, naked pictures on the wall, as well as delicious food and beer that results in LONG wait times due to the small space and high demand.
This place is Kuma's Corner. Which is a landmark to Chicagoans and out of towners alike.

We were lucky enough to grab bar seats without a wait. Which is good except that all the people waiting for a table are constantly talking over your shoulder to get a beer.
So I run to the bathroom real quick and when I come back a woman is basically standing on my chair talking to the bartender about something and the woman is not happy.
When she finally leaves, I ask my boyfriend what happened.
Apparently this woman was outside waiting for a table and she was there with a SMALL CHILD.
The wait was a bit long (it's usually an hour or more) and the woman wanted a to-go order.
One of Kuma's rules is "no to-go orders when patio is open" and obviously, it's July and the patio is open.
Well the woman is all "well my kid is hungry, do you have anything she/he/it can eat?"
So the bartender then scrounges up some oyster crackers.

There are SO many things wrong with this whole scenario.

1)You are going to a place that is NOTORIOUS for not only good food but for LONG WAITS. What did you expect?
2) This place of business also features LOUD, EXPLICIT MUSIC and nudity.
3) Your kid is gonna get hungry at some point. HAVE YOU HEARD OF CHEERIOS AND TUPPERWARE?!

I'm not gonna go over there and censor or take care of your kid.
But damn, I even remember snacks for my cat and I don't even take him out to places.

So go ahead and let your kid watch Girls Gone Wild.
Perhaps they will be able to sleep at night.