Morals

"Won't somebody please think of the children?" Helen Lovejoy shouted this anytime a moral cause was taken up in early episodes of The Simpsons. It was meant as a satirical jab at those who may be perceived to take the world too seriously. It also worked as a message to those parents and others who complained about the content of the show damaging society's moral fabric.

Living in Beijing, one might assume I don't have time to keep up with television or pop culture. Well, I am a creature of habit and obsession so to shut myself off from my stories would be unacceptable. I try to achieve a balance. Considering the recent rises in pollution, staying inside and watching movies doesn't seem like such a horrible idea.

(Aside: the pollution leaks through the windows. There is nowhere to hide!) (Second aside: Terminator 3 is on HBO at the moment. I forgot how unforgivably bad it is.)

I'm a binge watcher. The beauty and danger of DVD and Netflix is we have access to full seasons of television at our fingertips preventing the expansion of our social lives. I missed the boat, initially, on Breaking Bad but caught up through the first two seasons in maybe a week. Since then I've been hooked. I used to watch The Sopranos by season. I plowed through The Wire and Lost several episodes per sitting. It's the viewing equivalent of novelistic storytelling.

"The Edge...there is no honest way to explain it because the only people who really know where it is are the ones who have gone over."
                                                           - Hunter S. Thompson

About a month ago I started watching Sons of Anarchy. I'm not far in, and I like it well enough, but I started thinking about the potential moral rebuking coming from viewers who believe it to be polluting the future generation. Through (very) brief searching I found two sites that provided slightly differing methods of telling parents that Sons of Anarchy is not appropriate for children.

One is quick and to the point. It goes into detail about the summary of the show and then explains in a paragraph the events that may be questionable for people under the age of 18. It does this without standing on a pedestal of outrage that such a show exists but simply acknowledges that children probably shouldn't watch a show about violent, promiscuous bikers who sell guns.

Common Sense Media paints a different picture. In the interest of fairness, the site does not gloss over the details and actually does more than the radical Simpsons haters of decades past. The problem is the site doesn't use common sense in its analysis. It's obvious that this show is not intended for children but I think they are making an error in suggesting the show "glamorizes the lifestyle of some very unlikable outlaw bikers." If you watch SOA and get a hankering to join a bike gang, there are a few more things wrong with your psychology than enjoying a television show.

If a show is inherently violent does that mean it is glamorizing it? The setting of Sons of Anarchy and the subject matter dictate that this will not be a pleasant undertaking for those involved. It is a motorcycle gang and the show does a decent job of displaying the moral conundrums and diversity the characters are involved with. There is a depth of character at work here that isn't explored at all in Common Sense Media's explanation of the show. Jax, the focal point, is not an all-the-way bad person. The show does not work in black-and-white generalities -- at least not when it comes to SAMCRO.

(So far, by season two, the rivals SAMCRO face are generic plot devices designed to provide conflict. It'd be nice if characters like Darby had a little more depth so the conflict provided a little more overall resonance and was more challenging for the viewer.)

I take issue with the assertion that the show does not feature positive role models. Or, rather, I take issue with the idea that this is important when judging a television show.

First of all, it's more complicated than simply defining positive and negative on these characters. Jax himself is struggling with the notion of becoming a father and leaving a legacy for his son. The early parts of the series focus on Jax's relationship with his deceased father through a found journal. While Common Sense Media may be right about some characters being thinly drawn, Jax is going through a fascinating series of trials and revelations. His perception of his father and the gang is evolving because of these journals. Because of his father, Jax is part of Sons of Anarchy. Does he want his son to go through the same thing? Jax isn't exactly the moral compass of the show because it doesn't deign to have one. Instead, he's a direct criticism of the lifestyle and the backwards thinking it can instill on its members. He doesn't want to kill, though he does. And make no mistake, Jax loves being part of SAMCRO because it is a family. Like with The Sopranos, and many stories about gangs, one of the overarching themes is the importance of trust and family. This is tested fairly early and regularly.

Secondly, when can we all just agree that television is not an appropriate substitute for parenting and babysitting? I think Common Sense Media has an altruistic motive and they definitely open their message up for discussion, which I congratulate. I would be remiss if I didn't mention that the site doesn't seem to be on a soapbox of family values, as they do mention the high quality of The Sopranos in comparison to SOA.

Context is important. Some stories are unpleasant but that doesn't mean they aren't worth telling. Sons of Anarchy is not a perfect show as many characters are paper-thin space-fillers. When I was young, if I ended up watching something that featured violence, sexuality, strong language, etc. my parents explained the nature of it to me. They were sure to put it in the proper context so I didn't get the wrong ideas. Kids are impressionable, sure, and it is up to parents to put what they watch into proper context.

I'll continue to watch Sons, and while it will occasionally rub me the wrong way I know enough not to look to the television shows I watch as a guide on how to live my own life.

I do want a motorcycle, though. This is not a new development.

For another look into motorcycle gangs, check out Hell's Angels by Hunter S. Thompson.

Conscious

 I don't like repeating myself. As such, I am not too keen in re-transcribing my thoughts and descriptions of my two weeks in Vietnam and Cambodia. It was a terrific time with some wonderful people (both friends and strangers). I captured my pontifications in my personal notebook, though, and that is where they will stay. Ask me and I'll share it with you, but I'm not going to run down my vacation.

Besides, nothing negative happened so it's immediately less riveting than a total train wreck would have been. Flying back into Beijing the flight attendant came over the loudspeaker in the plane.

"The ground temperature in Beijing is -11 degrees Celsius," she said.

I groaned. It's silly to complain, since I spent the previous two weeks in paradise, but it was a fairly severe shock to the system. I grumbled.

Memories will settle in and nestle their way into my subconscious. This is why we travel. It's an opportunity to see the world and build on our perceptions and experiences. Every meaningful moment, positive and negative, is a puzzle piece forming our personal identities. Mine is unique...just like everyone else.






Worse...the pollution is more oppressive than ever. The air quality index was, apparently, off the scales on Saturday. It probably set me back to day one of not smoking. Drat.

For everything new, there is something familiar. Upon returning to the frigid concrete jungle, the safest and most comfortable option is staying inside to catch up on movies and television. Hooray! From Lincoln to Django to Zero Dark Thirty, the movies of 2012 have impressed. Netflix has given me access to Sons of Anarchy, which I have put off for some time. Turn the heat on, lay back on my tiny couch and I avoid the cold. Not a bad call.

But still I am restless at times. I don't like to blog without purpose...but I also don't like leaving this space untended for too long. It's good practice to compose these posts, however aimless. I'm not Kerouac, though and stream of consciousness doesn't flow easily for me. Perhaps the more I force myself to do it, the easier it will get...like most things.

Less than a month until Spain. My mind is already there.