Are You There God? It's Me, Monica

Are You There God? It's Me, Monica (subscription required)

I'm going to avoid the obvious "fun stuff" on this article and note that what struck me is Flanagan's characterization of the "heroic" efforts of Tipper Gore and the Parent's Music Resource Council of the 1980s.

I was in high school during the time of "Just Say No" and the dawning of the AIDS epidemic. The PMRC was roundly considered the epitome of meddling, middle-American evil. Today, Flanagan looks at the changing sexual mores of today's teen girls, and opines that what's missing is a sense of modesty, a sense that sex -- any sexual activity -- should be something special to a "nice" girl, and that whether there is an "oral sex epidemic"or not, girls need guidance. They need to know that they're hurting themselves -- and families aren't helping by letting them find their way on their own, or by insisting on pledges of abstinence.

Which brings us back to Tipper Gore and PMRC. Flanagan notes that the media and the left tend to vilify anyone who tries to protect children. And it's true -- they do -- hell, I do. And let's face it: the PMRC came off as a bunch of finger-wagging Chicken Littles shouting about how we'd all be corrupted by a bunch of songs. Frank Zappa was a bona fide American hero.

Now that I'm a parent, I'm not so sure. It's our job to help our kids make independent choices. It's also our job to instill them with values, to help them make smart choices. In the end, maybe the PMRC wasn't the right answer, or the right messenger ... but it doesn't meant they didn't have a point.