To be fair, Elenchos, you are correct that "John's parents let him play all the video games he wants/Grandma lets me" shouldn't be a deciding factor for the parents. That said, it's obviously going to be an issue for the kids.

It's just a lot better in the long run if parents can moderate, and come up with ways of making the alternatives seem fun and interesting, rather than just "well, that's not what we do in our house."

As you'll see on the post I wrote below, I obviously DON'T believe unlimited video games/TV/junk food/whatever is beneficial.

But I see the same straw man attacks against video games (thanks Ebert) that you seem to think are being leveled at you for thinking they're useless.

As other people have pointed out on your previous comments, there ARE studies that show video games can be beneficial. That doesn't mean we're saying they're BETTER than books, or running in a field of daisies, or sculpting La Pieta out of whole wheat bread.

But it also doesn't mean that a parent who allows their kids to play them in a moderate and reasonable way is an uneducated or neglectful ogre either.

If you deny your kids EVERYTHING you consider without value, you will end up with children like me, who upon her first adult visit to the grocery store nearly wept with joy in the sugary cereal and ice cream aisles.

I proceeded to eat so many froot loops I pissed blue for a week. I've never once touched wheat bread as an adult, and I don't think I ate a single vegetable from age 19 to 30.

I try to eat better now because I'm not a moron, but if the occasional bowl of Cap'n Crunch had been available as a child, I wouldn't have thought of it as the holy grail of cuisine.

As so many other people are saying, moderation. It doesn't mean you're kow-towing to what the Joneses let their kids do, it just means outright prohibition makes anything far more attractive than it would otherwise be.

Ahem. Drunken re-editing time. "My awesome idea + Your free writing [does not] = Hollywood deal!"

And that's why if I ever offer to co-write your screenplay you should turn me down.

Oh, totally, Basil. I could go on and on (as I'm obviously apt to do, heh) but yes. We all need to embrace that we're maybe not being lady-like or manly-like but the most important thing is we're sure as hell getting our fuck on.

Also, Mid-liffe is the perfect place to find a second career. I'm not saying quit your day job, but doing the same thing for 20+ years is hardly mandatory.

Another thing I was going to mention (but the post was already going way long), the reason he's saying "it was YOUR idea for me to wear garters" is because almost every guy is extremely insecure about any sexual act that makes him seem less masculine. Just let that go. He needs an excuse to feel like it's okay, that he's doing it because you like it, not that he's less of a man.

The reason she got so much love in the original post is because she DIDN'T make him feel like he was "less of a man."

Keep that attitude up, and you'll keep having an amazing and inventive sex life!

I agree to a point. You're correct that this person should hire someone, but unless they have SOME sort of understanding of what goes into writing a screenplay, they won't know how to pick an applicant that knows what the hell they're doing.

Also, they'll have a better understanding that "My awesome idea + Your free writing = Hollywood deal!"

I'm certainly not complaining!

I was just thinking of places to work for the rest of the summer. Still not used to heat waves being such a short-term thing in Seattle, heh.