This week, the 18th season of South Park premiered with
one of its best episodes to date. In “Go Fund Yourself”, creators
Matt Stone and Trey Parker comment on the current Washington
Redskins name controversy. South Park’s willingness
to tackle taboo topics like this is what has made it such a
cultural force. As Nick Gillespie notes in a
recent column at The Daily Beast:
South Park not only allows us to laugh at the darkness
rising all around us—it also teaches us to navigate the endless
slurry of bullshit firehosed at our faces in the so-called
Information Age.
Gillespie previously touted the educational value of South
Park in “3 Reasons All Kids Should be FORCED to Watch South
Park,” a Reason TV video produced by Jim Epstein last year. The
original release date was September 25, 2013, and the original
writeup is below.
One of the longest lived and most controversial TV shows of all
time–South Park–is kicking off
its 17th season.Despite being a cartoon, South Park was the first weekly TV show
to be given an MA rating, meaning it’s intended for mature
audiences. And it’s certainly packed with foul language, off-color
humor, and adult situations.But it’s also truly educational, especially for
children. So here are three reasons why all parents should make
their kids watch South Park.1. Disrespect My Authoritah!
Virtually every episode points out the difference between
legitimate authority and the abuse of power and scare-mongering.
Whether it’s the show’s Jew-baiting jerk Eric Cartman going nuts as
a traffic cop or former Vice President Al Gore trying to scare
the boys into hysteria over ManBearPig,
South Park always emphasizes thinking for yourself rather than
blindly following what leaders say.2. Respect True Diversitah!
Today’s kids are constantly force-fed hosannas to tolerance and
diversity that ring hollow and false. But even when it’s brutally
satirizing something like
Mormonism, South Park actually fosters a true live-and-let-live
ethos that’s sadly lacking in most K-12 curricula.3. It Emphasizes Personal Responsibility
Among South Park’s core values is taking responsibility for
one’s actions. In the episode where Stan’s father develops a
drinking problem and seeks supernatural intervention for a cure,
it’s the child who lays out the case for self-control
and accountability.The most enduring lesson of South Park isn’t found in any given
episode but in the entire show’s run and the careers of its
creators, Trey Parker and Matt Stone. The show grew out of early
videos, including a 1995 one that pitted Santa vs. Jesus in a fight
to the death over the true meaning in Christmas.Now, almost 20 years later, Parker and Stone have created one of
the greatest TV shows of all time, along with unforgettable movies
such as the all-puppet action thriller Team America and the
Broadway smash The Book of Mormon.They’re no uncritical fans of Walt
Disney but their careers are a testament to his belief that
“If
you can dream it, you can do it.”In a way that’s virtually unmatched, Parker and Stone teach all
our children that creativity and hard work – and an ability to
laugh at everything life throws at you – eally do pay off in the
long run.About 3 minutes. Written by Nick Gillespie, who narrates, and
produced by Jim Epstein. Scroll below for downloadable versions and
subscribe to Reason.tv’s
YouTube channel to receive automatic notifications when
new videos go live.Related: “South
Park Libertarians: Trey Parker and Matt Stone on liberals,
conservatives, censorship, and religion,” from the December
2006 issue of Reason magazine.
from Hit & Run http://ift.tt/1qKkyWV
via IFTTT