Alexander, I assure you I was not singling out your parents as nerf-catching drool monkeys. If you would take another look at the post to which you responded, I said:

"I see the Bratz dolls, and I see the inappropriately sexy clothes on sale at Old Navy, but I always wonder: What idiot buys that stuff? Remember, kids have no credit cards or cash. They can't vote or hold a job. Anything they want has to come through you. So what kind of brain-dead nerf-catching drool monkey do you have to be to think it's a good idea to buy all of this sexualized **** for your little girl?"

So I listed three elements: Bratz dolls, inappropriately sexy clothes and sexualized ****. I don't much like the Bratz dolls, but they were the lesser part of the equation.

As for my being a "mature mod," I was posting in the Backroom long before I donned the robes, and I only have mod powers in the Frontroom, so don't go throwing my status in my teeth to try to shut me up. I would much rather abandon being a mod than give up the rough and tumble of the Backroom.

Going back to the overall topic ...

Capitalism? Only tangentially to blame. Liberalism? Only tangentially to blame. The biggest problem has been the re-definition of marriage and parenting over the last forty years, and for that all political parties are to blame. Crazed Rabbit, didn't you ever notice that the average Republican politician is on his second or third wife? What kind of message does that send? More importantly, what kind of damage has that Senator/Congressman/State Representative done at home by discarding his first wife like a used bike?

And the sexual revolution of the '60s bears a good bit of blame as well, for de-stigmatizing divorce and de-emphasizing responsibility.

Another problem is the "everybody holds down a job" economy. My wife and I have made the sacrifices necessary to make sure one of us is always home for the kids. Warehousing your children in a day care system is not the best way to ensure that they have high self-esteem and self-reliance. Having one parent at home, especially in the early years of development, is a good thing.

Gotta run, but I'll post more and defend the indefensible later.