'b' a bad idea for Mother's Day

3 comments

May 11, 5:34 PM

by Brenda Carl, Baltimore Media Examiner

 

 

Today's edition  of "b" focuses on Mother's Day (this Sunday by the way in case you hadn't heard) but in a way that leaves a bad taste in one's mouth.  The paper is aimed at young, hip, single men & women, people who, you may think after reading today's edition, are so distant from their real life Mother, that the paper offers up some of the best "make pretend" Mothers.   

Marge Simpson, Peg Bundy, Claire Huxtable, moms who were "with" us every night, on the television screen, probably while the REAL moms were at work, making dinner, or picking up groceries for the family.  These were the moms who, according to the author, gave "unconditional love" as opposed to that conditional love our real moms demanded.

The writer might have easily described REAL young, (or older) hip (or "lame") moms who are finding ways to combine jobs, children, and making a home for their family, instead of falling back on fake TV moms. As easy way to write an article that feels shallow, hollow.  Baltimore is full of moms making ends meet, moms who run errands all week, and run marathons on the weekends. Moms who take care of their own moms, or take care of their daughters who are moms, or who aren't able to become a mom themselves, so adopt others children and make themselves a mom! 

The worst part of the article talks about MILFS, an offensive acronym used by men to describe a hot mom, or "Mothers I'd Like to ****"   Now, people use coarse terms and nasty slang to talk about women in various and assorted ways, and unsavory descriptions come along every day. But is Mother's Day the time for a publication to outline the MILFS in our lives?  Why go there at all?  For the shock value, for a way to get noticed,  for a few minutes of free publicity?

Mothers are sexy, and of course they do have sex, otherwise how did we all end up here?  But the reason we celebrate Mother's Day is to honor and respect those women who pushed us out into the world, without resorting to the current trend toward what I call the "pornographication" of pop culture.  That is, looking at everything thru smut-colored lenses.  It's an easy thing to do, and easy, to some in the publicity game, like "easy". Easy is cheap, easy sells, easy is sleazy.

For this mom, it just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. "b" careful this Sunday, and don't let your mom learn acronyms she doesn't need to know about.  That would "b" an odious way to celebrate a day dedicated to the women who brought us into the world.   

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