Palatability to 7 Year Olds

Linda Chavez wrote on the airwaves this week, presumably in the wake of the Howard Stern / Clear Channel situation. She commented on how she gave a little radio to her niece, but then realized that because of all the filth out there (from Rap Stations and Howard Stern) it was not a good gift.

I find myself torn on this issue; but ultimately disagreeing. I do think there is a lot of crap on the airwaves. I don't listen to the radio that much. I'll usually catch a bit of Rush during the lunch hours (all in the service of you, my loyal readers), and sometimes Hannity or Glen Beck or someone. And sometimes I'll pop on NPR and the classical station on the weekends. But other than that I never listen to the radio in my home, I usually listen to CDs in the car, and at work I'll listen occasionally to a techno station from Helsinki (or some other made up place). Radio sucks. Ms. Chavez should have given her granddaughter a CD Player and the Velvet Underground's Loaded (brilliant album).

On the other hand, her solution doesn't strike me as ideal. "Sure there's an audience for trash -- and if adults want to buy this smut, the Supreme Court has ruled they have that right. But why not force those who want to buy obscene and indecent products to be the ones inconvenienced rather than the rest of us? With all the various methods of delivering images and sounds, why use the public airwaves to present the likes of Howard Stern? You've always been able to buy pornography, only it used to be sold under the counter and in brown wrapping paper, it didn't come into your home uninvited.

Maybe if we put the onus on those who want this garbage by insisting it be available only through direct purchase and not on the public airwaves, it would be safe again to give a child a simple radio."

OK. But what about the law of unintended consequences, Ms. Chavez? I mean do you really want your granddaughter listening to the liberals over at NPR or at George Soros new Liberal talk radio (which by the way has yet to call me. I'd really be great on the 3 a.m. to 6 a.m. slot. I could play Velvet Underground tracks and explain why everybody (but me) is a jerk)?

The other possibility is that once the door is open, the new liberal administration at the FCC has precedent to yank, say, G. Gordon Liddy or Cal Thomas off the air. Maybe even Rush Limbaugh. I mean if they are the public airwaves and we want to protect the children, why not protect them from the crap that Rush Limbaugh is doing (apparently two days ago he gave a seminar in how to be a Juvenile Delinquent, and spent a lot of time yesterday whining that nobody got the joke).

So my solution once again is leave the airwaves along and give every seven year old a CD Player and copies of Velvet Underground Loaded, Miles Davis Sketches of Spain, and Joy Division Closer. Everybody wins.