Just Kiss The Girl

Today’s rant comes not from my spouse, but from another close relative who noticed a disturbing trend in romantic comedies. The girl starts rambling about how it will never work out, the boy kisses her, her eyes go wide, and she starts kissing back.

As an adult, it’s easy to see the context here. Perhaps her heart really wants him, but her mind thinks it’s a bad idea. Perhaps she’s afraid of commitment. Perhaps her previous relationships have gone really wrong. In each case, what the boy really means by kissing her quiet is reassurance that no matter what happens, it’ll be fun while it lasts, so relax and enjoy the ride.

The problem is that not all viewers are that smart. Certain teenage boys in particular can get the message that when a girl says no, you should kiss her until she says yes. That’s the kind of attitude that leads to date rape, potentially destroying lives.

The sad part is that my parents had pointed to certain chick flicks as models of how a gentleman should behave toward women. At this point, I can’t even tell you which ones, much less what kind of behavior they taught.

So be very, very careful what you let your children watch. The worst shows may well have no violence or profanity at all, but normal people doing normal things that translate poorly to everyday situations.