Seriously? Chaz Bono on Dancing with the Stars: should kids be banned from watching?

[LynneSin]

http://www.boston.com/Boston/dailydose/2011/09/chaz-bono-dancing-with-the-stars-should-kids-banned-from-watching/EPkM8y89Nb6nK2opxlO9JK/index.html

Chaz Bono on Dancing with the Stars: should kids be banned from watching?

The new season of Dancing with the Stars debuted last night and controversy is still swirling over the inclusion of transsexual contestant Chaz Bono -- a star via his famous parents, Sonny and Cher. (Bono, born Chastity, became a man two years ago and has a female dance partner.)

Dr. Keith Ablow, assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at Tufts University School of Medicine, appeared on the Bill O’Reilly show last night and posted this commentary on Fox News telling parents not to let their kids watch Bono on the show since it might influence them to question their own gender identity.

Other leading psychiatrists in the field say that’s nonsense. “There is no evidence that viewing a television game show with a transgender contestant would induce Gender Identity Disorder in young people,” Dr. John Oldham, president of the American Psychiatric Association, said in an interview with TMZ last week.

Ablow, who declined to be interviewed, wrote in his column that children who might be watching will be in the process of establishing a sense of self which includes a sexual/gender identity and that the last thing they need is to watch a “captive crowd in a studio audience applaud on cue for someone whose search for an identity culminated in the removal of her breasts, the injection of steroids.”

Just like kids who light up a cigarette after watching their favorite actors smoke in movies, so too might they be influenced to switch genders after seeing it turn mainstream, Ablow contended.

Perhaps the powers to be who run Tufts University should check the qualifications of some of their professors. I got the impression that Tufts was pretty liberal leaning but I guess there is always a nut job in the group.

As for Tufts - this tidbit from Wiki:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tufts_University#Culture_and_student_life - The Advocate ranks Tufts as one of the top 20 gay-friendly campuses

BTW the rest of the article pretty much blows this jackass's theory out the water.

[lonestarnot]

1. People can be embarrassingly ignorant can't they... put their name on that piece of shit.

All kids who watch are now going to get a sex change. Wow. Just fucking wow.

[malaise]

13. You are way too kind

They are fucking stupid by choice.

[lob1]

2. It's all true! As a kid, I used to love Mr. Ed, and today

I'm a talking horse. Whinney. By the way, do you know how hard it is to type with hooves?

[Withywindle]

3. Like

:thumbsup:



:rofl:

[peacebird]

14. Love it!!!

:toast:

[MrSlayer]

4. I'd like the show off the air entirely but because of this I hope he wins.

I'm completely ignorant on how this show works. How does one rig the vote or pad it or whatever?

[Frank Cannon]

5. Just call the phone number for your favorite a whole bunch of times.

Last year the Freepers organized a phone campaign for Bristol Palin. She made it to the very end, and she moved like a dying rhino the entire time.

[MrSlayer]

6. Haha!

Dying rhino....nice.

[murielm99]

9. I thought it was more like a cow stomping around

up there.

[TorchTheWitch]

11. all vote-in "reality" shows are rigged

I'll never understand why anyone actually believes these "reality" shows aren't scripted. The only purpose of audience "voting" is to give the ILLUSION that they are actually participating in the show and are effecting the outcome. The very idea is utterly absurd, yet for some reason millions of people actually fall for it.

[LynneSin]

17. Overall it's a wretched show mainly because of the horrible music

Instead of dancing to great works of the Tango or Rumba or Salsa or Waltz - they instead dance to crappy remakes of modern songs made to work with ballroom dancing.

[athenasatanjesus]

7. In fairness this celebrity worship pushing show should be banned

but obviously not for the reasons given by this pretend doctor.

[jbnow]

8. How would the kids know anything about Chaz being transsexual

The most they will think is a chubby guy is dancing and if he dances well that should be encouraging. (Heavy people don't get a lot of good press and maybe it help chubbier kids feel better about selves and freer to be active and play and dance) (Assuming Chaz is still heavy, haven't seen show)
Kids generally don't need top deal with transsexual issues so if this was a show regarding his sexual identity and surgery it would not be for kids. In fact kids don't need to watch any surgery.

But Chaz is not having surgery, he is dancing, right? Do they announce him as "previously the daughter of Sonny and Cher until surgery when she became a man and thus a son." No showing of changed genitals?

Talk about a non-issue.

[canetoad]

12. Kids couldn't give a flying fuck

Neither should adults.

Imagine that no-one knew the history. Chaz is just a chubby guy with a great smile and style. Despite what we are told, sometimes it's better to just live in the present and accept things as they are.

[AtomicKitten]

10. Ignorance R Us. Ugh.

[Warren Stupidity]

15. Chaz is Bringing out the Bigots. Good on him.

[HappyMe]

16. I sense a collective exploding of pointy heads.

First DADT is history, now Chaz is dancing! :nuke:


I think that Dr. Ablow needs help.

[NYC Liberal]

18. I think kids should be banned from watching Fox.

I guarantee Bill-O and the rest of that lying gang do far more damage than watching Chaz Bono dancing does.

[tanyev]

19. I'd say the creepy Kardashian factor is a much better reason to avoid the current season.

[HappyMe]

23. Hmm..I think Nancy Grace is waaaay creepier

than the Kardashian boy.

[tanyev]

24. Heh. That's what I thought at first, but then I watched Monday night

and discovered that her professional partner is reason enough to allow her to stay a few more weeks. :blush:

Also, my Kardashian loathing is not based only on the brother, but the antics of his sisters who were in the audience Monday night. I don't watch their show--why won't they stay out of the shows I do watch???????

[Arkansas Granny]

20. It's amazing that someone so ignorant can attain such a position as he holds.

This just proves that being educated and being smart don't always coincide.

[LynneSin]

22. If I was one of deans of Tufts - I'd be super pissed this guy is using his credentials

Because honestly, Tufts does not come across as a fundie religious school. But with comments that idiot made - he makes Tufts look like it's Liberty or Bob Jones University. I would expect homophobic comments from professors at schools like Liberty or Bob Jones, but from Tufts I would expect smart, intelligent, scientific comments.

Many large businesses and universities expect pre-clearance from the powers-to-be before you say something as a representative of your organization. I know if I made a comment like that and stated who I worked for, I'd be walked out the door the next day.

[jberryhill]

21. They should be in church being threatened with Hell

Because that's just so good for them.