What's the most absolutely wrong "lesson" you've seen taught in media aimed at kids?

[Agarathium1066]

The retarded message that bullies and villains are actually misunderstood and hurting inside and just need a hug. It's such a boring trope. I swear that's the theme in half the shows my younger cousins watch these days, and the same goes for kids' books.

The message is true as a lot of that starts as a form of projection or coping. It should be taught along with the consequences of being a fuckhead and that being willing to defend yourself is perfectly fine. In a similar vein that these sort of problems will be 'solved' by speaking to an adult about it. It will not, most will leave you to hang or in some fashion have their hands tied.

 

[Ughubughughughughughghlug]

The entire storybook of the The Ugly Duckling, the book should be about self acceptance and learning to be happy with not being a normally attractive being in society, but by the end of the book the duckling doesn't have an epiphany after all the shit that he's been through being shat on by other animals and even his own family, to be like 'Im different, I can be happy with that, fuck them! Instead, the dude turns into a beautiful swan for no reason at the end and is accepted for finally being of a high enough standard to cater to societies shallow outlook. Its basically unintentional or not saying 'If your not beautiful your life is worthless unless you change yourself to cater to other peoples opinions even if they treat you badly' Real nice message to give to like the 4 year olds who first read that guys.

Basically the equivalent of telling Little Susie that's her problems will go away in the future, so don't worry.
They don't, problems don't fix themselves.

There's like this under belly within the right leaning groups that whites are this bringer of light race. That every thing modern was brought through them and everyone else is just stone aged monkeys.

You even have speakers talking about iq to justify it. Like in one Jordan Peterson talks about how low the iq of south africans in uni are. The test he conducted was based on pattern recognition to try to be less biased. But the reality of the test is that pattern recognition at higher levels can also mean autism, not just iq.

And it's not so much a bitter rant but it's almost a blindness. Imagine punk music you would think some British or American band. You would think someone white. But punk originates from Peru. Synth and new wave.... Chile. And even I find it baffling that I can't process this.

WTF does that have to do with kids media?

The message is true as a lot of that starts as a form of projection or coping. It should be taught along with the consequences of being a fuckhead and that being willing to defend yourself is perfectly fine. In a similar vein that these sort of problems will be 'solved' by speaking to an adult about it. It will not, most will leave you to hang or in some fashion have their hands tied.

I think the thing is the kids media may be depicting some evil supervillian or tycoon or whatever, but the moral is aimed more at kids dealing with things like Little Billy calling them a poopyface, who probably is like you said. so, aside from the beta cuck no-fighting-back message, the trying-to-understand-others message IS the relevant one to children more than "some people are fundamentally evil and should be hung." Because wtf are kids doing that they have to deal with the latter?

 

[Blasted Heath]

The message is true as a lot of that starts as a form of projection or coping. It should be taught along with the consequences of being a fuckhead and that being willing to defend yourself is perfectly fine. In a similar vein that these sort of problems will be 'solved' by speaking to an adult about it. It will not, most will leave you to hang or in some fashion have their hands tied.

For sure, I should've been more clear about that. A lot of playground bullies (and the adults they become, if they don't change) are driven by being bullied or abused themselves; I'm not saying kids shouldn't be taught to feel sympathy for those cases. I was more talking about the message that movie villains can play the victim and therefore not receive any consequences, that being nice to a bully will make them be nice to you, and that *everyone* who acts mean is actually just a misunderstood softie. Along the lines of Steven Universe-esque idiocy, if you're familiar with all that drama.

 

[Xenomorph]

That you can be anything you want.

 

[Meiwaku]

Most things that end up on retarded posters in western schools are gay and retarded.

An Asian schools, it's probably that you have to know what you're going to do as a career later in life right now. Most people don't even if you have a chinese tiger mother. You will make your own choices even if your parents push you to one profession.

Also needing to know stroke order for every fuckin' kanji or else you will look like a fat retard is GAY minus needing it for dictionaries (which you can infer from just looking at a charachter if you know basics). It's not even the same order in Japanese as it is in Chinese. My ancestors are stupid for not just following Chinese stroke order if it's sooooo important. If you're going to suck off China at least swallow the cum.

 

[Bulk Bogan]

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer goes out of it's way to make all of the other reindeer (and elves, various other Santa employees) out to be vapid cunts, especially because they start fawning after Rudolph the moment he acquires a powerful patron. Most of the adaptations go on to have him forgive all these assholes for being just the absolute worst to him his whole mutant life because, again, now they suck up to him because he's powerful so they must actually really like him now. Forgiveness morals are always taught so badly, and I think it does damage to the kids who internalize those shit lessons.

 

[Astro Loafo]

Basically the equivalent of telling Little Susie that's her problems will go away in the future, so don't worry.
They don't, problems don't fix themselves.

WTF does that have to do with kids media?


I think the thing is the kids media may be depicting some evil supervillian or tycoon or whatever, but the moral is aimed more at kids dealing with things like Little Billy calling them a poopyface, who probably is like you said. so, aside from the beta cuck no-fighting-back message, the trying-to-understand-others message IS the relevant one to children more than "some people are fundamentally evil and should be hung." Because wtf are kids doing that they have to deal with the latter?

Oh sorry I read kids and thought adolescent not prepubescence

 

[urr13 account]

The retarded message that bullies and villains are actually misunderstood and hurting inside and just need a hug.

Once they started teaching kids to befriend Dragons instead of slay them, it was all downhill.

The other one is that the creepy, isolated, ostracised adult that absolutely everyone tells you not to go near because he's a paedophile murderer, is actually just misunderstood and just needs you to be their friend and they'll suddenly be completely normal under the smell of shit and stale wine. Stay away from the homeless nutjob, for the love of Christ!

Home Alone 1 and 2 both did this, first with the scary old man next door, next with the homeless bird lady.

I think there is some value in these type of messages sometimes, but it has to be tempered with the other side. Little Red Riding Hood is about not talking to strangers, and children need to feel comfortable trusting their instincts if someone makes them feel uncomfortable they shouldn't feel like they are the problem.

Adults need to learn this message again too, there are many true crime stories where the victims of assualt/robbery/rape say in their story that they felt something was off or they were scared but still got in the car/went into the house/didnt cross the street. Women literally going into some strange guys house because they don't want to be rude/or be thought of as racist or some other shit.

You have instincts for a reason, if your fight or flight response is kicking in take a hint and get the fuck out.

 

[Meiwaku]

"no bullying"

We lost so many that day.

 

[Newman's Lovechild]

Instead, the dude turns into a beautiful swan for no reason at the end

Well to be fair, there was a reason: he was a swan. A cygnet is a gangly looking MFer if you expect a duckling.

The moral still holds true, I think. Ducks, chickens, dogs and cats? It's been a while all reject him. Who accepts him? His own kind. It's when he comes into his own.

You can look at it through the lens of Hans Christian Anderson being a fag, too. Though you have a couple of implications when you think of it in terms of the modern LGBTQMAP. It can be seen as telling kids they have to change the entire presented appearance of their bodies in order to be happy.
Alternatively, all the characters try to assert he's something that he isn't, because he thought he might be that thing when he was young and confused. "Hey kid, you're a walrus duck! You're an ugly duck but you're a duck! Try to be a proper duck!" "Fuck you cunts, I am not a duck. I've got swan chromosomes."

It's tricksy.

 

[Milwaukee Macho Man]

The idea that sewers were filled with Alligators was total bullshit.

 

[Blasted Heath]

The idea that sewers were filled with Alligators was total bullshit.

Six year old me thought I'd have to face a lot more sewer gators, quicksand traps, and boa constrictors than I have so far. Highly disappointing.

 

[Testacles Maximus]

I don’t watch kids media so I gotta go from my own memory. Barney the Dinosaur taught that the ideal conflict resolution was to just pretend the conflict wasn’t there which is obviously impractical in the real world.

 

[Niobium]

That getting a job would be as easy as walking into any building and then an hour later being told you start tomorrow. Man, I wish I lived in the 50s when that shit was actually true. These days you need a degree and 5 years of experience for "entry-level" shit.

 

[LordofTendons]

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer goes out of it's way to make all of the other reindeer (and elves, various other Santa employees) out to be vapid cunts, especially because they start fawning after Rudolph the moment he acquires a powerful patron. Most of the adaptations go on to have him forgive all these assholes for being just the absolute worst to him his whole mutant life because, again, now they suck up to him because he's powerful so they must actually really like him now. Forgiveness morals are always taught so badly, and I think it does damage to the kids who internalize those shit lessons.

In the claymation version Burl Ives flat out says in the narration that you can't run away from your problems. I've found that generally, you can, and when you can't, getting someone else to leave can be a remarkable substitute.

 

[Archie_Kimkicker]

"Crime doesn't pay." Is probably the most dangerously spread lessons in our society.

Less serious, but when I was learning to drive, my instructor taught me to focus only on the front wheels, and that "the back wheels would follow". Fortunately, dad made sure I knew how actually to drive, but I often wonder how a driving instructor could get such a fundamental thing so perfectly wrong.

Now imagine what certified flight instructors get wrong on the regular and think about it the next time you board a 50-seat airliner with some baby-faced junior first officer.

The idea that sewers were filled with Alligators was total bullshit.

Your wording evokes a bitterness that can only have come from the disappointment of having embarked on a quest to find the alligators and finding only stale poo.

 

[Colon capital V]

"be yourself!" No matter who you are apparently, or what it means for other people including younger children. People have absolutely taken this to mean who you are outwardly because it's easier to change who you are outside than inside.

I can see the good intentions behind this lesson, but my god is it so misconstrued in the worst way possible.
"Be yourself!"
"Okay! I'm gonna sit around and play video games and be a useless piece of shit because that's who I am!"

Honestly the real lesson that needs to be beaten into kids' heads is "Don't just be yourself, be your 'Best Self'."

 

[Jet Fuel Johnny]

The book with the fish with the pretty scales.

Then all these faggot fish come up, wanting his scales to wear.

And at the end of the book, he's all happy because he gives his fucking SKIN to these assholes and NOW they're his friends.

Fuck that. Whoever wrote that book was a commie.

 

[Alex Krycek]

A lot of the problems we see today start with one thing so many people are taught in Kindergarten: “You are special”.

Now okay, sure people are unique as individuals sure, but that doesn’t make you particularly special. You aren’t important just because you show up to an event. You’re just kind of there. You’re a girl who likes toy tools or a boy who likes dolls? Big whoop. Nobody really cares nor should they. It’s probably just a phase they’ll grow out of during puberty anyway.

This idea society has saying people are just intrinsically special is what led to a lot of this bullshit we are in now.

 

[I'd abeeb bear]

"If you kill the bad guy, they win"
or
"If you kill a murderer, the number of murderers remains the same"

Obviously, just kill two murders as the memes go. This is in literally everything JRPG related since the mid-90s, and in most anime too.