CHILDHOOD STOLEN: The Normalization of Perversion
When we were kids, 60+ years ago, the nearby woods used to whisper secrets to us, of hidden streams, ancient oaks, abandoned farm houses, and the magic that lived just beyond the edge of town. In the '50s and '60s, childhood was a vibrant, unstructured tapestry of boundless adventure, where imagination was king, we'd vanish into the wild at dawn, returning only when the streetlights flickered on like fireflies in the twilight. No one worried about us, our innocence was invincible.
The '70s were a kaleidoscope of color and sound, a decade where bell-bottom jeans flared like peacock tails, and Bee Gees' Stayin' Alive made us strut like peacocks under glittering disco balls. Most of my neighborhood graduated high school in '73, when America was still America. We danced to Chic's Le Freak at prom, our innocence unbroken. We still said "yes ma'am" and "please" with genuine respect.
Then came the '80s: Duran Duran's “Hungry Like the Wolf” and Def Leppard's “Pour Some Sugar on Me” made us scream like banshees in the safety of our bedrooms. But we still held hands when walking down the street, our innocence intact. The '90s brought Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit, and suddenly the woods were replaced by flannel and angst. But we still said "excuse me" when bumping into someone, our manners intact.
But it was the '00s when rap music-specifically gangsta rap-began its insidious takeover. Kendrick's Humble and Cardi B's WAP glorified rape and violence with unbridled profanity. These "artists" weren't musicians-they were purveyors of filth. Criminals killing each other for industry dominance. The F-word became casual, cunt was a punchline, and men stopped holding doors.
Worse still, children were sexualized, Bratz dolls in thongs, Miley Cyrus grinding on Robin Thicke like a stripper, and Victoria's Secret ads that made 12-year-olds look like desperate hookers. Every TV show starts with "fuck you" in the first five minutes, a vile ritual that normalizes profanity. The Super Bowl halftime is a softcore porn fest that degrades women.
And then came the normalization of perversion, every commercial now features interracial couples, gay dads, and trans kids in a deliberate attempt to erase white families. The message is clear: white families are obsolete. The woods are silent now, their magic suffocated by the stench of corporate greed. Strangers glare at their phones, men grunt at women, and profanity is the new poetry.
But the final nail in the coffin is the government's complicity. Alcohol commercials, once banned, now litter prime-time TV with their seductive lies. "Call this number if you have a gambling problem" scrolls beneath sportsbook ads enticing kids to bet with free bonuses-a cynical ploy to hook them young.
The damage is irreparable. Our children are being raised in a world where violence is entertainment, sex is currency, and addiction is encouraged. Their grandparents remember when the world was safe. Many parents are too numb to care. But the next generation? They'll be the product of 24/7 sewage, a generation of broken, traumatized souls who never knew the joy of childhood. Stolen from them by technology designed to addict.
I remember when we'd sing along to I Want to Hold Your Hand on the bus. When we'd do the Hustle at prom. When we'd play Sweet Child O' Mine on our boomboxes. We loved rock and roll, played street games like stick ball and bottle caps.
Now, kids blast Fucking Nigga on their AirPods. They're not scared of the woods anymore. They're scared of life, can you blame them? Look around at the social landscape of the country. And that's the greatest tragedy of all, a world where innocence is extinct, and our children are paying the price.
All the while, the politicians in Washington DC, self-serving parasites who’ve abandoned their constituents, are too busy lining their pockets with pilfered tax dollars and bribes. Too busy wallowing in their own filth to give a rat’s ass about the people they’re supposed to represent.