I Feel Lost Without Television by Dr. Robert Wallace on Creators.com

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I Feel Lost Without Television

DR. WALLACE: I'm 14 and live with my parents and a younger sister. My parents are very strict and religious. My sister and I are being home-taught by our mother. I miss going to school with other kids, but I will admit that my sister and I learn a lot.

My reason for writing is that we don't have a television in our house because my parents don't approve of the programs that are available. They sold our TV a year ago. I really feel lost without the opportunity to see certain programs. I also miss a lot of cultural and educational programs.

What can I do to get my parents to buy another television? They could even supervise the programs I'd watch. I feel like our family is living in the Dark Ages. — Britney, Charlotte, N.C.

BRITNEY: I can definitely understand your parents' position. Many television programs are junk, lacking a single redeeming quality. The violence or sexual innuendoes on the majority of programs make for unacceptable family viewing.

Personally, I would not eliminate television entirely. It can be a great learning tool. Some programs are intelligently made and well worth seeing. My solution would be to monitor a teen's viewing habits rather than ban TV from the house entirely. Nevertheless, I cannot fault your parents for having a television-free home. There are far better forms of entertainment.

WEARING A SEAT BELT IS A MUST

DR. WALLACE: My boyfriend was ticketed in our town for driving without his seat belt fastened.

He had to pay $40. A month later, he was ticketed in a neighboring town for the same violation and only had to pay a fine of $25.

I think he had to pay more in our town because that's what pays for the cop's salary. I'm sure if any unbelted adult driver was stopped in our town, he or she wouldn't even have been fined. This is just another case of teen harassment. — Tina, Columbia City, Ind.

TINA: Every municipality sets its own rate for traffic violations. Your boyfriend was given a ticket because he broke the law, not because he was a teen.

Seat belts, properly buckled, save lives. Wearing a seat belt could prevent him from smashing his head into the windshield, which could turn a minor fender bender into a major tragedy. Instead of worrying about nonexistent police harassment, encourage your boyfriend to buckle up!

SHOULD I JOG OR SWIM?

DR. WALLACE: I'm trying to burn the most calories possible when I exercise. My options are to either jog or swim. I'd rather jog, but I'll swim if necessary. — Emma, Fort Walton Beach, Fla.

EMMA: Both jogging and swimming are excellent aerobic exercises. Jogging burns more calories because it produces more body heat than swimming does.

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. E-mail him at rwallace@galesburg.net. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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My 65 year old husband was stopped as he exited a parking lot in an upscale town nearby for not having his seat belt buckled. I was wearing mine. The officer was young and extremely polite and explained the ruling and exceptions (we own a 1952 sports car that came with only lap belts and that's OK). The officer stopped him because he didn't have his seat belt on and he was there to see it. If I were this girl, I'd be much more concerned about the fact that her boyfriend drives without seat belts. I've used them since 1969 when I dated a guy who had a car that came with them.

And, the whole transaction took about 20 minutes because our plate was checked, too. We sat there doing some speculation about why we were stopped--was it the gray hair?--but the officer was enforcing a law that our state takes seriously.

As for no TV, the library has loads of the programs that are on science channels, classic movies that you can check out for free. A local movie rental place rents kids movies for free. Maybe she can check out what's available and make an appeal for a DVD, VHS player and a TV.

Comment: #1
Posted by: BB
Sat Oct 31, 2009 2:22 PM

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I Feel Lost Without Television

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