Super Nanny isn't Racist

My mom sent me a disappointed email for the last post--because of course there's plenty to be more profound about than Britney; she suggested George Fucking W. Bush or the war in Iraq (though I think the word "war" is misleading; it's not a war. A war is a fight between two equal forces. This is an invasion. I heard on NPR the other day that GFW Bush was in Mexico and he visited a place where the people were preparing to hold a ceremony later in the day to ward off the evil spirits he brings with him) or I could be more thoughtful about poverty or the inequality that I see every day especially in this neighborhood. Or addiction or racism or gender inequity. Plenty of things.

For instance, I'd now like to move on to a pressing example of a white woman who is not a racist--Jo Jo Supernanny. This is one of the few shows that makes me laugh out loud and I love it, I love her, and I love how everything is the same every time. For the season finale, JoJo visited an African American family with three kids--a 12 year old boy, a six year old girl, and fourteen month old baby. The main problems were that the mom was still breast feeding and that the 6 year old slept in her parent's bed every night and that the 12 year old was mouthy. Supernanny fixed everything. She got the baby to use a bottle (and did not even have to show her own boob to do so), she made the little girl feel like a princess for sleeping in her own bed, and she introduced the preteen to one of Miami Heat's biggest superstars who told him that he needed to respect his family. The boy just listened, staring up at this huge basketball player with his mouth hanging open. Then they played one on one together. Yeah, Supernanny!

In contrast, the show before this one, Wife Swap, is a car crash. Where is Husband Swap? And would they ever do a swap where one of the couple's is gay? Yes, they absolutely would, but they would put them in a house full of holy rollers who raise snakes and have 11 children who are home-schooled. This show is often conservative vs. crazy wild (liberal) and the crazy wild always come off looking worse than the Bible thumpers. Well, not every time, but for some reason, I resent the sameness of this show whereas I embrace it in Supernanny. Next week on Wife Swap! We switch this Wiccan porn star mother of three Goth kids from the Upper Westside with a mute Mormon mother in Utah who performs with the family's traveling band, lives with no electricity, and is married to a fat man who expects a sponge bath every night!

Celia sent me a link to a site called www.catster.com. It's a take off from Friendster, but guess who the main stars are?? And guess who signed up? Ernesto did!

Comments

Anonymous said…
i LOVE supernanny. she makes me feel like the world is a better place because she can ride around in her cute non-american car and fix everyone's problems. maybe there should be a combo of supernanny/wifeswap: (a) kids could be swapped, (b) super dr. phil could come in and save a failing marriage, or (c) best yet, we could make a poor family rich and see how they spend their money

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