I didn’t know about Toddlers and Tiaras until I was listening to Colin Cowherd Monday morning.
Now I wish I hadn’t heard of it at all.
The piece I read on Yahoo News really made me regret hearing about it.
In case you didn’t know, like I didn’t know, Toddlers and Tiaras is a “reality” show about overzealous parents who heavily make up their daughter’s faces to, in my opinion, fulfill some void in left in their lives and force on their children what they lost or never achieved.
In his radio show Cowherd was talking about the Little League World Series and the way some people criticize ESPN for putting extra pressure on these kids by televising it. His argument was the kids don’t give it much thought. “This isn’t Toddlers and Tiaras,” he said, “These are kids playing Little League baseball.”
I couldn’t agree more. While the world of Little League baseball can be controlled by the same unnatural forces that make mothers showcase their hideously pancaked daughters on stage, at least baseball doesn’t compel them to dress their daughters up like Dolly Parton.
That’s right. Dolly Parton, complete with fake breasts and fake buttocks for enhancement. This just ain’t natural and that was what the Yahoo News account I stumbled upon was about.
That’s right, a father in Kentucky is now seeking custody of his 6-year-old daughter after his estranged wife dressed her as Dolly in an episode of this show, which ironically airs on The Learning Channel.
A court-appointed psychologist has sided with the girl’s father and I hope the father gets custody.
Children are not playthings or dress-up dolls and dressing a mere child like Dolly or Julia Roberts’ prostitute character in Pretty Woman, as one mother did, not only borders on child exploitation but abuse.
Children at this age shouldn’t be subject to the whims or failed ambitions of their parents. Children this age should be allowed to play and learn so their aptitudes and skills can be naturally developed.
This is closely related to the matter we discussed in May, the story about the 4-year-old kid still being breastfed — there are just some things kids shouldn’t have to go through.
In discovering all this Monday, I’m left with a couple solutions.
Since this show is on The Learning Channel, maybe it should be pulled so it won’t encourage other mothers to walk down this path.
The Learning Channel should be about learning and I think the only thing we learn from shows like this is to become outraged by the actions of pageant parents and to learn to loathe their children.
Secondly, I hope the court awards custody to the father so the mother won’t be allowed to destroy her daughter’s life more than dressing her up as Dolly already has — Lance Martin