A daycare provider that I knew in Missouri who'd been running her preschool for over 15 years could see the changes in the way kids played from before the video and video game "era" and after, and the children play differently now.

It's not imaginative, it's driven by the characters they watch, not the characters they create themselves. It's a insidious thing how the popular culture markets itself to children to create the need for their products, and it's everywhere.

Even if you abstain from commercial TV like we do with DD, we still have to be very careful and make sure that we express clearly to DD that we practice moderation in toy aquisition and be very clear with her when we see things that are innappropriate, like the little street walker clothes because garment manufacturers seem to want to pimp out our little girls, or gratutious violence in toys, games, etc.

One of my family members is totally plugged into the commercialized lifestyle and that family can barely handle the financial strain of having to have things the way they've been told they must by advertisers in order to be the people they want to think they are. And they don't even see it.

Anhata
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