"Beavis and Butt-Head" premiered on MTV 20 years ago today

[TMC]

https://twitter.com/RollingStone/status/310089559847358464

Mike Judge's series became an instant voice of a generation.

[marcus]

On Mar 8, 7:37 pm, TMC <tmc1...@gmail.com> wrote:
> https://twitter.com/RollingStone/status/310089559847358464
>
> Mike Judge's series became an instant voice of a generation.

I could have sworn that the dumbing down of America started 10 years
before that.

[Your Name]

In article
<b11d5b65-739d-4709...@7g2000yqy.googlegroups.com>, marcus
<marc...@yahoo.com> wrote:

It started a lot longer ago than that - it started with independence from
England and continues to this day. Unfortunately it's not just America
getting dumber - it's the entire human race. :-(

[Clu]

Well I think it started around the time we coined the term "Teenager".
Don't get me wrong, I think it is great that a lot of us are enjoying
life well into life where as before people seemed to hang up any real
enjoyment of life. That said, I think when we set a time for a
teenager to wait to move on with life, I think that kinda added to the
dumbing down.

I know when I was in school, anything after 10th grade was a rehash. I
am glad they have college classes that you can now take in High School.
I would say get them to 10th grade and let some become service folk,
and the others go on to college (something I understand is practiced in
Germany) and let people move on with their lives early on.

But to live from 15 to 18-ish... I think is a waste.

[Your Name]

In article <khh6t2$l2g$1...@speranza.aioe.org>, Clu <dr...@swbell.net> wrote:

> On 3/8/13 11:11 PM, Your Name wrote:
> > In article
> > <b11d5b65-739d-4709...@7g2000yqy.googlegroups.com>, marcus
> > <marc...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> >> On Mar 8, 7:37=A0pm, TMC<tmc1...@gmail.com> wrote:
> >>>
> >>> https://twitter.com/RollingStone/status/310089559847358464
> >>>
> >>> Mike Judge's series became an instant voice of a generation.
> >>
> >> I could have sworn that the dumbing down of America started 10 years
> >> before that.
> >
> > It started a lot longer ago than that - it started with independence from
> > England and continues to this day. Unfortunately it's not just America
> > getting dumber - it's the entire human race. :-(
>
> Well I think it started around the time we coined the term "Teenager".

Try the term "Tweenager". ;-)

> Don't get me wrong, I think it is great that a lot of us are enjoying
> life well into life where as before people seemed to hang up any real
> enjoyment of life. That said, I think when we set a time for a
> teenager to wait to move on with life, I think that kinda added to the
> dumbing down.

Not sure about that. Kids seem to be growing up faster and faster. When I
was at primary junior school we were kids running around the playground
and saying "ewww, girls". These days they have idiotic proms and school
dances for kids aged about 8 or even younger - it's ridiculous. Let them
be KIDS! :-\

Mind you, schools these days seem uninterested in actually teching kids.
They're more interested in making them play sport and policing what is in
their lunchboxes. :-( There was a big fuss in the local newspaper over
the last week or so because kids these days don't learn how to do basic
mathematics because they have calculators, and as a result the kids are
actually dumber and don't even know their times tables any longer. There's
a similar issue with reading and writing skills.

Many schools here now are forcing parents into buying their kids tablets /
laptops. Schools should be teaching the proper basics and leave the fancy
gadgets until later.

> I know when I was in school, anything after 10th grade was a rehash. I
> am glad they have college classes that you can now take in High School.
> I would say get them to 10th grade and let some become service folk,
> and the others go on to college (something I understand is practiced in
> Germany) and let people move on with their lives early on.
>
> But to live from 15 to 18-ish... I think is a waste.

When I went to university, the entire first year of many subjects was
basically just a rehash of the last year at high school. That was because
some people left school in 6th Form and went to university / polytech
while others stayed on at school and did a 7th Form year. Anyone could
leave school at the end of 5th Form year if they wanted to.

[Paul S. Person]

On Sun, 10 Mar 2013 19:21:58 +1300, Your...@YourISP.com (Your Name)
wrote:

And if you go back far enough, people were complaining about
ball-point pens replacing fountain pens ... and back before that, with
fountain pens replacing quills, with the kids losing the ability to
sharpen their own quills.

I still know my multiplication tables ... at least up to 12x12. Want
to guess how often I have used them over the nearly 60 years since I
learned them (other than in school)? About as often as I have been hit
on the head by a large rock from Outer Space which, since I am still
around to type this, is not very often.
--
"Nature must be explained in
her own terms through
the experience of our senses."

[Your Name]

In article <enhpj8tbq5bskdc19...@4ax.com>, Paul S. Person

The difference is that using a computer or tablet means kids don't learn
to actually write, and despite what some people want to believe, being
able to write is still a necessary ability ... even better if it's the
ability to write clearly (which too many adults can't even manage to do)!

> I still know my multiplication tables ... at least up to 12x12. Want
> to guess how often I have used them over the nearly 60 years since I
> learned them (other than in school)? About as often as I have been hit
> on the head by a large rock from Outer Space which, since I am still
> around to type this, is not very often.

You certainly will have used them, whether you realise it or not, but it's
not just multiplication, but also basic addition, subtraction, and
division that kids cannot do these days ... even basic counting skills are
reportedly a problem for many kids.

Then there's spelling, grammar, and punctuation, which are attrocious.
This isn't helped by the stupidity of those in charge of important high
school tests allowing TXT spelling in answers. :-\

[WrongWayWade]

TMC wrote:
> https://twitter.com/RollingStone/status/310089559847358464
>
> Mike Judge's series became an instant voice of a generation.

There were a few new episodes last year and in each there were sections
where B&B would show parts of Jersey Shore and make fun of it. That part
was great.

[Clu]

I saw that, it was awesome.

I loved how they launched them: Showing them in a theater making fun of
Twilight. That was long overdue.