You never know, you might go blind from eye strain, see ads that cause you to go on a shopping spree until you are broke, gain knowledge that makes your head explode or you may become addicted to my twitter feed!
Does any of this sound ridiculous to you? I sure hope so. The Canadian Reader's Digest magazine for December 2011 has an article titled The Petrified Woman by Lenore Skenazy. It's listed as humour but really I'd say it a social commentary. It's about the many warnings we get from society about everything in our life and how society really needs to lighten up.
"Stop! Are you about to eat a scoop of onion dip? It could cause meningitis. Showing some kids around your workplace? For God's sake, keep them away from the stapler. Planning a walk? Bring plenty of water or you could end up in a coma! And let's not even talk about what could happen if you take the kids to the mall and find yourselves contemplating an escalator ride. Suffice to say you should tie their shoes, insist they hold the handrail, place them in the centre of the steps and say your prayers." - pg 104 Reader's Digest December 2011
Lenore Skenazy became well known when it came out that she let her 9 year old son ride the New York Subway alone and she received thousands of vicious emails. This led to her speaking out about our scared to do anything society and then to the term Free Range Kids and it's corresponding book and blog.
"For about a month, I watched TV, cruised the internet and read a bunch of books, magazines and email "tips" to see what the average person gets warned about in the course of everyday life. The result? I am typing this from inside a giant safety deposit box. You can feed me - but no onion dip, please - through a hole I drilled in the side. I don't have a cellphone, because it could give me a brain tumour. I don't have a bottle of water, because the plastic could disrupt my endocrine receptors and turn me into a woman. Oh, wait. I already am one." - pg 106 Reader's Digest December 2011
There are some warnings in here that she found that are so ridiculous. Even if a child actually DID get hurt that way, doesn't mean the risk is high enough to warrant not using the item ever again. The Dr. Oz show is mentioned and even though I LOVE Dr. Oz, his show is not good for the paranoid. He warns against seemingly everything.
"My advice? Pay attention to your health - and a little less to the health scare of the day - and you'll be fine." - pg 109 Reader's Digest December 2011
GREAT article, I highly recommend you read it. I'd also LOVE to hear your thoughts!
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5 comments:
That's funny! You're right, everything can cause something, it seems!
Love the links you put to the articles on here. I have to do some reading now :)
It does seem like you are warned about everything these days... from drinking coffee, to not taking a shower at home alone for fear of slipping and hurting yourself (I'd never get a shower if I listened to that one). Cautious is good, but some carry it too far. If I worried about everything that could happen I would never leave my house...or like you I'd be hanging out is a safety deposit box! Great post!
This always annoyed me so I couldn't agree more. People should rely more on their common sense - but here is a problem, because the society full of warnings reshapes the popular common sense so people get more and more worried about anything around them. However, I think the States are more receptive for that kind of thinking (compared to other countries).
That's all so true. I never really thought about all the things we are warned about in one day. I think I always take the warnings into consideration, but I don't let them dictate and influence my every single move.
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