“…..After wandering aimlessly around the various shelves categorizing the various movie genres in Penny Video Club, Peter who had just turned 18 years old 3 days earlier, finally mustered the courage to select the movie he really wanted to watch…he had been dreaming of the day when he will be all alone at home and today was his lucky day. Daddy was away in Lagos for Full Gospel Business Men Fellowship, Mummy was on her way to PortHacourt in the company of fellow colleagues and sympathizers to bury a late colleague and friend, Angie and Harrison his elder sister and brother were far away in Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, sweating it out with their studies. Even Mrs Ufot Edem – the ever nosy neighbor and family friend who was entrusted the responsibility of ensuring that Peter was up to no mischief suddenly found an emergency on her hands…her little boy slipped in the bathroom and had remained unconscious amidst all the blood oozing out of the deep gash on his head …..
Everything seemed to be working out for him that day. He simply couldn’t believe his luck. Ever since he had been bemoaning his fate with his failed JAMB results, but today it was a blessing in disguise! Even after borrowing 3 extra action movies he wasn’t the least interested in watching, he zoomed in for the killer prize – BLACK EBONY TEENS CAUGHT ON CAM. He justified himself saying that it was Rated R-18+ and he was 18years+ …so he was eligible to watch the movie……”
This story is not out of place in our daily lives. The circumstances may be different but at the end, the story is the same. One of the greatest ills plaguing our society is pornography. It has so eaten into the fabric of our morals that it has become accepted and is now a “normal thing”. One of the easiest accessible resources online is porn. It is found almost in every possible location. Porn is now used to sell products, porn is used to advertise, porn is now a way of life and with the blow out of the digital age, porn is accessible to virtually anybody who can handle a mouse and keyboard. The other day, i stumbled across video online that really amused me. It was a movie awards held in honour of porn-stars…kind of like the porn version of The Oscar Awards!
But what is the side-effect of exposure to pornography? Porn movies/pictures/games etc tend to promote same sex relations, sexual relations with animals, masochistic acts, masturbation etc. A lot of craziness in the world today is picked up from the kinds of things that are seen on television. Check out the story of Montana Fishburne. 18year old girl with lots of opportunities and a bright future. Even if she chooses to tow the line of Hollywood, her dad happens to be a big name in the industry. It wouldn’t be such an uphill task to break even on the movie scene. But what does she choose? She chooses to be a porn-star instead and expects her family to back her up. She even went as far as saying that her dad should be a supporting person who understands her needs and should be ready to give her all the help she needs to achieve her dreams! Such ideologies didn’t just jump into her head overnight, it probably was an offshoot of constant exposure to pornography.
So, parents out there, pay more attention to what your kids watch on television, monitor what websites they visit, supervise the kind of materials they read and above all, train them to appreciate the dignity of having high moral standards and the world would definitely be a healthier place to live in.
