tiffanie_says_stay_in_your_lane

The first time I saw this show, I was fascinated. My hat goes off to people who do all sorts of dangerous jobs, because without them, various operations in society wouldn't even happen. But then I came on here, read the negative reviews, and to tell the truth, I'm happy I did. I had no idea the residents of Vancouver Island were fighting to protect the few old growth forests that are left, so that tells me there's way more to this compared to what the audience is seeing. The show basically promotes deforestation. I can't in good conscience watch something that's fueling climate change, as well as other issues. I know there's conflicting opinions on this topic, and I try to weigh both sides. Just like everything else, deforestation has pros and cons. It's important to take the positive aspects into consideration, and to not only focus on the downsides, but in this case, the negative results outweigh the benefits to the environment and society. Cutting down too many trees places humans at risk of coming into contact with animals who might have diseases, which can lead to pandemics.

I found myself binging this on YouTube last weekend. I'm not a fan of reality shows, especially ones where the same thing happens every single episode, but World's Strictest Parents is addictive for some reason. Judging from the premise, it sounds annoying. Two obnoxious and disrespectful teenagers, a boy and girl, go live with a couple who has children for a week, because their parents can't control them and don't know what else to do. They're either American, Australian, or British. Here the teens are American (also, don't know what the other reviewer was talking about, but a majority of the teens were not from LA. I remember only one of them being from there. The rest were from various states). The so-called "strict" parents really aren't as intimidating as they're made out to be. I was also a teenager during the time this show was on MTV. We had cable for a couple of years, and I remember watching this and thinking the parents were strict, but looking at it now as an adult, I realize their expectations are sensible. Do your chores when you're told, come home by a certain time when out with friends, homework comes before playing video games or watching TV, no swearing, drinking, or drug use. That sounds simple enough, but it's hard for teens who have gotten accustomed to doing whatever they want whenever they want, and not experiencing any consequences. Some of them dropped out of school, so they sleep until the afternoon every day. They curse at their parents whenever they're asked to help out around the house, and care more about partying than studying for the SAT, applying to colleges, or just mapping out some kind of future for themselves. They have no structure or guidance.

The teens stay with families in Sweden, Argentina, Ireland, Puerto Rico, Africa, India, New Zealand, Texas, Ohio. It's interesting to see how people live around the world, and I feel like that's where the intriguing factor comes from. Many of them live on farms. And to be honest, it's actually quite funny how dumb these kids are. Talking back equals doing chores, so the more they got smart with the strict parents, the more chores they had to do. Farm work is strenuous, so you'd think after a certain point they would catch on and shut up, but all they do is extend the amount of time they're outside doing physical work. There is predictability to it, because of course they cuss after the strict parents told them foul language wasn't allowed in their house. The rules are typed out for them, and they sign the paper, but seconds later they start wreaking havoc. It's astonishing how fearless they are with disobeying the strict parents, including the ones who are military vets. They have something sarcastic to say to every adult they encounter. There was an episode where an Aussie teen got smart with the person who was in charge of a boot camp.

My only complaint is that I wish they had covered more of the teens' family life. It seemed like there was a lot happening behind closed doors that wasn't documented. Most of these kids were being raised by a single mom, and didn't have a relationship with their father. Based on the appearance of their neighborhood, they were poverty-stricken, especially the British teens. It was like they lived in the poorest areas of England. Now don't get me wrong, I do think some of the kids didn't necessarily have a problem, other than being spoiled. They were usually taken to a local nonprofit, to get out of their selfish bubble by volunteering. For the teens who took their comfortable life for granted in particular, the strict parents felt like it was important for them to meet people who were less fortunate. In some of the episodes, they participated in a group counseling type of thing with teenagers who came from abusive households. In one episode, the girl told the story of how she was screaming at her dad and pushed him down the stairs, the kids in the group were like why are you so angry and violent, were you ever abused, neglected, abandoned, and she answered no each time. That's what made her realize she didn't appreciate how nice her parents treated her. But the teens from a low socioeconomic background, I feel like they needed therapy, or perhaps medication. The audience is made to think it's normal teenage rebellion that just so happened to get out of hand, but there was most likely a lot more going on behind the scenes. They might've had family members who were on drugs, or a psychiatric illness, but their parents never thought of taking them to a therapist because mental health wasn't discussed back then.

Unlike the majority of reality programming, it's enlightening. It makes you think about the value of family, respect, kindness, and understanding that all of our actions are choices. It's a shame they haven't brought this back, not just for teenagers, but young adults too. A lot of people in their 20s and 30s are immature. They're still struggling to keep their emotions in check, and being open to different perspectives, instead of acting like they know everything. They could really benefit from watching this show. I feel like I'm a good person, most of the time (I really do try), and I watch it for the life lessons that I was taught as a teen. It never hurts to be reminded, because we all slip up and say or do something that we shouldn't have. If Extreme Home Makeover came back, I don't see why this can't, but I'm sure it never will. TV execs are trying to dumb us down. I'm glad there's episodes on YouTube. If you've never seen this, I would highly recommend it, even more so if you have kids.

While Home Alone 2 wasn't awful, it wasn't the best either. I would even go so far as to say that it didn't need to be made. Most sequels are usually a flop. I think what happens is writers become overzealous with ideas, and they end up including too many of them in the film, instead of taking out some during the editing phase. The first Home Alone was funny enough. Kevin McCallister (Culkin) is back a couple years later at the age of 10. As if they're not irritating enough, we have to watch his family treat him like garbage again. This time around, they're going to Miami for Christmas. It was Paris a couple years before (it's weird how they don't spend Christmas at home, considering they have a beautiful house). His nasty uncle, his wife, and their kids are staying at his house a second time. After Kevin's older brother Buzz humiliates him at his choir recital, and then gives an insincere apology once they're back home, he explodes on his family, calling his uncle a cheapskate. They need counseling. There's so much hate, resentment, and cruelty, all directed at Kevin, which causes him to lash out and say something insulting. Just like in the last movie, his parents think the only way to correct his behavior is by making him spend the rest of the night in the attic. Of course they oversleep, again, and run through the airport. Kevin is distracted from trying to put batteries in his voice recorder. His family gets lost in the crowd, and he ends up chasing behind a man who's wearing a coat that's identical to his father's, leading him to get on the wrong plane, and he's bound for New York City.

The same thing basically happens as it did in the original, him living on his own like a miniature adult. He goes sightseeing after his arrival, checks himself into a fancy hotel using his dad's credit card, orders a ton of room service, and takes a dip in the pool. He has fun when he's not with his family, obviously because they're toxic, but he always starts to miss them after a while. I feel like this movie would be tolerable, if it wasn't so long. Seriously, it's two hours. When he has the misfortune of encountering Harry and Marv (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern), that's when the story becomes kind of boring. The writers didn't make good use of timing like they did in the first Home Alone. The only thing that was different, was the lethality of Kevin's booby traps. He set all of them up in his other uncle's brownstone. The house is being renovated, and therefore a safety hazard. Come to think of it, if this movie was real life, Kevin probably would've gotten injured himself. But in the world of make believe, he's able to avoid getting hurt, and lifts a few heavy objects that are taller than he is. The traps were funny in the first Home Alone. It was more or less harmless slapstick. Harry and Marv just would've broken some bones, but here, they were almost killed. It was hard for me to watch. I had developed pericoronitis. The pain was so unbearable that I was crying. Thankfully I was able to get a dentist appointment the next day, and I started taking an antibiotic. But a few hours later that same evening, watching them land on their back after falling through holes in the floor and their body parts getting smashed made me feel worse. I even stopped looking. It wasn't cartoonish, but actually kind of disturbing. And the movie's nowhere close to ending after they've been through all of his traps. The remakes that came after this are actually more entertaining. Unless you like long films that aren't action or thrillers, then you'll be able to sit through Home Alone 2 with no problem.