Wednesday, July 1, 2009

We be dum

As usual, an innocuous trip to the local store supplies me with fodder for a blog update.

I was waiting for my prescription to be filled and meandered into the toy section. I was curious to see if there were any new family games on the retail shelves. There wasn't. I did see something that was moderately disturbing.

I am aware that Monopoly comes in all flavors these days. In fact, I have a Simpsons version. I also realized that the game has been released as a computer game. which invites online play and computer opponents. No problem with that either. The version that had me cursing the stupidity of the masses did not have Monopoly money in it. No, no, no. Instead, the players are provided credit cards and and a hand held balance calculator to keep track of their assets. No math skills required. No having to make change. No banker. As many of us will attest, Monopoly helped us hone our skills in handling money and involved mental arithmetic skills. I wouldn't be shocked to see the game tally the pips on the dice an show you where to put your marker.

Just another example of the dumbing down of America.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

the world has become all about finding the path which requires the least amount of effort.

unbelievable.

andy:)

Barkley's Mommy said...

Great post! Let's encourage our children (and ourselves) to make efforts to achieve what we never thought we could. We all have boundless potential. No more "dumming", please!

~~~Anne