Family Ties

I've started re-watching the show Family Ties from the mid-80's that starred Michael J. Fox.  Growing up this was one of my favorite shows.  It was a comedy, but often tackled heavy issues.  A few things struck me about the show compared to shows we watch today.  First and foremost is the conservative clothing that the high school girls and university girls wear in the show.  Even, the very popular and attractive girls are often wearing very plain clothes.  Compare that to today's teen comedies.  The second thing that struck me about this series is how it portrays a family that often disagrees, but in the end sticks up for each other and functions as a unit.  Almost every show ends with a good positive moral about sticking up for each other, doing the right thing, and the value of family.  Compare this to tthe shows that my kids watch on TV now.  The first one that comes to mind is Hannah Montana with Miley Cyrus.  Miley alwas seems to be whining and complaining and seems downright cranky most of the time.  I wonder about the message this sends to kids watching.

On a more positive note, while watching the show the other day with Daniel, he said to me "The Dad on that show reminds me of you because he is always trying to do what's best for his family".  I couldn't have asked for a nicer compliment.  In today's society with ipads, ipods, smartphones, twitter, facebook and youtube playing a large part in shaping our kids perceptions of the world around them, it is often difficult to instill strong family values in our children.