Thomas the train is a negative show.

In an older blog post I wrote how, as a parent, you learn to watch television critically. I argued that TV was much too flashy for children and is probably bad for their brains:

"The problem is that every time the screen on the TV changes it makes a little flash. In the old days, the screen didn't flash much because it didn't change much. Now when you watch TV, it's almost constant flickering and flashing."

I didn't mention content, but that's another thing you have to be aware of. Take the very popular show "Thomas the Tank Engine". It's a British show about a blue train named Thomas. And it's very bitter and mean spirited.

In every episode the trains are mean to each other, jealous, reckless or behaving badly. (It's a British show so what do you expect - British people are mean and cranky.)

I mentioned this to another parent and he said that I need to "get over it" and that Thomas has "good messages" and that I'm "too uptight". Maybe.

But Jake only has the attention for the first half of the show. He sees the meaness and then loses interest and never sees the resolution. Basically, he's being exposed to mean behaviour.

Most other shows are fine. The characters are nice to each other. My wife tells me that Care Bears is brutally horrible and that they're vicious to one another.

And of course Looney Tunes is bad because it's violent and mean. Don't think it's on much anymore as it's no longer poltically correct. My friend informs me it's on every day on Teletoon Retro. Oh.