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This show is repulsive, has always been repulsive, and will always be repulsive. Bernie Mac's whole shtick has been to center episodes around the abhorrent parenting philosophies he waxed philosophical about in a TV Guide interview a few years ago (The basic premise: If children do anything at all to get under your skin, threaten to hit them with a belt). In the interview, Mac talked about how he used to stand in the outfield of his little league games "afraid to go home" because of the beatings that often awaited him at the hands of his grandfather. But instead of learning from those experiences, he chooses to repeatedly exploit the concept for the cheapest of laughs in a show that redefines the phrase "appealing to the lowest common denominator". <br /><br />Some viewers praise Bernie Mac's alleged "tough love" (a PC term if ever there was one) approach, but psychological studies have proved conclusively that prisons all across the nation are filled with the results of the same parenting style that Mac would have us believe is acceptable. Those who look to "The Bernie Mac Show" for parenting tips are equally likely to view "The Power Rangers" as a deeply thought-provoking social commentary on how to solve conflicts without resorting to violence. <br /><br />While I am certainly not suggesting that parents viewing "Bernie Mac" will immediately pick up a belt and start hitting their kids with it, it is clear to me that this sad excuse for a show has the capacity to desensitize people to family violence by making it appear that it is somehow appropriate, even 'amusing'. I'm not exactly sure when acts/threats of child abuse somehow become synonymous with "great comedy" on FOX (perhaps with the equally exploitive "Titus", or maybe when Homer started choking Bart in a vile running gag that dates back to the eighties?), but as for me, I'd rather spend eight straight hours reading the nutritional labeling on every cereal produced by General Mills than spend time each week watching this overgrown bully browbeat and physically intimidate his unfortunate charges over and over again in a truly desperate attempt for yuks. |