# Don't be such a Jerk, Ukulele Ike **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 5, 2003, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714 "2003-01-05T03:30:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![JaxBeachBoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@JaxBeachBoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaxBeachBoy)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/21 "2003-01-05T04:55:48Z")
Yeah this kid has a chance ---
**Author:** ![Drastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Drastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drastic)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/22 "2003-01-05T04:56:37Z")
On the bright side, when the future kid’s a further-future teenager, it’ll be able to engage in parent-baiting in much more innocuous ways than many others. Some have to go to outlandish clothing, develop an interest in extensive body piercing and start talking about ritual scarification, and so forth–Future Spawn will just be able to wallpaper their room in Disney memorabilia for the exact same effect. These things have a way of evening out. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/23 "2003-01-05T05:00:32Z")
I’m thinking that lee has some hardcore pregnancy hormones raging - it’s the only possible explanation for her total over-reaction to a harmless joke. Personally, I thought it was kinda funny. I’m sure you didn’t intend it, but your original post came accross as pretty sanctimonious - I think **Ukulele Ike** was just, ya know, teasing you a little. Perhaps if you took it in the spirt it was intended, you would be less likely to give yourself and aneurysm. ---
**Author:** ![Neurotik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/91b2a8/32.png) [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/24 "2003-01-05T05:02:05Z")
Seriously. I come from Anaheim. Disney-hating is an art form there that I suspect the denizens of Orlando can only truly appreciate. And I’ve never seen the level of anger that you exhibit from anyone else, and I consider myself to be the biggest Disney hater of them all. Chill out. Your child will see Disney stuff, whether you like it or not. But it’s your kid, do what you will. ---
**Author:** ![NightRabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/bbce88/32.png) [@NightRabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NightRabbit)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/25 "2003-01-05T05:02:05Z")
Like it or not, your knee-jerk reaction against the “evils” of Disney is strikingly similar to other expectant parents insisting on any number of special limitations for their children (only organic foods or only cloth diapers or no cartoons/tv, etc). Parenting, however, isn’t that cut and dry. Placing a complete moratorium on one of the largest children’s entertainment companies is going to raise eyebrows just as much as if you announced that your child would never be allowed to eat apples or listen to popular music. Did you really expect differently? ---
**Author:** ![quixotic78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/3ab097/32.png) [@quixotic78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/quixotic78)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/26 "2003-01-05T05:02:54Z")
Until this thread, I didn’t know it was possible for pregnant women to be on the rag. Thank you, Straight Dope, for eliminating my ignorance! ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/27 "2003-01-05T05:09:09Z")
I do think an apology from UkeIke is in order. He treads the line in general, and going too far is going too far. Yeah, moderators _are_ held to different standards. This is news? Remember the old maxim: “There can be no communication between levels of authority.” The SDMB is closer to breaching this rule than, say, the Marines, but a mod can’t completely `turn it off’ just like a DI can’t. lee overreacted to a tasteless joke. It’s the japester’s duty to be the better man, especially if the japester is in a position to ban lee. ---
**Author:** ![Kamandi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5daacb/32.png) [@Kamandi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamandi)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/28 "2003-01-05T05:10:25Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by lee \* > **I hate their purchased legislation,** Wha…? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/29 "2003-01-05T05:12:31Z")
In all seriousness, you _could_ have used the “report this post” function. It sends an e-mail with a link to all the mods of that forum. And then **Coldie, Cajun Man and UncleBeer** would have shown up at **Uke’s** door with baseball bats and Straightdope coffee mugs filled with acid. That would have taught that jerk to rib you off topic! ---
**Author:** ![JaxBeachBoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@JaxBeachBoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaxBeachBoy)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/30 "2003-01-05T05:13:34Z")
purchased legislation refers to Disney’s lawyers always convincing Congress to push back the common use laws for copyrighted materials, so that Disney’s charachters never fall into public domain. ps-the joke was funny, and well deserved. ---
**Author:** ![Scotticher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Scotticher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scotticher)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/31 "2003-01-05T05:14:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by astro \* > \*\*Yeah, how could how could you be angry at [Ukulele Ike](http://www.geocities.com/~ukulele/ukuleleike.html) \*\* 'Cuz he is SCARY looking, THAT’s WHY!!! Sheesh, if I had only known that is what **Ukelele Ike** looked like when he became a mod, I would have voted NO. NO NO NO NO!!! [sub]What’s that? No one gave me a vote? NO ONE GAVE ME A VOTE??? Why the very idea…I may have to start my second pit thread!!! And THIS one won’t have a “sweetie” in the title, EITHER![/sub] Not to make light of **Lee** ’s concerns. She has the right to restrict anything in her home that she feels would be detrimental to her child. My own personal feeling, though, is that it is going a bit far to “pre-screen” gifts…but then it isn’t MY child, and I don’t think Disney is a BAD thing…You know what is funny is that when I was a child we weren’t allowed to go to movies UNLESS they were DISNEY movies. Autre temps or something like that. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/32 "2003-01-05T05:17:35Z")
> [@](#): > > \*\* It amazes me that so many get their “knickers in a twist” about me not exposing my child to Disney in my house. \*\* No one cares that you don’t want your kids to have Disney stuff. Everyone finds you to be majorly over-reacting to a small joke about expectant parents. We are not a part of the great Disney conspiracy, trying to make you one of us so we can destroy your child’s love and trust in mothers. You could substitute “Disney” for “Warner Bros” or “Playskool” or “plastic guns” and it makes no difference - this isn’t about Disney. We snigger because so many expectant parents before you have said “My child will NEVER… (insert idealism here)”, and have found later that not everything panned out the way they thought it would, and that they have violated principles that they considered sacred before Junior came along. **Ms Robyn** related one such personal anecdote. YOU may be different. YOU may be the parents who stick to their guns and successfully run a Disney-free household. We just laugh because the odds seem against you. Let’s resurrect this thread in 1 year, 2 years, 5 years time and see how you feel about it then. ---
**Author:** ![Kamandi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5daacb/32.png) [@Kamandi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamandi)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/33 "2003-01-05T05:23:33Z")
When I have a kid, I’m never letting him out of the root cellar. The world is just too scary. [sub]Thanks, Jax[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![loinburger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/db5fbb/32.png) [@loinburger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/loinburger)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/34 "2003-01-05T05:26:46Z")
As my grandparents (who raised five kids in their time) told me, “With the first kid, you’re over-protective – you baby-proof the house, you try to shield them from anything remotely harmful outside of the house, you’re on your feet the second they start crying. With the second kid, you’re starting to get a bit tired – you’re not so quick off the mark when they’re in “danger,” you’re not so worried about their diets, you let them stay up past their bedtimes so long as it makes them calm the next day. Around kid number three or four, you realize that kids cry, they bump their heads, they scrape their knees, they get colds, and there’s not a damn thing you can do about it, so you learn to lighten up, crack open a beer or pour yourself a Manhattan, and just encourage them to try not to maim themselves too badly.” ---
**Author:** ![reprise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@reprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/reprise)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/35 "2003-01-05T05:29:07Z")
I do hope that when your child is old enough **lee** , you’ll explain the reasoning behind your ban on Disney within your home. I also hope you’ll understand that forbidden fruit tastes sweeter and that your youngster may well deliberately cultivate as friends the children who have the largest collection of Disney movies and other merchandise. I **loathe** many, many Disney portrayals (don’t get me started on Pocahontas) - but I’d rather explain to my children why I find those particular portrayals reprehensible than deprive my children of “The Lion King”, “Bambi”, and “Disney on Ice”, let alone all the wonderful things from “Tomorrowland - the promise of things to come”. I’m not sure how old you are **lee** , but before you make a final decision on this you might like to hunt up some of the very old Disney material. “Bambi” and “Fantasia” would be a good start, but there are also many episodes of the old “Disneyland” TV programme which used to screen every Sunday night which I think are both entertaining and “non-offensive”. And more than anything else, if what you object to is Disney’s portrayal of mothers, then prove to your child that Disney’s portrayal is wrong by leading by example. Surround your child with other mothers who don’t fit the Disney stereotype. When parents impose a blanket ban on anything seemingly innocuous, I sometimes get the feeling that they are scared of that thing gaining more influence over their child’s life than themselves - I think it’s very sad to have so little faith in your own ability to communicate your values to your child that childhood becomes an experience in censorship. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/36 "2003-01-05T05:29:53Z")
> [@](#): > > You could substitute “Disney” for “Warner Bros” or “Playskool” or “plastic guns” and it makes no difference - this isn’t about Disney. I think it’s TOTALLY about Disney. ---
**Author:** ![wring](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/838e76/32.png) [@wring](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wring)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/37 "2003-01-05T05:31:26Z")
I think **cazzle** has it right. It amazes me to this day (and my son is now 18) how _little_ control I had/have over his world. OTOH, I bristle at folks suggesting that **lee’s** child will be seriously screwed up etc 'cause of her concerns RE: Disney. I personally didn’t care for Disney at all. and the whole ‘no mom’ thing that’s a common theme in their big cartoon productions bugged me as well. OTOH, my sister, who is an elementary school teacher commented to me once that the _only_ movies she showed in her classroom were Disney “cause they’re educational”. bwhahahahahaha. ha. So, **lee** , it is absolutely your right to set up those conditions, since you seem to feel so strongly about it. As parents we **should** aim to have do the best (in our opinion) for our children. And, of course, everyone else has a right to their opinions as well. YOu seem to understand that you won’t be able to manipulate the entire world to conform to your wishes. A word of caution - Disney marketing is pretty damn pervasive, as I’m sure you’ve noted. I was seriously appauled when I heard my toddler say “but mom, I wanna collect all four”, perfectly quoting the McDonalds ad that he’d heard. \*\*Ike’s \*\* comment, was IMHO, a fairly common reaction, that I suspect many have had when you’ve expressed your plans to them. Most folks, I assume, were polite enough to refrain from voicing it aloud. ---
**Author:** ![Shadez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@Shadez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shadez)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/38 "2003-01-05T05:32:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by lee \* > \*\*I don’t want to control what my child likes, I just don’t want Disney to be a factor in it at all. \*\* Um… anyone else see the problem with this sentence? 'Sides, when that kid cries about how every other kid gets Disney products and gets to watch Disney (and believe me they will, because they want everything everyone else gets), I highly doubt they’re going to understand your explanation … or at the very least, accept it without holding a grudge. Heh, watch them be in therapy over this… Not saying that they will, just saying that would be ironic. And knowing them, they’ll get old enough and start buying _everything_ Disney related, because it pisses you off. Would you have understand or liked your mother if she did this to you? Wouldn’t you more likely feel cheated? Just imagine yourself as a 5 year old, getting told “No, you can’t watch that. No you can’t buy that. But Suzy has one, mom!” \*\*I hate the resulting degradation of tastes. \*\* How do you feel about video games? They can’t be considered “good taste”. or SNES, or Sega, or Playstation. You going to tell them they can’t play those either? You think they’re going to accept that? Maybe most of the Disney movies (in the ones where you said “no mother, or little role”) weren’t _about_ the mothers. If they aren’t the starring role, so be it. I’ve noticed you haven’t researched the father’s presence at all… the other _half_ of the parental unit. I’m just saying, this control thing can spiral out of control… just please consider the matter further – and if you have, that’s great. But the complications that arise are solely on your shoulders. If it works, great. But I can distinctly remember my mother telling me she was so glad my grandparents didn’t enforce any of their views on her, and let her make her own choices. /Shadez ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@Mighty\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Girl)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/39 "2003-01-05T05:34:42Z")
And why exactly was **Ukulele Ike** worthy of this Pit thread? Cool down **lee** , you’re the only one seeing harm in his words, it was a harmless (but funny) joke. We all accept that you have the right to raise your child however you like (within reason) but we all seem to agree that you’re taking it a wee bit too far. And yes, mods are human too (albeit insane 😉 ). No need to hold them in too high a standard. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2003, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714/40 "2003-01-05T05:37:14Z")
Experienced parents are allowed to laugh at us earnest newbies. They’ve earned that right. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-be-such-a-jerk-ukulele-ike/146714.md?page=3)