Regularly we all get the emails that are the “Do you remember?” lists. Today as I was reading Wes Roberts blog http://wesroberts.typepad.com/wes/ , he referred to the “Beloit College Mindset List.” Several Professors at Beloit College put together a list to help us understand what has shaped the students entering as freshmen. Check it out at http://www.beloit.edu/mindset/2012.php

Several items on the list were just amusing while some thought provoking. The one that really jumped out at me more as a reminder was #19. “Films have never been X rated, only NC-17.”

The importance of this one is very subtle. During the Rites of Passage teaching, we normally ask parents and young adults alike, what are the movie ratings. Most get the G, PG, PG-13 and R. The problem is the next rating. Many still believe that some movies (call them pornographic) are still rated “X.”

This freshman class has never known that there were “X” rated movies. All they know is “NC-17” or “No children under 17.”

Quietly over the years, we have allowed the movie industry to condition our children to believe that there is not any real pornography….. just art that you need to be more mature to see and appreciate.