Drilled

Just a brief complaint to register here...

Laura watches Fox's 24 every week, which usually means that I watch it every week as well. As far as drama and entertainment value, I agree that it usually maintains a high level each week. However, I'm pretty disturbed by the amount of torture that is featured in the program. It's prominent in virtually every episode.

In this week's two-hour special, a man was captured and forced to comply with a terrorist's demands that he arm a device that would make the nuclear weapons in the terrorist's possession operational. When the man initially refused, he was beaten with a baseball bat. When he still refused, the bad guy's henchmen held the man while they used a cordless drill to bore a hole through his upper back into his shoulder-blade.

I have a pretty weak stomach/low tolerance for this sort of stuff. I find it incredibly disturbing, and I have a difficult time getting it out of my memory. I'm 25 years old, and I find myself haunted by the images. I can only imagine what it must be like for younger viewers, but then again, they may be desensitized to this type of thing now. Personally, I feel it's pretty disgusting.

The readily-available option remains for me to simply stop watching the show, and I'm well aware of that. My real problem is not that this type of thing is on television, but that the display of Janet Jackson's nipple causes a media firestorm, multi-million dollar fines from the FCC, and outrage from offended parents while the routine use of torture on a hit show is given a pass.

Obviously this is a case of violence being just fine, but sex? Evil! It's comical. If and when I have children, I'd be a hell of a lot more worried about them watching people getting beaten, drilled, and shot than seeing some naked people on TV. It's ridiculous and it just shows how fucked up the supposed 'Values' crowd really is.