A Viagra-Free Zone for Kids

Why not just read the newspaper with your kids? You can monitor what theyre exposed to, protect them from Viagra ads, and encourage them to read. And you still get to discuss the news! Win-win-win.

People should stop expecting everything to fit their particular needs exactly, and instead find a different solution that does.

Im a single father of a about to be three year old. As he gets older and understands things more he REPEATS any and everything LIKE crazy. This is common and we all know this. So I agree totally with commercials being on the correct channel with the correct rating.

Its insane that Nickelodeon is showing Valtrex commercials. If a a 30 min show is rated for kids, but all the commercials have Adult Content and MA type of rating it totally defeats the purpose and really youd think without say that the commercials would have to be rated as well. Its common sense. Then again our world lacks common sense and beyond.

This is why my 14 year old cousin was addicted to Meth and kicked out of her MIDDLE SCHOOL for prostituting at age 12! WTF? I understand parents play a role as well, but my Aunt and Uncle are AWESOME parents and there other two children luckily haven't feel into the same nightmare, but when I was 12-14 I wouldn't even dream of doing drugs let a lone selling myself to support the habit at that young of an age, and I bet most of you will say the same.

If more children then ever before are falling into these dark ways at this young of an age, then something is wrong. I have seen first hand its not always the parents. My Aunt Uncle helped raised me when I was young and where my favorites to be around, but also made sure I was well disciplined and followed the rules. I like to think I turned out well. Im 26 have been on my own since I was 18 and for the last 2 1/2 years have been raising my little angel since the day he left the hospital. So we cant blame it all on the parents. Something needs to be done here. This is serious and its affecting our youth in a HUGE way.

I like that idea - the ratings should correspond with the time of day. Unfortunatey, there's just too much money to be made by the powerful PHARMA drug lobby. Conservative and Republican, yes, but definitely not family friendly! TV advertising and drug companies are driven strictly by money - this is simply business to them.

Horrified were you, Maggie? Hmmm. Maybe you need to quit being so 'horrified' and be ready to explain these things when your kids ask because, ask they will. YOUR only option is whether YOU do the explaining or the kid down the block does the explaining. Personally, I did the explaining but perhaps you are too 'horrified' to have a cogent chat with your offspring about such things.

I do not believe for one minute that you saw a Valtrex ad on Nickelodeon unless perhaps it was on Nick at Night in which case your youngster shouldn't have been watching it in the first place. Even then, I doubt it. I watch Nickelodeon with my kids regularly and have never seen inappropriate commercials. However, here's a thought: Why not watch PBS? No commercials at all and, with relatively few exceptions, all family friendly programming.

I like your talking through the commercial strategy I have tried that. It just seems to me that those commercials are like mini -info commercials. They are way longer than 30 or 60 seconds,

I like your talking through the commercial strategy I have tried that. It just seems to me that those commercials are like mini -info commercials. They are way longer than the normal 30 or 60 seconds,

If you were to turn the TV off every time a viagra, cialis or other inappropriate commercial came on, the TV would NEVER be on.

Hey, wait... that might not be a bad idea...

I agree with LS. We used to mute the commercials. Now my teen daughters whistle the smiling bob jingle whenever I hit the mute button.

To Rachel,
Why don't you READ newspaper articles to your children OR turn the news off? There is also a MUTE button. I feel if Rachel didn't have the news on on this particular night there wouldn't be anything for her to blog about (or be, what is it?, a political pundit?). Does Rachel have a job? Or is she doing the easiest job ( blogging on a computer) out there because she took the mommy track, and therefore unlike other married women with children and full time careers she chose to sell out and do the easiest thing. What was that? oops! I forgot to use birth control (Rachel, was that REALLY your choice) and now I HAVE to marry Sean who I met on a reality tv show and therefore I don't ACTUALLY have to get resumes out and LOOK for a job and career because my husband will pay my bills and if I keep having babies I can be the good, ( and favored hispanic) conservative, religious person, who one day might have to stop PROVING that she is american enough, patriotic enough, a good and LEGAL citizen. Rachel, there are ACTUALLY people with brown skin out there who are american, patriotic, ivy-league educated, and legal citizens who don't have to spout hypocrisy in order to get approvel to see if they are AMERICAN ENOUGH. Did you ever here of the saying "Less is more?" You don't have to prove to the public that you are a LEGAL CITIZEN BECAUSE YOU HAVE BROWN SKIN AND ARE HISPANIC. We Get it. Alot of us would also respect you more if you researched your facts and STOPPED TRYING SO HARD! WE BELIEVE YOU!