timeimmortal

Both fathers and mothers have been guilty of killing their infant children in the past. Indeed, in the modern era, the statistical distribution of who commits such offences is pretty much 50/50 — mothers are just as much able and likely to kill an infant as fathers are.

But you see, O Reader, whereas women who kill infants are almost always suffering from some kind of mental illness, men who kill infants are usually just spiteful bastards. Don’t take my word for it, though — a feminist newspaper columnist said it, so it must be true!

The problem with choices made is that once they are made, we have to live with them. It is a strange facet of our post-Christian society that women would concoct elaborate fictions in order to seem as though they belong to “the secret club of women with children” — and in order, perhaps, to satisfy the urge toward motherhood that is an integral, if ignored, part of their being — and yet remain entrenched in their “choice” to never have children of their own, for real.

For the truth is that motherhood is no more a secret club than is womanhood. And yet for many, it is a far distant country, or seems to be, because they have swallowed whole the lies that society has fed to them.

I wrote previously about an article discussing the role of parenting in the lives of Lindsay Lohan as compared to Miley Cyrus, two young and very famous ladies.

As an addendum to that article, I respectfully submit the following:

Troubled actress Lindsay Lohan apparently offered to strip completely in a film that only required partial nudity, and the producers refused. Yay!

I’d say “good for the producers,” but for the fact that they were still pushing for a nude scene. And no, I’m not getting all “sexually repressive” on the good Reader, although I will observe that I’ve yet to see a nude scene in which the nudity itself was an integral and necessary part of the scene, absolutely required to advance the plot of the film. And I’ve yet to see a nude scene that could be deemed morally licit on similar grounds.

I imagine, in our sex-saturated world, that every actress must inevitably entertain the request to do a nude scene in a movie, and I’m sure Miley Cyrus will one day face a similar request. For the life of me, though, I can’t imagine her agreeing to it, especially not with the enthusiasm that Ms. Lohan exhibited.

Good parenting vs. bad parenting.

Update: It’s been brought to my attention, however, all is not roses. Still, it serves to note that in a certain sense, while Miley’s self-portraits — complete with pulling back her shirt a bit to show off the colour of her bra — aren’t in good taste, and aren’t exactly in keeping with the Christian ideals she has elsewhere articulated, they aren’t exactly the worst we’ve seen coming out of young stars these days. I seem to recall a scandal involving Vanessa Hudgens recently that put Miley’s bra flash to shame. And to be fair, she certainly isn’t pregnant like a certain Spears sister of nearly the same age is.

Not that this discovery should come as that much of a surprise — while the short-term thrill of a more vacuous, childless life devoid of long-term relationships might get a person by in the immediate sense, and might even be more “fun” for a time, eventually the inherent emptiness of the post-Christian lifestyle begins to take hold. In a life lived only for the temporary, what can possibly be enduring? And absent the enduring, what can possibly serve to make us happy?

Related: A relevant piece of clothing.

GetReligion is following an interesting story that compares two teen (or just barely post-teen) superstars — Lindsay Lohan and Miley Cyrus (a.k.a. Hannah Montana) — and the actions of their parents. It is, to say the least, interesting to note what role a firm parent who is willing to draw a line somewhere plays in the lives of the latter of these two young women, and how destructive a parent who is just trying to buddy-up and go along with her daughter’s fame can be in the case of the former.

One cites Bible verses and grounds his daughter when she misbehaves; the other drinks cocktails and goes club-hopping into the wee hours with her celebrity daughter. Says celebrity gossip blogger Perez Hilton (aka Mario Armando Lavandeira Jr.): “Billy Ray Cyrus actually sets boundaries…Dina Lohan is an enabler, a parasite…The Lohans are role models for dysfunction.”

The effect on the kids? Well, make your own judgment — but one of the girls has been in and out of rehab and has an arrest record; the other recited Ephesians 6:10-11 on “The Oprah Winfrey Show.” Parenting just might be a factor…

Chicago-based parenting coach Sharon Pieters (childminded.com) says the latter might be easier for Ms. Lohan than the former.

“I think to Dina Lohan, Lindsay is primarily a friend, a playmate,” Ms. Pieters says. “She leans on her kids for emotional support, and in the end, Lindsay and her sister are probably saying, ‘Who’s taking care of me if my mother’s not?’ ” she says, adding, “If she wants to give her children support, she should give them advice and bring them their favorite sandwiches ” not go out for tequila shots at two in the morning.”

On one hand, that this sort of thing is newsworthy speaks volumes about how low our supposedly enlightened post-Christian culture has really sunk. On the other hand, it’s nice to see yet another affirmation that demonstrates just what an effect a Christian approach to parenting can have on the life of a a young woman who, before even reaching the legal drinking age, has already found fame and fortune that most of us can only dream of. Too often has it been the case that such a turn of events has led many a young star, male or female, down the path that Lindsay Lohan is walking.

The guys at GR also note the text of the verses that Miley Cyrus cited to Oprah (concerning being strong in the Lord, and putting faith in God on as armour), and wonder if perhaps young Ms. Cyrus wasn’t making a pointed comment about the temptations of Hollywood life.

Update: It’s been brought to my attention, however, all is not roses. Still, it serves to note that in a certain sense, while Miley’s self-portraits — complete with pulling back her shirt a bit to show off the colour of her bra — aren’t in good taste, and aren’t exactly in keeping with the Christian ideals she has elsewhere articulated, they aren’t exactly the worst we’ve seen coming out of young stars these days. I seem to recall a scandal involving Vanessa Hudgens recently that put Miley’s bra flash to shame. And to be fair, she certainly isn’t pregnant like a certain Spears sister of nearly the same age is.

Update Saves Christmas: Welcome, WebElf readers!