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Cartoons that Mock Science are Bad for the Children

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BagofMagicFood Since: Jan, 2001
#26: Nov 8th 2011 at 2:22:00 PM

Now that's thinking with your head!

MyGodItsFullofStars Since: Feb, 2011
#27: Nov 8th 2011 at 3:38:03 PM

[up][up]That's a terrible idea! What we should do is make a cartoon dedicated to how awesome science is, and that mocks people who believe in stuff like ghosts and clairvoyance and have belief in a personal God. Sort of like Jonny Quest, but without the stupid cryptids. Only then will the world be safe for democracy.

MoeDantes cuter, cuddlier Edmond from the Land of Classics Since: Nov, 2010
cuter, cuddlier Edmond
#28: Nov 8th 2011 at 3:52:15 PM

and that mocks people who believe in stuff like ghosts and clairvoyance

You mean like Scooby Doo?

Sort of like Jonny Quest, but without the stupid cryptids.

... "cryptids"? I've seen all 26 episodes of Jonny Quest and most of Real Adventures at least twice, and I don't recall ever hearing the term "cryptid." Are they from the 80s series?

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Kayeka (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#29: Nov 8th 2011 at 3:57:34 PM

[up][up]Hmmm, no. As an atheist, I'm all for instilling some critical thinking in kids, but I don't feel like crushing their dreams completely yet. That would make them go all serious over cartoons portraying reality, and get them all up in arms once they perceive that a cartoon is promoting religion. Not to mention close-minded, which is bad no matter in what directing they are building their brain-walls.

edited 8th Nov '11 3:59:18 PM by Kayeka

MyGodItsFullofStars Since: Feb, 2011
#30: Nov 8th 2011 at 3:58:16 PM

[up]I mean stuff like yetis, pterodactyls that survived to modern times, merpeople, etc. You know, cryptids, as in cryptozoology. Wikipedia it if you must.

As for Scooby Doo, that show is a good direction to take things, though it always bothered me when as the gang was leaving in their van the REAL monster would make a brief appearance.

FallenLegend Trickster. from Navel Of The Moon. Since: Oct, 2010
Trickster.
#31: Nov 8th 2011 at 4:01:54 PM

Religisious =/= antiscience for that matter christian =/= antiscience

Hosea 4:6 "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge..."

Proverbs 14:15 The simple believes every word, But the prudent considers well his steps

As a christian I am not against science on the contrary. I believe it's a tool for us to know God's cration.

That being said please don't turn this into a religion debate (wich always turns into an antichristian debate anyways). I will be the first one to call the mods if it happens. please don't.

edited 8th Nov '11 4:10:00 PM by FallenLegend

Make your hearth shine through the darkest night; let it transform hate into kindness, evil into justice, and loneliness into love.
Kayeka (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#32: Nov 8th 2011 at 4:09:06 PM

[up]Yeah, that too. We shouldn't touch personal believes too much in a kid's cartoon.

SlowTeddy Baby! from Here Since: Aug, 2011
Baby!
#33: Nov 8th 2011 at 4:09:51 PM

I can't believe that this is a actual argument. I'm pretty shure, especially in this day and age, nobody is anti-science in the industry. (might I add animation is costany evolving with new technology)

Never tell your problems to anyone...20% don't care and the other 80% are glad you have them.
FallenLegend Trickster. from Navel Of The Moon. Since: Oct, 2010
Trickster.
#34: Nov 8th 2011 at 4:19:06 PM

[up]I think the Op still has the burden of proof. He hasn't proved that this shows have "anti science themes"

edited 8th Nov '11 4:22:11 PM by FallenLegend

Make your hearth shine through the darkest night; let it transform hate into kindness, evil into justice, and loneliness into love.
boobustuber on a horse from hey what did i just say Since: Apr, 2010
on a horse
#35: Nov 8th 2011 at 4:33:00 PM

I don't think cartoons should always be realistic anyway. Kids don't ALWAYS want to learn. Having a fun show that has no basis in reality is not harmful. Nor is it anything new.

Mullon Since: Jan, 2001 Relationship Status: And here's to you, Mrs. Robinson
#36: Nov 8th 2011 at 4:41:27 PM

So we're not killing children?

Never trust anyone who uses "degenerate" as an insult.
MyGodItsFullofStars Since: Feb, 2011
#37: Nov 8th 2011 at 4:51:28 PM

[up]Rounding them all up would be a pain...

SlowTeddy Baby! from Here Since: Aug, 2011
Baby!
#38: Nov 8th 2011 at 5:00:44 PM
Thumped: Wow. That was rude. Too many of this kind of thump will bring a suspension. Please keep it civil.
Never tell your problems to anyone...20% don't care and the other 80% are glad you have them.
Webby Very Manly Muppet Since: Dec, 2010
Very Manly Muppet
#39: Nov 8th 2011 at 5:25:52 PM

Thank you, Fallen Legend. That is a troubling misconception.

Anywho, I still maintain that My Little Pony isn't anti-science. Twilight's intelligence is never portrayed as a fault. Her stubbornness, perhaps.

Actually a girl.
Psi001 Since: Oct, 2010
#40: Nov 8th 2011 at 5:54:34 PM

Sonic Satam seems to go in and out with this, the Complete Monster villain is robotic obsessed, but the heroes rely on Bamboo Technology and their sentient handheld device for a lot of missions (not to mention a lot of their abilities seem to thrive from science backgrounds, hacking ,mechanics, etc). The plot does seem to at least imply that science and technology can be very VERY bad in malicious (or careless) hands.

edited 8th Nov '11 5:57:46 PM by Psi001

Karalora Since: Jan, 2001
#41: Nov 8th 2011 at 6:46:46 PM

The problem with "Feeling Pinkie Keen" isn't the message; it's the terminology. The scriptwriters used "science" and "faith" where they should have been used "rigid thinking" and "open-mindedness."

Webby Very Manly Muppet Since: Dec, 2010
Very Manly Muppet
#42: Nov 8th 2011 at 6:47:41 PM

[up][up] I'd say Sat AM takes a pretty neutral view of it. Science is shown being used for both good and bad purposes, which is pretty realistic. True that Robotnik had more technology on hand, but Chuck was also a scientist, and a good guy.

edited 8th Nov '11 6:47:56 PM by Webby

Actually a girl.
Psi001 Since: Oct, 2010
#43: Nov 8th 2011 at 7:21:18 PM

[up]On the other hand Chuck was also portrayed as being a bit overambitious and careless, he creates a high tech device that inadvertantly robs people of their free will (keep in mind they must have tested it on someone to figure that out) and then somewhat stupidly left the blueprints for anyone to steal. King Acorn also very naively invested in advanced robotic forces that were later turned against him. Getting too ambitious with technology was the key cause in the world being turned into a dystopia.

Most of the Freedom Fighters' devices were humble or Bamboo Technology. The exception was NICOLE (though third season plans had her be a creation of Robotnik in a rather disturbing backstory). The setup may be that science is good in moderation but getting too ahead of time can break things BAD and must be handled very werily. Granted that sounds pretty realistic.

edited 8th Nov '11 7:27:19 PM by Psi001

NapoleonDeCheese Since: Oct, 2010
#44: Nov 8th 2011 at 7:38:19 PM

Really, Science and Magic are both misused and well used just as often in cartoons.

Not that cartoons where the heroes make good use of technology and science are rare. Out of the top of my head, I can mention Frankenstein Jr And The Impossibles, The Powerpuff Girls (who are, after all, a product of science), Swat Kats, Space Ghost, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (via Donatello), Phantom2040, Batman Beyond...

Nightwire Since: Feb, 2010
#45: Nov 8th 2011 at 10:10:29 PM

[up]Phineas And Ferb, anyone? It's pretty much the embodiment of "Science is AWESOME".

edited 8th Nov '11 10:15:28 PM by Nightwire

MoeDantes cuter, cuddlier Edmond from the Land of Classics Since: Nov, 2010
cuter, cuddlier Edmond
#46: Nov 8th 2011 at 10:14:35 PM

As for Scooby-Doo, that show is a good direction to take things, though it always bothered me when as the gang was leaving in their van the REAL monster would make a brief appearance.

WHAT?! Dude, what version of Scooby are you watching? Cuz I've literally only seen this happen once, in a direct-to-video movie*

. And I've been a Scooby nut since childhood.

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MyGodItsFullofStars Since: Feb, 2011
#47: Nov 8th 2011 at 10:18:56 PM

[up]Probably the older version - the one they sometimes show on Boomerang, basically it came out just before Scrappy Doo premiered. I recall several cases - not every episode, mind you, but some - where the monster was implied to be real, but you'd only ever see it after the mystery had been solved and the gang was riding off into the sunrise. Examples include the Loch Ness monster.

MoeDantes cuter, cuddlier Edmond from the Land of Classics Since: Nov, 2010
cuter, cuddlier Edmond
#48: Nov 8th 2011 at 10:39:42 PM

As I said, I'm a huge Scooby nut, especially the classic episodes, and I literally can't think of any cases of such in that era... actually, I can, but they were all episodes that featured Scrappy Doo, and mainly after the show had dropped the mystery-solving premise.

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ActuallyComma I am making sense! from a mysterious place Since: Feb, 2011
I am making sense!
#49: Nov 9th 2011 at 1:40:07 AM

That's a terrible idea! What we should do is make a cartoon dedicated to how awesome science is, and that mocks people who believe in stuff like ghosts and clairvoyance and have belief in a personal God. Sort of like Jonny Quest, but without the stupid cryptids. Only then will the world be safe for democracy.
Somebody call Ted Turner, we can pair it up with a Captain Planet revival: the Right-Thinking Lefty Power Hour. To keep things fair and balanced, we can run a children's puppet show promoting my UFO doomsday cult right afterwards.

As a kid, I always thought the lame part of Scooby Doo was that the monsters were never real. But oh no, we can't have any real ghosts, that wouldn't be realistic enough for our cartoon about a mystery-solving talking dog.

Except [condescending response follows]. Because [sarcasm here]. You do understand [snark], right? POTHOLE TO SARCASM MODE
MoeDantes cuter, cuddlier Edmond from the Land of Classics Since: Nov, 2010
cuter, cuddlier Edmond
#50: Nov 9th 2011 at 2:16:11 AM

I remember at least one monster being real (pre-Scrappy Doo*

), that robot thing in that one episode about the fair.

In general I find the early episodes were far less formulaic than the later series, especially compared to the point where Scooby devolved into self-parody.

On-topic though, no less a person than Carl Sagan praised Scooby Doo for the whole "all monsters are fake" thing, going so far to say that a version aimed at adults would be a great boost to our culture. I'm not sure how much I agree with him, but I thought it was worth mentioning.

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