The death of Andy Griffith the other day brought back a flood of memories to me about Mayberry and all of the characters that were so funny on that show. But it also posed a question in my mind. What happened to us and what happened to television? One needs only to look at the sitcoms today and it quickly becomes apparent that the only thing that seems to be presented, as entertainment anymore, is humor that would have been censored on the spot back then.

So instead of Andy and his cast in Mayberry we have Charlie Sheen and his sexual conquests and his boozy life style. That’s not funny, that’s sadly one of the big problems in our society now days. Does it make it okay to laugh about it? In fairness to Charlie, that seems to be the recipe for most of the shows now days.

Each year the censors let a little bit more get by them. Swear words that were taboo a few years back our now common place. The dress code is out the window. I’m not a prude but I am concerned about what our kids are seeing. Were going to look around us someday and suddenly realize we have no one to blame but ourselves.

Mike Holst

Crosslake