Bashing Thomas: Proof that the world is going to heck in a handcart?

Post-partum depression throws its rolling pin at trains?

A crazy mind can spin anything anyway it wants.....lots of time on hand.

Who could hate a face like this......... 

Wow!!! That is a bit crazy!

Yup.

The series has totally gone downhill ever since they started with CGI amination crap.

Seriously though, you can OVER-ANALYZE any children's show and come up with reasons for why it sends bad messages to children. 

Wow is right!

Those that know this woman are so blessed 

Well, that Van Slyke character is entitled to her opinion, silly as it is. Its people that would take her ridiculous rant about Thomas seriously that I would raise eyebrows at....I mean, who in their right mind would think that the lessons learned on the Thomas series is a "bad influence" on children?

Search the internet, there is no end to the crazy analyses performed on childrens cartoons. Here are a few of my favorites:

(Note: these are all slightly twisted but all in jest. None were ever meant to be taken seriously)

Donald Duck has PTSD

From The Journal of Cartoon Overanalyzations comes this diagnosis for Donald Duck’s erratic behavior (though not for his epidemic of pantslessness): he has Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, induced when he was a paratrooper in WWII. As the theorist notes, he seems to have fairly regular flashbacks, difficulty responding normally to social stimuli, and “persistent symptoms of increased arousal (e.g. difficulty falling or staying asleep, anger and hypervigilance)” — not to mention a total disinterest in talking about his wartime experiences.

The Care Bears is “Voodoo masquerading as children’s entertainment”

Start with the name first. Who can deny the similarity between the name Care Bears and Carefours, the district of Port au Prince which is the heart of the Voodoo world? Can the cloud city of Care-a-Lot be anything but an idealized ‘holy city’ of the Lwa – a divine reflection of Carefours? Then consider some of the terminology. The Care Bears constantly want to ‘Share until you care’, just as the Lwa want to share the bodies of their worshipers. The Care Bears are constantly trying to be children’s ‘friends’, just as the Voodoo Lwa are often referred to by their followers as ‘friendly spirits’ or just ‘friends’.

Charlie Brown is dying of cancer

Oof. This one hurts. According to at least one theorist, “My personal explanation for why Charlie Brown in Peanuts is bald is he’s dying of cancer and dreaming up everything. In the strip nothing ever works out for him and his life is a disaster, but he’s simply channeling his sadness into his dreams.”

The fairies in The Fairly Oddparents are metaphors for anti-depressants

According to a theory that comes, yet again, courtesy of Reddit, Timmy’s fairy godparents are simply metaphors for Zoloft and Prozac — they’re there to help him through his problems, but only until he doesn’t need them anymore. Plus, not only did they start showing up at the same time as his problems, but there are some serious side effects every time he abuses their “magic.”

Wouldn't it be such a wonderful world if all of the right wing/left wing pundits would just shut the **** up for 15 minutes or so?

I am so perfectly able to function in my life without the opinions of Rush Limbaugh, Michael Moore, The Dixie Chicks, Toby Keith, the morons from Duck Dynasty or Keith Olbermann being blasted into my ear every hour of every day....

I wish people would begin to figure out that every one of these clowns on all sides of the political divide are interested primarily in self promotion and not much else.

Jeff C

Much like the clowns at the circus, they are all professional entertainers, and not to be taken seriously.

She got her few minutes of notice; now she can go back to being a regular citizen and leave Thomas alone.

Jim McC

I knew it!  This is where all my grandchildren have gained their leftrightconservativeliberal wing ideas!   I hope they never start watching Winnie the Pooh, or, reading James Thurber.

Well, Pooh Bear is a known Satanist...

Jerry

Wow this person is clearly a nutcase.  I mean to hate Thomas because Toppenhat is adetached autocrat with little management skills is ridiculous albeit true (think of how many derailments and breakdowns happen on the Sodor line, I mean wake up British Rail authority these guys need to be closed down until they can get their act together!)  But to hate them and suggest people not watch them for that?  Especially since there are so many other great reasons like:

1) Totally not to scale

2) Are they 2 rail or 3 rail?   It is too important an issue to go silent on don't straddle the issue Thomas

3) The huff chuff sounds are not synced to the wheel action

4) Aquarium cars, UGHHHHHH

5) Did I mention the not to scale thing?

6) None of the troublesome tank cars have year made on them or any weight specifications on them, heck might as well say LIONEL LINES.  Are the tank cars even legal?

7) Who makes those trees?!?!?  Really what are they?

8) I have yet to see any steam engines in any of my assorted hundreds of steam engine books have a face let alone one that reacts

9)  The whole not to scale thing really bothers me, a lot,  I don't know if I mentioned it.

10)  Helicopters with steam engines?  Really what year is this?

Hey fellas,

Lighten up a little bit on this lady.  I mean, who are we to say that good, direct messages to kids can't be offset by negative subliminal messages whether they be colors, sexes or whatever?  Who I am today is a function of what I saw as a child and what I learned as I grew older, assuming I could mesh the two without issue.

It may seem that she is throwing out the good with the bad by turning off this show, but what options does she have?  She can't eliminate the subliminal messages, if any, and if, to her, those are worse than the good messages, she is taking appropriate action.  Whether we agree with her or not (and I haven't seen enough Thomas episodes to know where I stand), I applaud her courage for taking a surely unpopular stand.

Chuck

I feel confident I can clear up Mark Twain's confusion on things, as quoted by Jerry.  

I don't know how many times I watched Mighty Mouse beat up some cat when I was a child. I have yet to abuse a cat because of that show.

Thanks for posting this. You just saved my children from a life gone bad. 

I'm going to cancel our family's tickets to Day out with Thomas at the Illinois Railway Museum. I will not stand for such a brainwashing of my children!!

LOL!! What a fool. I sure hope she doesn't show up at IRM with her protesting mommy friends. What a whack job.

Can you imagine the guy she's married to? Holly cow...

from PRR1950:

"I applaud her courage for taking a surely unpopular stand."

I would not call it courage. Whatever.

If any paper in the UK was going to publish this it would be The Guardian, the paper of  perpetually angry and discontented souls. I am sure they see evil in puppies, cupcakes and daffodils, too.

Mack

Scale is HO or OO at least with the original series.

Engines were kitbashed.

My kids will argue the point on engines with faces. look at the movie cars..

I don't care for the CGI version. I seen video games with better graphics!!!! 

You cant argue with any railroad that can afford to self insure.

Obviously a nonunion shop.

Thomas theme song sounds better in German.

WHO CARES ITS A KIDS SHOW!!!!!!!!!!!

I bet she was a big fan and product of Barney. Then again she would fit right in with the current office holder in the W....... H.......

Barney was a communist plot to indoctrinate our children on the virtues of socialism  and why capitalism/democracy and the US was bad

I can say that I am retired

This is the episode she must have watched:

http://youtu.be/6F6ckqYfg9A

Dave

RE: Twain's quote

Definitely GENUINE imbeciles! 

On the other hand...in Japan the Oigawa Railway has painted a train as Thomas and Friends.  I think there is an overt obsession in Western society with good and bad.

I don't know what she said, but she sure got your attention!

She didn't make that stuff up herself, you know. She got it straight from the antenna the aliens secretly implanted in her head when she was abducted. Somebody needs to tell her that you can "foil" the antenna by wearing a tinfoil hat.

I think that if she is disturbed by Thomas, then it's a good job that she didn't grow up in the days of 'Andy Pandy', 'Captain Pugwash' or even 'The Magic Roundabout'. 

Some people seem to take pleasure in trying to find something wrong with anything that gives pleasure to others. I'm so glad that I'm not one of them.

I just enjoy the simple pleasures in life without trying to find fault with them.

When I was a kid, Buggs Bunny, Foghorn Leghorn (and his train set that threw pies at the dog) and The Road Runner were some of my favorite shows. To this day I do not drop anvils on coyotes, beat dogs with boards, stick my fingers in little bald guys shotgun barrels, or any other stuff I saw on TV.

My kids watched Thomas and Barney. I think I am more well adjusted than them!  LOL

quote:

To this day I do not drop anvils on coyotes, beat dogs with boards, stick my fingers in little bald guys shotgun barrels, or any other stuff I saw on TV.

And people didn't riot when their favorite spots teams won/lost. We didn't need surveillance cameras and such.

It seems that our society is decaying, and people are getting stupider.

As for Thomas: My kids loved Shining Time Station and our collection of the first six Thomas the Tank Engine videos (narrated by Ringo Starr followed by George Carlin).

The shows certainly had mostly positive messages, but I think the woman made some legitimate points.
My kids had plenty of other information sources, including their parents, so they turned out OK anyway.

My Grandchildren aren't going to like this evil blog, as they not only watch, but have the trains and rode on "Thomas The Tank Engine!"

It's a fun theme!!!

Possibly, someone had an unhappy childhood?!!!!
Ralph 

You know what would be hilarious.......if the Thomas people created a new engine and called it Tracy.

Sounds like HER train has gone off the track. 

I think you've summed it up perfectly, Nicole.

Well, they DO have a spot in the Thomas' Friends lineup for a Tracy! 

They could really do a job with that one!