This is not an Onion headline. The only way this Portland, Oregon story could get weirder would be if it were the director’s own film to which the woman brought her five year old son.

Now I’m pretty sure this R rated movie, “End of Watch,” is not appropriate for a five year old. And I’m equally sure it’s not child abuse to bring him. Mr. Film Director was over the line in attempting to impose his self righteous values over this mother. But that’s what government and media have combined to do: demonize (multiple choice)– video games, cigarettes, soda, transfats, salt, peanut butter, drinking, etc., to the extent that individuals are moved to act on their own and ‘save’ a child from this ‘abuse.’ This hackneyed, outsized belief in the importance of his own opinion has resulted in this bizarre story from Portland news outlets:

A Portland-based Hollywood director and producer was so outraged at a mother bringing her 4- or 5-year-old to a violent movie that he called Child Protective Services, KGW reports.

Stephen Simon was watching the R-rated “End of Watch” at the Bridgeport Village Regal Cinema. The mom and young son walked into the theater as scenes of people being assaulted and shot played across the screen. “I thought, this is child abuse,” Simon said, adding that he confronted the mother about how he felt.

But according to Child Protective Services, it is not abuse to bring a youngster to a violent flick. The agency considers it a “values call” for the parent and not an act of child endangerment. There was nothing it could do, Simon was told by the woman who answered the agency’s phone.

Simon has not given up. He will urge theater owners to warn parents with kids in tow about movies containing violence or profanity.

This is what happens when we put government more and more in control of parenting our kids. As Michelle Obama puts it, “We can’t just leave it up to the parents.” So we pass law or demonize behavior and pretty soon you have people calling the cops on a mom for taking a kid to a movie.

Think I’m wrong? We have food police sending our home made lunches back because they’re not ‘good enough.’ A guy in Bellingham, Washington was so outraged by a smoking pregnant woman that he pulled a gun on her.
And the list goes on. 

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